April 22nd is Earth Day. In many communities, conversation and action on conservation, climate resilience, and biodiversity go beyond one day and happen every day of the year.
That’s the case here in Golden and the Columbia Valley, where discussion and progress on conservation and environmental protection occur year round.
As a part of Columbia Valley Credit Union’s current strategic plan, one of the community impact pillars where CVCU aims make a lasting impact is in climate resilience.
What does climate resilience mean, and how is CVCU supporting these efforts?
Climate resilience refers to the ability of an ecosystem or society to cope with, adapt to, and recover from the impacts of climate change. It’s about successfully managing the impacts of climate change and preventing those impacts from getting worse.
CVCU has taken action and made several community investments that support greater climate resilience in our area.
CVCU financially supported the Kootenay Conservation Program’s Golden Conservation Action Forum Check-in Meeting in January 2025. The purpose of the gathering was to review the progress that has been made on the priority actions from the 2020 Golden Conservation Action Forum, and assess and adjust the priority actions to better reflect our current situation.
As a result of the meeting, several updates were made to the priority actions, including a priority action to “Increase Climate Resilience Through Wildfire Risk Reduction and Mitigation”. You can learn more about this action and the others in the summary report from this important meeting.
The Friends of Yoho National Park Society recently approached CVCU, asking for support for one of their projects with Parks Canada. The goal is to maintain the east trail at Emerald Lake to improve the visitor experience and most importantly, protect the surrounding environment. Given our love of the area and the outdoors, it was an easy project to support.
When you get a mortgage with CVCU, you will receive FireSmart information to help you keep your property safe from wildfires. FireSmart BC and PreparedBC have excellent resources to help you develop an emergency plan and protect your property. And because it is never too early to learn how to be fire smart, CVCU also financially supported Golden Fire Rescue’s Fire Safety Book for kids ages 8-10 years old.
You may be asking, what can I do this Earth Day to make an impact?
Take steps to make sure your home is FireSmart, using the resources provided in this article. Simple efforts like minimizing waste by recycling more, walking to work instead of driving, switching to energy-efficient appliances, and more all help contribute to climate resilience. There are many organizations, like Wildsight Golden, where you can give your time and money. Wildsight organizes clean-ups in the area and hosts learning events. To thank them for their efforts, CVCU has donated $500 to Wildsight for Earth Day every year since 2022, including this year’s Earth Day.
Whatever actions you take on Earth Day and every day, let’s work together to protect the beauty and vibrancy of the incredible nature that surrounds us here in the Columbia Valley.
