I have to say thank you very much for that question.
I just want to make sure that you're not confusing Westbank with Osoyoos, for example. Chief Clarence Louie is from Osoyoos. If I were to say fertile lands, they have the vineyards and the agricultural lands, whereas, yes, we're economically suited to the location we're at, but we focus not so much on the agriculture and the fertility of lands but more on the fertility, if you will, of the people and the economic aspects of shopping centres and that sort of thing. That's where we focus.
If I were to say a turning point, I think the turning point goes back in time when we actually started being recognized as the decision-makers of our lands, where we could make the decisions without having to have our hands held by the Indian agents in the district offices or having decisions being made elsewhere, off the reserve. Once we got to the self-government aspect of doing business, that's where the magical curve, if you will, started to happen. When we were empowered and recognized as a government with authority over our lands, our resources, and how we do business from day to day, that's where the entrepreneurial aspects took place. That's when we just said this is how we can do the water lines, the sewage lines, to attract the investment. That's where we can focus in on the culture and the heritage to get the support of the community so they know that this was being addressed as we moved into this next level of a generation that we're seeking, and that is having everyone with jobs and a place to live and homes.
We still have a ways to go, there's no question about it. Certainly the location, we've been fortunate with that, knowing that it's one of the fastest-growing regions in Canada. I think that's all attributed to the fast, rapid growth rate here. But it's the turn of the governance and the manageability of our lands, that's the turning point.