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One of my favourite times of the year on Vancouver Island is the annual herring spawn in March.

Seeing the blue-green water and the eagles, sea lions and herons that gather to feast on the herring is something that everyone should experience. 

I recently spoke with Nick Chowdhury, president of the Island Marine Aquatic Working Group, about how the organization tracks the herring spawn locations in the waters around Vancouver Island, and how people can see it in a respectful and non-disruptive way. 

We also talked about the cultural importance of the herring spawn for Indigenous Peoples in the region and how it fits into interconnected ecosystems.

You can read my story below, and keep your eyes peeled for when the herring spawn appears near Nanaimo.  

In other news, The Port Theatre announced late this afternoon that it was cancelling the sold-out show for controversial comedian Ben Bankas. This comes after an outcry by concerned residents at a city council meeting last week.

In a statement, The Port Theatre Society said it had done a “comprehensive review of its contractual and legal obligations, including its responsibilities under the British Columbia Human Rights Code and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.” 

The society said that as the operator of The Port Theatre, it “has a duty to provide a safe environment for its staff, volunteers, patrons, artists and members of the community.”

“After an extensive internal and external review of safety, operational, and legal factors, the society determined that proceeding with the rental would be inconsistent with those obligations.”

An email to Ben Bankas’ public relations team confirmed that the venue had cancelled the show.

Thank you for reading,

Mick Sweetman

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How an Indigenous conservation group is bringing the ‘excitement’ of the herring spawn to Vancouver Islanders 

Your guide to herring spawning etiquette and where to see it on the Salish Sea.

Q&A: Poet Kiera Chealine on finding the power in ‘No’

Local poet writes about consent and empowerment for International Women’s Day.

The Discourse is teaming up with Cowichan Valley International Women’s Day again to host a unique event featuring regional changemakers and artists. They’ll be speaking to issues affecting women, including non-binary folks, on Vancouver Island and beyond. This year’s guiding question for the event is: How does consent make for a better community?

You are invited to join us on Sunday, March 8, at 11 a.m., at the Cowichan Public Art Gallery, traditional and unceded Quw'utsun territory.

Speakers include:

Cindy Daniels, (Sulsulxumaat), Cowichan Tribes Chief

Debra Toporowski, (Qwulti'stunaat), Cowichan Valley MLA

Corina Fitznar, educator and literacy specialist

Kiera Chealine, Indigenous poet, mother and advocate

To cover the costs of hosting this event, we charge a small fee. If this cost poses a barrier to entry, please just show up. No one will be turned away.

Got the inside scoop of an event you think should be shared? 

Let us know by sending Mick an email.

🎵 Listen 🎤

Thursday, March 5, 7 p.m.: Open mic night at The Vault Cafe. Admission is free.

Friday, March 6, 6:30 p.m.: Discover the music of Vivaldi's Four Seasons under the gentle glow of candlelight at St. Andrew's United Church. Tickets cost $63.

Friday, March 6, 6:30 p.m.: Hail The Void, Antler, Burnt Lung and The Monarch will play a metal show at The Globe Live Studio. Tickets cost $20

Friday, March 6, 9 p.m.: Experimental music night Fake Jass with Hermit, Summer Amp and Swear at The Vault Cafe. Tickets cost $10.

Saturday, March 7, 7 p.m.: Comedians Howie Miller and Carilynn Nicholson will perform at the Sweet Spot Lounge. Tickets cost $25 in advance, $30 at the door.

Saturday, March 7, 8 p.m.: Got One, Emotionz, Fibz, QB and DJ Ill Lyrics will perform at The Terminal bar. 

Saturday, March 7, 9 p.m.: Dirty Harriet and Riverbottom Riot will play original, alternative hard rock and classic rock covers at The Nanaimo Bar. Tickets cost $10. 

Sunday, March 8, 7 p.m.: Shel will be the featured artist at this week’s Sunday Sessions: An Elevated Open Mic at 21 Nicol St. Tickets cost $5. 

Sunday, March 8, 7:30 p.m.: The Carl Mayotte Quintet will play the Simonholt Restaurant. Tickets cost $25.

Wednesday, March 11, 7 p.m.: Nanaimo Poet Laureate Neil Surkan’s Poetry in the Harbour event will feature poets Junie Desil, Délani Valin and Pamela Medland in the Vancouver Island Conference Centre’s Piper’s Lagoon Lobby. Admission is free.  

Wednesday, March 11, 7:30 p.m.: Damonde Tschritter, Ryan Williams, Syd Bosel, Adam Christi and Aaron Arya will perform their stand up at the Nanaimo Comedy Classic at The Port Theatre. Tickets cost $49.

🎭 View 🖼️

Thursday, March 5, 7:30 p.m.: The Vancouver Island University theatre department presents Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. The play will run until March 14. Tickets cost $10 or are free for VIU students, staff and alumni.

Thursday, March 5, 7:30 p.m.: Men On Boats, the “true(ish) history of an 1869 expedition, when a one-armed captain and a crew of insane-yet-loyal volunteers set out to chart the course of the Colorado River,” runs at The Bailey Studio until March 8. Tickets cost $28. 

Friday, March 6, noon: Take a lunchtime tour of Bleached by the Sun: Perspectives on Chinatown at the Nanaimo Art Gallery. Tickets cost $5.

Friday, March 6, 7:30 p.m.: The Cold House, a suspense thriller by Mary Humphery Baldridge, will run until March 15 at Bethlehem Centre. Tickets cost $28. 

Tuesday, March 10, 6:30 p.m.: Ninan Auassat: We the Children will be screened as part of the Unsettling the Lens: Indigenous Film Series at the Nanaimo Art Gallery. Admission is free and registration is recommended. 

Wednesday, March 11, 6 p.m.: The VIU Muslim Women’s Club will screen Naila and the Uprising in Building 200, Room 203 at Vancouver Island University. Admission is free. 

⛹️ Meet 🎲

Friday, March 6, 7 p.m.: A family barn dance will be held at the Cedar Community Hall. Tickets cost $20 or $10 for children from K-12. 

Saturday, March 7, 2 p.m.: The Indigenous/Xwulmuxw Studies Course Union Club will host its second annual fundraiser at The Gathering Place at Vancouver Island University. 

Sunday, March 8, 1 p.m.: Cut cardboard and coloured paper to form gills, scales and fins to create your own fish hat at the Nanaimo Art Gallery’s Art Lab Sunday. Free for gallery members, $5 for non-members. 

Monday, March 9, 11:30 a.m.: Students and faculty will gather outside the Vancouver Island University cafeteria and in the Royal Arbutus Room for an International Women’s Day celebration. Elizabeth Lorenz will share photos and stories about the Hope for Youth bakery school in Uganda.

Tuesday, March 10, 2:30 p.m.: Vancouver Island Symphony director Cosette Justo Valdés will share her passion for combining artforms with guest poets and performers Titilope Sonuga and Wakefield Brewster at Romeo and Juliet: Passion poetry and Prokofiev. Tickets cost $10-$15 

Wednesday, March 11, 10 a.m.: The Bastion City Nanaimo Probus Club will present on Marine Pilotage in B.C. at the Beban Park Social Centre. 

Wednesday, March 11, 6:30 p.m.: A free women’s MMA fitness workshop will be held at Tiger Martial Arts.

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