News

Okanagan Nation Celebrates 10th Annual Spirit Of Syilx Youth Unity Run To Continue Promoting Suicide And Violence Prevention And Awareness

May 9th, 2018

tkwəɬniwt (Westbank), Syilx Territory: From May 10-13, 2018, the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) will celebrate the 10th Annual Spirit of Syilx Youth Unity Run., This annual event is an innovative approach to raising awareness and education with all participants and the public on issues of suicide and violence that continue to confront Syilx communities. The Run exceeds these initial goals and continues to be a proven prevention platform to de-normalize violence, while creating a healing space for Syilx youth.

It addresses these issues by encouraging a healthy lifestyle and living through action, and physical exercise. Syilx youth are also provided the opportunity to experience being out on their territory together as Nation. As such this event addresses a broad range of community and societal issues from suicide and violence, to cultural reconnection with nationhood and the land. Overall, by utilizing a wide range of tools, from physical activity, connection to the territory and implementation of the Syilx teachings the Run enables participants to cultivate a greater sense of well-being.

“Over the last ten years, the Unity Run has evolved to provide a dynamic means of addressing issues of suicide and violence, while enabling an opportunity for greater awareness of cultural identity and healing to take place. A growing body of research shines a light on how such connections to community and land cannot only prevent but to also restore physical, mental and spiritual well-being of our youth. These best practices of gathering and engaging on the territory are resonate to our People as they have always been an intrinsic part of Syilx life. Any participant that has contributed to the Run over the last ten years can attest to these lasting experiences” states Jennifer Houde, Wellness Manager, ONA.

This year the Unity Run will begin at Blanket Creek Provincial Park, heading south to Nakusp and Fauquier, on to Cherryville and finishing at Polson Park in Vernon at 2:30 on May 13. In total, the Run will go through 309 km of the Syilx Territory. There will be a multitude of participants including Syilx youth, elders, leaders, community members and a range of other participants that wish to contribute to the event.

“Our 10th year of hosting the Unity Run is a testament to the hard work and dedication of all our member communities that come together to celebrate and hold up our Youth. This Run creates new experiences that instil wellness and pride in our culture and nsyilxcen language for generations to come. Our Youth are out on the land with our elders, cultural knowledge keepers, meeting other youth from across the Territory and building and fostering strength in each other and our Nation” states Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, ONA Chairman.

For additional information please contact:

Jennifer Houde, ONA CFYH Service Manager

Cell: 250-826-7844

Email: jhoude@syilx.org


Okanagan Nation Committed To Restore sc’win (Sockeye Salmon) to Their Natural Habitat –The Okanagan Watershed

May 1st, 2018

tkwəɬniwt (Westbank), Syilx Territory: Over the course of May, 2018, the Okanagan Nation Alliance’s (ONA) kł cp̓əlk̓ stim̓  Hatchery will release 1.23 million sc’win (sockeye salmon) fry into the Okanagan watershed. This initiative includes a series of ceremonial releases that will take from May 2-15 at Shingle Creek, Trout Creek, 6 Mile Creek, and Mission […]

PARTNERSHIP AND COLLABORATION CENTRAL TO SUCCESSFUL $1.45 MILLION FUNDING FOR INNOVATIVE FLOOD MAPPING PROJECT

April 10th, 2018

tkwəɬniwt (Westbank), Syilx Territory: On April 10, 2018, the Okanagan Nation Alliance, in collaboration with the Province of British Columbia and the Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) announced that $1.45 million has been secured to enhance flood mapping for the Okanagan Valley. The funds received will go towards LiDAR* and digital aerial imagery acquisition for […]

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE’S 4TH siwɬkʷ (WATER) FORUM FOCUSES ON RECONNECTING TO LAND AS PART OF OUR SHARED RESPONSIBILITY TO WATER MANAGEMENT

March 22nd, 2018

tkwəɬniwt (Westbank), Syilx Territory: On March 22, 2018, as part of World Water Day, the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) hosted our 4th siwɬkʷ (Water) Forum. This event brought together 85 people, including Syilx leadership, elders, traditional knowledge keepers and community members, alongside regional and provincial government, NGO representatives and academics to connect out on the […]

Syilx Language House Association Year 3 Interim Report

March 2nd, 2018

The Syilx Language House Association (SLHA) are reporting midway through the third year of their four-year language program. They are delivering best-practices and community language priorities. Their mission is to create advanced speakers and record Elders. They owe their success to the Paul Creek Curriculum and to commitment—of their students and teachers, of their Bands, […]

Syilx Okanagan Nation Calls for Justice Reform

March 1st, 2018

(Syilx Territory: Westbank, BC) – Community members from the Syilx Okanagan Nation gathered at the Penticton Courthouse on Monday February 26, 2018 to rally against the systemic injustices exposed by the deaths of Colten Boushie and Tina Fontaine. The deaths highlight how Canada’s legal system continues to fail Indigenous people. Earlier this month, an all-white […]

