Helping Kids Be Kids
Supporting youth mental health
A Watershed Moment
Protecting Alberta’s water resources
Bringing Back the Buffalo
Marking 10 Years of the Buffalo Treaty
Creating a Welcoming Space
Artist Paul Brain looks forward to Calgary's new disability community arts hub
Raised in a farming community, and now married to a rancher/lawyer, I am keenly aware of the importance of water and the fear drought brings. In this issue, you’ll meet several organizations working to steward our critical water resources. You’ll learn how the Alberta Watershed Coalition, formed by Alberta Ecotrust, is taking a creative approach to advance flood and drought resilience. Youth mental health has never been a greater priority in our community. Whether it’s DJ training through the ReMiX Mentorship Program, the new Cottage E at Wood’s Homes or the KidSMART Toolkit, you'll meet
people taking an innovative approach to serving youth in meaningful ways.
And, there is no greater joy than in giving as evidenced by the John Bowlen and Kerry Cooper Bowlen story. The couple continues to pay it forward to make a difference in the causes they care deeply about.
In our board member spotlight, you’ll meet Kirby Redwood, an inspiring CEO in the charitable sector, who starts with building relationships of trust and respect.
Together with Indigenous Nations, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Buffalo Treaty, with a deeper understanding of the importance of the buffalo to Indigenous culture. And, we celebrate the new disability community arts hub, the first of its kind in Canada, coming to Calgary soon!
In this spur, you will learn more about pressing issues and be inspired by the great things happening right here in our community, made possible by the generosity of so many.
Thank you to all the donors who give so generously and to the people working passionately to make Calgary a place where everyone can thrive.
Eva Friesen President & CEO, Calgary Foundation
In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, we honour and acknowledge Moh’kinsstis, and the traditional Treaty 7 territory and oral practices of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani and the îethka Nakoda Nations: Chiniki, Bearspaw, Goodstoney and Tsuut’ina Nation. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Otipemisiwak Métis Government of the Métis Nation within Alberta Districts 5 and 6. Finally, we acknowledge all Nations — Indigenous and non — who live, work and play on this land, and who honour and celebrate this territory.
Eva Friesen President & CEO
Taylor Barrie VP, Communications
Janice Francey Communications Associate
Blaine Lennox Chair Narmin Ismail-Teja Vice Chair
Denise Bright
Jamie Leong-Huxley
Melanie
Paul Moynihan
Chima Nkemdirim
Susan O'Brien
David Phillips
Kirby Redwood Ivor Ruste
Julianna Spiropoulos
Hugh D. Williamson Q.C.
Kahanoff Centre #1180, 105 12 Avenue S.E. Calgary, AB T2G 1A1 403-802-7700 calgaryfoundation.org
A Watershed Moment
> Four groups aim to understand and protect Alberta’s water resources .
04 Building Relationships for Lasting Change
Kirby Redwood works with Calgary Foundation to support community needs
06 A Game-Changing Pass to Calgary
John Bowlen and Kerry Cooper Bowlen team up with Calgary Foundation
08 Giving From the Heart
The Cooper family gives back to the community together.
10 Expanding Horizons
The Beyond the North Scholarship encourages rural students to explore university and beyond
12 Working Together to P rovide a Hand Up Community Kitchen collaborates with partners to address food insecurity
14 Helping Kids Be Kids
Three local organizations provide proactive solutions to support youth mental health and well-being.
20 Creating a Welcoming Space
Calgary’s new disability community arts hub will be the first of its kind in Canada
22 Bringing Back the Buffalo
Marking 10 years of the Buffalo Treaty.
“
As I stepped into my professional life, it’s been a priority for me to create opportunities for people to connect to their culture.” — Kirby Redwood
Building Relationships for Lasting Change
Kirby Redwood works with Calgary Foundation to support community needs
By Stephanie Joe • Photography by Jared Sych
‘‘B
uilding relations is such a critical element of not just who I am professionally, but also who I am as a human being,” says Kirby Redwood, whose given names are Kisinew Asini Napesis, which means Oldman Rockboy in Cree, and Ahkiistooyeepitah, which is Blackfoot for Brave Eagle.
As Lead Oskâpêwis (CEO) of Miskanawah — an Indigenous-led charitable organization — Redwood believes that fostering relationships is essential to creating positive social change. That’s why he’s volunteered with Calgary Foundation for the past 14 years. “I get familiar with various organizations and their impact, and it gives me hope,” he says. “Working with Calgary Foundation allows me to build relationships beyond the scope of grants and stay connected and committed to making Calgary a better place.”
Redwood has called Moh'kinsstis home for over 50 years. He first arrived in 1972 when his mother sought refuge for their family, fleeing a life on the reserve filled with intergenerational trauma. They found some comfort and safety — a blessing that would later come full circle.
Redwood admits it was a challenging start as a young Indigenous person leaving his Saulteaux-Cree community in Cowessess First Nation, Saskatchewan. “There weren't many resources or opportunities for me to connect with my culture, feel safe and supported, and have that sense of belonging,” he says. “As I stepped into my professional life, it’s been a priority for me to create opportunities for people to connect to their culture.”
To that end, in 1988, Miskanawah (meaning pathways in Cree) was born. Guided by Indigenous teachings,
Miskanawah offers culturally based, holistic support to vulnerable Indigenous children, youth and families across Calgary and surrounding areas. As its name implies, it’s about supporting people with building pathways to and within the community.
