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Our experienced team supports community resilience planning and action. Resilience is holistic and multifaceted, and so are our services. We come alongside community leaders to facilitate planning, find funding, and initiate projects that actively build a resilient future.

relationship - centred 

land - connected 

resilience - focused 

Home

The Forager Hill Consulting team is grateful to live on the lands of the Stz’uminus, Kwantlen, Snuneymuxw, Stó:lō, Semá:th, Matsqui, and Okanagan peoples, and within the territories covered by Treaty 6. Our staff are honoured to contribute to Indigenous-led projects throughout the territories that are now also called Canada.

Services

Services Offered

Our services adapt to the values, cultures, and needs of our clients, ensuring that every action reflects the identity of each Indigenous community we serve. From language revitalization to disaster mitigation, we strive to reflect the perspectives of our clients in every aspect of our work.

Writing

Grant Writing + Reporting

Since 2020, we've successfully secured over $17 million in funding for diverse community-based projects. We work closely with communities to clarify goals and priorities, then continuously track and identify the most relevant funding opportunities to match. Our comprehensive support includes crafting compelling grant applications, managing all required progress reports, and nurturing ongoing relationships with funding partners. 

Language Preservation + Revitalization

Reclaiming language isn't just about words; it's about preserving and revitalizing invaluable aspects of culture, identity,  heritage, and land connection. Our team assists communities with language documentation, resource development, and long-term revitalization planning.

Wild Fire

Climate Adaptation +
Disaster Resilience

Our team facilitates planning that elevates indigenous knowledge and identifies community-specific climate impacts and adaptation opportunities. We then support leaders to initiate time-sensitive action that takes plans off the paper to expand resilience and reduce disaster risk.

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Project Design + Management

By listening and learning about your Nation's priorities and opportunities, our team designs projects that align with community-specific needs.  We then support community teams through all steps of the project kick-off, management, wrap up and reporting.

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Connect With Us

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The Forager Hill Consulting team is grateful to live on the land of  the Stz’uminus, Kwantlen, Stó:lō, Snuneymuxw, Semá:th, and Matsqui. Our staff are honoured to contribute to Indigenous-led projects throughout the territories that are now also called British Columbia and Canada.

Contact
Team
Meet Our Team

At Forager Hill, we are driven by our commitment to prioritizing relationships above all else. Together, we're dedicated to empowering Indigenous communities through collaborative partnerships and meaningful connection.

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Senior Resilience Planner & Owner

Janna Janzen 

Janna is a community planning, climate adaptation, and funding specialist. She has a knack for facilitating community visioning conversations, translating community priorities into custom plans, and finding the funding to kick off action.  She is completing her Masters in Disaster and Emergency Management and is a practiced Certified Community Energy Manager with over 9 years of experience in Indigenous community planning. Since 2020, much of her work has focused on climate adaptation, resilient infrastructure, and food self-sufficiency system design.  Janna resides in Kwantlen Territory (Mission BC) with her husband,  Jon, and their two children.

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Senior Grants Manager

Stephanie Esau

As an accomplished project manager with 8 years of experience, Stephanie specializes in fund development and project management at Forager Hill.  She focuses on working with Nations to promote community resilience and supporting initiatives for self-sufficiency and well-being. Stephanie's passion for sustainability and environmental stewardship led her to her degree in Environmental Practices at Royal Roads University.  Stephanie lives in Snuneymuxw territory (Gabriola Island, BC) with her husband and three children to enjoy a slower-paced life.

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Language Revitalization Planner

Shawna Yamkovy

Shawna is a proud member of the Łutsël K'é Dene First Nation, the only Dëne community on the East Arm of Tu Nedhé (Great Slave Lake) NWT, and currently resides in Edmonton. She is a committed advocate for revitalizing the Dëne Sųłiné language, her maternal ancestral language, which she is actively learning. Shawna holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology, a Master’s in Global Leadership, and is pursuing a Doctorate in Social Sciences, focusing on Dëne Sųłiné language revitalization. With 25 years in corporate management and operations, Shawna also volunteers with Indigenous non-profits and collaborated with Łutsël K'é on the first digitized Dëne Sųłiné dictionary. She brings humility and cross-cultural awareness to her work, emphasizing effective communication and a deep commitment to honoring Indigenous teachings, elders, culture, language, and ancestral wisdom.

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Project Coordinator 

Raven Hall 

Raven is a dedicated project coordinator with a background in advocacy and community leadership. She has worked on critical matters like Missing and Murdered Indigenous People and has provided resources to the unhoused in Vancouver's Downtown East Side. Raven is committed to fostering growth and building strong foundations for Indigenous communities and families. A member of the Kitasoo Xai’Xais First Nation in Klemtu, B.C., she now resides on the traditional unceded territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples with her husband and children.​

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Community Planning & Grants Coordinator 

Katrina Simon

Katrina specializes in sustainable and inclusive community development, with a focus on project coordination, grant writing, and social planning initiatives. Holding a degree in Regional and Community Planning from UFV, she is dedicated to advancing community well-being through projects that emphasize social, economic, and environmental resilience. Passionate about fostering long-term positive impact, Katrina brings a collaborative approach to each initiative. She calls Kwantlen Territory (Langley, BC) home, where she lives with her husband and daughter.

