June 8, 2026 – Communities across British Columbia’s Southern Interior are set to benefit from a new round of investment through the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior. On June 5, 2026, ETSI-BC approved $1,011,000 in funding for 33 projects, representing a combined project value of $3 million. The funded initiatives will help communities diversify their local economies, support innovation, and respond to regional opportunities
Announcing Data 201 Webinar Series
Sharpen Your Skills, Learn from Peers – Continue to Use Data to Your Advantage
Register Now for the Series or Individual Webinars
ETSI-BC is pleased to engage Community Futures East Kootenay once again, to develop a practical, FREE webinar series that will help our region’s communities and service providers learn to use data to achieve economic development outcomes.
Building on the extremely popular Using Data to Your Advantage webinar series offered by ETSI-BC in early 2022, this highly relevant and inspiring series will share examples that demonstrate how communities use data to support planning and decision-making. All sessions will include interactive discussions using tools such as polls, breakout rooms, whiteboards, open conversation and networking.
Good data allows communities to:
- strengthen grant applications and access funding more easily,
- guide strategic planning and make better decisions on where to put time and effort,
- support current and new businesses,
- decide which projects are the most important at any given time, and
- measure the impact of community and economic development initiatives over time.
During this six-part interactive webinar series, participants will:
- learn about data-driven projects across the Southern Interior of BC, how they’re used and what challenges needed to be overcome to make them work,
- get insights from economic development peers as to how others are using data to support economic development outcomes in their communities,
- share information about economic development projects being worked on in the region, and
- build your community of practice, and receive support to improve data use towards economic development outcomes in your community.
Join us for Data 201 on Thursdays from 10:00 – 11:30am Pacific Time by Zoom. Attend any session you like or all the webinars in the series. Did we mention that it’s FREE?!
Click here to register
| Data 201 – Sharpen Your Skills, Learn from Peers | ||
| Session | Date | Session Topic |
| 1. | May 4, 2023 | The Lowdown on Using Data: A Review |
| 2. | May 11, 2023 | Using Data for Disaster Planning and Recovery |
| 3. | May 18, 2023 | Using Data to Support Housing Needs and Labour Attraction |
| 4. | May 25, 2023 | Using Data for Economic Impact and Planning |
| 5. | June 1, 2023 | Community of Practice: Finding and Collecting Data |
| 6. | June 8, 2023 | Community of Practice: Analyzing and Presenting Data |
Data 201 Session Descriptions
TIME: Thursdays 10:00 – 11:30am PT from May 4 to June 8
| Session | Date | Session Descriptions |
| 1. | May 4, 2023 | The Lowdown on Using Data: A Review
Join Mike Stolte as he reviews everything that was discussed in the Using Data to Your Advantage series last year in one quick, engaging and insightful session. |
| 2. | May 11, 2023 | Using Data for Disaster Planning and Recovery
Learn from the experiences of Lytton and Grand Forks as to how they are using data to support decisions around disaster planning and recovery. |
| 3. | May 18, 2023 | Using Data to Support Housing Needs and Labour Attraction
Learn from Creston and Castlegar as to how they are using data to support the housing needs in their communities, and how Salmon Arm is using data to help with labour attraction. |
| 4. | May 25, 2023 | Using Data for Economic Impact and Planning
Learn from Hope and Greater Trail as to how they are using data to review the economic impact of events and ways they support investment attraction. |
| 5. | June 1, 2023 | Community of Practice: Finding and Collecting Data
Share your own data projects and receive support from peers and data experts as you discuss challenges and successes with finding and collecting data. |
| 6. | June 8, 2023 | Community of Practice: Analyzing and Presenting Data
Share your own data projects and receive support from peers and data experts as you discuss challenges and successes with analyzing and presenting data. |
All sessions will include interactive discussions using tools such as polls, breakout rooms, whiteboards, open conversation and networking. For more detailed session descriptions click here.
More News & Stories
Helping Shape the Future of ETSI-BC Support in the Southern Interior
May 11, 2026 – ETSI-BC is inviting partners from across the Southern Interior to participate in a series of virtual focus groups as part of an Impact Assessment that will inform its next three-year Strategic Plan, covering the period from April 1, 2027 to March 31, 2030.
Similkameen Economic Vitality Plan Drives Growth and Resilience
Keremeos, one of the fastest growing rural communities in British Columbia, has evolved from its agricultural heritage to a business hub at the heart of the Similkameen region with a robust tourist sector and vast potential to develop new business opportunities. In 2024, the Similkameen Country Development Association initiated a comprehensive Economic Vitality Initiative to better address the pressing needs of local businesses. Collaboration by many stakeholders along with funding support from the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC) drove the plan to completion, and the strategies it contains are now being implemented.
Ktunaxa Business Showcase Links Indigenous Businesses to Procurement Opportunities
The Ktunaxa Business Showcase, led by the Ktunaxa Nation Council (KNC), is expanding, improving and helping members secure new business contracts in southeastern BC. The success of the most recent 2025 Showcase event reflects strategic changes to the program’s timeline and format, and was supported by funding from the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC).
Strong Demand for ETSI-BC Spring Funding Intake
April 15, 2026 – The Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC) closed its 2026 Spring Funding Intake, with a strong response from communities and organizations across the region. The intake closed on April 9, 2026, with 48 applications requesting nearly $1.7 million in funding, representing a combined project value of almost $4 million.
2026 ETSI-BC Legislative Review
March 30, 2026 – We are pleased to present the findings and recommendations of the 2026 ETSI-BC Legislative Review Committee. The Committee reviewed the Act that governs ETSI-BC and the proposed changes that the Province has put forward this year. A Legislative Review is conducted every 5 years by an independent committee. This year in particular, their report has several important recommendations of relevance to First Nations and local governments in the Southern Interior, and to the Province.
Stepping up the PACE of Inclusive Employment in Penticton
Creating flexible, part-time job opportunities for workers with barriers has been the driving force behind The Penticton & Area Cooperative Enterprise (PACE) for more than 20 years. Hundreds of employees have found sustainable jobs with local employers based on PACE’s job-sharing model to fill full-time positions.
With support from the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC), PACE has standardized and expanded its model to ensure more people can access paid work in the community and employers have access to labour market solutions, which are increasing economic growth in the Penticton area and beyond.
Columbia Valley on a Roll as Film Production Provides Region-Wide Benefits
With its spectacular landscapes and the small-town charm of communities like Radium, Invermere and Fairmont Hot Springs, the Columbia Valley in the East Kootenay region has been the backdrop of film productions for decades. In 2024, Columbia Valley Community Economic Development (CVCEDO) built on this momentum by hiring a Film Coordinator to ensure the Columbia Valley was the location of choice for two new productions and create a strategy for long-term growth of the film sector. The project was supported with a grant from the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC).
CF Central Okanagan Leadership Program Teaches Businesses Sustainability Practices
An innovative program to help new and expanding businesses build sustainable business practices (SD) into their ventures has resulted in a model for long-term business growth and economic capacity building in the Okanagan. The Sustainable Business Development Leadership Program created by Community Futures Central Okanagan was supported by the Economic Trust of the Southern Interior (ETSI-BC). It provides valuable insights into Sustainable Business Practices and the training serves as a model that could be shared with Community Futures clients in other regions.
Benefits of Social Enterprise Explored in the Boundary
Backed by ETSI-BC, the Trails to the Boundary Society (TTTBS) are helping nonprofits move beyond grants to build sustainable revenue.