Experience indigenous cultures from around the Pacific Ocean at this Saturday's One Wave Festival at Centennial Square.
The youth-focused cultural celebration features traditional art, dance, drumming and singing by Canadian and South Pacific indigenous peoples.
This is the fifth year of the festival, which celebrates connections between indigenous peoples of the small island states of the South Pacific (Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia).
"The one thing that connects us all is the [Pacific] ocean," says Amy Mawdsley, spokeswoman for Pacific Peoples' Partnership, the organizer of the event. "The ocean shapes our environment and culture."
World Fisheries Trust, one of the community groups in attendance, will have an interactive aquarium on hand. Children will have a chance to interact with different sea creatures.
The festival is free and runs from noon to 8 p.m. at the square, adjacent to Victoria City Hall.
From noon until 4 p.m., the stage will welcome artists including storytellers and poets. Dancers will perform local First Nations and Pacific islands dance. From 4 to 8 p.m., local musicians will entertain the audience.
The event also includes a market, filled with wares produced by local and out-of-town craftspeople.
The Pacific Peoples' Partnership is a non-governmental organization and charity that has been in operation for 35 years.
For more information, go to pacificpeoplespartnership.org.
