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The Arts Incubator

Winnipeg, Manitoba

The project is grounded in a dynamic process of collaborative engagement and capacity building, utilizing arts-based research methodologies to ensure the work is both relevant and empowering. A key focus is Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR), which positions young people as leaders in investigating their own economic realities and co-designing their futures. Through a series of co-design workshops, digital storytelling projects, and community forums, ECO-STAR North facilitates intergenerational knowledge transfer, connecting youth with Elders and established creators. This hands-on, community-led approach ensures the resulting toolkit is not an academic exercise, but a living, practical resource built by and for Northern innovators, strengthening a resilient and interconnected creative ecosystem.
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  • Terry’s Big Creek Clean Up
  • In Bookstores

Terry’s Big Creek Clean Up

Terry's creek is drowning in junk. Can he clean it alone? Watch one boy's passion ignite a community, teaching everyone to cherish nature.
The Arts Incubator - Winnipeg October 3, 2025
What happens when your most cherished place, a secret haven teeming with life, suddenly becomes a dumping ground? Terry loves Whispering Willow Gully more than anything – it’s where water whispers, fish dart, and frogs sing. This vibrant creek is his quiet escape, a place of peace and wonder that he believes is the best in the whole wide world. But one warm day, Terry’s heart sinks. His beloved gully is no longer peaceful, marred by a jarring landscape of plastic bags, bright cans, and forgotten trash. The beautiful home of the gully's creatures is threatened, its dignity stolen. Witnessing the struggles of the frog, the bird, and the fish, Terry feels a powerful pull in his heart. Though just one boy, he knows he must act. Armed with a simple stick and a big plan, Terry sets out to reclaim the gully’s natural beauty. This heartwarming story explores the profound connection between a boy and nature, highlighting the vital importance of environmental stewardship and the courage it takes to protect our planet. Join Terry as he learns that even the smallest hands can inspire big change and remind us all that nature deserves our care and respect.

What happens when your most cherished place, a secret haven teeming with life, suddenly becomes a dumping ground? Terry loves Whispering Willow Gully more than anything – it’s where water whispers, fish dart, and frogs sing. This vibrant creek is his quiet escape, a place of peace and wonder that he believes is the best in the whole wide world.

But one warm day, Terry’s heart sinks. His beloved gully is no longer peaceful, marred by a jarring landscape of plastic bags, bright cans, and forgotten trash. The beautiful home of the gully’s creatures is threatened, its dignity stolen. Witnessing the struggles of the frog, the bird, and the fish, Terry feels a powerful pull in his heart. Though just one boy, he knows he must act.

Armed with a simple stick and a big plan, Terry sets out to reclaim the gully’s natural beauty. This heartwarming story explores the profound connection between a boy and nature, highlighting the vital importance of environmental stewardship and the courage it takes to protect our planet. Join Terry as he learns that even the smallest hands can inspire big change and remind us all that nature deserves our care and respect.

Support Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba Literacy and Publishing: Order Your Books and Short Stories Today

Books, short stories and publications are available in bookstores across Canada, the United States and internationally in outlets such as:

Apple Books, Barnes and Noble, Casa De Libro, Cultura, Fable, Librarie E. Leclerc, Palace Marketplace, Rakuten Kobo, Smashwords, Thalia, Vivlio


About the Author

Jamie Bell is an interdisciplinary artist, writer, and a passionate believer in the power of shared stories. Based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, his work explores community and connection through creative projects and participatory research. When he’s not behind a pen or a camera, you can find him in the garden, a space where he finds inspiration in the quiet dignity of growth.

ISBN: 9798232138165

About the Author

The Arts Incubator - Winnipeg

The Arts Incubator - Winnipeg

Administrator

The Arts Incubator - Winnipeg is a participatory arts collective and living lab, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario. It's a space where innovation and creativity thrive. It's latest iteration was launched in 2021 with funding and support from the Canada Council for the Arts Digital Greenhouse. Today, working with students and faculty from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, we fuse traditional and participatory media arts with artificial intelligence, music, storytelling and community-driven, land-based artist residencies to cultivate new voices and bold ideas. Whether through collaborative projects or immersive experiences, our small but vibrant community supports creators to explore, experiment, and connect. Join us at the intersection of artistry, technology, culture and community—where every moment is a new opportunity to create.

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MANITOBA ARTS PROGRAMS

This platform, our Winnipeg, Manitoba hub and programs have been made possible with support from the Manitoba Arts Council Indigenous 360 Program. We gratefully acknowledge their funding and support in making the work we do possible.

Manitoba Arts Council Indigenous 360 Program

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Arts Incubator was seeded and piloted with strategic arts innovation funding from the Canada Council for the Arts Digital Greenhouse. We thank them for their investment, supporting northern arts capacity building and bringing the arts to life.

Canada Council for the Arts Digital Greenhouse Logo

NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO ARTS

This platform, our Northwestern Ontario hub and programs have been made possible with support from the Ontario Arts Council Multi and Inter-Arts Projects Program. We gratefully acknowledge their funding and support in making the work we do possible.

Ontario Arts Council Multi and Inter-Arts Projects Program
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