False Creek has endured significant industrialization and pollution due to colonization. The legacy of this destruction is showcased by the narrative that False Creek is “dead” and is generally considered a lifeless place. In the present day, heavy industry has largely left False Creek. As a result, herring, a keystone species in this diverse ecosystem have returned and have been spawning in False Creek.
The main goal of our project was to reframe the narrative about False Creek being dead. We did this by transforming scholarly literature, scientific data, and scattered information on the internet, into comprehensible information tailored for the general public, in an easily digestible format. In the course of this project, we did in-depth literature reviews of the first-ever Bioblitz done in the False Creek area, the Herring Heroes project, the UBC herring project, and various other academic and non-academic articles to find one main story to convey to the general public about the return of the Pacific Herring to False Creek and the life False creek support’s today. We told our story through infographics that we created for social media platforms such as The City of Vancouver’s Twitter and Instagram platforms.
During our project, we learned Citizen scientist groups like False Creek Friends Society and Squamish StreamKeepers have gathered their own sets of knowledge about False Creek/Snauq and by treating this knowledge as relevant we can develop a more holistic, collaborative approach to rehabilitation. We recommend that the impact of these social media posts be evaluated and used towards creating more informational content to Enrich and develop Vancouver’s residents’ knowledge and understanding of the life supported by the living ecosystem within False Creek/Snauq and its connection to Vancouver’s Indigenous history. This can also aid in the further development of an independent community of citizen scientists interested in the preservation and rehabilitation of False Creek’s marine ecosystem.