Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
In the late 1990s, communities across the Canadian Islands in the Salish Sea came together on a creative mission to map what they cherished at the turn of the millennium. Led by a small group of islanders, artists and community members from 18 of the islands began mapping their home places, creating an atlas of beautifully rendered maps that revealed a unique way of understanding what is important to the people who lived there. Now, almost a quarter century later, those maps have been presented in a digital atlas so they can be shared more widely, allowing a larger audience to reflect on how community mapping can show cultural values, inform conservation, and inspire creativity. This presentation will talk about the initial motivations and outcomes of the original project, how and why the project was digitized, and the benefits of wide-spread community mapping projects to connect with the land and the people who live there.
The Environmental Speaker Series is free and open to the public. Talks are held each Thursday at 4:30pm in Academic Instructional Center West, room 204. Join us at WWU or online on Zoom!
In the late 1990s, communities across the Canadian Islands in the Salish Sea came together on a creative mission to map what they cherished at the turn of the millennium. Led by a small group of islanders, artists and community members from 18 of the islands began mapping their home places, creating an atlas of beautifully rendered maps that revealed a unique way of understanding what is important to the people who lived there. Now, almost a quarter century later, those maps have been presented in a digital atlas so they can be shared more widely, allowing a larger audience to reflect on how community mapping can show cultural values, inform conservation, and inspire creativity. This presentation will talk about the initial motivations and outcomes of the original project, how and why the project was digitized, and the benefits of wide-spread community mapping projects to connect with the land and the people who live there.
The Environmental Speaker Series is free and open to the public. Talks are held each Thursday at 4:30pm in Academic Instructional Center West, room 204. Join us at WWU or online on Zoom!