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Planning Facilitator 

Kim Hayashi

Kim, our Planning Facilitator, brings a rich blend of experience in communications and facilitation to Forager Hill Consulting.  With a background in promoting productive and inclusive relationships at the Canada Institute of Linguistics, Kim has now dedicated herself to supporting Indigenous communities' linguistic revitalization efforts.  Her previous coaching background demonstrates her leadership skills, while her genuine interest in cultures and languages fuels her commitment to serving Indigenous peoples with humility and respect. Kim excels in creating inclusive spaces where diverse voices thrive, embodying her dedication to fostering meaningful relationships and positive change.  Kim resides with her husband, Larry on Stó:lo territory, in Langley, BC.

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Linguist

Clarissa Forbes

Clarissa brings over a decade of experience with the Tsimshianic language family to the Forager Hill linguist team in support of community language revitalization goals. She holds a PhD in Linguistics from the University of Toronto, and has additional experience working in software development for FirstVoices. She is dedicated to advancing long-term language growth with documentation, grammatically-informed resources, and contemporary technology to support everyday use. She currently resides on Tohono O'odham and Pascua Hiaki lands in Tucson, AZ.

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Senior Linguist & Owner

Jon Janzen

Jon is a linguist and expert in the Wakashan language family, boasting a 15-year history of successful language documentation and revitalization in collaboration with elders and language holders. Jon supports on-reserve language programs for the Kanaka Bar Indian Band and the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nation. He also contributes to FNEF, an organization that aids First Nations in language archiving and resource development, including initiatives with the Haisla Nation and Huu-ay-aht Nation. Jon shares his expertise as an instructor of nłeʔkepmxcín at NVIT and Haisla at UNBC. Jon resides in Kwantlen Territory (Mission BC) with his wife Janna and their two children.

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Resilience Projects Manager

Mitch Miyagawa

Mitch is a seasoned team leader, facilitator, and project manager with 25+ years of work experience across many fields, including health, education, and arts & culture. He has applied his open and positive leadership style to motivate teams and groups in diverse settings such as community planning, event production, and retreat facilitation. He is a proud sansei, a third-generation Japanese-Canadian. Born and raised in Edmonton, Mitch is now based in Snuneymuwx / Nanaimo, BC. He formerly lived and worked in Whitehorse, Yukon, where his two sons were born. He is also a practicing multi-disciplinary artist, most known for his documentary, A Sorry State, about his family's experience with government apologies. ​

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Climate Adaptation Coordinator

Peter McCartney

For over a decade, Peter has worked alongside Indigenous communities to protect their territories from fossil fuel extraction while advancing climate solutions. As an activist, he has developed strong skills in communications, facilitation, and community engagement, along with a deep understanding of the ecological challenges ahead. Now a graduate student in the Indigenous Community Planning program at UBC, Peter collaborates with communities to turn their vision for resilience into action. He lives with his husband in Vancouver’s West End, on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.

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Climate Risk & Planning Specialist

Brinnae Cooper

With a background in natural sciences and community planning, Brinnae brings strong expertise in climate resilience and disaster risk reduction. Her work spans hazard risk assessment roadmaps, renewable energy transition research, and community engagement to identify and address local climate impacts. Brinnae is skilled in sustainability planning, ecosystem restoration, and climate change mitigation. She holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biology, a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Chemistry, and a Master’s in Community and Regional Planning. Brinnae is based in Vancouver, BC, on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.

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Linguist & Planning Coordinator

Emily Hanser

Emily, a Forager Hill linguist, brings her growing expertise in Wakashan languages and her expanding knowledge of Interior Salish and Dene to support Indigenous community language goals, language documentation, and grammatical analysis. Emily holds an MA in Linguistics from the Canada Institute of Linguistics. She resides on Sylix/Okanagan Lands, in Vernon with her husband and two kids. 

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Strategic Projects Assistant

Pavita Sidhu

Pavita brings a passion for intersectional environmental justice to Forager Hill. Pavita completed her undergraduate degree in English with a focus on anticolonial literature, and has continued her education in landscape architecture. Pavita’s interest in community-first development and decolonial frameworks has led her to focus on work that aids in environmental and social care. She now resides on the traditional unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, and səlilwətaɬ peoples.  

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“Kanaka has a great working relationship with Janna and her team. Janna and her staff come with a wealth of experience in several areas, grant and proposal writing, project management, administrative support etc.. She has been very successful in assisting Kanaka with funding.” 

— Chief Jordan Spinks, Kanaka Bar Indian Band 

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Testimonials

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