How BCCDC teams are strengthening food systems through community and embracing inspiration from Indigenous ways of being and doing.
At the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), the Food Security and Food Skills for Families (FSF) teams are working alongside communities to build healthier, accessible and more connected food systems. They are a part of the Prevention and Health Promotion (PHP) team, and their approach is grounded in humility: they do not claim to have all the answers — instead, they show up to learn, listen, and walk with partners who bring their own deep knowledge, skills, and lived experience.
As FSF Program Manager and Food Literacy Lead Diane Collis reflects,
We all have different relationships and experiences with food: food is healing, it connects us to culture, the land, to each other and it can also be a meaningful expression of love and care.”
Understanding Food Security Through Community Stories
In 2024, the Food Security team released Food Costs and Climate Change Impact Stories from Remote Communities in BC, documenting how rising food prices and climate‑related disruptions are affecting remote and Indigenous communities. These stories highlighted local strengths — from preserving and foraging to sharing food and revitalizing land‑based practices — and underscored how climate change is deepening inequities.
In 2025, two years after their stories were first shared, the Food Security team supported the communities to come together for a UBC Learning Circle webinar, to provide further insights and updates on the experiences from remote Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. This gathering served as a way to continue to bring community voices forward and have their knowledge inform policy, emergency preparedness, and government decision‑making.
Building Relationships Through Food
Guided by the six Coast Salish Teachings gifted to PHSA by Knowledge Keeper Siem Te Ta-in, Shane Pointe, FSF’s work centers connection, belonging, and care. In 2025‑26, Community Facilitators delivered 420 program sessions across the province — a reflection of the generosity, passion, and food wisdom held by community partners. FSF exists because of them.
Whether updating curriculum or supporting new community facilitators, FSF strives to honour community‑based cultural knowledge and ways of doing, evidence-informed intervention practices and nutrition data and insights.
Their path forward is to weave these strengths together, guided by what communities identify as important, including: budget‑friendly meals, preserving food to help nourish themselves during power outages, food safe handling, and culturally meaningful foods and meals.
Learning Beside Indigenous Partners
FSF’s work continues to be enriched by Indigenous-led partnerships, many facilitated by Chee Mamuk, an Indigenous-led, self-determining health promotion program situated within the BCCDC. These collaborations are built on reciprocity, patience, and the understanding that relationship-building is central and ongoing to the shared work.
Nuu‑Chah‑Nulth Youth Warrior Family Society
What began at a PHP and Chee Mamuk retreat in early 2023 has grown into shared workshops where Youth Warriors and the FSF team cook, learn knife skills, exchange teachings, and co-create resources. Together, they have turned a family recipe into a written stew recipe, explored sugary drink alternatives in a “Drinks Lab,” and are imagining a short video on incorporating more land-based ingredients into these alternatives. Each gathering deepens relationships and learning on both sides.
Old Masset Freeze‑Dryer Project
Through a BCCDC PHP grant, the Old Masset Elders Centre on Haida Gwaii purchased a freeze dryer in 2024. Since then, the Centre’s staff and community members have used it daily to preserve deer, halibut, berries, vegetables, and even leftovers from Elders’ communal lunches. These foods become emergency rations, food bank offerings, and contributions to community meals — supporting food sovereignty and reducing wasted food.
FSF and the Elders Centre continue to learn from each other, strengthening relationships built over time.
Weaving Food, Culture, Climate, and Community Together
Food security work at BCCDC shows that systems become stronger when shaped by the people closest to the land. Through community-driven programs, data-informed advocacy, and Indigenous-led collaborations, the Food Security and Food Skills teams are helping nurture a more just and resilient food system — one rooted in connection, reciprocity, and ongoing learning.