Redwood describes the organization as an access point to cultural resources and connections for urban Indigenous people, and from a Western lens, “we're very much an early-intervention, prevention organization,” he says, adding that Calgary Foundation strongly aligns with Miskanawah’s vision of children, youth and families thriving within a culturally responsive community. “That’s why being involved with the Foundation makes sense to me — it’s rooted in building relationships, supporting community development and creating space for initiatives to thrive in ways that resonate with the communities they serve.”
As a Calgary Foundation board member since 2022, Redwood first engaged as a grant applicant on behalf of Miskanawah, which led him to volunteer with the Health and Wellness Committee in July 2011. He also served on the Grants Committee and began his current involvement with the Major and Signature Grants Committee in 2023.
Redwood focuses on fostering healthy relationships that bridge understandings between western and Indigenous worldviews to better serve our most vulnerable people.
“You can have the most amazing program offering in the world, but if you don't cultivate that relational piece of respect, trust and safety, then your offerings and impact will reflect that,” he says. “We need to work alongside each other and create that ‘ethical space’ between worldviews and for that to happen, we need allies-relatives, like Calgary Foundation.”
donor profile
“ We have been so blessed. There's no way that we wouldn't try to make community contributions; we’re absolutely grateful to be able to live this life. Giving back means more to us than anything.”
—Kerry Cooper Bowlen
A Game-Changing Pass to Calgary
After selling their stakes in the Denver Broncos, John Bowlen and Kerry Cooper Bowlen team up with Calgary Foundation
By Olivia Piché • Photography by Jared Sych
In 2015, as gold confetti rained down on the stadium in Santa Clara, California, Kerry Cooper Bowlen and John Bowlen stood on the field, surrounded by their family and friends, celebrating the Denver Broncos’ third Super Bowl win under their ownership. They remember this moment as the pinnacle of their time as part owners of the NFL team — it marked the end of beloved quarterback Peyton Manning’s football career, and the Bowlens knew their ownership journey would also be ending soon.
In 2022, the Broncos-Bowlen era came to an official close when John and Kerry sold their stakes in the football team, leading them on a philanthropic journey. The longtime-Calgary couple created the John Bowlen Legacy Fund, administered by Calgary Foundation, which has made a tremendous impact across the city.
“You can very easily be inundated with the many causes that need help. Calgary Foundation was able to assist us,” explains John. “With a little bit of guidance, we can make a big dent with our philanthropic efforts and stay on track with our vision.”
The John Bowlen Legacy Fund has supported more than 20 charitable organizations and allowed the couple to respond to immediate and evolving community needs. Their passions often guide their gift giving as shown by their love for animals — the Bowlens support animal welfare organizations like Parachutes for Pets and the Alice Sanctuary. They also provided funding for the renovation
and equipment for Alberta’s first pay-what-you-can animal hospital, a Canadian Animal Task Force initiative.
John’s passion is reflected in the Fund’s support of kids’ programs and, of course, sports. The Bowlens fully funded a sports program for children with disabilities at Mount Royal University, and supported operating costs at the Trellis Society (formerly the Boys and Girls Clubs of Calgary) where John served as board member for more than 20 years.
“We’ve only been doing this for about three years, and I am proud of everything we’ve done so far,” says Kerry. “It is just so beautiful to be able to help our communities in so many different ways. And we’re just getting started, and I can’t wait to see where we’re gonna go.”
Just as the Bowlens’ generosity reflects a financial legacy, the value of giving back is also a generational affair. Kerry’s son, Trevor Cooper, and his wife, Amy, along with their three kids, have started their own fund with the Foundation (see story on page 8), helping Calgary kids and families. “Your legacy for your children and your grandchildren has got to be to pay it forward,” states Kerry proudly.
Bottom line, the Bowlens strongly believe that their good fortune is meant to be shared. “We have been so blessed. There’s no way that we wouldn’t try to make community contributions; we’re absolutely grateful to be able to live this life. Giving back means more to us than anything,” Kerry affirms.
donor profile
GIVING FROM THE HEART
For Trevor and Amy Cooper, giving back to the community is a family affair
By Olivia Piché
When Trevor and Amy Cooper were asked to join in giving back to the community, they jumped at the chance. Trevor’s mother, Kerry Cooper Bowlen, and her husband, John Bowlen, invited them to participate through the John Bowlen Legacy Fund, which they had established through Calgary Foundation (see story on page 6) to support community organizations.
The Coopers were involved with the Fund until 2023 when they decided to establish the Trevor and Amy Cooper Family Legacy Fund as an extension of the Bowlen Fund. This allowed the Coopers to focus on specific causes close to their hearts, like cancer care initiatives and family-focused organizations.
“It's awesome that we're all in this together and that Amy and I have been given this opportunity because we are so diverse in what we care for,” says Trevor. “With John being into kids' sports and inclusion, my mom being one of the biggest animal advocates out there, and Amy and I coming in on the medical and family side of things, we really hit a broad spectrum working together.”
Giving that’s close to the heart
Trevor and Amy’s first gift was made in support of the Alberta Cancer Foundation. This donation was especially meaningful, given that Amy was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2016 and is now in remission.
Similarly, as a former paramedic and SAIT instructor, Trevor understands the importance of helping organizations that support first responders. That’s why their Fund supports
Legacy Place Society, which provides wellness initiatives to first responders, veterans and military personnel and their families. The Cooper family has also provided funding to SAIT for new paramedic training equipment.
Raising a young family of three kids aged 10 and under has amplified the importance of family-based organizations for Trevor and Amy, so they also support groups like Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids, the Children’s Cottage, Inn from the Cold and the Mustard Seed.
