For millennia, Canada’s indigenous peoples have sustained complex relationships with the wildlife and environments in which they lived. This wisdom embraces the need to live in harmony and peace with the earth and with one another. Shawna Snache carries on this cultural tradition, inspiring change through her words and her actions.

“By simply being Anishnaabe people we’ve been given a responsibility to take good care of mother earth and her children,” she states. “I’m afraid that a lot of us have forgotten but I also strongly believe that we will awaken and remember what is it we are supposed to be doing. We will remember our medicines and how to prepare them. We will acknowledge our part in Creation once again […] We are getting stronger and with that will come a return to our original roles and responsibilities [...]”

Characterizing Canada’s landscape is the boreal forest, one of the last intact forests left in the world. The boreal is the world’s largest land-based storehouse of carbon which helps moderate the global climate. Its trees also produce great amounts of oxygen dubbing it the ‘northern lungs of the planet.’ On a local level, the boreal is important to Aboriginal people for fishing, medicine-gathering, trapping, hunting and other traditional activities. Though its continued health is of great significance, it is being threatened.

“We’re living in a time when our most precious resources are being threatened on a daily basis; if we don’t act it will be the generations yet to come who will suffer for our ignorance and greed. If we don’t pressure our elected officials to police industry and corporations they will continue to exploit in the name of profit without any repercussions or consequences. It’s a terribly sad cycle that we can only begin to challenge and when we as a people decide that we will not stand for irresponsible industrial activities any longer. It’s important that we expose the truth and educate while we advocate for our natural resources. Teaching our children the importance of being stewards of the environment will stay with them as they grow and begin to fill the roles of the future.”

Shawna’s community, as well as her husband’s, has been directly affected by the destruction caused by industrial activities. According to Shawna, her husband’s community of N’daki Menan, or the Teme-Augama Anishnabai have seen most of their family lands, boreal forests rich in natural resources, displaced by mining and logging activities.

Shawna’s community of Georgina Island First Nation, an island community in the middle of Ontario’s Lake Simcoe, also faces environmental destruction. The lake’s health is at risk due to phosphorus overloading which causes eutrophication, killing aquatic life; its watershed supports a population of roughly half a million people, including the northern portion of the Greater Toronto Area.

Recently, a number of organizations and individuals, including the Georgina Island Ladies of the Lake, have coalesced in order to rescue Lake Simcoe. Utilizing clever strategies to bring attention to the problems Lake Simcoe faces, including a nude calendar, the Ladies of the Lake are taking action to protect the place they call home.

“I am a political advocate for all that I feel is right and just. I will always stand up for the issues that need attention and especially for those that don’t have a voice of their own to use. They can use mine. I will speak up for those that can’t for whatever reason. I will always encourage other to get educated, get informed and get involved.”

Their efforts have paid off, and Shawna hopes with the new legislation called the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, the lake will once again return to “a state of homeostasis and vibrant health.”

“This importance of a healthy Mother Earth to me is felt very deeply and very personally. Because I’m a mother myself, the health of this planet will affect my children’s future. Everyone should feel the same sense of responsibility to future generations to take extra good care of our Mother. If she becomes sick, we are all responsible for allowing that to happen.”

Listen

Describing his relationship to the land Fred Stevens replies, “It is a place to meditate. It is my space.” Fred, an Aboriginal teacher and community health worker, resides north of Swan River, Manitoba on the northwest shore of the province’s second largest lake, Lake Winnipegosis. He calls it a hamlet, an old fish camp area surrounded by boreal wilderness where he and three other families live.

Fred has a knowledge of the boreal forest. He explains, “We depend on Mother Earth. Our brothers and sisters depend on her; when I say brothers and sisters I mean the plants, the trees, the four-legged animals, everything is interconnected.” He shares this understanding with Aboriginal youth where he is a teacher for youth culture camps. A recent recipient of the 2009 Spirit of the Earth Award, the Mino Aski (Good Earth) Culture Camps are week-long camps that promote a healthy lifestyle for youth, adults and elders.

