Establishing Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas, like the Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve in the Northwest Territories, while respecting original treaties can help Canada meet its international conservation commitments. Credit: Iris Catholique, CC BY
Thaidene Nëné was established as an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) by the Łutsël K'é Dene First Nation in 2019 after decades of negotiations with Parks Canada and the government of Northwest Territories. It is also a National Park Reserve and a Territorial Protected Area.
The report advised the Canadian government on how to meet its international conservation commitments under the UN Convention of Biological Diversity by, in part, establishing these IPCAs in the spirit of the original treaties. It argued that all IPCAs should be Indigenous-led, but supported by others. It reflected the growing body of scientific evidence that shows that Indigenous Peoples have knowledge and governance systems which, when allowed to operate, result in higher levels of biodiversity than state-run parks and protected areas.
Established in 2019, the Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve is an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area. Credit: Parks Canada
Climate change is causing more frequent & severe forest fires across the country. #Indigenous Guardians offer Indigenous knowledge that can reduce fire risk, inform Nations' approach to managing fire & keep communities safe. pic.twitter.com/FigbQvINV2
— Indigenous Leadership Initiative (@ILInationhood) July 22, 2022
In fact, the federal government recently announced an additional $40 million for the establishment of IPCAs, making the federal contribution toward Indigenous leadership in conservation upwards of about $520 million to date.
The Conservation through Reconciliation Partnership—a program hosted by the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and Iisaak Olam Foundation and the University of Guelph—has witnessed a rise in the number of new and emerging IPCAs. There are more than 70 declared IPCAs today.
Broken trust
The raid on the Łutsël K'é culture camps on Sept. 13 showed that there is still a long road ahead for conservation and reconciliation.
Instead, they obtained a warrant to conduct an extensive tent-by-tent search of a cultural camp of more than 80 people there. On Sept. 13, wildlife officers flew in to the culture camp at Timber Bay and spent three hours conducting their search.
Wildlife officers violated the inherent and treaty rights of the Łutsël K’é Dene First Nation when they raided the culture camp at Timber Bay, Thaidene Nëné on Sept. 13. Credit: Chase East Arm Adventures
These actions violated the Łutsël K'é Dene First Nation's inherent and treaty rights to self-government.
This incident emphasizes that the colonial conservation model, which focused on the assertion of control over Indigenous territory, is still alive and well, even in places like Thaidene Nëné. The principles of co-governance for nature conservation dictate that no one entity is "in charge," but rather collaboration to protect the area is paramount.
As other Indigenous governments and First Nations contemplate whether they want to work with federal, provincial or territorial governments to strengthen Canada's collective efforts towards nature conservation, this incident at the Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve might make them second guess such partnerships.
If Crown governments cannot respect and uphold Indigenous conservation leadership, many conservation initiatives will not see the light of day, disrupting the bits of progress made so far.
There is much work to be done to repair the relationship amongst the three governments committed to conserving Thaidene Nëné.
Public officials must stop criminalizing Indigenous Peoples and start upholding their rights to exercise their responsibilities on their traditional territories. Only then can we move forward in our collective goal of addressing the climate and biodiversity crises.
Citation:
An attack on Indigenous rights is an attack on nature conservation (2022, October 31)
retrieved 31 October 2022
from https://phys.org/news/2022-10-indigenous-rights-nature.html
This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.