Bringing up the next generation of philanthropists
Amid all of the impact the Coopers have made, the couple is most proud of their kids’ involvement. Although too young to contribute financially, the Cooper children spend time volunteering in the community with their parents.
“We’re proud of getting our kids involved and being able to give them that opportunity,” says Amy. “It’s about being able to see the impact it has on them and to just pass this down to our kids.”
“It's so important for our kids to be aware of the other side — that there are people struggling — and to set the pace for them to want to continue to do this on their own, and look at creating their own legacy,” adds Trevor.
The Coopers know community needs continue to increase and plan to keep up their efforts well into the future. They encourage neighbours and friends to give back to the community, too.
“We're grateful for this opportunity to give back. There's so much work that needs to be done. It’s endless, and it's growing. We're trying to make the biggest impact that we can,” affirms Trevor.
“
We're grateful for this opportunity to give back. There's so much work that needs to be done. We're trying to make the biggest impact that we can.” —Trevor Cooper
Trevor and Amy
along with their three kids and their friends, make it a point to give back to the community.
Cooper,
EXPANDING HORIZONS
The Beyond the North Scholarship encourages rural students to look outside their small towns to explore university and beyond
By Fabian Mayer • Photography by Steve Collins
Starting university can seem intimidating, but it can be downright daunting for students from rural communities with a smaller population than most universities. Recognizing the challenges such as leaving family, academic demands and tuition costs, the Beyond the North Scholarship helps students from small communities overcome obstacles to attending post-secondary education.
Established in 2021 by Chris Nyberg and Lukas Sutherland, the Beyond the North Scholarship Fund at Calgary Foundation supports an annual $1,000 scholarship. This scholarship reflects the pair’s experience growing up together in Fairview, a small town 100 kilometres north of Grande Prairie in Alberta’s Peace Country. With a population under 3,000, Fairview is about one-tenth the number of students attending the University of Calgary.
“It was a good place to grow up, but it's a small farming community, and there's a whole big world out there,” says Nyberg. “The idea for the scholarship was to create some incentive or support for people looking to broaden their network beyond the traditional career paths available up there.”
Primarily funded by Nyberg and Sutherland, along with smaller contributions from a few friends, the scholarship goes to high school students from the Fairview area who plan to attend university anywhere in Canada. The scholarship encourages students to consider opportunities beyond their immediate surroundings.
With oil and gas and agriculture being the dominant industries in the region, Nyberg says opportunities for a career outside of those sectors are somewhat limited. He stresses that while jobs in those sectors can provide meaningful careers — Nyberg has worked in the oil patch himself — the intent of the scholarship is simply to lessen the
potential risk of pursuing an alternative career path.
“We wanted to show high school students that there are other options, and we wanted to provide support to go chase some of these opportunities,” says Nyberg, who pursued law school at the University of Saskatchewan and now practices law in Calgary. “There's a lot of value in striking out on your own, doing something different and experiencing new things.”
Sutherland has also experienced that value; in fact, he calls the decision to attend the University of Calgary one of the most meaningful of his life. “You're interacting with professors from all over the world, students of all different backgrounds, and getting to learn and experience all of that diversity first-hand,” he says. “You wind up meeting people who are doing incredibly interesting things and collaborating with them. It’s profoundly rewarding and opens doors you never knew existed when you’re growing up in a small rural community.”
Sutherland also now lives in Calgary, where he works in mergers and acquisitions for a U.S.-focused healthcare company. During his studies, Sutherland pursued two degrees simultaneously, attaining degrees in both geology and finance.
“Sometimes students think that when you go to school, you study one topic, and you end up focused on that topic for the rest of your life. While that is true for some, there are so many different paths one can take, and our intention with this scholarship is to reduce the risk students take in exploring those paths,” says Sutherland.
Criteria for the scholarship includes academic standing, community involvement and aspirations beyond the north. The annual application deadline is June 1. calgaryfoundation.org.
“
There's a whole big world out there. The idea for the scholarship was to create some incentive or support for people looking to broaden their network.”
—Chris Nyberg
Chris Nyberg (right) and Lukas Sutherland on the rooftop of Sun Life Plaza.
Working Together To Provide a Hand Up
Community Kitchen collaborates with partners to address food insecurity
By Fabian Mayer • Photography by Chris MacArthur
The plan was never to go it alone. When the Community Kitchen Program of Calgary was established in 1999, the organization knew a collaborative approach would be the key to addressing food insecurity. Today, as one of the largest food banks in Calgary, it partners with more than 220 agencies across the city to help feed Calgarians fresh and healthy food.
The Spinz-A-Round program is just one of the Community Kitchen’s initiatives to help tackle that growing problem. Community Kitchen solicits donations from familiar names in the grocery game — Loblaws, Safeway, Sysco and others. The donated food is then set up almost like a store in the organization’s northeast warehouse. Every Tuesday and Thursday, community agencies come fill their carts.
Collaboration is key
“It comes down to collaborating and working together as a community, versus us trying to do it all on our own,” says Sundae Nordin, CEO of Community Kitchen. “There is such a need in our city that not one food bank can do that alone. You're also getting people involved in their own community, and they know their population and what the specific needs are.”
From churches and schools to
shelters and community centres, 60 agencies were able to feed 444,582 clients through the program in 2024, representing a nearly 14 per cent increase from the previous year. Nordin says given the current high cost of food, the need is ever growing.
“The cost of living in this city has increased substantially, and we need to realize that we have a crisis of food
“ The cost of living in this city has increased substantially, and we need to realize that we have a crisis of food insecurity. ”
— Sundae Nordin
Sundae Nordin, CEO of Community Kitchen, at the warehouse.