The camps take place in Manitoba’s Norman Region about four miles from the community of Misipawistik Cree Nation where tents are set-up in the boreal forest. The youth are taught survival skills, and “positive teachings.” Fred explains to the participants, “This camp is yours. It is whatever you put into it so it’s up to you and what you want to get out of it.” Fred wants to make sure the experience is provided even if it is never used. The exposure to the Elders wisdom through their stories and teachings around the campfire is important for it is through oral storytelling that information is passed to the generations. Nothing is in writing, Fred attests.

For Fred a healthy lifestyle encompasses mind, body, and spirit. Showing the youth basic harvesting of cedar to make a smudge – used for spiritual purification – he tells them the first thing they must do is to make an offering to Mother Earth for the medicine they will be picking. You must give before you take he asserts.

Listen. That is the main lesson throughout the experience.

“I’m learning too. Learning to be patient, humble.”

A Teaching

Sweetgrass, the hair of Mother Earth, is a teaching tool that Fred openly shares with old and young. To him, sweetgrass represents kindness. Found along the lakeshore where it is hand-picked, sweetgrass can grow up to four feet long. Fred shows people how to braid the strands together which is not only a physical act but a mental and spiritual one.

“The three strands represent mind, body and spirit. In essence, you are braiding these things together,” Fred explains.

The strands of sweet grass positioned central to the constructor’s body, are braided together as if braiding hair. When the students are finished, Fred asks them to grab the centre of their sweet grass braid and attempt to pull it apart. They cannot due to the strength provided by the interwoven strands.

“Now what do those strands represent?” he asks them. The meaning of the teaching becomes clear.
Fred’s positive teachings embrace the need to seek harmony with the earth and with oneself. Like the sweet grass, “We started somewhere. It grows like we grow. Like it, our life is a mystery.”

“Premier Doer deserves credit as a tireless champion for the World Heritage site. This fund ensures that First Nations will have the resources to manage and protect their homelands,” said Larry Innes, Executive Director of the Canadian Boreal Initiative (CBI). “We’re proud to stand here today with the Province and the communities to celebrate their vision and leadership.”

The Poplar River, Little Grand Rapids, Pauingassi and Pikangikum First Nations, with the support of the Manitoba and Ontario governments, formed the Pimachiowin Aki Corporation in 2006 to achieve international recognition for the cultural and ecological values of the Boreal forest east of Lake Winnipeg as a World Heritage Site. The UNESCO World Heritage List was established as an international effort to identify and protect sites of universally outstanding value so that they would survive for the benefit of all humanity. The final bid for designation will be submitted in 2012.

Once designated, Pimachiowin Aki will be one of only a handful of sites on the World Heritage List that are recognized for both outstanding cultural and natural heritage values. The area is an important Anishinabe cultural landscape, and designation will support the maintenance of traditional ways of life as well as creating new opportunities for sustaining First Nation economies.

CBI has supported community-based land use planning led by several participating First Nations communities. Documenting traditional land use values as a necessary step towards World Heritage Site designation. CBI has also assisted Poplar River First Nation in researching and documenting the carbon values contained within their traditional territory.

“This trust fund, in addition to providing opportunities for First Nations to secure and promote important cultural landscapes and wildlife habitats, will also create incentives to maintain the carbon stored in intact Boreal forest soils, peatlands, and wetlands,” continued Mr. Innes. “With leadership and direction from local communities, conservation can be an important tool in the fight to mitigate climate change.”

Manitoba’s Boreal region covers nearly 600,000 square kilometres, almost 90% of the province. Canada’s Boreal region contains one-quarter of the world’s remaining original forests and huge expanses of wetlands. Canada’s boreal is home to a vast array of wildlife, including migratory songbirds, waterfowl, bears, and caribou. The Boreal stores more carbon than any other ecosystem on earth, and it is an important buffer against climate change. The region’s natural wealth sustains hundreds of First Nations communities and supports thousands of jobs.

The Canadian Boreal Initiative brings together diverse partners to create new solutions for Boreal conservation and acts as a catalyst for on-the-ground efforts across the Boreal forest by governments, industry, aboriginal communities, conservation groups, major retailers, financial institutions and scientists.

For further information: Suzanne Fraser, director of communications, (613) 232-2530, sfraser@borealcanada.ca, www.borealcanada.ca

Manitoba will contribute $10 million to establish a trust fund
expected to be worth a minimum of $20 million in support of the
Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Project, Premier Gary Doer
announced today.

