Lessons Learned from the Great Bear Sea PFP (2026)
Press Release
Acknowledgements
We extend our deepest gratitude to participants from the participating First Nations, the Province of British Columbia, the Government of Canada, and philanthropic partners who contributed to this initiative to document lessons learned from the Great Bear Sea Project Finance for Permanence (GBS PFP).
This report was informed by their unique perspectives, shaped by years of community-based marine planning, Guardian and Watchmen programs, and the collective work that supports the Northern Shelf Bioregion Marine Protected Area Network.
We also thank Coast Funds for administering this project on behalf of the tripartite partners and for providing diligent oversight of deliverables, financial management, and reporting, which helped keep the work on track and grounded in tripartite priorities.
Glossary of Terms
30×30: Canada’s commitment to conserve at least 30 % of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine areas by 2030 through protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), including recognition of Indigenous and traditional territories1.
Blue Carbon: Carbon captured and stored in coastal and marine ecosystems such as mangroves, tidal marshes, and seagrasses, which can generate climate mitigation benefits. In the PFP context, these benefits are explored as part of sustainable finance mechanisms, including potential monetization through carbon markets or other revenue streams.
Blended Finance: A financing approach that combines concessional public or philanthropic funds with commercial finance to mitigate risk, improve risk‑adjusted returns, and mobilize private capital for high‑impact projects that might not proceed on strictly commercial terms2.
British Columbia Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA): 2019 provincial legislation that affirms and implements the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in BC law, guiding government policy, co‑governance, and reconciliation practices relevant to initiatives such as the PFP3. The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act) mandates government to bring provincial laws into
ILR5
