Ahousaht

World-renowned Trail Gets a Face-lift

Community work in Ahousaht began with a Community Dialogue in May, 2008. About 100 people came to discuss the strengths of Ahousaht and what their vision for the future of Ahousaht would look like.

Building on those strengths and visions, facilitated Working Group meetings explored the many possible projects that Ahp-cii-uk Ahousaht could take on. Each community had the possibility to start one economic and one social development project with Ahp-cii-uk.

One particular project kept coming up in discussions. Years before, the Ahousaht people in partnership with an environmental group rebuilt a historic trail along the coast of Flores Island. The Walk the Wildside Heritage Trail had attracted international attention and was a big tourist hit. Unfortunately, problems occurred and the upkeep of the trail was abandoned. The Ahousaht people who were participating in Ahp-cii-uk saw potential to solve those problems and re-build the trail as a economic and social benefit to their community.

Walk the Wild Side Trail

In Ahousaht work has centred around the re-vitalization of the Walk the Wild Side Heritage Trail — a culturally significant trail with great tourist appeal.

From the time this project was chosen, many people expressed interest in getting the trail fixed up to attract tourism and for the cultural benefit of the community. People with very little organizing experience continued to be involved through the development of this extensive project.
Throughout the Walk the Wild Side Project multiple partners have been involved, and donations have been secured from local business and other funding bodies.

Ahp-cii-uk partnered with BC Parks which applied to the BC Conservation Corps to hire 4 people to work on the trail. Ahp-cii-uk facilitated the distribution of the job posting and helped people apply for the jobs. Many people who wanted the work did not have computers or thought they weren’t qualified — even though they were. Without Ahp-cii-uk, those jobs would have likely been filled outside the community.

In this way, Ahp-cii-uk both helps find funding, and bridges the gap between resources and the people who will access them.

Working with Local Artists

The trail rebuilding has been the catalyst for several other projects in Ahousaht. A contest to develop a trail logo involved local artists and partners who participated through the provision of prizes and encouragement. The work of Ahp-cii-uk was instrumental in helping artists feel confident enough to participate.

Elders suggested a Welcome Figure be created to stand at the head of the trail. Partners again jumped in to find funding for a local master carver to engage the community in building 2 poles, one of which was raised in a ceremony and celebration on September 1, 2009.

The trail work continues to spark considerable local interest. Future developments include effective trail marketing and tying in the services of locals to the tourist market.

Developing Capacity

Developing the capacity of the local coordinator has been successful in Ahousaht too. The young woman had little administrative experience. After about 5 months in the role, she expressed a desire to quit because she was too overwhelmed by the demands of the job. At that time Ahp-cii-iuk arranged to pair her up with an older and more experienced aunt. Her aunt agreed to be a mentor and she agreed to stay on with this support.

After being in the role for a year, the coordinator had gained tremendous confidence in speaking in public, creating a meeting agenda, and organizing in general. She willingly takes on challenges and is seen as a role model in her community for other young women.