“I commend our First Nations partners for their vision and
leadership toward securing UNESCO World Heritage status for the
unique place they call home east of Lake Winnipeg,” said Doer.
“Today’s commitment will help ensure their efforts will result
in a sustainable international attraction that benefits the
people who live there.”

The Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage project is an initiative led
by the Poplar River, Little Grand Rapids, Pauingassi and
Pikangikum First Nations with support from the governments of
Manitoba and Ontario. The group is currently preparing a bid to
secure a UNESCO World Heritage designation for lands within a
40,000-square-kilometre area of pristine boreal forest in eastern
Manitoba and western Ontario. The site is under tentative UNESCO
consideration with a final bid presentation scheduled for
submission in 2011.

The Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Site Trust Fund will
demonstrate to UNESCO that there is financial and public support
for the site, will generate revenue for operation of the site and
will create jobs and opportunities for First Nation communities
by funding community-driven projects related to the site, said
Doer.

“This is a great day for everyone who has and continues to work
so hard to protect and promote our traditional territories
through the UNESCO World Heritage process,” said Pimachiowin Aki
spokesperson Sophia Rabliauskas. “Today’s announcement will
strengthen our nomination document which must describe how the
site will be managed including sources of funding. It means we
are one step closer to international recognition of the lands and
waters that sustained our ancestors and are so important to
people all over the world today – a place we call Pimachiowin Aki
in Anishinabe, or the land that gives life.”

In addition to funding the operation of the site through revenue
earned by the trust fund, a portion of the fund will be dedicated
to providing direct benefits to local communities by supporting
grassroots development projects. Projects such as heritage
interpretive centres, cultural education and training programs,
culturally appropriate social services including traditional
healing centres, support programs for community artisans,
eco-tourism initiatives and interpretive trails will all be given
priority consideration. Participating First Nations will take
the lead role in all project funding decisions.

The trust fund will be administered and managed by the Winnipeg
Foundation.

“We are excited to be part of this ambitious and visionary
initiative,” said Winnipeg Foundation CEO Rick Frost. “Building
legacy funds for the future benefit of Manitoba is fundamental to
our mission and we look forward to actively supporting the fund’s
development during the coming years.”

- 30 -

BACKGROUNDER:

PIMACHIOWIN AKI WORLD HERITAGE PROJECT

· The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Convention was established through an international effort to identify and protect sites of universally outstanding value so they would survive for the benefit of all humanity. The list includes well-known sites such as Pyramids of Giza, the Great Barrier Reef, the Taj Mahal and the Grand Canyon. More information is available at whc.unesco.org/.
· The Pimachiowin Aki (Pim – MATCH – cho – win Ahh – KEY) Corporation is a non-profit corporation comprised of four First Nations: Poplar River, Little Grand Rapids, Pauingassi and Pikangikum, Ont. The Manitoba and Ontario governments are provincial partners with the corporation.
· Pimachiowin Aki’s goal is to achieve international recognition for lands that straddle the Manitoba-Ontario border as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
· The area under discussion falls within a 40,000-square-kilometre area. It includes the traditional territories of the Poplar River, Little Grand Rapids, Pauingassi and Pikangikum First Nations, Atikaki Provincial Park in Manitoba and Woodland Caribou Provincial Park in Ontario.
· The UNESCO project has already generated considerable international interest since the site would fill an identified gap in the world heritage site system of protected areas because it proposes an innovative approach to land management that combines traditional Anishinabe and Western scientific knowledge.
· The site combines natural and cultural features. It has exceptional ecological value with extensive undisturbed forests, lakes and wetlands that reflect unique geological processes and represent critical habitat for several threatened or endangered species including woodland caribou, bald eagles and wolverines.
· The site also represents an outstanding example of traditional Aboriginal life based on a close and enduring relationship to the land. Archaeological evidence in the area attests to over 5,000 years of habitation by the Anishinabe people.
· The nomination process takes three to five years to complete and will produce important outcomes including community-based land-use plans, a network of linked protected areas and an innovative management system that combines western and indigenous knowledge.
· If the nomination is successful, Pimachiowin Aki would be one of only a handful of sites on the world heritage list that are recognized for both outstanding cultural and natural heritage values.
· One of the contributing documents for the UNESCO proposal is a study completed by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) with Pimachiowin Aki called the Ecosystems Services Valuation Assessment, which puts a dollar figure on the benefits the area provides to the people who live there and the planet in its intact state.
· The study, led by IISD’s Stephan Barg and Vivek Voora, measured 21 different ecosystem services or benefits the area provides people. Using international and regional evaluation tools, IISD conservatively estimates the ecosystem benefits within the 40,000-square-kilometre area have a value of $120 to $131 million a year.
· For the world, the Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage site would be a place where one could experience an ancient land-use tradition that continues today, a culture based on the intimate interaction between a people and their environment.

