Islands Trust Brochure

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Islands Trust
Islands Trust is a special purpose government mandated 
to preserve and protect over 450 Islands and surrounding 
waters in the Salish Sea.
The Province of British Columbia created Islands Trust 
in 1974 in response to rates of development in the Gulf 
Islands and the need to protect the unique amenities 
and environment of the region.
Today, Islands Trust preserves and protects the islands 
in the context of many complex challenges, including 
climate change, lack of affordable housing, freshwater 
limitations, hundreds of species of risk, and development 
and tourism pressures.
What Islands Trust Does 
Land-Use Planning
Creates policies and regulations for land and marine 
areas that respect the Islands Trust preserve and 
protect mandate.  
Regional Collaboration and Advocacy
Advocates on issues important to the entire region in a 
non-regulatory way to preserve and protect the Trust 
Area for future generations.
Land Conservation 
The Islands Trust Conservancy works with people 
and communities to preserve and protect the unique 
ecosystems and culturally significant places in the Trust 
Area. Since 1990, over 110 places across the region have 
been protected.
Governance and 
Responsibility
Local Accountability and Oversight
The Islands Trust region is divided into local trust areas 
and an island municipality. Every four years, island 
communities elect two representatives that sit on 
Islands Trust Council, as well as serve on a local trust 
committee/Bowen Island Municipal Council.
Local trust committees are made up of two locally 
elected trustees and an appointed Chair from the 
Executive Committee. Local trust committees oversee 
the development of official community plans and land 
use bylaws. 
For Bowen Island Municipality, the two local trustees 
are elected as part of a larger council responsible for 
all functions of local government, including land use 
decision making.  
Regional Action
Islands Trust Council sets the annual budget and policy, 
advocates on issues important to the region, oversees 
public education programs and coordinates with other 
levels of government.
Made up of three provincially appointed members and 
three members from Trust Council, the Islands Trust 
Conservancy Board carries out a mission to protect 
special places in the Trust Area.
Islands Trust Area is located within the treaty lands 
and territories of the BOḰEĆEN, Cowichan Tribes, 
K’ómoks, Lyackson, MÁLEXEL
ˉ
, Qualicum, scəẃaθən, 
səl
̓
ilwətaɬ, SEMYOME, shíshálh, Sk̲wx̲wú7mesh, 
Snaw-naw-as, Snuneymuxw, Songhees, Spune’luxutth’,  
S  Ⱦ  Á  U  T  W̱, Stz’uminus, ɬaʔəmen, Ts’uubaa-asatx,  
Wei Wai Kum, We Wai Kai, W̲JOL
ˉ
EL
ˉ
P, W̲SIK̲EM, 
Xeláltxw, Xwémalhkwu, Xwsepsum, and 
xʷməθkʷəy
̓
əm First Nations.
Islands Trust is committed to reconciliation and 
to working together to preserve and protect this 
ecologically, culturally, and spiritually significant 
region in the Salish Sea.

Want to Get Involved?
Many residents and property

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