FOOD INSECURITY IN CALGARY
5% 25%++60% 46% 63%
increase in grocery prices from Jan. 2023 to Jan. 2024. of Calgarians can’t afford healthy food. of us serve smaller than normal portions. of us buy less fruits and vegetables. of families with young children serve meals that aren’t nutritious.
Source: Calgary Foundation’s 2024 Quality of Life Report
insecurity. Ignoring that isn't going to make it go away,” says Nordin. “We have to find the dollars to keep our programs running because the need is growing more and more.”
Feeding families is getting harder
Calgary Foundation’s 2024 Quality of Life Report, a survey of 1,000 Calgarians from all walks of life, showed that 29 per cent of Calgarians are concerned about running out of food and 21 per cent accessed community services for food support. The statistics are especially stark for families with children — 39 per cent of those parents report skipping meals altogether to leave more food for their kids.
Nordin says a core part of Community Kitchen’s philosophy is to provide a variety of foods that are healthy and desirable, not just for sustenance. “It's not like, ‘I'll give you a box of crackers.’ Families come in and are blown away that we have a cereal that their kids would want. Or olives — there was one little guy that said, ‘I can't believe that we have olives.’ It just brings joy to families.”
In 2024, the Spinz-A-Round program distributed more than two-million pounds of food to agencies and their clients across the city. That food, almost all of it donated, was worth more than $7 million. And while Nordin admits that ideally, it would be
best if she were out of a job, it doesn’t look like that will happen anytime soon. So in the meantime, with continued support from partners and agencies, Community Kitchen’s goal is to keep quieting growling stomachs across the city.
“If you're not eating well, your mind isn't well, your body isn't well, your soul isn't well,” says Nordin. “We're very passionate about helping people in a holistic way. Yes, we’re providing food, but we’re giving a hand up versus just a handout.”
→ Learn more at ckpcalgary.ca
Photos: Volunteers unloading fresh produce and shopping in the warehouse.
Helping Kids Be Kids
The youth mental health crisis is on the rise. There are approximately 1.6 million kids in Canada with a diagnosed mental health challenge, but only one in five children in need of services are receiving treatment. With the support of Calgary Foundation, the following organizations are finding proactive solutions to improve youth mental health and well-being.
By Olivia Piché
Wood’s Homes: Cottage E
“ These kids are our future, and there are so many that come through our care that go on to have full and wonderful lives.” — Bryan Goehringer
For over 100 years, Wood’s Homes has been saying yes to at-risk youth and children in need. What started as an orphanage during World War I became a haven for children throughout the Spanish Flu and, today, a place where kids can heal and get the help they need. Wood’s Homes has answered the call providing services for ever-evolving community needs — and it continues to do so through its latest expansion campaign, Through It ALL.
Wood’s Homes offers more than 40 programs for kids facing mental health challenges but there continues to be an increased demand for youth services, including its live-in facilities. The Through It ALL campaign addresses growing wait times by increasing Wood’s Homes’ live-in capacity by 28 per cent through the construction of five new purpose-built facilities for round-the-clock care.
Its first new building, Cottage E, welcomes clients through a U12 program, supporting kids from about six to 12 years old. This came about as a direct response to a community need for more live-in support for younger kids. “This is an in-demand service. Unfortunately, there aren't enough bed spaces for clients, not just here in Calgary, but throughout the province,” explains Bryan Goehringer, director of Wood’s Homes Foundation.
Cottage E adds 10 new beds to Wood’s Homes’ therapeutic campus-based care capacity of 64 beds, and the updated design significantly improves client and staff safety as well as mental health outcomes. “The program spaces are a remarkable bound forward into the future of therapy and therapeutic care spaces,” affirms Goehringer.
To decrease tight confrontational spaces, Cottage E has wide hallways and expansive communal areas so staff
Manuela Sanchez, senior youth and family counsellor at Wood's Homes, at the opening of Cottage E.
A client bedroom in Cottage E.
Exterior of the new Cottage E building.
can supervise the kids without hovering. Clients can close and lock their doors when they need privacy — the double-swinging doors can’t be slammed, and can be removed in an emergency. To positively support well-being and mood, the building features regulated lighting that’s programmed around a routine and attuned to the seasons to mimic the outdoors. Together with the soft green walls, stone flooring and plentiful windows, the thoughtful design all serves to create a soothing and welcoming space for healing and growth. It intentionally steps away from traditional therapeutic settings of psychiatric wards and hospitals — often the environments Wood’s Homes clients are coming from.
“We’re incredibly grateful for our partners including the Calgary Foundation, PETRONAS and the Government of Alberta for recognizing the value of replacing outdated infrastructure with this new building," affirms Bjorn Johansson, CEO of Wood’s Homes. “It helps bring our facilities up to 21st-century levels of service, safety and efficiency so children and young people can grow, heal and thrive in their communities.”
Live-in facilities allow staff to work directly with kids for extended periods to address the root of mental health challenges and equip them with the strategies and tools to manage their issues. These safe spaces were designed with kids in mind — it’s where they can come to heal, away from distractions, and be with people who truly care and can help.
“These kids are our future, and there are so many that come through our care that go on to have full and wonderful lives,” says Goehringer. → Learn more at woodshomes.ca
Canadian Mental Health Association of Calgary: KidSMART Program
We’re learning more and more that mental well-being, like physical health, needs care and attention, and that awareness needs to start early. “Understanding and promoting mental well-being in children is a shared responsibility. There is growing evidence of the long-term value of promoting positive mental health from a very early age,” says Ashley Lamantia, senior manager of community education and wellness initiatives at Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Calgary. Since 1955, CMHA Calgary
oriented mental health education for younger populations was more critical than ever,” says Lamantia.
