The Sunshine Coast Conservation Association is plunging into its first in-person Ocean Festival since it launched weeklong virtual celebrations to commemorate World Oceans Day in 2021.
The association, which was founded almost three decades ago, had held daylong gatherings since 2016. But it was in the midst of COVID-19 that it stretched Ocean Festival into a week-long virtual film festival. Former association director Bill Wareham also introduced a series of TED-style lectures about the marine environment.
“Bill coined the NEMO Talks,” said Suzanne Senger, executive director for the association. “I love the films and the in-person things, but the NEMO talks are awesome because there are so many ways to look at the ocean and so many issues and challenges. Sometimes it’s hard to learn about all the terrible things that are happening. But when you bring in experts who are doing something about it, it’s a lot more hopeful.”
Five NEMO talks are scheduled for the 2024 festival, which runs from June 2 to 8 at locations in Sechelt. Although the talks themselves are delivered online, their emphasis on local issues is clear. Sacha O’Regan, a Nanaimo-based ecoystems biologist at the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, will explore the marine impacts of private moorage in kalpilin (Pender Harbour).
Senger, who serves on the advisory group influencing amendments to the shíshálh swiya Dock Management Plan, previewed O’Regan’s presentation. “It really did answer a lot of questions for me,” she said. Another talk, by Indigenous knowledge holder Carl Olsen of the the w̱sáneć Nation, will discuss Indigenous sea gardens.
Olsen’s presentation comes as the association steps up its focus on foreshore ecosystems around the Salish Sea. “There are important aspects there that we need to protect for ecological sustainability,” said Senger. “But clam gardens aren’t necessarily as sexy as whales.”
A film festival has been part of the Ocean Festival since 2021, spearheaded by local documentary aficionado Billie Carroll. Caroll attends regional screenings and works with festival organizers to select titles. During its inaugural film festival in 2021, the association obtained funding from the District of Sechelt to produce its own feature: Life Beneath the Surface.
Public engagement through films and engagements with underwater cinematographers is a perfect fit, explained Senger. “The ocean’s so miraculous,” she said, “but sometimes if you’re not a diver, cracking the surface is hard and people need a little help.”
This year, in-person screenings will be held on June 2 and 8 at the Sechelt Arts Centre. The June 8 screening is the documentary Deep Rising, narrated by Jason Momoa. The movie identifies links between the ocean’s depths and the future of green energy. A curated selection of shorts and full-length films can also be viewed via the festival’s website, including the 2019 film The Whale and the Raven that chronicles conflicts between the Gitga’at First Nation and the Government of British Columbia over the gas industry.
World Oceans Day was originally proposed to the United Nations by Canadian representatives at the Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992.
On June 8 itself, the Conservation Association will host a free public celebration in Friendship Park in Sechelt. The event is set to include a barbecue and booths from organizations including shíshálh youth cedar weaving, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Ocean Wise Conservation Association, the S.C. Streamkeepers and S.C. Tourism. Live music will be performed by DJ Sam Pulpo.See a full lineup at sunshinecoastoceanfestival.ca.
