What Works Series

Local Economies, What Works

She Learned to Make Wine Without Cutting Down Trees

White oaks once ruled the now vineyard-blanketed Willamette Valley. Maggie Harrison shows they don’t have to be sacrificed to grapes.

Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

Want to Save Trees? Put Some Sugar in Your Printer.

Social Print’s founder wanted to protect forests. So his British Columbia company makes paper from sugar cane.

Local Economies, What Works

She Changes Diapers. Into Climate-Friendly Biochar.

Billions of disposable diapers end up in North American landfills yearly. Carrie Pollak’s firm is trying better ways.

Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

A Second Life for Pacific-Clogging Plastics

Ocean Legacy recycles “ghost gear” and other trash into deck chairs, picnic tables, and more.

Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

Science World Is Now One Big Climate Experiment

See how the Vancouver landmark is getting a dramatic retrofit to cut emissions. A Tyee short video.

Food Systems, What Works

A Brilliant Community Farm Rises from Brambles

Sechelt imports almost all its food. This Indigenous-led effort wants to show a better approach can take root.

Coastal Communities/Marine, What Works

Subscriptions to the Sea

How Skipper Otto and other community-supported fisheries are increasing transparency and providing quality seafood to members.

Local Economies, What Works

Moving Farming Inside and Up

This BC-based vertical farm is growing fast. One reason: tariff and sovereignty threats to Canada.

Local Economies, What Works

Pouring the Circular Economy into Your Pint Glass

Small Gods’ Saanich Peninsula-only lager shows what can be done in one small 33-kilometer stretch.

Indigenous, What Works

Decolonizing Your Shower, One Soap Bar at a Time

How Sisters Sage brings activism, entrepreneurship, and First Nations plant medicine into the bath.

Housing, Indigenous, What Works

See Why Rescuing Homes Could Have a Booming Future

An ingenious collaboration by shíshálh Nation and Renewal Development shows what can be done.

Indigenous, Local Economies, What Works

Prince Rupert’s Bread and Butter

Saltwater Bakery, run by the Gitxaała Nation, embodies a holistic approach to economic development and community wellness.

Climate, Housing, What Works

High Hopes for Hempcrete

Indigenous Habitat Institute founders explain using hemp to build healthier, climate-proof houses.

Climate, Food Systems, What Works

A Revolutionary Approach to the World’s Protein Problem

Searching for a meat substitute, this Vancouver company found one in the rootlike structure of mushrooms.

Indigenous, Tourism, What Works

An Indigenous-Owned Model for Sustainable Tourism

How the Klahoose converted a closed BC fishing lodge into a place to immerse in nature and culture.

Housing, Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

Postcard from Seattle, Birthplace of Modular Home Design

Robert Humble of Hybrid Architecture started making homes from upcycled shipping containers in the early 2000s, a milestone in eco-design.

Climate, Environment, Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

When Golf Courses Go Wild

How non-profits, trusts and cities are converting manicured greens into places where wildlife, plants and people flourish.

Climate, Energy, Recycle/Repurpose, Science + Technology, What Works

The Future of Home Heating? It’s in the Dishwater

In a first in North America, wastewater is being harnessed for energy in Vancouver’s Olympic Village.

Climate, Environment, Food Systems, What Works

How a Wildly Successful Seed Company Stays True to Its Roots

Retaining its focus on pollinators, climate change and soil health, West Coast Seeds sells over three million seed packets a year.

Local Economies, Recycle/Repurpose, What Works

A Tale of Two Yarn-Makers Reviving the Local Mill

Spincycle is at the forefront of an artisanal boom in Bellingham. With stunning results.

Climate, Local Economies, Recycle/Repurpose, Transportation, What Works

The Enduring Power of Community Bike Shops

The scalable model keeps thousands of bicycles out of landfills every year, and helps cyclists fix their rides on the cheap.

Climate, Energy, What Works

We’ll Help You Get Off Gas, Says Washington’s Top Gas Supplier

By helping customers pivot to electrification, Puget Sound Energy presents a jobs-boosting model to the bioregion.

Food Systems, Indigenous, What Works

A Coastal Revolution in Hospital Food

How health-care visionaries are creating tasty, culturally friendly menus while cutting waste and carbon emissions.

The

The Business of a Healthy Bioregion, A partnership between The Tyee, Salmon Nation Trust, and the Magic Canoe