On Wednesday afternoon, I presented a recap of our efforts here at the Wellness Almanac over the previous year to the Pemberton Valley Utilities and Services Committee Meeting.

This Committee, which brings the SLRD and the Village of Pemberton together to oversee shared services, implements the Pemberton District Initiatives Fund (PDIF), which funds 2/3s of the operation of the Wellness Almanac. The other third of the funding is provided by the Lil’wat Nation. We are so grateful that these three leadership collectives that serve the communities in our region, and who navigate completely different legislative frameworks, continue to work to find ways to work together, and find common ground and places where collaboration makes sense.

Collaboration seems like an easy thing to ask of people, but when you probe a tiny bit, and understand that these entities are so profoundly different in so many ways, and so tasked with so many responsibilities (responsibilities that keep growing as federal and provincial jurisdictions download more and more to the local, regional, or First Nations level), it’s a real testament to the individuals, the human beings, the community members, for the work they put into trying to build relationships that are real, personal and meaningful, and that will help us all thrive here.

If you want to see the 10 minute update and say, “why yes, I did attend (-ish) a Council/Commitee meeting this year”), you can hit play below!