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I am planning on conducting a weekend mushroom festival based out of the Dunster School on September 28 and 28 2024. Festival would run over the weekend and would include field trips around the Robson valley with instructors, field collection and identification of mushrooms and fungi, and workshops and presentations from instructors at the schools One of the instructors was involved in a non-timber resource study of the Mcbride, Dunster and Valemount community forests 25 years ago and another instructor is from the University of Alberta and is involved with DNA typing of mushroom species and cancer research. Additional instructors will be attending from the University of Northern BC and the Northern BC Mycological Society. All have expressed interest in working in the area from the point of view of increasing the knowledge of mushroom and fungi species in the area as well as seeing how the species distribution may have changed in the past 25 years due to climate change. We would be doing field forays centered around the Dunster area but may potentially be as far afield as Kinabasket to Robson to Ancient Forest. We would like to explore the possibility as to if we could get a research permit for study and collection within the Provincial Parks and Rec lands of Robson Park, Jackman Flats and the Ancient Forest. Collection would involve field forays within the area that would focus on mushroom characteristic and identification for workshop participants. We would be using “I Naturalist” to log observations and locations but would also include collection of several specimens 1-3) of various mushrooms for dehydration and future DNA sampling and display at the workshop for group participants education and identification. Groups coming into the Parks and sites would be led and supervised by instructors and select volunteers and would be potentially up to 20-25 people for 1-2 hours per day over a period of 2 days. Each group would follow field protocol for group management and have a designated first aid responder. Selected foray sites would be within ½ km of road access and vehicle parking will be managed to limit congestion and traffic hazards. Specific sites will be selected closer to festival time to consider moisture conditions and fungal fruiting. Groups could include identification and would be willing to interact with any park visitors encountered. We would be willing to share data and information gathered from the mushrooms gathered in the parks as well as the other sites in the Valemount/Tete Jaune/Mcbride area. If you feel that this is a worthy research endeavour and that BC Parks may be interested in supporting it, please contact Terry Winkler winklers@telus.net 780 931 2621