Join us for a film screening of the new documentary ‘Changing Course: A River’s Journey of Reconnection’, followed by a panel discussion on the Columbia River.
Changing Course – A River’s Journey of Reconnection (2024) illustrates the importance of water management using the Columbia River as a historic example and how the current governance of the Columbia River has to change course to adapt to this future by becoming more connected with nature. The need for such changes is eloquently expressed by leading voices in both Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in the Canadian Columbia Basin.
Jon O’Riordan – Director/Producer
Frances Litman – Co-Producer/Narrator
Bohdan Doval – Filmmaker
Opening words:
DR Michel, Executive Director of the Upper Columbia United Tribes
A member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, DR Michel has over 40 years of experience in forestry and natural resource management, as well as the technical and policy aspects of working for Tribes. DR is Executive Director of Upper Columbia United Tribes (UCUT), the inter-tribal organization with members including the Colville Confederated Tribes, Coeur d’ Alene Tribe, Kalispel Tribe, Kootenai Tribe of Idaho, and Spokane Tribe. He served eight years on the Colville Business Council as both the Vice Chair and the Chair of the Natural Resource Committee. DR and his family enjoy camping and spending time on the Columbia River.
Panel members:
Cindy Pearce, Executive Director, BC Columbia River Treaty Local Governments Committee
Cindy was raised on and fished the Salmo River as well as the Pend Oreille River which is now flooded by the Seven Mile dam. She has worked or lived in most of the communities along the Columbia and Kootenay Rivers in BC. She has lived in Revelstoke for over 25 years, where she can see the cottonwoods along the Illecillewaet River where it joins the Columbia. As a freelance consultant throughout most of her career, Cindy has supported rural communities to craft innovative, sustainable futures in these changing times. Since 2012 she has been honoured to serve as the Executive Director of the BC Columbia River Treaty Local Governments Committee. This group of elected officials is appointed by local governments in the basin. They work to ensure the voices of local governments and region residents are heard in decisions about the future of the CRT and about ongoing hydro operations. Cindy brings her formal education in resource management and policy analysis at Oregon State University and the University of BC as well as her decades of experience to support the Committee’s work.
Laura Stovel, Local Historian, Researcher and Author
Laura Stovel is a writer and social historian who was born and raised in Revelstoke. She has a PhD in sociology, specializing in justice and reconciliation after mass violence. Returning home to Revelstoke after studies and travels elsewhere, she realized that Revelstoke itself had a troubling history with the Indigenous people of this land, in particular the Sinixt. Questions about what happened to the Sinixt led her to write her fourth book, Swift River: Stories of the First People and First Travellers on the Columbia River around Revelstoke.
Graeme Lee Rowlands, Director of Water and Climate at Wildsight Regional
Graeme Lee Rowlands serves as Director of Water and Climate for Wildsight (Regional). He has been a self-identified ‘Columbia River nerd’ since 2016 when he began studying the Columbia River Treaty. The following year, he visited the upper Columbia watershed for the first time while on a 35 day bike and kayak journey up the river from sea-to-source. His written work on the treaty and related topics has appeared in English and French in more than 50 publications. He has served as a facilitator and coordinator for numerous watershed conferences and forums. Every year, Graeme delights in taking groups of youth, educators, and others paddling across the watershed through Wildsight’s Columbia River Field School, Teach the Columbia, and Columbia River Conversations programs. He is based in Golden but loves to visit familiar places and faces across the region.
Kristi Chorney, Wildsight Revelstoke Branch President (Moderator)
As Branch President, Kristi brings her passion for the outdoors, Revelstoke, and the surrounding area to positively impact environmental issues through collaboration with others. She brings her experiences and skills acquired from a healthcare career in MB and BC’s interior regions. She has a Bachelor of Human Ecology and Master of Science Human Factors/System Safety. Kristi feels fortunate to contribute to strategic plan development & implementation for the interconnected benefits of health, climate and the environment.