In 2023, CMHA Calgary developed the KidSMART Toolkit for teachers and community leaders to feel better equipped to deliver learning on mental health topics for middle-schoolers. Community and school feedback was excellent so CMHA Calgary took things a step further by launching in-person sessions delivered by a CMHA Calgary facilitator in the fall of 2024.
The three-year pilot project aims to facilitate workshops for 1,200 kids in grades four to six. Facilitated workshop sessions will be
“ Understanding and promoting mental well-being in children is a shared responsibility. There is growing evidence of the long-term value of promoting positive mental health from a very early age.” —Ashley Lamantia
has been promoting mental health and wellness through community-based services. For over a decade, the organization has integrated mental health awareness in schools for youth aged 12 to 24 through its YouthSMART program which has expanded to support kids aged 8 to 12.
KidSMART responds directly to the overwhelming number of requests CMHA Calgary received for initiatives targeting younger kids. Teachers and community leaders recognized a significant gap in free, local and customizable mental health education for middle school youth.
“With middle school teachers reporting ongoing mental health concerns in their classrooms, hospitals under immense strain and long wait times for community-based supports, CMHA Calgary realized that designing and developing resiliency-
on offer, specifically for middle school-aged children, based on three themes: mental health awareness, stress management and healthy coping, and skills for being there — identifying when and how to support friends needing help.
KidSMART has helped combat stigma, shown an increase in mental health literacy and encouraged appropriate help-seeking behaviour among young Calgarians. CMHA Calgary hopes to expand its impact with more facilitators in the future.
“Our greatest hope is that more schools and community groups can have access to these important learning opportunities, as we know they lead to a measurable reduction in stigma, an increase in mental health awareness and a shift towards more supportive youth environments,” says Lamantia. → Learn more at cmha.calgary.ab.ca
The Fresh For Life Foundation: ReMiX Mentorship Program
Growing up as an at-risk youth, Crystal Rhodes found music and art to be healing and has been DJing for the majority of her life. She’s now on a mission to inspire other at-risk youth by offering them opportunities to discover their own passions.
In 2022, Rhodes founded the Fresh For Life Foundation which runs the ReMiX Mentorship Program focusing on wellness, DJing and music. Participants also learn about trades, like carpentry and auto-leather dyeing, and entrepreneurship ensuring youth have both life and job skills.
Rhodes sees first-hand how the program positively impacts youth. “They talk about how they're starting to actually get excited for their futures,” she says. “Some of them didn't think they could have a life outside of crime, and now they’re getting really inspired by music and art.”
Before starting the foundation, Rhodes taught DJing in schools, community centres and correctional facilities like the Calgary Young Offenders Centre (CYOC). She found that youth at CYOC were interested, so in 2023, she began offering the ReMiX program. “They're still discovering who they are and what they want in life, so being able to interject these wellness techniques and getting them to use them before they're adults is really key,” Rhodes says.
The program has expanded to offer mentorship in many interest areas for participants who are no longer incarcerated. “I see gaps in the judicial system when youth are transitioning
“ Some of them didn't think they could have a life outside of crime, and now they’re getting really inspired by music and art.” —Crystal Rhodes
from one program to the next,” says Rhodes. “When a kid comes out of CYOC, they’re released into situations that aren’t perhaps the best supportive places. We fill a gap by supporting them to have consistency, regulation and something steady — and someone to check in on them.”
ReMiX is mentee-driven, meaning the participants lead the way in how and what they want to learn. “Our job is to help them discover what they're interested in. So if we don't know how to do what it is that they want to learn about, we can find a professional that
can teach us all how to do it together,” says Rhodes.
ReMiX facilitators have lived experience with the challenges that come with being at-risk youth, helping them create relatable, reliable, non-judgmental and safe places for participants. It’s more than teaching transferable life skills; the program gives at-risk youth the space to realize they have value. Knowing that can lead to healthier paths to build lives beyond what they may have imagined was possible.
→ Learn more at freshforlifefoundation.ca
Crystal Rhodes helps at-risk youth learn skills and find their passions.
Creating a Welcoming
Space
Calgary's new disability community arts hub will be the first of its kind in Canada
By Fabian Mayer
Headquartered in Calgary, the National artsAccess Centre (NaAC) is Canada’s largest disability-focused arts training and presentation organization. Working with artists who have a neuro-developmental, physical or acquired disability, the NaAC connects individuals with opportunities to learn and grow, and helps showcase and celebrate their creative talents.
Currently, the centre works with around 350 artists from Calgary and surrounding area weekly and is housed in the for-
mer Fairview Community Hall in the city’s southeast. NaAC president and CEO, Jung-Suk Ryu says disability arts organizations often make do with spaces and infrastructure built for other purposes. In 2018, the adjoining hockey arena’s roof collapsed, complicating the usability and maintenance of the building which sparked the search for a new permanent home.
In 2021, NaAC entered into a deal with the City of Calgary to move into the former Scouts Canada hall in West Hillhurst. The building will be renovated and a new $14-million building will be erected
“ It is about creating a welcoming, accessible, universal access, barrier-free, thoughtful, sensory-friendly environment that actually serves as a win for every member of our community.”
– Jung-Suk
Ryu
next door to form the Multidisciplinary Disability and Community Arts Hub, a dedicated space for artists to explore disciplines ranging from music, dance and theatre to literary arts, film and visual arts.
