Our Logo
We thank Coast Salish artist Qwul’thilum (Dylan Thomas) from the Lyackson First Nation for his incredible work on the Salish Sea Hub's logo design. This design was created for us after sharing who we are, how we work, our values, and what we aim to achieve.
This design shows the fluke of an orca whale tail in an orca spindle whorl design. This design ties in with the Salish Sea and helps symbolize the collaboration and respect embodied in our work and shared by orcas whales in Coast Salish traditions and symbology.
We call our community a 'pod' in recognition of the orca whale represented in our logo design.
Our colours are reminiscent of those seen during a West Coast sunset in the Salish Sea.
About Us
Who We Are
The Salish Sea Hub is a Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) hub that was established by a group of mentors with the support of our founding partners: the Victoria Native Friendship Centre, the Victoria Foundation and the University of Victoria. We are part of a global network of Knowledge 4 Change Hubs supported by the UNESCO Chair for Community-Based Research in Higher Education.
We focus on bringing research out of academic institutions and into our communities so that it can be used to co-develop solutions to our most pressing challenges.
We aspire to be a leader, convener, and capacity-builder for community-led research by bringing people together to exchange knowledge, learn from one another, and participate in community-engaged research that supports locally driven change and solutions to our shared problems in the Salish Sea.
The Salish Sea
The Salish Sea is the intricate network of coastal waterways surrounding Vancouver Island and the southwestern portion of mainland British Columbia, Canada. This term was selected for the name of the Hub to not only reflect the geographic desire to focus support in this area of the province but also as a reflection of the intricate ways the Salish Sea Hub will extend into communities surrounding the Salish Sea.
The physical location of the Salish Sea hub is currently located on the territories of the Coast Salish and Straits Salish Territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples.
The map above shows the extent of the Salish Sea. The blue highlighted regions show the waterways that flow into the Salish Sea basin. The dark blue veins show areas of high water flow into and out of the Salish Sea, fueled by the mountain streams and rivers into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The green highlighted regions show the forests and ecosystems which encompass these waterways.
What sets us apart
We want to shift power dynamics so communities lead research processes that result in locally driven outcomes. We aim to build capacity in communities to build reciprocal research partnerships that support knowledge co-creation.
Shifting power
The Salish Sea Hub focuses on working with marginalized communities through CBPR, including Indigenous peoples, youth, Elders/seniors, 2SLGBTQ+, new Canadians, immigrants and refugees, and street-entrenched people. These groups have historically been excluded from research or used as research subjects rather than being leaders in research. Our work is grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing, as reflected by our Indigenous mentors and founding partner, the Victoria Native Friendship Centre.
Uplifting diverse voices & knowledge
Our relationships are guided by respect, reciprocity, and responsibility to each other and our goals. Each of us brings unique strengths, perspectives, and gifts to our work. We accomplish this by creating connections, encouraging new partnerships, supporting development work, and providing community-based and Indigenous-led research training and mentorship.
Relationships guide our work
Our Founding Partners
Our hub was founded by mentors from the University of Victoria, Victoria Foundation, and the Victoria Native Friendship Centre. It is part of a global network of Knowledge 4 Change Hubs supported by the UNESCO Chair for Community-Based Research in Higher Education.
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Territorial Acknowledgement:
The Salish Sea Hub is currently based in Victoria BC, Canada on the unceded territories of Coast Salish People. We are grateful to be learners on these lands located in the territories of the Lkwungen (Esquimalt and Songhees Nations), Malahat, Pacheedaht, Scia’new, T’Sou-ke and W̱SÁNEĆ (Pauquachin, Tsartlip, Tsawout, Tseycum) Peoples. We acknowledge our Indigenous hosts and honour their welcome and graciousness to those who seek and contribute knowledge here.
We’re here to help you to engage your community more deeply using community-based research
Our work brings together people in academia, community organizations, and Governments for training, networking, and CBPR project support in the Salish Sea region.
We work to ensure that we have resources, events, training and mentorship support for you and your organizations to engage with our Hub in a variety of ways - from Learners & Practioners, Mentors, and Partners.
Mentors
Once you have enough expertise to help others on their CBPR journey you can become a mentor with the Salish Sea Hub. We can help recognize your expterise or help you achieve this designation with our trainings and learning resources.
Learners & Practitioners
We have tailored training, knowledge resources, and certifications available to help you on your journey to using CBPR - no matter your skill level or expertise.
