Youth Climate Corps bring emergency preparedness initiatives for second year in Courtenay

Mikasa Quaife and Heather Welch are leading the program in Courtenay with five Climate Action Mobilizers. (Youth Climate Corps BC)

A group of youths in the Comox Valley is making sure the region is prepared for climate emergencies. Youth Climate Corps BC is a province wide project that works to advance climate action in local communities throughout the summer. 

This year, Mikasa Quaife and Heather Welch are leading the program in Courtenay, working with five other team members, called Climate Action Mobilizers. Quaife said that a new initiative the team is working on this year is emergency preparedness. 

“So our team has completed some FireSmart training, and we have been in contact with the Comox Valley Emergency Management. We're hoping that at some point we might be able to help out with some FireSmart assessments. And we also are working with the Cumberland Lake Park Society, and they are getting a FireSmart assessment done at their property. And we will likely be helping with re-implementing some of the recommendations,” said Quaife. 

FireSmart BC is a program that’s aimed at reducing the risk of wildfire damage in communities and forests throughout the province. Quaife talked about some other projects they are currently working on. 

“We are working in watershed protection and water conservation. One of the biggest threats to the Comox Lake Watershed, which is where we all get our drinking water, is fire. And so education around fire, protecting the watershed from drought through reducing water usage and then also through reducing contaminants," said Quaife. 

Quaife explained why water conservation is more important than ever in the Comox Valley.

“And this year with our nonexistent snowpack, it's just shaping up to be a really dry year, and the island in general has just been getting drier, and so we're definitely at higher risk for fire than we have been historically. And so anything that we can do to mitigate that, it's always been important,” said Quaife. 

This summer, the Youth Climate Corps in Courtenay is working towards four main goals: ecological restoration and environmental monitoring, local food security and sustainable agriculture, emergency preparedness initiatives, and community outreach and education. Welch talked about what an average day looks like for the team. 

“Every day is super different. Our team has their hands in so many different buckets right now. Like yesterday they did a farm glean. Today we're at KFN Garden helping out,” said Welch. 

This year, the team is also helping to reduce waste for a major community event. The Comox Valley’s FIFA World Cup Watch Party took place on Friday, June 12. in the Comox Valley Exhibition Grounds.

“We're gonna do some waste audits, we're helping the city, the Comox Valley, create a zero waste toolkit that will hopefully be used, going forward to help event organizers have lower waste events and be more responsible,” said Welch. 

Youth Climate Corps began in 2020 in Nelson, B.C., with 14 youths working for four months on climate action initiatives. The project has since expanded to 12 other programs in different regions throughout the province. The organization provides summer employment to people between the ages of 17 and 30. Youth Climate Corps works and volunteers with other organizations. Welch talked about the key role they play in the collaboration between different organizations in the community. 

“I feel that our work is bridging a lot of different organizations. Like we're the glue that's bringing people together. Like we work with Lush Valley, and then they know someone, but they don't know how to get in contact with Cumberland Lake Park Society, and we're like, ‘Oh, we work with them. So let's bring you guys together to share information. Like what kind of native plants are you planting to conserve water?’ So us being like the intermediary between people is bringing the community together and getting people more engaged and being mindful about the climate,” said Welch. 

Quaife said a personal goal for her this summer is to spread education about climate action. 

“A lot of the work that we're doing that supports climate action, some of it costs money, and I feel like that's sometimes hard for people. I mean we're in an affordability crisis, and when people are thinking about money being spent on making their groceries more affordable or helping the climate, people are mostly gonna choose making their groceries more affordable. But I think that climate action supports affordability and our groceries are gonna keep getting more expensive if it's harder to farm them, and if we have to get them from further away, and the city is gonna have to spend more money on infrastructure,” said Quaife.

Quaife talked about how supporting climate action can improve living conditions for the community.

“If we have the right trees planted in the city, that can actually cool the city down, and then you're gonna be more comfortable walking around, and maybe you have to spend less on air conditioning costs. I think Sometimes there's an upfront cost to this, and a lot of times I feel like people think that they have to choose between climate action and other things that feel really important in their life, but I also think that they're all related, and supporting climate action is going to make things cheaper, nicer, better,” said Quaife.

This summer, Youth Climate Corps in Courtenay is encouraging people of all ages in the Comox Valley to get involved with local organizations and learn about climate action initiatives in the region.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.