Youth Climate Corps BC Launches Fourth Season in Alert Bay
- Kate Addison
- Jun 9
- 3 min read
Youth Climate Corps BC (YCCBC) is proud to launch the third season of the local Kwakwaka’wakw Revitalization Project as part of a growing province-wide movement supporting youth-led climate action across British Columbia.
The 2026 Northern Vancouver Island Youth Climate Corps team will be led by Humdzi’di–Amber Alfred, who will work with a team of three Community Climate Action Mobilizers, Nakiesha Stauffer, Clifford Glendale and Dominic Alfred, throughout the summer season.
The 2026 team will build on the foundation established during previous seasons with projects focused on:
Food sustainability through jams processed using fruit from our own garden, traditional harvesting, processing, and preserving of different species of Seafood.
Construction of the Fisherman’s Memorial Trail.
The Grassy Point Campground cleanup.
Working with Mother Tree Network in old-growth forests in the Namgis & Ma’amtagila territories
Youth Climate Corps provides living wage employment to young adults to complete climate action projects in their community, working alongside local government and community organizations.
During the past year, the North Vancouver Island Youth Climate Corps team worked alongside partners such as Ocean Legacy, ‘Namgis First Nation, ‘Awinakola Society, and Ma’amtagila to accomplish a wide range of land-based and cultural projects from food security and traditional ecological knowledge to environmental monitoring and ancient forest research.
Youth also supported the Gwatney Hatchery through working at the fish hatchery to gather data on local salmon fish stocks, thus supporting local salmon populations. In total, the 2025 North Vancouver Island team completed 192 Climate Action Days (1 climate action day = 1 youth x 1 full workday).
These local efforts are part of YCCBC’s growing province-wide impact. As the organization continues to expand, YCCBC is equipping young people with the skills, experience, and confidence needed to address climate challenges while helping build stronger, more connected, and more resilient communities across British Columbia.
Community leaders and government representatives shared their support for the continued growth of the Youth Climate Corps program:
"Youth Climate Corps creates meaningful opportunities for young people to reconnect with the land, strengthen community relationships, and build practical skills while contributing to projects that matter locally. We are proud to continue this work in partnership with YCCBC and to support youth as leaders in creating a healthy, resilient future for our communities." — Humdzi'di (Amber Alfred), Kwakwaka’wakw Revitalization Project
“Ocean Legacy was pleased to collaborate with the Youth Climate Corps on the creation of this beautiful and meaningful trail. The project successfully repurposed significant amounts of debris and materials that would otherwise have been sent to landfill or processed through Ocean Legacy’s facilities. This approach reduced the overall carbon footprint while giving new purpose to recovered materials in a thoughtful and impactful way. We remain committed to training and building capacity among youth, and this partnership with the Youth Climate Corps exemplifies an ideal opportunity to do so while contributing to a project with lasting community and environmental benefits.” — AshleyTapp, Manager, Health and Safety, Project Manager. The Ocean Legacy Foundation.
“Youth Climate Corps represents the kind of community-based climate leadership we need more of across British Columbia. I’m proud to continue supporting a program that empowers youth while helping communities become stronger and more resilient.” — Brittny Anderson, Minister of State for Local Governments and Rural Communities
“Addressing the climate crisis requires leadership, innovation and bold action. Through programs like the Youth Climate Corps, young people in Kelowna are taking meaningful steps toward strengthening community resilience while helping to build the skilled workforce we need for a low-carbon future.” — Adrian Dix, Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions
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