“This purpose-built, purpose-designed infrastructure will be transformative in supporting the disability arts community,” says Ryu. “It will allow us to take an incredibly thoughtful approach to building a genuinely inclusive, accessible facility that is both a multidisciplinary and performing arts learning venue.”
“The new arts hub will act as a key trendsetter to show people what Canadian disability art could be now and in the future.” – Paul Brain
Prioritizing inclusivity in the
Ryu says creating these kinds of spaces is more important than ever. One in four Canadians over the age of 15 lives with some form of disability, a number that will likely rise as the population ages. The campus will also cater to the broader community with a cafe, gallery space and performing arts venues, open to the public to take in the artwork being produced.
“It is about creating a welcoming, accessible, universal access, barrier-free, thoughtful, sensory-friendly environment that actually serves as a win for every member of our community,” says Ryu. “To be able to have that opportunity to demonstrate what’s possible with this facility is a huge step forward in that realm of accessibility for our city and for the country.”
NaAC artist Paul Brain couldn’t agree more. “The new arts hub will act as a key trendsetter to show people what Canadian disability art could be now and in the future,” he says.
Paul Brain, who works as a full-time contemporary artist (and emerging filmmaker), never thought about pursuing art until after his life-changing brain surgery in 2021 following an internal cerebral hemorrhage. It was during his recovery at Foothills Medical Centre where he began painting. “I turned my hospital room into my studio and personal
arts
gallery,” he recalls.
Paul Brain learned of NaAC during his rehabilitation. “NaAC helped me learn different ways in navigating the disability world,” he says. “I had to learn how to be a person again in this new life and in this new shell. Art is a medium to open that conversation. With art, we can talk deeper. And, NaAC pulls in a lot of professionals in the art world to work with us so it's a very collaborative structure.”
While most major cities have art galleries, a museum or two and maybe a performing arts centre, Ryu says Calgary will be home to North America’s first multidisciplinary arts campus specifically designed to support the needs of artists with disabilities. Add to that, the campus will be in a prominent location that will make it an extremely recognizable addition to the city’s cultural landscape.
“Given its proximity to the city centre, this space will become an arts and culture landmark unlike any other,” affirms Ryu. “No major metropolitan city in North America will have this kind of cultural infrastructure purpose-built for the disability community. That sends an incredibly powerful message for what defines Calgary in the future.”
→ Learn more at accessarts.ca and paulbrain.art
Photos: (left) Paul Brain with one of his paintings at the current NaAC facility; renderings of the new hub.
Bringing Back the Buffalo
Marking 10 years of the Buffalo Treaty
By Elizabeth Chorney-Booth
Last year, during a sunny weekend in late September, over 1,700 people, including 500 youth, gathered at the Kainai Nation of the Blackfoot Confederacy, located in southern Alberta, to celebrate the significance of the buffalo.
The event included documentary film screenings, lantern puppet processions, knowledge sharing and the re-signing of the Buffalo Treaty (a.k.a. The Buffalo: A Treaty of Cooperation, Renewal and Restoration), a document originally signed in 2014 by eight Nations from both sides of the U.S./Canada border. At this 10th anniversary event, 30 First Nations endorsed the treaty, committing to honour, recognize and revitalize their relationships with buffalo.
Things haven’t been going well for bison for more than a century. The 30 to 60 million animals that once roamed North America were nearly eradicated by European settlers by the late 1800s. As of 2023, approximately 2,200 plains buffalo and 10,000 wood buffalo were roaming free or in protected areas across Canada. In 2021, around 150,000 domesticated bison were living on farms.
In many Indigenous cultures, buffalo are seen as relatives, as educators, as a key part of ecological systems. The Buffalo Treaty was designed to rematriate wild bison herds to participating Nations while embracing the animals’ deeper significance.
Rematriation refers to a women-led process to restore relationships between Indigenous peoples and their ancestral lands.
Buffalo as educator
“It’s important to have the buffalo physically on the land and be visible to the people and the youth,” says Katira Crow Shoe, executive director at the International Buffalo Relations Institute. “The buffalo teach us with their resiliency. They're so adaptable to their environment, which is similar to what Indigenous peoples have had to learn to be as well.”
To tell the story of the Buffalo Treaty and support Indigenous communities with reconnecting to the buffalo, filmmaker Dr. Tasha Hubbard, vice-president of the institute’s board of directors, recently completed a film called Singing Back the Buffalo detailing the impact of and motivation behind the treaty and other Indigenous-led buffalo initiatives.
Crow Shoe’s job as an educator includes building a Buffalo Treaty curriculum that examines the articles of the treaty, touching on aspects of conservation, economics and research as well as Indigenous culture and health. Her work raises awareness about the buffalo and how the animals can teach people about larger life lessons.
“When I was younger, I was always told that ‘education is the new buffalo,’” she says. “One of the things the International Buffalo Relations Institute encourages is that buffalo is the future of education. They are still teaching us ways to connect with our environment. They're very collective versus being individualistic. We’re asking questions about how to come back to that type of practice.”
Restoring buffalo physically and mentally
The institute highlights the concept of “buffalo consciousness” where buffalo become part of day-to-day living, be it a picture of a buffalo, in a company logo or, of course, live buffalo out in the wild. Building up buffalo populations will take considerable time but progress is being made. Montana’s Fort Peck Reservation — one of the original signatories of the Buffalo Treaty — recently transferred 11 plains bison from Yellowstone National Park to the Mosquito Grizzly Bear’s Head Lean Man First Nation in Saskatchewan.
