Hi there,

We’re a few days into our Spring Supporter Drive, a time when we're asking 100 readers who regularly read and appreciate this journalism service to pitch in and support it by June 22.

We are now at about 15 per cent of our goal — and a contribution of any amount you can afford each month will get us closer to the finish line. 

How is our journalism funded? I get this question regularly, so I want to answer it directly.

Discourse Community Publishing is an independent publishing family that started with The Discourse more than 10 years ago — with no paywall and no ads. We’ve grown to include Sun Peaks Independent News, The Wren (est 2022),  Revelstoke Mountaineer (re-imagined in 2022) — and we’re able to keep publishing dozens of stories each week because our revenue comes from a diverse mix of three sources: Individuals, newsroom partners and government journalism programs.

The strategy is simple: a diverse mix of funding, never one concentrated source. That's what financial independence looks like in practice — and it's what keeps us accountable to the community rather than to a single funder or group of shareholders.

Right now we’re in a tricky spot. What we need most right now is that first source — individual monthly supporters.  It's the most flexible kind of revenue we have. It tells us we can plan, hire, and keep showing up at council.

But these reader contributions are not growing to the level that we’d expected or hoped, despite the amazing feedback we receive about this news service.

Here’s why new supporter Kate F. said she supports our journalism:

“Because we need local journalism, and I want to read stories from my region. I mindlessly subscribe to streaming services, I want to put money more towards my values.”

As Cowichan supporter Shelley Lockwood wrote: "It isn't just trustworthy reporting — it's a genuine conversation with people who actually live here."

If that's the kind of reporting you want to see continue, now is the time to support it. 

For $15 a month you cover Eric's time, his trips into the field, and the records work behind each story.

Thanks for reading and being here,