Coastal GasLink Sponsors Education for 20 Students

Karla Holland, a lifelong resident of Houston B.C. is pleased to be in the first group of students to graduate from the Northwest Community College (NWCC) Mining Exploration & Field Assistant Program, a program proudly supported by TransCanada's Coastal GasLink Pipeline Project.

For Karla, exploring the wilderness is a family tradition. Holland affectionately describes childhood mushroom picking trips with her father in Houston, B.C. It’s a tradition she’s kept on with her children to this very day. “It’s like our Easter egg hunt. It’s something that we have and we get to keep and carry.”

Her connection with nature and to the wilderness inspired her to change career paths and pursue a Mining Exploration & Field Assistant Program at NWCC. Holland, a former medic, who often travelled with field assistants while on calls, was intrigued by the work.

“I’d go out with the field assistants and it bothered me that I couldn’t partake in the stuff that they were doing. It intrigued me, so I wanted to get out and learn a little more about the early stages of development. So when I heard about course, I leapt at the chance,” says Holland

Coastal GasLink sponsored 20 Wet’suwet’en students and members from the local community for NWCC’s Mining Exploration & Natural Resource Field Assistant program in Smithers, B.C. The training prepares students in the Northwest to learn the data collection and field protocols associated with the rigours of fieldwork. It also provides them the skills and opportunities for future work.

“What the School of Exploration and Mining really does is that it helps people in entry-level programs in the minerals and exploration field and gives them really applicable and industry-ready skills,” says Regina Saimoto, regional director eastern region, Northwest Community College.

Holland says the chance to participate in a program like this was an opportunity too big to pass up, “It’s a huge opportunity. These kinds of things don’t come up that often, actually very rarely, so we’ve taken it quite seriously.”

TransCanada’s partnership with NWCC includes a $250,000 investment will provide students with bursaries in trades and industrial safety courses, support Class 5 driver training to Aboriginal and local communities, along with additional projects to be unveiled.

Coastal GasLink is committed to building strong and vibrant communities and we support organizations and initiatives that bring communities together, develop leadership and engage citizens.

TransCanada's ongoing commitment to higher education and training continues through our corporate Stakeholder Education and Training Strategy, which guides how we support education initiatives. Whether it's providing scholarships for education to help someone reach their goals, or training skilled trades people for the future, our commitment to helping people achieve their goals is unwavering.