The Great Bear Sea

The Great Bear Sea Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) initiative is led by 17 participating First Nations, launches a new era of collaborative governance in marine conservation and stewardship. A total of $335 million for the PFP —$200 million from the Government of Canada, $60 million from the Province of BC, and $75 million from philanthropic investors — ensures communities will now have access to durable, long-term funding to care for their marine territories and support sustainable economic development on the coast.

First Nations across the North Pacific Coast/Great Bear Sea have cared for and governed these lands and waters since time immemorial. The Great Bear Sea (also known as the Northern Shelf Bioregion) extends from northern Vancouver Island to the Canada-Alaska border. The region is one of the richest and most productive cold-water marine ecoregions on Earth, home to marine life from herring and salmon to whales, dolphins, seabirds, and kelp forests. Stewarded and cared for by First Nations for tens of thousands of years, the Great Bear Sea is a source of sustenance, culture, and livelihoods for all who call the coast home.

The Great Bear Sea PFP will provide ongoing funding for the collaborative implementation of both the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network Action Plan and the Marine Plan Partnership (MaPP). These two initiatives represent over a decade of work between our Nations, Canada, and British Columbia. The network of MPAs will cover approximately 3 million hectares, or 30 percent of the Great Bear Sea, but sit within 10 million hectares that will be conserved and protected. The project will also protect and conserve at least 84 species at risk.