| The Government of Canada has announced its intention to invest a total of $1.6 million to support the cruise ship industry and additional port facilities in Prince Rupert. This investment includes $1.56 million towards a new dock facility at the Northland Cruise Ship Terminal in Prince Rupert, and $30,000 to the Prince Rupert Economic Development Commission (PREDC) for a cruise-labour gap analysis. Secretary of State Stephen Owen said "B.C. possesses the three key attributes to be a world class cruise destination: natural beauty, vibrant coastal communities and unique cultural offerings. These projects will enable the Pacific Northwest to tap into cruise industry growth by creating infrastructure for large cruise vessels and identifying key requirements for the cruise market." Don Krusel, President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority commented that Prince Rupert had many of the attributes that have contributed to the success and growth of the Alaska cruise product. "The further development of new and exciting shore excursion products” said Krusel, “coupled with this strategic investment in infrastructure through the construction of dedicated cruise ship facilities should ensure Prince Rupert can contribute to the continued growth and success of cruise industry on the west coast." The development of the cruise terminal dock facility will help establish Prince Rupert as a port of call for international cruise lines and develop the tourism and Sustainable Communities. Federal funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2003 budget.
Two funding initiatives to support and increase the wood manufacturing industry within the Thompson-Nicola and Prince George regions of British Columbia were announced today. Western Economic Diversification Canada has contributed $50,000 to help the WoodTEK Business Development Centre provide technical and business training, business development, and management and marketing advice to local value-added wood manufacturers and emerging entrepreneurs in the Prince George region. "Communities across British Columbia have been hit hard by the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber dispute," said Minister Allan Rock. "Whether through large national programs like the Softwood Industry Community Economic Adjustment Initiative announced in October 2002, or through strategic investments into community-driven initiatives like WoodTEK, we are working to ensure our forestry-reliant communities are flexible, innovative and sustainable." Led by the Community Futures Development Corporation of Fraser Fort George and the College of New Caledonia, the WoodTEK Business Development Centre provides local entrepreneurs with a package of services, including physical space, customized business and technical support, access to markets, access to appropriate fibre, and professional development. The centre was established in 2002 with joint funding from Western Economic Diversification Canada and the Government of British Columbia through the federal-provincial Western Economic Partnership Agreement. "With focused effort and the identified sound foundation, it is possible to realize the demonstrated potential for the value-added wood manufacturing sector in the region," said M-J Cousins, Executive Director for the Thompson-Nicola Tourism and Economic Development Society. "Support and expansion of the value-added wood products manufacturing industry is a component of the regional economic development office's overall economic development strategic plan."
Five communities will share nearly $6 million in funding for infrastructure projects on Vancouver Island and Saturna Island as part of five projects under the Canada/British Columbia Infrastructure Program. "The projects announced today mean that the daily needs of the communities of Victoria, Saturna Island, Saanich, and Qualicum Beach will be better served, in terms of civic and recreational programs," said Minister David Anderson. "The children and youth of these areas, especially, will benefit from the increased educational and recreational services." "This announcement is great news for these communities and for British Columbia," said Patricia Wallace, Union of British Columbia Municipalities president. "These projects will provide further tourism and economic opportunities, and create jobs. Working with our members and the provincial and federal governments, we can meet the ever-changing needs of communities across British Columbia." Today's announcement brings the total number of approved projects to 152 with a total value of nearly $574 million, including more than $371 million from the federal and provincial governments. The project applicants contribute the remaining costs eligible under the program guidelines, plus any additional costs. The projects announced today have a total value of more than $9 million.