Seeking Our snaqsilx Gathering to Connect Syilx Youth with Employment Opportunities

February 5th, 2018

Media Release – Seeking Our Snaqsilx Gathering Westbank, Okanagan Territory: From February 5-6, 2017, Okanagan Nation Alliance’s (ONA) BRIDGE’s program, in Partnership with Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation, and Okanagan Indian Band’s Pre-Employment Support team, are hosting a networking event at the Penticton Lakeside Resort, which brings Syilx youth and front line workers ( youth, […]

Working Partnerships Advance Protection of ki?lawna? (Grizzly Bear) and Other Threatened Wildlife

January 12th, 2018

Westbank), Syilx Territory: The ONA has been taking action to reduce pressures on ki?lawna? and recover threatened populations. Most recently, in collaboration with ONA, Clayton Lamb at the University of Alberta Department of Biological Sciences, released the results of a new study that provides insight on the relationships between ki?lawna? and road density. The results […]

To Honor and Educate, Unveiling of Syilx Indian Residential School Monument

November 28th, 2017

snpíntktn (Penticton), Syilx Territory: Today the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) held an official public unveiling ceremony for the new Syilx Indian Residential School monument. This monument is placed where the train and the cattle trucks came to gather Syilx children and take them away to Indian Residential Schools, next to the kł cpə̓ lk) stim̓ […]

Project in Progress: Penticton Channel PIT Array Installation

November 28th, 2017

From November 28-30, 2017, Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) and Penticton Indian Band (PIB) crews will be working together to install four PIT (Passive Integrated Transponders) arrays in the Penticton channel, just north of the former KVR bridge. These arrays are used to record the movement of any PIT tagged fish species that use the channel […]

Grand Chief Stewart Phillip and Joan Phillip win 2017 Eugene Rogers Environmental Award

November 27th, 2017

Courtesy of the Wilderness Committee VANCOUVER – The Wilderness Committee is awarding the 2017 Eugene Rogers Environmental Award to Grand Chief Stewart Phillip and Joan Phillip at the Wilderness Committee’s Annual Open House. They were chosen for their decades of commitment to preserving and protecting lands, waters and the environment for future generations. They have […]

Honouring Syilx Indian Residential School Survivors With Unveiling of Nation Monument

November 24th, 2017

snpíntktn (Penticton), Syilx Territory: On November 28, 2017, the Okanagan Nation Alliance will hold an official public unveiling ceremony for the new Syilx Indian Residential School monument. All Syilx Nation members and the general public are invited to attend this significant ceremony. This monument is dedicated to all Syilx people who went to Indian Residential […]

SMOKER MARCHAND SELECTED TO DESIGN ART PIECE FOR INDIAN RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL MONUMENT

November 8th, 2017

Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) is pleased to announce that the Syilx Indian Residential Committee have officially selected artist ‘Smoker’ Virgil Marchand to procure the art for the monument. ‘Smoker’, himself a survivor of the Indian Residential School system at St. Mary’s Mission boarding school, will create the art, which will be an essential part of […]

MEDIA RELEASE: SYILX OKANAGAN CHIEFS CLOSELY MONITORING SALMON RIVER INVESTIGATION

November 2nd, 2017

(Syilx Okanagan Territory/Vernon, BC – November 1, 2017) The Chiefs of the Syilx Okanagan Nation are deeply concerned with the recent developments at Salmon River Road in the North Okanagan given the current status of Missing, Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (“MMIWG”) in this country. Recently, Syilx Okanagan Nation members have been rallying to bring […]

Working Together to Establish a National Park Reserve in South Okanagan

October 27th, 2017

IMMEDIATE RELEASE: GOVERNMENT OF CANADA OSOYOOS, BRITISH COLUMBIA – With rolling hills and sweeping valleys, the South Okanagan offers a stunning landscape ranging from near-desert to rich forests of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir that support an incredible range of rare animals and plants. The South Okanagan is one of Canada’s most unique habitats and […]

De-Normalizing Violence PSA: Casting Call

October 25th, 2017

WHO: Syilx & Non Syilx Actors WHAT: Series of 3 two-minute PSA style videos to introduce the ONA YES Program. For more information on the YES Program please visit: www.syilx.org/wellness/our-programs-and-services/you-empowered-strong/ WHEN: Saturday Oct 28 2017, Vernon 10am-12am (maybe Sunday morning) No/low pay but Copy, Credit and Good Food AUDITIONS: Thursday, Oct 26, and Friday, Oct […]

Syilx Indian Residential School Monument Update

October 23rd, 2017

The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA), with support from the Wellness Committee, applied to INAC (originally Aboriginal and Northern Development Canada) and was awarded funding in 2012 for Truth & Reconciliation Commemorative (TRC) Project. This project was guided by the former TRC Council of Elders, who represented each member community of the Okanagan Nation. This council […]

kł cp̓əlk̓ stim̓ Hatchery Broodstock Update

October 13th, 2017

In 2017 a total run of 25,000-35,000 sc’win (Okanagan sockeye salmon) returned to the fishing grounds. High summer flows provided ideal conditions in suwiw̓s (Osoyoos Lake) and q̓awst’ik’ʷt (Skaha Lake), where salmon held until now when they ready to spawn. This year’s return of sc’win is entirely natural origin, offspring from the 2013 run in […]

