Haida Gwaii Roots & Shoots:
Children Explore Harmony with Nature in a
Traditional Haida Village

From a distance, they looked like trees. Towering. Crowned in brilliant sunshine. But as the floatplane neared the shore, Jacob saw that they were the monumental carved cedar poles of the Haida people.

A female Haida Gwaii Watchman met the floatplane, welcoming its passengers to K’uuna Llnagaay in the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site. Jacob stepped off the plane into a world dating back hundreds of years. Probably one of the oldest settlements in Canada, said the Watchman. The carved cedar poles were even more magnificent from the beach.

Jacob and the other children had never visited this isolated corner of Haida Gwaii (the Queen Charlotte Islands). The Watchman, keeper of its precious natural and cultural heritage, painted pictures with her words as they walked. Her stories brought to life the generations of Haida that had thrived in these ancient forests, nourished by the land and the sea, their lives in perfect harmony with nature.

For Jacob, this was a day of firsts. A pod of whales cresting the ocean’s surface as the floatplane glided towards shore. Searching for bears along a forested trail overhung with moss. The timeless poles. Experiences he would never forget.

For the coordinators of Haida Gwaii Roots & Shoots, this day was an opportunity for Jacob and his friends to experience the rich environmental and cultural heritage of Haida Gwaii. The goal of this adventure? To help build the next generation of environmental stewards. Coordinator Alison Gear sees the visit to K’uuna Llnagaay as a unique formative experience. “We wanted to show the children how the Haida people lived in harmony with the land and the sea for over ten thousand years. We wanted them to see what a sustainable life that was and that such a relationship with nature is possible. In the long term, this trip helped to shape the children’s sense of environmental responsibility and stewardship.”

Created in 2003, Haida Gwaii Roots & Shoots is a non-profit, community-based organization dedicated to giving children an opportunity to learn about, and take action to protect, their local environment. It involves children in weekend activities ranging from tree planting and beach cleanups to Christmas bird counts and an outdoor survival course. The group is part of Roots & Shoots, the Jane Goodall Institute’s environmental and humanitarian program.

On average, the 17 children who visited
K’uuna Llnagaay in June, 2006 were between seven and ten years of age. Their trip was made possible through the Parks and People program, which introduces about 15,000 children to nature every year through learning experiences offered by passionate naturalists in Canada’s natural parks.

K’uuna Llnagaay brought environmental issues to life for the young Haida Gwaai Roots & Shoots members. Seeing firsthand how generations of Haida people lived in harmony with their environment had a profound impact on them. “Haida Gwaii Roots & Shoots looks at contemporary environmental issues,” explains Gear. “But it is important to give young people a historical context as well. It is quite a moving experience to actually walk in a village that was occupied for centuries. These villages are very powerful places. Having a sense of that living history can be life changing.”

The act of witnessing is important in the Haida culture. Sheila Karrow, a professional art teacher and co-coordinator of the trip to K’uuna Llnagaay, gave the children sketchbooks and charcoal. They had time before returning to the floatplane to sit in front of their favourite pole and sketch it. “I drew a potlatch pole,” remembers Jacob. “The rings on the pole show how many potlatches a certain family had.” The children’s sketches – like Emily Carr’s depictions of this village a hundred years ago – were a legacy of all that they had witnessed in this village.

After centuries of environmental balance, K’uuna Llnagaay is under threat. Introduced species menace the native flora and fauna. More severe storms and rising sea levels due to global warming are a growing concern. But Haida Gwaii Roots & Shoots is a beacon of hope. By inspiring tomorrow’s environmental stewards, this group is helping to ensure a sustainable future for K’uuna Llnagaay, Haida Gwaii and the planet as a whole.

The Parks and People program is a joint initiative of Nature Canada and the Parks Canada Agency, and receives generous support from the Honda Canada Foundation. For more information about the Parks and People program, please visit http://www.naturecanada.ca/cwn_parkspeople.asp.

By Andrea Lockwood, Communications Coordinator, Nature Canada

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