While the ultimate rematriation goal
is for buffalo populations to grow to the point they’d be classified as wildlife rather than domestic animals, these physical transfers, educational initiatives and events like the 10th anniversary gathering encourage relationship building not just with the buffalo and the land, but between participating Nations as well.
“The Buffalo Treaty brings Nations together and inspires relationships with the buffalo,” Crow Shoe says.
“We're a network, and we're helping others find their own buffalo relationship.”
→ Learn more at buffalorelations.land
photo courtesy of International Buffalo Relations Institute; treaty signing photo by Calista Burnett/Glenbow; buffalo photo by Adobe Stock.
Buffalo lantern puppet procession at the 10th anniversary event.
Supporters sign the treaty at the 10th anniversary event.
A Watershed Moment
Alberta is dry. Prolonged drought conditions, exacerbated by climate change, have resulted in declining groundwater levels in the province. This scarcity threatens agriculture, communities (both Indigenous and non-Indigenous), urban and rural municipalities, and natural ecosystems. With support from Calgary Foundation, the following organizations are working collaboratively to understand and protect Alberta’s most precious resource — water.
by Marcello Di Cintio
In 2023, due to years of prolonged drought conditions in southern Alberta, the Oldman Reservoir near Pincher Creek nearly ran dry. The low water levels forced the municipality to bring in freshwater by truck. The Oldman Watershed Council (OWC) decided the 210,000 residents of the Oldman watershed region needed more dependable sources of water. Perhaps groundwater could make up for the surface water Alberta’s drought-diminished rivers had stopped providing — a potential solution now being monitored through a pilot program with Living Lakes Canada.
For over 20 years in southern Alberta, OWC has fostered a resilient watershed, an area of land that drains into rivers and lakes, and flows into a common watercourse. When a watershed is healthy, an aquatic ecosystem thrives with clean water, vibrant fish habitats, flourishing riparian vegetation and functioning wetlands, which, in turn, boosts the economy and standard of living of the entire area.
The OWC achieves its goals through education, action and stewardship, and considers the protection of the watershed a group effort. “We’re a forum for all voices,” says the OWC’s executive director Shannon Frank. “We're all about collaboration and finding practical solutions that make sense for the whole community.”
In partnership with the Blood Tribe Land Management and Piikani Nation Land Management, the OWC supports eco-cultural restoration efforts to improve environmental, economic and cultural resilience by reestablishing key ecosystems the Indigenous peoples of the Blackfoot Confederacy, known as Niitsitapi, rely on for their cultural practices.
To prevent erosion, the OWC sup -
The Oldman Watershed Council
ports the planting of willows, known as the “rebar” of the stream bank, along waterways that play a vital role in Niitsitapi life. “The Niitsitapi use willows to build sweat lodges for ceremonies,” Frank says. Planting native species connected to Niitsitapi medicine, food and faith serves to restore the culture they’ve lost to colonization. The OWC has also been involved in restoring grasslands for the future reintroduction of iinnii, or bison. They’ve supported the fencing of creeks to keep out iinnii or cattle and protect the health of the water. Additional assistance was provided to drill wells, build troughs for livestock, undertake cultural burnings to control weeds, and plant Saskatoon bushes and flowers for pollinators. One of OWC’s members, Api’soomaahka, — a Kainai advocate for First Nations
rights, knowledge and wellness — works to maintain the health of bees, called naamóó. He’s also produced a booklet about naamóó for children.
Years of drought have shrunk the ponds and creeks throughout the Piikani and Kainai Nations, threatening ecosystems, cultural expression and the agricultural economy. The land has never been so parched, making the need for swift actions vitally important.
The Foundation’s multi-year commitment offers the OWC the comfort of consistency and the luxury of time. “You can't just all of a sudden do this work. You can't do it overnight. So longer-term support that we've had from the Calgary Foundation has been really critical,” affirms Frank.
OWC outreach workers help plant native plants at Naapi's Garden on the Kainai Nation.
Living Lakes Canada
Living Lakes Canada (LLC) is a water stewardship organization with more than 20 years of experience working with Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities to protect freshwater. It facilitates collaboration in education, monitoring, restoration and policy development initiatives for the long-term protection of lakes, rivers, wetlands and watersheds across the country.
LLC had developed a successful groundwater monitoring framework in B.C.’s Columbia River Basin, and the Oldman Watershed Council sought its help developing a similar framework
in Alberta. By implementing a network of volunteer groundwater observation wells using existing wells, LLC will prioritize groundwater monitoring to address community concerns and fill existing data gaps. After the pilot program in the Oldman watershed, LLC aims to expand into the Bow River Basin, which supplies Calgary’s freshwater.
“This project started as the seed of an idea and has really picked up a lot of speed and momentum over the last year and a half,” says Maggie Finkle-Aucoin, LLC’s interim Alberta program lead. LLC is implementing
nine volunteer groundwater observation wells to quantify the availability of groundwater in its pilot year to determine how groundwater levels change seasonally and from year to year. The LLC has been connecting with citizens about their particular priorities, recognizing ranchers require water for their livestock and farmers need to irrigate their fields. “A lot of the work up to this date has been on the scientific side,” Finkle-Aucoin says. “But we're now finally launching our community engagement. We're excited to be in that phase of the project now.”
It’s not just Alberta’s citizens, cattle
A scanner is used for testing on Piikani Nation in the Oldman Watershed to collect data for groundwater surveys.
