Northern Lights college Training program
Ridgeline is partnering with Northern Lights College & the British Columbia Oil and Gas Commission to bring environmental training to Indigenous communities.
Ridgeline’s Involvement in Indigenous Communities
Ridgeline Canada Inc. (Ridgeline) recognizes that it is a privilege to work with indigenous groups and communities in the traditional territory of Treaty 6, 7, and 8. Late in 2020, Ridgeline, with support from the Province of British Columbia, BC oil & Gas Commission, and our post-secondary partner, Northern Lights College (NLC), initiated an Environmental Site Assessment Technician training job practicum. This training will allow students with little or no experience in the environmental services sector to gain hands-on skills while offering a path to earn credits towards a college diploma. Upon successfully completing and meeting the learning outcomes set by the NLC, the students will obtain credits that can be used at the NLC or any other post-secondary institutions and worked towards a diploma or degree.
Our Training initiative
To date, we have 26 students representing 13 communities, namely Halfway River, Prophet River, Fort Nelson, Fort St. James, Hole Lake, Chetwynd, Blueberry River, Watson Lake, New Aiyansh (Gitlaxt'aamiks), Doig River, and Burns Lake.
The students have been learning the basic sciences such as botany, taxonomy, plant classification & identification, soil biology, plant ecology, biodiversity, site assessment and remediation, wetland reclamation, land reclamation, and monitoring.
Ridgeline has been assisting NLC in instructing the courses and weaving the traditional and cultural knowledge into the teachings. By mid-June, the students will be heading to the field with Ridgeline staff and our new collaborator, the BC Wildlife Federation, to start their field practicum.
Ridgeline is excited about the opportunities that this training brings to the students in obtaining short and long-term employment and become stewards of the land. We are also thankful to the communities and our partners for supporting this initiative.
Interested in participating or sponsoring future training, please contact Jay Woosaree (jwoosaree@ridgelinecanada.com).
