Down2Earth

Journey to T'Souke First Nation with hosts Steve Sxwithul'txw and Art Napoleon to learn about the story of the greenest community in all of Canada. Cheryl Bryce (Coast Salish) illustrates indigenous food and medicine growing, and community salmon smokehouse cooking.

Nuu-chah-nulth means "all along the mountains and the sea" and it also describes the geography of the West Coast Trail, a rugged 75 km trail that attracts 6,000 international hikers each year. Since 1994, three Nuuchah-nulth communities have shared the management and maintenance of the trail with Parks Canada. Includes segment from the UN Climate Change Conference with Apache environmentalist Robby Romero.

Journey to the T'silhqot'in First Nation to share the tribe's struggle to limit development and maintain their culture. Next the team shifts gears and gets into urban gardening and getting back to the land in Vancouver; and finally, an interview with activist/physicist Vandana Shiva who promotes sustainability and women's rights.

The Tsleil-Waututh First Nation is one of three First Nations whose traditional territory is located within the borders of one of Canada's largest cities, North Vancouver, BC. Only a few kilometers from the village is the vast Indian Arm water shed that is the home to elk, deer, bear, salmon, eagles and many other species. The Tsleil-Waututh people co-manage a provincial park, restore salmon streams and maintain forest land in this region. Includes segment with Nikki Alex, one of many indigenous youth who took part in the UN Climate Change Conference.

Architect Alfred Waugh, from the Chipewyan First Nation in the NWT discusses the construction of a sustainably built west coast-style cedar big house at the Universityof Victoria. Eli Enns of the Tla-o-qui-aht Nation discusses how communities can protect their territories through sustainable development and traditional practices. And finally, Pam Gross, and Inuit youth discusses climate change in her northern community of Cambridge Bay.

The Huu-ay-aht First Nation, along with the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre and the community of Bamfield, have worked together to revitalize the endangered pinto abalone, a traditional food source for the Nuu-chah-nulth people. In Vancouver, the C Restaurant purchases and serves the adult abalone from the Bamfield hatchery. Income from the sale of the shellfish is reinvested into the project. Includes segment with Earl Tulley, a Navajo environmentalist tha tworks with communities adversely affected by the energy industry.

The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in Arizonahave developed award-winning recycling and landfill centres that contribute to a cleaner environment and help conserve the region's natural resources. Includes segment with Maria Theresa Lauron of the Philippines. She advocates for small farmers throughout the southern hemisphere whose lives are affected by economic globalization and climate change.

The Nk'mip Desert Cultural Centre in Osoyoos, British Columbia is the site of Canada's only desert eco-system. The centre is at the forefront of rattlesnake and endangered plant conservation; Chavannes Jean-Baptiste founded the Peasant Movement of Papay in Haiti in 1973. Since then, he has been working with peasant farmers to teach them low impact, organic farming techniques.

Every region in the world has its own unique agricultural history, and Arizona is no exception. The Indigenous people from this region built complex irrigation systems and grew diverse crops despite the intense heat and low annual rainfall. Tour an area of the wetlands and discover a thriving cottonwood forest. Marilyn Wallace is a filmmaker from Australia who teaches Aborigine youth the importance of protecting their ancestral lands.

Art visits the Toledo Cacao Growers Association in southern Belize where cacao is bought and new plants cultivated for planting in the rainforest. Mayan farmers in southern Belize practice sustainable farming methods to build a reputation as world leaders in the organic cocoa market. Wahu Kaarais is a community activist with the Kenya Debt Relief Network. She voices her concern on the effects that climate change is having on African farmers.

The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in Arizona have enacted a wild horse preservation program that provides food for the herd of 300. For thousands of years, the rain forests of Belize have been a source of food,medicine and ceremonial plants for indigenous people. Faith Gimmel is the director of REDOIL, an organization that works with native Alaskans whose traditional way of life is being threatened by the oil industry.

Two Aboriginal educators in Victoria, BC take urban students on forest hikes to learn about local Indigenous history.; The Ya'axche Conservation Trust in Belize is an Indigenous-led organization that co-manages the region's rainforests and educates farmers, local residents and visitors about the importance of preserving the local eco-systems.; Clayton Thomas-Muller is a Cree activist from Northern Manitoba who speaks out against the oil industry's exploitation of the Athabasca Tar Sands.

The Ya'axche Conservation Trust is a community organization that promotes economically viable and ecologically sound agriculture throughout southern Belize.; A ruling by the Supreme Court of British Columbia meant that the Nuu-chah-nulth could return to a way of life enjoyed for countless generations.; At the UN Climate Change Conference, several Indigenous leaders speak out on climate change.