Restoration season comes to an end with cleaning of spawning sites on river Koitajoki, and attention focuses on the Pacific – the Taumako Traditional Culture and Voyaging School Opens and a New Pacific Tour brings Snowchange delegates to Tasmania, New Zealand and Canada.
The rewilding and restoration season is drawing to a close in Finland. Several peatlands have been completed, including Arctic Circle sites, Suomussalmi and Koitajoki river sites. Now later in the season the main actions have included Reino and Karoliina using the river seining to clean several spawning sites of the whitefish. It can be only accomplished using the traditional small seine over the clogged sites across the upper Koitajoki.
We join in celebration of the opening of the Taumako Traditional Culture and Voyaging School that has been accomplished by the Holau Vaka Taumako Association (HVTA) and Pacific Traditions Society (PTS) in the Solomon Islands. The school has received several Snowchange small grants to get to this position. The opening was at the end of September and now the school will support the unique culture and practices of this part of the Pacific.
New Pacific Tour will cover travels to Polar Data Forum in Tasmania as well as preparations for the Festival of Fishing Traditions 2027, as well as meetings with the Indigenous Tasmanians. From there we will continue over to Aotearoa to review and discuss collaborations with Te Anamāhanga Wetland Restoration Project and to strengthen the Indigenous-led restoration in the Pacific. Onwards to Western Canada, where delegates will come to from Minnesota and peatlands restoration as well as other parts of North America to discuss Snowchange priorities for 2026. Review of the small grants under way in Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and other parts of the region will be conducted.
In international media and news, a new UNESCO Thematic Paper titled “Culture and Climate Action: From Margins to Mainstream” contains summaries of Snowchange efforts. Mongabay, the global media on the environmental issues covers some of the Sámi forest work.
