We are lucky to have this special Trust designed to ensure that residents and visitors will be able to experience the natural beauty and rural character of this fragile and precious archipelago of islands. Yet, the Trust’s “preserve and protect” mandate is being distorted and undermined by some current trustees. The current Trust Council includes trustees who openly state their intention to “blow up the Trust” or that all Directive Policies in the TPS should be stripped out so islands can manage their own affairs.
Many current trustees are not running for re-election. The newly elected Trustees will decide whether the Trust will be protected by a strong Trust Policy Statement or not. This is a chance to change the direction of the Islands Trust to stop endless scope creep and budget increases and instead, concentrate on reducing the budget, protecting the islands’ natural environment and rural character while identifying environmentally sound locations and methods to support affordable housing. This October’s vote will be decisive in the fight to restore trust in the Trust, uphold the Trust Act, and save the islands as we know them for future generations.
We know that you may not want to run because being a trustee is time consuming and exposes one to criticism. But the Trust area can only be protected if brave souls take on this challenge. We urge that you consider it or help recruit candidates dedicated to this cause. We will be there to back you up.
Update – Draft Trust Policy Statement (TPS) – What Did Trustees Hear?
Our campaign to encourage feedback to the Trust favouring protection of the natural environment was a big success! Many thanks to those who wrote to the Trust regarding the draft TPS. At the March 11 Trust Council Meeting, Trust Director Clare Frater provided an update on the TPS Amendment Project. She stated there is a high risk the project will not be completed during this trustee term. The “enormous amount of feedback”, both survey responses and correspondence, will be compiled into a report for the Trust Council by a consultant. That “What We Heard” report is supposed to be available by the end of April for a special meeting in May.
The Trust reported 2,132 responses to the survey. By our count,193 pieces of correspondence were submitted by the February 2 deadline to islands2050@islandstrust.com and 134 of those letters or reports prioritized the protection of the environment. More letters have been added since the deadline. Only 8 letters spoke in favour of the draft TPS and 5 of those were in relation to First Nations’ Reconciliation. The rest of the letters were from special interest groups: farmers, yacht clubs, etc.
More: Summary of public feedback on the draft TPS as of April 13, 2026
The public rejection of this draft TPS is a big win for those of us who oppose the attempt by the current Trust Council to place greater emphasis on advancing growth and development at the expense of protecting the natural environment, what former Minister Kahlon referred to as “the ecological mandate” of the Trust. The stage was set for the draft TPS by the Trust Council’s egregious re-interpretation of “unique amenities” to “include, but not limited to, housing, livelihoods, infrastructure and tourism”. We believe that the recent legal opinion from Don Lidstone KC, Lidstone and Company, Barristers and Solicitors, past lawyers for the Trust, as reported in our last newsletter, had significant impact on Trust Council. This legal opinion has only been discussed in camera by the Trust.
Strong Comment from Raincoast Conservation Foundation
On March 26, the Times-Colonist published a commentary “Islands Trust has lost sight of its original purpose” by two forest ecologists, Priya Puri and Shauna Doll who lead Raincoast Foundation’s Forest Conservation Program, and Raincoast’s executive director, Chris Genovali. FOTGIS was heartened to see our group’s concerns also raised in their letter.
The writers state “….the new draft Trust Policy Statement appears to shift the focus away from these fundamental components of the Trust Object – from “limiting growth” to simply “managing it” – a responsibility no different from any urban municipality. That subtle change represents a significant departure from the Islands Trust’s founding purpose. To fulfil its mandate, the core document guiding the Islands Trust into 2050 must include clear policies that limit the rate and scale of development where necessary to protect the Trust Area’s natural systems and rural character.”
Friends of the Gulf Islands will continue to report on any developments concerning the Trust Policy Statement through this newsletter. In the meantime, we urge you to talk with your friends and neighbours about the upcoming Trust elections and possible candidates who will work to uphold the Mandate of the Trust Act. We will be submitting a questionnaire to all candidates and will publish the results.
Please encourage your friends and family to join Friends of the Gulf Islands (Individual $15/Family $25). If you would like to support us with a membership, please complete a membership form. And of course, donations are always appreciated as well.