Programs, Services, and Initiatives
The Okanagan Nation Alliance has an inherent right and responsibility to enjoy, manage, and protect its peoples, lands, resources, and forms of government as stated in the Okanagan Nation Declaration….
We are the unconquered aboriginal people of this land, our mother; The creator has given us our mother, to enjoy, to manage and to protect
– excerpt from the Okanagan Nation Declaration
Okanagan Nation Alliance
The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) works collectively with our member communities to advance, defend and preserve Syilx Okanagan sovereignty and our collective title and rights within the Syilx territory. The ONA is dedicated to upholding our inherent rights and sacred responsibilities through sqilxʷcaʷt (Syilx cultural ways of being).
Spotlight
Okanagan Similkameen Collaborative Leadership Table
This Syilx-guided initiative brings Local Governments and the Syilx Nation together to protect and restore siwɬkʷ|water in our region—now and for future generations. The Okanagan Similkameen Collaborative Leadership Table (CLT) is a powerful new voice to influence and direct future projects and policies as they relate to watershed security. Learn more
Syilx Okanagan, including Sinixt, in Canada
Unchanging stəɬtaɬt (the-truth-way or rights) In 1846, the Territory and membership of the Syilx Nation were split when the Canada-United States border was drawn across our Territory without our consent. This had many impacts on our Nation, including the separation of our lands and the separation of families. Learn more
Okanagan Lake Dam East Salmon Passage
In the late 1990s, the future of Okanagan salmon appeared bleak. Indigenous salmon populations had either been completely wiped out or were at alarmingly low levels. The loss of these salmon would have significant repercussions. What led to this decline? In the early 1900s, extensive flooding disrupted colonization efforts. Learn more
Learn About the Syilx People
For thousands of years, we, the Syilx Okanagan people, including Sinixt, were self-reliant and well provided for through our own ingenuity and use of the land and resources. We lived united as a Nation with a whole economy, travelling the breadth and depth of our territory; hunting, fishing, growing, harvesting, and trading created a sustainable economy that met our needs.