Outraged Mothers, Fathers, Grandparents, Uncles, Aunties from the Penticton Indian Band to call Ministry Child & Family Development to Account

October 13th, 2017

Penticton BC – The Penticton Indian Band community members call for the Ministry of Children and Families to recognize and respect the fundamental human Rights of Penticton Indian Band Children and Families. Generations of failed policies and systems have harmed our families and continue to erode critical relationships between MCFD and the Penticton Indian Band […]

“15 Years of Restoring Salmon Habitat in the q̓awsitkʷ (Okanagan River)” Workshop Showcases Restoration Through Collaboration

October 3rd, 2017

snpintktn (Penticton), BC Syilx Territory: On October 3-4, 2017, Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) will host a “15 Years of Restoring Salmon Habitat in the q̓awsitkʷ (Okanagan River)” workshop at the En’owkin Centre in snpintktn, BC. Participants to include government representatives from the Department of Fisheries & Oceans(DFO) and the Ministry of Forest, Land and Natural […]

Notice of Opportunity: BRIDGES Youth Advisory Group Open Call

October 2nd, 2017

Syilx Nation youth ages 18-30 committed to creating success and opportunity for other Syilx youth Submissions will be compiled by the BRIDGES team and will select 14 representatives Selected group members will advise on the BRIDGES program, including planning and implementation, and communicating out to the Okanagan Nation membership Time committment: Meet with BRIDGES team […]

Syilx Nation’s Annual General Assembly Commemorates the 1990 Oka Run for Peace

August 16th, 2017

swiw’s (Osoyoos), Syilx Territory, British Columbia: With global political and social turmoil on the rise it has never been more important to have a united voice advocating for peace, justice and human rights. On August 17 as part of the Okanagan Nation’s Annual General Assembly (AGA) a run will take place from chuchuwaya (Hedley) to […]

Information Bulletin: Continuing to Make Their Way Home, Information on 2017 Return of Sockeye Salmon

July 27th, 2017

The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA), in collaboration with multiple organizations and agencies, have worked tirelessly to bring sockeye salmon back to the Okanagan region. This program has exceeded expectations, with in some years hundreds of thousands of fish entering the Columbia River system. Though previous years have seen plentiful returns, 2017 will be a below-average […]

Community Fishing Notice: Chinook Head Recovery

July 26th, 2017

CHINOOK FROM WHERE? Middle Shuswap River, including Mable Lake and up to Shuswap Falls HOW TO ENTER/HELP When you catch a Chinook salmon follow the instructions below: 1. Check to see if the adipose fin is missing, if missing, 2. Remove the salmon’s head and put it in a plastic bag. 3. Use a pencil […]

Community Fishing Notice: Salmon Harvest at Middle Shuswap River 2017

July 26th, 2017

What is it? The salmon fishery is open to members of the: Lower Similkameen Indian Band, Okanagan Indian Band, Osoyoos Indian band, Penticton Indian Band, Upper Nicola Band, Upper Similkameen Indian Band and the Westbank First Nation. All community members are encouraged to harvest fish.   Fraser River Chinook are available for harvest between Mable Lake […]

Syilx Okanagan Nation Welcomes Government of Canada’s Commitment to Recognition Principles

July 21st, 2017

(Syilx Okanagan Territory/Westbank, BC – July 21, 2017): The Okanagan Nation Alliance is pleased to receive the Principles respecting the Government of Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples that were released on Friday July 14, 2017. From the Nation’s perspective, these new principles will greatly assist the federal government in its reconciliation mandate and serve as a […]

UPDATED: Wildfire Safety Information Package

July 17th, 2017

July 31 Wildfires Update FireSmart – Evacutation ChecklistWildfires can start easily and spread quickly. Knowing what to do in an emergency is critical to ensuring the health and safety of your community members and protecting your critical infrastructure. Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), BC Region, has prepared this information package to help your community […]

ONA Fisheries Summer 2017 Field Work Advisory

July 11th, 2017

Be advised that during the summer months between June and September, the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) will be conducting annual research and monitoring along the Okanagan Lake and River system (including connecting lakes and tributaries). Similar to previous years, sampling activities will involve/occur: in-lake and along shore lines at various times during the day/night from […]

Sockeye Tag Recovery Fish Lottery

July 10th, 2017

The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) Fisheries Research Team is conducting a 2017 fish behaviour study of Okanagan River Sockeye.  HOW TO ENTER/HELP If you catch a Sockeye salmon in the Okanagan River and Osoyoos Lake, please check to see if the fish has a tag attached under the large top fin or inside the cavity […]