The Talking Stick Festival, now in its 20th year, invites you to the warming fire of Spring Awakening. This follows The Winter Lodge: Sitting with our Ancestors – performances and teachings which were presented online from February 18-27, 2021. Now we’re in a season where new ideas bloom, and this is a celebration of Indigenous performance and culture online with music, dance, spoken word, teachings and more.
Talking Stick Festival Spring Awakening
Join Talking Stick around the warming fire of Spring Awakening – a call to the stories, songs, and dances that sustain and renew us, that birth a spirit of hope and healing.
Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 6:00pm (Free, Online) Plant Walk with Cease Wyss and Margo Kane
T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss is an ethno-botanist, media artist, educator, and activist of Skwxwu7mesh/Stó:lō/ Hawaiian/Swiss ancestry who has been traditionally trained by Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Elders. On a recent sunny spring day, she led festival Artistic Managing Director, Margo Kane, on a journey of botanical discovery through Stanley Park. Cease shares her extensive plant and forest knowledge, talks about medicines, traditional teachings and the interconnectedness of nature and the forest.
Friday, April 30, 2021 at 7:00pm (Free, Online) PIQSIQ with special guest Francis Baptiste in concert
Recorded at the Historic Theatre at the Cultch, Inuit-style throat singing sisters Tiffany Kuliktana Ayalik and Kayley Inuksuk Mackay, the duo PIQSIQ, perform ancient traditional songs along with those taking inspiration from the world around them. It’s a singular singing style born of a hard-won skill perpetually galvanized by the winter darkness and haunting northern beauty of Nunavut and their Yellowknife home, blended with their love of haunting melodies and otherworldly sounds. PIQSIQ performances, in alignment with throat singing’s original and spontaneous form, are truly enthralling and unique to every show.
Opening the concert is Syilx/Okanagan singer-songwriter Francis Baptiste. Currently working on his debut solo album, Francis incorporates his language, N̓syilxčn̓ – currently spoken fluently by only 150 people – into his songwriting. Suzette Amaya, radio host, producer, speaker and role model, is the evening’s MC.
Presented by Talking Stick in partnership with the Vancouver Folk Music Festival
Saturday, May 1, 2021 at 7:00pm (Free, Online) Spring Fling Ab-Cabaret
This lively event, one of the favourite parts of Talking Stick Festivals over the years, features V’ni Dansi, a Vancouver-based traditional Métis and contemporary dance company; up-and-coming Indigenous singer/songwriter, Michelle Heyoka; alternative R&B and soul artist, Zach Saunders, and: Eagle Ex Machina, a local Vancouver alt rock band led by fiddle master Matt Cook-Contois (Cree). The cabaret is hosted by rising Indigiqueer pop artist, Nimkish.
On both Friday, April 30 and Saturday, May 1, the Talking Stick Industry Series presents a variety of workshops, panels, discussions, videos and teachings on subjects of use and interest to both up-and- coming and veteran Indigenous artists in a range of disciplines. Topics include writing for the stage, artists’ personal and community development-related issues, legacy building, songwriting and music publishing.
BC Youth Week 2021 is packed with events and activities planned for youth, by youth, all across the province May 1-7. This is an internationally celebrated event that aims to recognize the positive contributions youth make in our communities, and to celebrate the valuable work youth do all year round.
Earlier this month, I highlighted some events happening in Abbotsford, Burnaby, Coquitlam, Langley, West Van and Richmond. Now, here are even more activities that youth have planned:
I have been known to enjoy a Trail Hopper IPA on the patio after a walk through my local park’s 20km network of paths so I was excited when I heard that Stanley Park Brewing and the Stanley Park Ecology Society have been teaming up for over a decade!
It’s Vancouver’s most popular natural gem and thanks, in part, to consistent annual funding from Stanley Park Brewing, the Stanley Park Ecology Society (SPES) is working to conserve Stanley Park’s delicate habitats and biodiversity that are crucial for healthy ecosystems and wildlife. For Earth Day, I caught up with Stanley Park Brewing’s Jeremy Nickel to talk about this important, and natural, partnership.
Stanley Park Brewing and Stanley Park Ecology Society
Miss604: How important is it for Stanley Park Brewing to give back to the community?
SPB: Giving back within Stanley Park and to the broader community are super important to us. Our Brewpub in Stanley Park is frequented by locals and visitors alike, the park itself offers so much to us that we want to do our part to ensure the preservation and prosperity of the park. We also enjoy being a part of the broader sports & leisure communities that enjoy the beauty of the park through events such as the Stanley Park Tennis Open, RunVan Marathons, Scotia Half and others.
The rain will be returning, after a gloriously sunny start to spring in Metro Vancouver, but that doesn’t have to dampen your weekend plans. There are over two dozen online programs and activities to enjoy along with a few outdoor options around the region. There’s a play from Surrey Arts Centre, the Festival du Bois from Coquitlam, the Verses Festival online, the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival and many more things to do in Vancouver this weekend listed below:
SPUD, Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley’s local, sustainable, organic grocery delivery service, is teaming up with Ocean Ambassadors Canada for Earth Day this year to turn the tide on marine pollution.
SPUD and Ocean Ambassadors Team Up For Earth Day
During the onset of the pandemic, SPUD put their Takeback program on pause until they refined health and safety protocols to protect their staff. Now, they are ready to restart it! To celebrate the relaunch of the program and elevate their mission to tackle plastic waste, they have decided to raise money for Ocean Ambassadors Canada from April 19th to 30th.
Ocean Ambassadors is a Vancouver-based non-for-profit that offers educational programs and hosts community initiatives. They get people to the ocean to educate them about the threat of marine pollution, and empower everyone to make real change.
The organization fosters ocean ambassadors through their school programs and summer camps, where kids aged 8 to 14 receive an inspiring and educational experience. The instructors focus on teaching stand-up paddle board skills, discussing the ways that ocean plastics impact marine life, and exploring ways to make a difference.
How You Can Help
From April 19th to 30th, SPUD.ca is donating $0.50 per Be Fresh or Nature’s Path eligible product to Ocean Ambassadors. Consider purchasing one of these products to maximize support. You can also donate $2, $5, or $20 to Ocean Ambassadors by adding a donation to your cart when you’re shopping on SPUD.ca, or you can donate directly here.
For Miss604 Readers/Followers
Not a SPUD customer? Check out with promo code MISS604 and you’ll get $15 off your first order when you spend $50 or more. Already a SPUD customer? Use the same code for $5 off your next order over $50. Valid for all locations, April 23 to April 30, 2021.
