Camosun College recognized for sustainability and Indigenous collaboration
Published 4:00 pm Thursday, July 16, 2026
By Saanich News Staff
In collaboration with renowned Kwakwaka’wakw and Coast Salish artist Carey Newman and Pacific Opera Victoria, Camosun College’s Camosun Innovates initiative won the prestigious Land Award for their work on the Totem 2.0 project.
Totem 2.0 is a technology that bridges traditional Indigenous art practices with modern engineering, enabling totem pole carving using sustainable second-growth cedar. Funded by a CCSIF grant, the apparatus was designed by a team that included the Newman, mechanical engineering students, and Camosun Innovates staff. This mechanism allows for carvers to work with multiple beams of second-growth cedar instead of rare old-growth logs.
The project won in the Land Use and Conservation award category.
“This project was equal parts challenging and fulfilling. Working with Camosun Innovates and Pacific Opera Victoria, we were able to transform a creative dream into a tangible device and practical process that we can share with other First Nations carvers and communities,” noted Newman in a news release. “The idea of seeing other artists use the Totem 2.0 process is pretty exciting. Hopefully, this Land Award will help to draw their attention to it.”
The Land Awards were created by the Real Estate Foundation of B.C. in 2010 and are presented every two years. They recognize projects and leaders that work to protect the lands and waters, and create sustainable, inclusive and resilient communities. Winners and finalists are selected by judging committees composed of community leaders and subject-matter experts.
“It is an honour to work with Carey on projects of this importance, and to be recognized for our contributions to responsible land use and resource conservation,” noted Richard Gale, director of Camosun Innovates, in the release. “At the heart of Totem 2.0 is the conservation of old growth cedar and preservation of a traditional Indigenous practice for future generations; I’m very proud that we continue to support the vision of a more environmentally sustainable process that respects Indigenous ways of creation and the cultural contexts of the carvers.”
Camosun Innovates “connects applied learning and applied research, design thinking and interdisciplinary inquiry, productivity improvement and tech-savvy intention,” according to the release. Other recent projects include the design and manufacturing of competitive equipment for Olympic para-athletes.
