Why call it the Redfish School of Change?

(Originally posted on the www.SchoolofChange.ca website)

The Chinese see the redfish as a sign of good fortune and prosperity. Poems of Celtic origin depict the redfish as a symbol of wisdom and knowledge. Of course, Dr. Seuss knew a redfish, and indeed it is a common term for many fish: the deep-sea Sebastes, the reef-dwelling snappers, the slimeheads or roughies, and the alfonsinos.

Redfish comes from the native word Kokanee, which is a landlocked cousin of the sockeye salmon found in the interior of British Columbia — where this field school begins its journey, in the Slocan Valley. Sockeye salmon are an icon in British Columbia, and those that spawn in the Fraser River are endangered. As the program makes its run down the Fraser River from Hope to Vancouver, we explore the past, present and future of this watershed.

As a school of change, we are a community seeking to learn from the ways of nature and patterns of history, and to live the possibilities of a better future. Creating change is a journey much like swimming upstream: it involves leaping up waterfalls, navigating past nets, and stopping to rest for awhile in an eddy. Creating change takes many strategies and some creative thinking. It means working alone and within the larger group that is walking the same path. It also means journeying back home to initiate new ideas, challenges and solutions.