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The Narwhal’s visual storytelling and collaborative reporting have earned three nominations for the 2024 Webster Awards, which recognize the best of journalism in British Columbia.

Nourish, a series highlighting the work of First Nations bringing food sovereignty back to the table, is a finalist for excellence in innovative journalism. 

With IndigiNews, we co-published an on-the-ground feature about the rematriation of a stolen totem pole to the Nisg̱a’a Nation, which is up for an award for excellence in arts and culture reporting.

And The Narwhal’s collaborative investigation with The Globe and Mail into B.C.’s multimillion-dollar mining problem earned a Webster nomination for excellence in business reporting.

“From the get-go, our vision with The Narwhal was to bring environment reporting out of the margins and into the mainstream,” co-founder and editor-in-chief Emma Gilchrist said.

“Partnerships like this are the future of public-interest journalism, allowing organizations to share complementary skills, pool resources and reach wider, more diverse audiences.”

For the investigation, The Narwhal’s Francesca Fionda teamed up with The Globe’s Jeffrey Jones and Chen Wang to examine the growing cost of cleaning up pollution from mines in B.C. — a problem that could leave taxpayers on the hook if disaster strikes. B.C. bureau lead Lindsay Sample and photographer Chris Miller also helped make the story shine.

The Narwhal and IndigiNews collaborated to tell the story of the Wilps Ni’isjoohl memorial pole’s return to the Nisg̱a’a Nation. Photo: Marty Clemens / The Narwhal

Illustrations by Karlene Harvey helped bring Nourish, a series on Indigenous food sovereignty, to life.

None of this award-nominated work would be a reality without the more than 6,500 members of The Narwhal who allow us to chart new paths for public-interest reporting, all while telling stories that would otherwise go untold.

The five-part Nourish series, with on-the-ground reporting by Steph Kwetásel’wet Wood and Ainslie Cruickshank, shone light on efforts to save salmon and restore other critical food resources everywhere from Babine River in northern B.C. to Secwepemc territory in Interior B.C. to Tsleil-Waututh territory in the Lower Mainland.

The series, made possible with support from the Real Estate Foundation of BC, also featured a live webinar exploring what sovereignty looks like in the face of climate change.

Nominees for Nourish also included illustrator Karlene Harvey and photojournalists Jesse Winter, Marty Clemens and Jennifer Gauthier. The Narwhal’s Michelle Cyca, Lindsay Sample, Karan Saxena, Matt Simmons and Shawn Parkinson were also among the nominees.

The collaborative story with IndigiNews on the totem pole rematriation, with reporting by Simmons and Cara McKenna and photos by Clemens, also took home top honours for arts and entertainment reporting at this year’s National Newspaper Awards.

Other outlets nominated alongside The Narwhal in the three Webster categories include The Globe and Mail, Global BC, CBC Vancouver, Fraser Valley Current, The Tyee and The Climate Disaster Project.

Narwhal assistant editor Jacqueline Ronson was among the nominees for The Wren’s nomination in the Websters’ legal journalism category for a piece on the buried history of Tranquille.

Winners will be announced at a Webster Awards gala in Vancouver at the end of October.

The Narwhal’s reporters are telling environment stories you won’t read about anywhere else. Stay in the loop by signing up for our free weekly dose of independent journalism.