Significance of Results
To quote Carmen Rosen “… having an environmental success story that you can hang your hat on,” speaks volumes (Rosen, personal communications, 2017). Our results have shown that the rehabilitation of Still Creek did more than providing cleaner air, an improved drainage system and habitat restoration, it also strengthened the bond of community members by helping people reconnect through stories about salmon, inspiring creativity, and providing hope and opportunity to future ecological enthusiast. And like the stories which are now being shared amongst the community around Still Creek, our research aims to keep the legacy of this project alive because it deserves it. So much effort went into this project. To quote Mark Angelo “…we remember an announcement, but we forget the push that was undertaken to get to that point.”(Angelo, personal communications, 2017). Keeping record of the all these positive efforts is essential for projects currently struggling to find their footing as well as provide tips and insights for future projects. From our results we can conclude that there were four critical components to the success of this project. Firstly everyone needs to be on the same page, especially for a project with so many stakeholders. During our interviews no one made a statement or even hinted to the possibility of clashing opinions. Although there are a few exceptions, more often than not, conflict of interest leads to non-fluid progression and unsatisfactory decision making. The second component is persistence (as already mentioned). There is a reason why so many individuals today are so persistent to protect and restore ecological ideals. The benefits that can arise from rehabilitation are limitless. To quote Coulter-Boisvert “None of this would have happened had it not been for the ongoing stewardship efforts.” (Coulter-Boisvert, personal communications, 2017). Visions for the Creek began during the 1970’s, but changes only physically took place during the early 2000’s after sustainable development plans and funding necessary were finalized. In some ways it is disappointing to see how a project which can be classified as ‘short scale’ could take so long. But in other ways, it is better to wait and make sure to do it correctly the first time, rather than go through a costly operation through trial and error. These leads to the third necessary component. Encouraging local engagement. It is not uncommon for there to be a disconnect between the individuals who are renewing an area versus those who actually live there. Although during the earlier stages, most of the help came from experts beyond the local lands, the project did encourage the participation of local community partners and in turn, they helped to get the locals more invested. Still today volunteer work takes place along the Creek. This a key component towards extending the long term legacy of the project and validating to the government why they should continue with funding. And the final critical component is to invest big. One of the best ways you can inspire engagement is to create drastic visual change. Significant change helps to spark new hope into people’s hearts and in turn create long term engagement. Financial risk should always be considered, but so to should opportunity.
In terms of amnesia, our work alongside the newly documented sources coming from elsewhere are keeping this success story alive. However because the stages prior to the 1990’s were poorly documented, some of the earlier work from Mark Angelo as well as from the initial visionaries are being slowly forgotten with time. However recent documentation is helping to elongate the longevity of this project and maintain the relevancy of the operation. In terms of amnesia, the most significant and interesting part of our results showed that the project is helping locals reconnect with their ancestral roots and with their love for nostalgic nature. Reconnecting with ecological ideas and reconnecting with our ancestral origins during a time of globalizing monoculture and urbanization is key step towards ecological prosperity and promoting biodiversity.
Implications and Next Steps
Due to time constraints and limited resources, our team was only able to gather insightful information from community partners. However even before the river was rehabilitated, development policies had to be formed, funding had to be collected and complex planning and management strategies had to be forged. Government representatives, Business partners and sustainable development experts played a significant role both prior and during the development of Still Creek. Getting a better understanding of their role is a key step towards unraveling the processes behind the Salmon’s return.
Another future step would be to interview the voices which weren’t heard during the rehabilitation process. Obtaining the opinions of those voices will be beneficial towards understanding power relations as well as gaining a better perspective on what might have happened if these voices were heard. Although from our interviews we know that the First Nations were more concentrated with larger scale issues such as the ongoing fish rights dispute along the shoreline (MacDonald, personal communications, 2017), it would still be interesting to hear their opinions on the project and find out if they have any suggestions to make it better. There may also be individuals from the community partners, government representatives and business partners who opposed to universal incentives. Who were these people? Why did they have a different vision? These question will most certainly help gain a better understanding of the power relations that took place. Recording opinions from residents around the Creek and obtaining insightful local knowledge would also be interesting to explore.
Based on all the data we’ve compiled together, it is clear that the project has enriched social and ecological aspects back to the neighborhood, and as a result it is considered and environmental success story. However what about financial success? From our research, it was demonstrated that approximately two million dollars have gone towards this ongoing rehabilitation project (City of Vancouver, 2008). Additionally many of the projects between 2002-2012 went between 5-25% over budget. Financial viability is necessary component to long term success, and is a key component that should never be ignored. Combining the social, environmental and financial aspects into a single cost/benefit analysis research project is both unique and crucial to explore. The exploring idea that environmental and financial components can work hand in hand is important step towards inspiring new and improved project in the near future.