The government of British Columbia followed through on its commitment to fully protect as Class A provincial parks 1.4 million hectares of previously announced protected areas. George Smith, national conservation director for the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS and spokesperson for the Parks and Wilderness Caucus of the BC Environmental Network says “This is a good day for parks and for the integrity of land use planning in British Columbia. It’s one thing to make announcements, it’s quite another to back one’s words with legislation. Today the government has definitely done a good deed for wildlife and wild spaces in BC.” Amendments to the Park Act were introduced into the legislature in Victoria, establishing 35 new Class A parks, expanding five existing Class A parks, and upgrading to legislated status 15 more existing parks which were previously less protected under Orders-in-Council. Class A legislation of parks on this magnitude is important for the whole province. Legislation means that nobody can change our parks behind closed doors without having to bring the matter before the legislature of BC. Government. The legislation of ten new parks in the Northern Rockies or Muskwa-Kechika Special Management Area in northeastern BC is significant. The Muskwa-Kechika model is leading conservation biology in North America by combining 3.3 million hectares of special management areas which were legislated last year with the 1.1 million hectares of parks introduced for legislation today. New legislated Class A parks in southwestern BC will include Brackendale Eagles and the Nahatlatch, Mount Richardson, Sechelt Inlets Marine Parks, and Spipiyus (the Caren Range). Some of the stellar northern additions include the Kakwa upgrade and additions, the Entiako, the Milligan Hills, Babine Mountains and Babine River Corridor. “While celebrations are in order today, we must remember that there is much work remaining to complete the protected areas strategy,” Smith added. “Government still needs to add key ecologically representative areas to the parks system such as the Southern Chilcotin which was first proposed in the thirties, the Gataga Valley north of Mackenzie, and the rainforests of the Mid Coast. Government must also move quickly to respond to the report of the Parks Legacy Panel, and provide the staff and money to ensure that BC’s growing parks system thrives in perpetuity.”
Families in Motion is a community-based, multi-cultural family literacy program situated in the heart of the Fraser Valley. A close knit community known as the Green Heart of the Valley, Chilliwack and surrounding rural area have a total population of over 60,000. The Families in Motion program for adults and their three- and four- year old preschool children includes an adult component, a child component and parent and child together time. Families (up to 20 adults and 20 children) meet twice a week for three hours per morning in multiple community facilities. The project began in September 1992 with the establishment of a community advisory committee now known as the Chilliwack Family Literacy Council In September 1997, Families in Motion marked its fifth successful year of delivery service, a service which takes direction from the program’s mission statement: “As a learning program, Families in Motion recognizes parents as their children’s first and most important teachers, by serving as a foundation for lifelong learning, and by valuing the cultural diversity and strength of the family.” When Chilliwack first received federal/provincial cost-shared funding for a family literacy project, the mandate was to develop a family literacy advisory council, investigate the need for family literacy, and design a model family literacy program for its communities. It has done so with dedication, commitment and passion, and the Families in Motion program continues to thrive. The Program While the Adult Program also varies from year to year, the following is an example of the instructional modules which have been offered to parents in the last five years: academic skills, volunteer tutoring, computer literacy, family reading, library trips and support instruction from the children’s librarian, communication skills, life skills, parenting skills, employment readiness, volunteer reading to young children, educational field trips. Each year the parents have an opportunity to participate in deciding which modules of instruction best suit their needs. From the beginning, the Children’s Program has included opportunities for growth in the following areas: physical development, cognitive development, language/literacy development, emotional development, social development, library visits, field trips and parent and child together time. In recent years, theme units around such topics as “community” have provided an umbrella under which children’s skill and concept development and understanding of their environment has been supported. Parent and child together (PACT) is the last event of Friday mornings where the families spend time together doing crafts, stories and music. What makes this different from other family times is that the activity is led by the children who invite their parents to join them, as the children lead the activity. The opportunity for parents to demonstrate caring and respect for their child’s ideas and interests cannot be missed in this component of Families in Motion.
A $1.9 million grant recently awarded to BC Cancer Agency researchers by the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance will help scientists translate discoveries about breast cancer into better treatment. Approximately 5,400 women in Canada will die from breast cancer this year. Despite advances in the treatment of early and advanced breast cancer, further advances in treatment are required to improve the outcome of women with this disease. As the benefits of existing treatments reach their potential, the focus of research is shifting to attack specific molecular targets involved in the cause or progression of breast cancer. The overall project, Translating target discovery into better health outcomes for women with breast cancer, brings four connected breast cancer research projects together. Each project is geared toward a common goal: identifying why certain breast cancers behave the way they do at the molecular level, and how this knowledge can help clinicians plan treatment methods for maximum benefit. As well as assessing specific tumour markers, this project creates a framework for identifying and validating future potential targets. "This grant is exciting as it is true translational research. We are linking scientists and clinicians in order to try and accelerate the speed at which we turn basic science into clinical applications," explains Dr. Karen Gelmon, principal investigator and team leader with Dr. David Huntsman, both from the BC Cancer Agency. Investigators plan to take their discoveries in the lab to the clinic as quickly as possible, through Phase I and II clinical trials. The Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance is a collaboration of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, the Canadian Breast Cancer Network, Canadian Cancer Society, Health Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and the National Cancer Institute of Canada.
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