Carrier Sekani Analysis

Throughout history, the Native people of North America and the Europeans have continually had arguments and disputes over land. To this day there are still issues trying to be resolved. Twenty years ago, the beginning of one of the most violent and intense land disputes in present day Canada occurred. This event is now referred to as the Oka Crisis, named after the town Oka in Quebec. This crisis caused a confrontation involving the Quebec provincial police, the Canadian armed forces and the Mohawk people.1 The stand that the Mohawk people took in the town of Oka became a major revelation for the aboriginal people spreading awareness of aboriginal rights across Canada.

For various reasons, the Canadian government continues harmful practices in lieu of the concerns from Aboriginal peoples. Returning to McGregor (2004), the power imbalance that exists between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people is apparent (p. 398), especially regarding oil extraction. So long as “western” theories of production and management are followed, opposing ideals will not dominate. There are large profits to be made in the Athabasca region from resource extraction. As a result, the Canadian government reduces the region to a marketable commodity (Latulippe,

Thousands of indigenous tribes live off the earth, the source of their sustenance and for centuries, it has been their priority to protect and care for it. The years after are congested with concepts of assimilation and infantilization that compromise rights to be stewards of the land. Dr. Stan Louttit states, “Ontario and the federal government came to an agreement that one of the soul purposes of wanting to enter into a treaty with the Crees of Northeastern Ontario was that they wanted the land, they wanted the resource and they could see that in the future there

Canada can be considered one of the most desirable First World Nations to live in however what many people are not aware of is the Third World nation that lives within our borders. Fist Nations people within the Canadian North live in the most extreme poverty often with inadequate access to water due to either a lack or deteriorating infrastructure. The statistics about First Nations water issues are startling and this leads to implications of their quality of life, a disappearing culture and pure lack of serious government intervention. This can be attributed to many things such as Canada’s Aboriginal versus non-Aboriginal and centralists versus decentralists fault lines. If I have learned anything in my life time, it is that people deserve the right to life and that means meeting them at their most basic needs such as providing opportunity in water resources.

Economic imperialism is a central part of the ongoing contemporary colonization of indigenous peoples in Canada. Since the colonial era marked the beginning of imperialism in North America, an intricate web of power and domination have formed leaving Indigenous communities in the grip of its economic philosophy. This has led to the ongoing contribution to the disposition of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Economic imperialism can be defined as the need for countries to expand their territories in order to collect resources from their colonies. This illustrates the inherent unsustainability of colonial settler society. In this essay I will look at how the impacts of economic imperialism has had an effect on the development of the indigenous

“In a few decades, the relationship between the environment, resources, and conflict may seem almost as obvious as the connection we see today between human rights, democracy, and peace (Nobel Peace Prize Medalist Maathai 2004).” A Canadian oil company that goes by TransCanada hopes to build an oil pipeline that would extend an enormous 1,200 miles onto an already gargantuan 2,600 mile long pipeline. Keystone XL represents just under a third of the entire Keystone project, and every other piece of pipe has been built and laid out. In fact, TransCanada 's pipeline system is already shipping hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil from the Canadian oil sands across the U.S. border -- and into Illinois (Diamond). The current proposal would take the pipeline on a journey all the way through to Texas. Extracting crude oil from oil sands would be enormously problematic for the environment as it causes the pumping of about 17% more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than standard crude oil extraction. Tar sand oil has levels of carbon dioxide emissions that are three to four times higher than those of conventional oil, due to more energy-intensive removal and refining processes (Friends of the Earth). The construction of the Keystone XL pipeline would stimulate employment, the effects would be temporary and the whole scheme would produce a negative long term outcome. The construction of the Keystone XL pipeline has caused

Doing so will help citizens to expand their conceptions of the land and begin to appreciate it’s many resources. Which is equally significant when one considers the recent climate changes and negative effects of human pollution of the earth. Some opponents argue that intrusions of sacred Native American land and that harnessing natural resources from said land is irrelevant in today’s day and age. But it must be argued that this assertion is false and that current events such as the recent standoff at Standing Rock Reservation over crude oil pipelines in North Dakota have proven that this issue is still alive and well in American society.