Partners
Become a partner by participating with the Salish Sea hub or a mentor using CBPR methods to engage more deeply with your communities.
Our
Leadership Team
We are a collective of individuals that span academia, business, Native Friendship Centres, philanthropy, and non-profit sectors in the Salish Sea who come together to support community-based research.
Our work brings together people working in academia, community organizations, and Governments for training, networking, and CBPR project support in the Salish Sea region.
We are led by a leadership team of volunteer Mentors, who have skillsets in community-based research, consulting, philanthropy and community development in the Salish Sea Region. If you are interested in participating in the hub, we would love to hear from you!
Carmen Koessler
Coordinator
Carmen is a Canadian professional science communicator and community engagement strategist with over a decade of experience delivering creative engagement programs and communication projects with scientists, governments and non-profits in Canada and Australia. I have a BSc in Biology and Geography from the University of Victoria, Canada. However, I spent nearly eight years working in different community engagement roles in Australia before returning to Canada in 2021. As a scientist turned storyteller, I love working with research teams to connect people and communities to research outcomes and stories using digital media. I joined the Salish Sea Hub as their first part-time Coordinator in 2024 to help provide program support for developing the organization’s educational programs and projects, communication strategy, branding, and developing a knowledge hub (coming in later 2025). Outside this role, I am a freelance science communication specialist and love working with research teams to share their stories with the world through digital mediums like storymaps, video, data visualizations and more. You can learn more about my services at my website - www.ckcommunicationservices.com When I am not nerding out over sci-comm, I can be found outside fishing, skiing, and hiking with my husband and dog Monte, or crafting, cooking, and enjoying good food and wine.
Dr. Crystal Tremblay
Mentor, Academic Lead
Dr. Crystal Tremblay, a settler of mixed European descent, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Victoria, where she also directs CIFAL Victoria, a United Nations accredited research and training centre. As Academic Lead of the UNESCO Salish Sea Hub with the Knowledge 4 Change global consortium, she builds capacity for community-driven participatory research addressing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Her work bridges diverse knowledge systems in pursuit of social, environmental, and spatial justice through collaborative approaches to complex challenges. Crystal acknowledges with gratitude her opportunity to live and work on the traditional territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples.
Maéva Gauthier
Mentor
Maéva Gauthier is a PhD candidate in Geography at the University of Victoria and Program Manager for Community-based Research at MEOPAR, where she supports using that approach by ocean-connected communities and researchers across Canada. Her academic research focuses on climate change, plastics, and resilience, using participatory methods—such as video, photovoice, and storymapping—to uplift Inuvialuit youth voices in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. Maéva previously worked with the UNESCO Chair in Community-based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education as Program Manager for the DECODE project to elevate and learn from community-led and Indigenous-led projects internationally. As a Salish Sea Hub mentor, she brings experience and passion in arts-based and community-based research approaches. She loves exploring nature, paddleboarding, and spending time with family. Learn more at maevagauthier.com.
Dr. Sarah Marie Wiebe
Mentor
Dr. Sarah Marie Wiebe grew up on Coast Salish territory in British Columbia, BC. She is an Assistant Professor in the School of Public Administration at the University of Victoria and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Hawai’i, Mānoa with a focus on community development and environmental sustainability. As a collaborative researcher and filmmaker, she worked with Indigenous communities on sustainability-themed films including To Fish as Formerly. She is a Co-Founder of the FERN (Feminist Environmental Research Network) Collaborative and the author of several books, including Everyday Exposure: Indigenous Mobilization and Environmental Justice in Canada’s Chemical Valley, Life against States of Emergency: Revitalizing Treaty Relations from Attawapiskat and Hot Mess: Mothering through a Code Red Climate Emergency. She is also a collaborator with the Seascapes Storytelling Studio. For more about Sarah’s current research, writing and mixed media storytelling, see: www.sarahmariewiebe.com.
Sebastian Silva
Mentor
Sebastian is a visitor to the coast, with French Canadian, Spanish, and Irish ancestry. He is grateful to be living on Salt Spring Island on the traditional territories of the Coast Salish Peoples. Sebastian is the owner of Roundtable Consulting. He provides facilitation, project management, training and advisory services in the areas of strategic planning, governance, community engagement and reconciliation. Through his legal background, Sebastian also brings an awareness of Canadian constitutional law and international law (e.g. UNDRIP). Sebastian values the knowledge systems and traditions of Indigenous people and is committed to decolonizing research methodologies to benefit communities. He completed the Knowledge for Change (K4C) Mentors Training Program in 2019.
