Interviews with David Stirling (Part 2 of 2) and Yorke Edwards

Part of a collection of video oral history interviews with park pioneers, as well as some events, created by EKOS Communications in partnership with the Elders Council for Parks of British Columbia to commemorate the 100th anniversary of BC Parks in 2011. The Elders Council is an independent society, whose members are retired parks system employees and conservation advocates who have dedicated a significant portion of their lives to parks and protected areas in BC. These interviews served as source material for the documentary BC Parks: Celebrating 100 Years of Recreation and Protection. Standard questions were used in most of the interviews and included dates of employment/association with BC Parks, parks worked in, greatest challenges, accomplishments and regrets, lessons learned, hopes for provincial park system today and mentors.Part of Elders’ Council for Parks in British Columbia oral history interview series, collected for the documentary "BC Parks: Celebrating 100 Years of Recreation and Protection". Rick Searle interviews with David Stirling [Part 2 of 2] and Yorke Edwards. Stirling speaks about tensions between park interpreters and park managers/operations, which he feels lead to decline of interpretation program. He also discusses the changing BC Parks structure, such as regionalisation, as well as funding cuts, resetting priories and public pressure for other amenities. Stirling concludes by naming his mentors, including Yorke Edwards and Carey Joy. Camera shots show David Stirling seated outside with trees in background. Edwards speaks about his association with BC Parks and protected areas for over 30 years, including his employment with BC Parks (1949-1962), his work with the Canadian Wildlife Service (the late 1960s) and his time at the BC provincial museum. He names the parks he worked in, including Manning Park and Wells Grey and speaks of his goal to to help people to see the wildlife in its natural settings. He also worked as park interpreter. He discusses the changes he has seen in parks from being well looked-after to the influx roads and cottages, which make them seem less like parks. Edwards recounts memorable experiences, including waking up to a wolf near his camp and encountering caribou, and touches on his major accomplishments, such as making parks like Long Beach, Miracle Beach and Mitlenatch Island. In conclusion, Edwards talks about the "city-fication" of parks and influential authors like Grey Owl and Ernest Thompson-Seton, as well as personal reminiscences on birding and writing. Camera shots show Yorke Edwards with books and bookcase in background.

In Collection:

• Elders Council for Parks in British Columbia

Creator

• Elders Council for Parks in British Columbia
• EKOS Communications, Inc.

Contributor

• Searle, D. Richard (Donald Richard), 1951-

Subject

• Stirling, David
• Edwards, Yorke
• Conservation of natural resources
• Conservation of natural resources--Societies, etc.
• Wildlife conservation
• Nature conservation
• Nature conservation--Societies, etc.
• Wilderness areas
• Biodiversity conservation
• Natural areas
• Parks--Conservation and restoration
• Parks
• National parks and reserves
• National parks and reserves--Management
• Parks--Employees
• Parks--Employees--Attitudes
• BC Parks
• Oral histories

Language

• eng

Date created

• 2006

Resource type

• Moving Image

Rights statement

• In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Extent

• 00:57:37

Alternative title

• David Stirling [2006:2] and Yorke Edwards interviews
• David Stirling [part 2] and Yorke Edwards Interviews

Geographic coverage

• British Columbia--Miracle Beach Park
• British Columbia--Wells Gray Park
• British Columbia--Mitlenatch Island
• British Columbia--Manning Provincial Park
• British Columbia--Long Beach

Coordinates

• 49.85044, -125.09798
• 52.33321, -120.00252
• 49.06615, -125.74502
• 49.06642, -120.78578
• 49.94964, -125.00287

Additional physical characteristics

• Stirling’s interview runs 00:00:37-00:11:54 and Edwards’ interview runs 00:11:55-00:57:28. The Stirling interview is a continuation of the Interview with David Stirling (Part 1 of 2).

Physical repository

• University of Victoria (B.C.). Library

Collection

• Elders Council for Parks in British Columbia

Provenance

• Donated to the University of Victoria Archives on October 20, 2008 by Rick Searle (EKOS Communications).

Provider

• University of Victoria (B.C.). Library

Genre

• reminiscences
• video recordings (physical artifacts)
• oral histories (literary genre)

Archival item identifier

• Accession Number: 2011-006

Fonds title

• Elders Council for Parks in British Columbia / EKOS Communications video history collection

Fonds identifier

• AR447

Is referenced by

• Archival Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/elders-council-for-parks-in-british-columbia-ekos-communications-video-history-collection

Date digitized

• 2011

Technical note

• Migration metadata from UVicSpace to Vault by KD, Summer 2024.

Rights

• This item is under copyright and made available on this site for research and private study only. Commercial use is prohibited. For all other uses please contact UVic Libraries' Special Collections and University Archives.

DOI

•  https://doi.org/10.58066/dmwf-wx03