While the mainstream media has its attention focused on North Dakota’s Standing Rock Sioux tribe in their fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline, there are many other tribes also struggling to protect their native ancestral sites and cultural resources throughout the United States that are going unnoticed. One such tribe is the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. This tribe is attempting to stop Aquila Resources’ Back Forty Project which would create a mine alongside and under the treasured Menominee River. This open pit gold, zinc, and copper mine would destroy burial grounds, former raised garden beds, ancient village sites, dance rings, and more. Thus, it is clear that the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is not the only tribe fighting to protect its culture and environment. In fact, the only unique thing about the Dakota Access Pipeline is the national coverage it has received (Thompson). Therefore, in this paper, I aim to do justice to the Menominee Tribe who has not been so fortunate to find its plights in the public’s view. The Menominee Tribe’s concerns have not been fully taken into account and valued in the mining permit approval process and news coverage of their fight has been severely lacking. This paper will support this claim by utilizing data and information from numerous sources to include data from Aquila Resources about the Project, testimony and stories from the Menominee Tribe, and

Hydraulic fracturing is a controversial topic that has a clear stigma associated to its name, creating issues to its feasibility. Regardless of the conventional uncertainties, prejudices, laws, regulation and environmental consequences that makes unconventional methods a bitter topic, the fate of hydraulic fracking is rather ardours due to the nature of the province and history behind it. The provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, carry an exclusive component that escalates the complications of hydraulic fracturing, and that is the fact that it is the traditional land and territory of the aboriginal people of Canada – The Mi’kmaq (pg.282). Nova Scotia alone, is currently the home of over 24,000 people and 13 communities of the Mi’kmaq and Aboriginal people (pg. 283), all of whom are protected by historical rights and treaties, whereupon the infringement of their rights could lead to serious consequences by the federal government of Canada (pg. 287) and the United Nations (pg. 285).

In this article, McIvor discusses the history of Aboriginal Land Claims in Canada, and how they have been handle in the past. The article also suggests that the Canadian government’s plan to extinguish Indigenous people’s interest in their lands is wrong, and they should instead, recognize Aboriginal Title. This suggests that the Canadian government should adopt a new policy that is coherent with the principles underlying the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. Dr. Bruce McIvor is the principle of First Peoples Laws, that is an organization that is dedicated to defending Aboriginal Rights. He has practiced law for many years, and therefore is qualified to write his opinion of the subject. My study focuses on issues

Canada is the third wealthiest country in the world in terms of oil mines. The Alberta Oil Sands employ thousands of people while keeping our economy in great conditions. Avatar (2009) dealt with humans searching for mines of extremely costly minerals on planets other than Earth. One may question what the highest grossing movie and one of the world's largest deposits of bitumen have in common. The oil sands are located in northern Alberta, where many indigenous tribes of Canada reside (resided). While the mineral mines of Pandora, are domain to Na`vi, Aboriginals of the planet. In many ways, Na’vi and the First Nations are similar. For instance, both communities value the lives of animals, believe in a holy creator, and create generations through

“Developing new sources of clean, sustainable power is vital for future of British Columbia. As a government, we recognize that First Nations' participation in developing these resources is an essential part of that future,” said Minister Bennett.

If constructed, the pipeline will cross the territories of more than 50 Aboriginal communities. Many indigenous people from the area of the proposed pipeline argue that Enbridge has not adequately met their duty to consult and accommodate these first nations peoples, or respected their Aboriginal Rights to certain lands. One such group is the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council (CSTC). The CTSC is an alliance of eight First Nations who assert the authority to prevent this development project from passing through their territories. Carrier Sekani communities have opposed permitting the Northern Gateway project since the project was first proposed for Canadian regulatory review.

Particularly in conflict situations where there are indigenous activists and stakeholders there are often profound differences in belief and ways of viewing the conflict situation by virtue of different cosmologies and schemas for relating to the natural world. Similarly, under these conditions the barriers to conciliation based on a history of oppression and exploitation must be respected and strategies for facilitating productive dialogue would need to be established. In order to address some of the ways in which the law, environment and the rights of First Nations people intersect, it is essential to begin by examining the colonial mindset and to contrast this framework with the attitudes towards and ways of interacting with the natural

Indigenous people take up a big role in world, in subjects like human rights, governance, cultural and linguistic diversity and environmental protection. Indigenous people in Canada share their knowledge and experiences with other Indigenous groups, states and International organizations around the world. In doing so the Canadian government fully supports these steps. Not a lot of people know there is over “three hundred seventy million Indigenous people in more than seventy countries around the world” (Canada website). The government of Canada has introduced many Indigenous issues or activities to institutions like the United Nations (UN), the Organization of the American States (OAS) and many other multilateral and bilateral institutions. Government of Canada’s goal is to work on a international level to get Indigenous people their rights. To do so the Government of Canada is working with many Indigenous organizations like Assembly of First Nations, the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, Inuit