Tanya Clarmont
Mentor
Tanya Clarmont is Teme-Augama Anishinaabe through her father’s family and French Canadian through her mother’s family and grew up as part of both communities. She has over two decades working with Friendship Centres, at the local, provincial and national levels, and is currently the Director of Community Action and Learning at Victoria Native Friendship Centre where she develops programming related to truth and reconciliation and hosts spaces for urban Indigenous leaders to contribute to Canada and BC’s implementation of UNDRIP. She holds a Fine Arts B.A. in Creative Writing from University of Victoria and a double Humanities B.A. in Native Studies and Law & Justice from Laurentian University. Tanya is a founding member of the Salish Sea Hub and a certified Mentor of the Knowledge for Change Consortium of the UNESCO Chair in Community-Based Participatory Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education. Tanya lives on the traditional territory of lək̓ʷəŋən speaking Peoples with her husband and two children.
David Jam Ramjattan
Learner & Practioner
David Jam Ramjattan is a passionate teacher, community worker, and educator who has dedicated most of his life to education and program management in remote regions of Canada, Afghanistan, the West Indies, and Southeast Asia. His collaborative research with the Waswanipi Nation, Pedagogy of Space: Deconstructing Colonial Identities in Ethical Learning Environments, reflects his deep commitment to designing reconciliation-focused curricula. Currently, Jam serves as the Learning Curriculum Manager at the Victoria Native Friendship Centre, where he supports the design and delivery of curriculum and programming grounded in reconciliation. A devoted slow traveller, Jam seeks out meaningful connections with people and places. He finds inspiration through Camino walking, cycling, and visiting artistic havens.
Sushil Saini
Learner & Practitioner
Bio & photo coming
Tracy Cullen
Learner & Practioner
Bio & photo coming
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Walter Lepore
Mentor
Originally from Argentina, Dr. Walter Lepore currently lives and works in the Lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ territories, known as Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. He is an Assistant Professor in the School of Public Administration at the University of Victoria, and a founder of the K4C Salish Sea Hub. He is the Research Director for the UNESCO Chair in Community-Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education. Before joining the University of Victoria, Dr. Lepore was a post-doctoral fellow at Royal Roads University (Canada), where he taught in the Schools of Leadership Studies and Environment and Sustainability. Dr. Lepore also held the position of Associate Professor in the Division of Public Administration at Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (Mexico). Dr. Lepore’s research program covers a wide range of topics, including decision-making in organizations, community development, wicked problems, community-university research partnerships, capacity building in community-based research, and the integration of scientific and Indigenous knowledge for ecosystem conservation and sustainability.
Amira Maddison
Learner & Practioner
Bio & photo coming
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Steven Davies
Mentor
Steven Davies is a filmmaker and media artist of Snuneymuxw and settler descent who was born and raised in the traditional territories of the Lekwungen speaking Peoples (also known as the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations), W̱SÁNEĆ, and the Salish Sea. He makes art that centre spiritual, cultural, and political themes, to reconnect with Indigenous histories and epistemologies to educate himself and share with others. He feels a huge responsibility to the artists, knowledge keepers, and cultural leaders that have mentored and supported his growth, and whose powerful voices and actions are shared in his work. ƛaʔuukʷiatḥ (Tla-o-qui-aht) Dugout Canoe, one of Steven’s most recent collaborative works with Tla-o-qui-aht master carver and land defender Tutakwisnapšiƛ (Joe Martin), is available for streaming on National Film Board, APTN Lumi, Knowledge Network, and CBC Gem.
Get Involved
Access our Knowledge Hub (coming in 2025), which is full of learning resources to help you get started.
Sign up to receive email updates on upcoming trainings and events in the Salish Sea!
Learn more about CBPR
Knowledge Hub
Become a Partner and collaborate on a community-based research project in the Salish Sea.
We can connect you with mentors and practitioners to help make your community engagement a success using CBPR methods.
Become a Mentor
Volunteer your time and expertise to help others use community-based participatory research in the Salish Sea.
Email us if you are interested in becoming a mentor with the Salish Sea Hub to learn more.
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Become an Advisor
At the moment, we are focusing on creating community learning resources and training offerings, and welcome anyone with expertise in these fields, or with lived experience in community organizations, or Indigenous communities to come forward.
If this is something you can advise us on as a volunteer, we would love to hear from you.