Festival Afloat

After a challenging year of separation and uncertainty, we’re so excited to invite you to a Festival Afloat! Saturday, August 14th, Indigenous rights charity RAVEN (Respecting Aboriginal Values and Environmental Needs) presents a unique, pandemic-friendly Floating Concert in the waters just off Jericho Beach. Featuring soul songstress Desiree Dawson, paddlers will surround the “Providence,” a gorgeous wooden sailing ship that serves as the ‘stage’ for the evening’s performance. This socially distanced, on-the-water concert offers people a way to come together in a creative, safe, and supportive way while offering a tangible way to stand in support of First Nation’s access to justice. Get tickets: https://fundraise.raventrust.com/event/festival-afloat-vancouver/e349034 Bring your canoe, kayak, stand-up paddleboard or rowboat to launch at Jericho Beach, or paddle over from Spanish Banks, Kits Beach or False Creek. It’s summertime parking, so plan to arrive early and go for a swim or paddle before the 7:00 pm start time. We’ll have facilitators helping load and unload boats and direct traffic. This promises to be a joyous community gathering to raise funds for Heiltsuk Nation’s “Step Up for Coast Heroes” campaign. The central-coast Nation is in the midst of a groundbreaking Indigenous Environmental Assessment project that pairs western science with traditional knowledge to uncover the full impacts of the Nathan E. Stewart disaster while charting a way forward to restore ecosystem health. The legal challenge – with support from RAVEN – is part of that path, as the case aims to enshrine the caretaker values and stewardship plans of Heiltsuk Nation into law. Can’t come? You can deepen this gathering’s impact with a tax-deductible donation: give now, and your contribution will be doubled. https://fundraise.raventrust.com/event/festival-afloat-vancouver/e349034