“ We are definitely in this together, and it is important to take collective action. The issue of watershed security is here now and likely to become much more challenging for us all.”
—Kat Hartwig
and crops that need water. “One of the more recent concerns is the ability for fire suppression,” says LLC’s executive director, Kat Hartwig. LLC’s water monitoring framework can help inventory sources of freshwater available to fight the inevitable wildfires caused by the same climate conditions that have diminished the health of the watershed in the first place.
“We’re constantly having to fundraise to do our work and address the concerns of the citizens who live in the community,” Hartwig says. “We're all in this together and only touching the tip of the iceberg of this huge problem which I don’t see going away anytime soon.”
“Fundraising for this work is very necessary and quite relentless given the urgency of supporting the wellbeing of our communities," Hartwig says. “We are definitely in this together and it is important to take collective action. The issue of watershed security is here now and likely to become much more challenging for us all.”
“The future of this work is really important,” adds Finkle-Aucoin. “It has to pick up momentum because we have such monumental issues to address in terms of all of our food and water security down the road.”
→ Learn more at livinglakescanada.ca
Below:
The Bow River Basin Council
“We call ourselves a heads-on organization,” says Mike Murray, executive director of the Bow River Basin Council (BRBC). The BRBC is dedicated to the sustainable management of water resources in Alberta’s Bow River Basin. In particular, the BRBC focuses on the quality and quantity of the basin’s water, the care and conservation of wetlands and riparian areas, the effects of human activity and land use on water resources, and the state of aquatic ecosystems. The council creates and
shares knowledge among water users, researchers, managers and the surrounding communities.
In addition to activities such as watershed reporting and management planning, the BRBC also works with stewardship partners including the Elbow River Watershed Partnership, the Ghost Watershed Alliance Society and Freshwater Conservation Canada, to name a few. “We help establish stewardship groups, support them and provide bridge funding,” Murray says. In the last 20 years, the BRBC provided over $2 million to stewardship groups. “We do any-
thing we can to keep the strong and vibrant stewardship community alive and working hard.”
One of the BRBC’s partnership activities is support for a multi-year, water-quality monitoring in the Bow Basin. “Basically, you sample the aquatic invertebrate insects in small order streams,” Murray explains.
“By seeing the types and the family classes of insects, you can determine the conditions of the streams.” Not only does the BRBC provide funding to its partners who conduct this monitoring, it helps provide and train the staff.
A beaver dam in Bragg Creek near the Elbow River.
“ We do anything we can to keep the strong and vibrant stewardship community alive and working hard.”
—Mike Murray
The BRBC recently completed the online State of the Watershed Report. “The report informs our collective work by highlighting all the things that the BRBC does in managing the landscape,” says Murray. “It’s intended to be a snapshot in time to tell the reader, in an approachable format, what's happening in the river.” The scope is vast, covering water quality throughout the basin, land use issues, climate change adaptations and the role of governing bodies on the watershed.
The BRBC also takes the State of the Watershed Report on the road.
“It’s not as easy as ‘create it and people will come,’” Murray says. “We have to get out there and let people know it’s there.” The BRBC gives presentations about the report to any partners and members in the Bow River Basin who want to see it, from municipal councils and Indigenous communities to local schools and facilitated living centres.
The report is a living document, and the presentations provide an opportunity to make necessary changes and additions based on community feedback. “We’re able to ask: Is there something that's missing? Have
we gotten something wrong? Is there anything we can work with you on to get this better?” Murray affirms. The BRBC also shares positive stories and encourages partners to contribute their stewardship successes for inclusion in the report.
Ultimately, Murray believes that the best thing the BRBC can do, in its role as convener and collaborator, is work together with partners, stakeholders and communities to solve today’s challenges. The watershed, after all, belongs to everyone.
→ View the report at brbc.ab.ca/state-of-thewatershed
Photos by Mike Murray
Above: Monitoring the Ghost watershed, located approximately 60 kilometres west of Calgary.
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation
As a funder, trainer and skill builder for those who champion and protect the environment in this province, Alberta Ecotrust Foundation emerged from a partnership between unexpected allies. According to Lori Rissling Wynn, director of grants and initiatives, “the origin story of Alberta Ecotrust was a relationship between someone from industry and someone from the ENGO community saying, 30 years ago, ‘We want to work together to solve these wicked problems.’”
Alberta Ecotrust doesn’t work on environmental problems alone. It collaborates with diverse partners across Alberta. The organization provides grants to environmental projects — nearly $19.5 million to date — and invests in carbon-emission-reduction initiatives in Calgary and Edmonton. Ecotrust partners recognized a need to speak about their work with a unified voice, and ensure that policy makers, such as government officials, understand what is happening in the landscape itself.
To address the growing need for sustainable water management and watershed resiliency, and in response to requests from partner organizations, Alberta Ecotrust created the Alberta Water Coalition. “In our advocacy role, we want to help influence policy in the
future, support funding requests and be able to do this work on the ground,” Rissling Wynn says.
The coalition will support natural infrastructure projects that advance flood and drought resiliency. Some of these are inspired by four-legged and flat-tailed partners. “We’re mimicking the work of beavers,” Rissling Wynn says. This includes installing beaver dam an -
alogs — structures built of upright posts, a weave of willow or spruce, and gravel-and-mud bases — that mirror naturally occurring beaver dams. “These projects are ways to use natural materials and natural landscape features in place of gray [traditional man-made] infrastructure,” Rissling Wynn explains.
→ Learn more at albertaecotrust.com
Photos by
Top photos: Beaver dam analogue construction; below: riparian willow planting.
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