Salish Environmental Group Receives $2,500,000 Equity Investment From Raven Indigenous Capital Partners To Create Capacity for the Next Phase of Expansion for their Composting Operations
Salish Environmental Group represents a whole new way of stewarding waste resources within its shíshálh Nation territory
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – October 12, 2022 – Raven Indigenous Capital Partners, North America’s only Indigenous-led and owned impact investment firm, announced a $2,500,000 investment in Salish Environmental Group Inc, the parent company of Salish Soils, a composting and waste recycling company located on shíshálh Nation Territory in Sechelt, BC on the Sunshine Coast.
Raven Indigenous Capital is an Indigenous-led impact investment fund operating in both Canada and the US. “Salish Environmental group is successfully executing on a huge vision that will fundamentally change the way that Indigenous people and all communities view how economic reconciliation, contemporary land stewardship and land remediation can be done without extraction and while healing the land. We are very excited to support the next phase of Salish’s growth and impact.”
Salish Environmental Group operates a number of environmental services from its Salish Soils facility in Sechelt BC. Salish is a leader in residuals management, from collection to processing, including fish waste, food scraps and biosolids residuals and works currently within the territories of the shíshálh, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw, and the Tla’amin Nation. Salish Soils uses a number of innovative processes to turn what would be garbage into value-added products including compost, fuel for energy, and growing media for food production. Currently, 50% of the waste streams headed to the Sunshine Coast landfill are diverted to Salish’s facility for recycling and composting.
Raven’s investment will enable the enhancement and expansion of several Salish initiatives:
- Reconfiguration of Salish’s retail and commercial depot
- Development of finished storage for all composts and soil to allow for greater consistency throughout the season
- Creation a branded bagged product
- Increased safety and efficiency of the recycling and sales area at our Sechelt facility
- Sustained improvement in the social and environmental well-being of people of the Sunshine Coast and the planet
“I am a proud shíshálh Nation member, and I believe my role as an Indigenous entrepreneur is to create real lasting social impact within our community and to build a pathway towards economic reconciliation” comments Aaron Joe, CEO, majority owner and co-founder of Salish Environmental Group. Aaron Joe started the company with a vision of creating a secure closed loop food system, which requires high quality soil, a component that was missing on the Sunshine Coast. “We are very intentional about creating win/win partnerships that share our mission to bring positive social and economic outcomes. I aim to transform how we think about waste and I am grateful for Raven’s support,” remarks Aaron Joe.
About Raven Indigenous Capital Partners
Raven Indigenous Capital Partners removes barriers to drive Indigenous entrepreneurial success. With the flow of capital through impact investing, Raven brings capacity-building support to strengthen the Indigenous economy. Raven provides entrepreneurs access to resources while giving investors an opportunity to invest in competitive returns and long-term social and environmental impact. The organization’s namesake, the Raven, is central to rebirth and transformation, creating an equitable and prosperous future for Indigenous peoples in Canada and the United States. Learn more: RavenCapitalPartners.ca.
About Salish Environmental Group
Salish Soils is a recycling and resource recovery facility that turns waste into value added products including their signature fish compost. As a majority Indigenous-owned business, Salish believes there is no garbage, only renewable resources and is working to create a resilient, regenerative, and prosperous organization community and environment. Learn more at SalishEnvrionmentalGroup.com
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MEDIA CONTACTS
Raven Indigenous Capital Partners
Stephen Nairne
RavenCapitalPartners.ca
Stephennairne@RavenCapitalPartners.ca
+ 1 604-617-9255
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Salish Environmental Group
Shawna van Poppelen
shawna@salishsoils.com
SalishEnvironmentalGroup.com
+ 1 604-885-5383
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