THE WINNIPEG FOUNDATION
· The Winnipeg Foundation is Canada’s first community foundation and a member of the Community Foundations of Canada network of 168 community foundations across the country.
· Founded in 1921, today the Winnipeg Foundation manages $435 million and is home to more than 2,000 endowment funds started by donors from all walks of life.
· To date, the Winnipeg Foundation has granted more than $225 million back to the community.

This amount comes from the budget that the Government of Canada recently committed to the Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program. This amount will be allocated to six projects and be used to support Aboriginal organizations and communities in building capacity to enable their participation in the protection and recovery of species at risk on Aboriginal lands.

“The Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program is a concrete example of financial assistance aimed at supporting Aboriginal communities in Canada in projects targeting critical habitats of species at risk or rare plants. We are pleased to support the implementation of recovery strategies, for the benefit of species and Canadian society,” declared Minister Lebel.

“More than 250 species at risk benefited from the various initiatives,” said Minister Prentice. “Over the last four years, the Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk budget gave assistance to 333 projects, for a total amount of 10.2 million dollars.”

“The project developed by the Mashteuiatsh community will document the traditional knowledge of the Pekuakamiulnuatsh on the wolverine and the woodland caribou and their habitats to enrich our scientific knowledge. We are proud to contribute to protecting these species at risk within a perspective of sharing the millennial knowledge of the Pekuakamiulnuatsh,” said the community relations vice-chief of the Conseil des Montagnais du Lac-Saint-Jean, Mr. Sebastien Kurtness.

There are two components to the Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program: the Aboriginal Critical Habitat Protection Fund and the Aboriginal Capacity Building Fund. The key objective of these funds is to encourage meaningful involvement of Aboriginal people and communities in the implementation of the Species at Risk Act (http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/approach/act/default_e.cfm) .

ABORIGINAL FUNDS FOR SPECIES AT RISK

The federal government’s Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program plays an important role in the recovery of species at risk that live on Aboriginal lands. The purpose of this program is to promote the conservation and protection of Canada’s biodiversity by supporting species recovery planning, habitat protection, and overall conservation and capacity building initiatives by Aboriginal people in Canada. The key objective is to encourage meaningful involvement of Aboriginal people and communities in the implementation of the Species at Risk Act (http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/approach/act/default_e.cfm) .

Over the last five years, the Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program has funded 333 projects, for a total of 10.2 million dollars. Among over 250 listed species at risk, here are some of the species that have benefited from these initiatives:

* The plains bison (threatened), the Vancouver Island marmot (endangered) and the mottled sculpin (special concern) in British Columbia;
* The ferruginous hawk (threatened) and subspecies of the piping plover (endangered) in the Prairies;
* The golden-winged warbler (threatened), the Eastern-area Fringed Orchid (endangered) and the lake sturgeon (threatened) in Ontario;
* The woodland caribou (threatened) and the American ginseng (endangered) in Quebec; and
* Blanding’s turtle (endangered), the thread-leaved sundew (threatened) and the North Atlantic right whale (threatened) in the Canadian zone of the Atlantic.

In 2009-2010, a total of 3.3 million dollars will be allocated to 105 projects. More than 90 community organizations or groups, encompassing the First Nations, the Inuit and the Metis (band councils, organizations, alliances between nations, companies, research centres and schools) participate directly in the projects funded this year.

The Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk Program include two funds: the Aboriginal Capacity Building Fund, which supports Aboriginal organizations and communities across Canada in building capacity to enable their participation in the conservation and recovery of species at risk, and the Aboriginal Critical Habitat Protection Fund, which supports the recovery of species and protection of important habitat on Aboriginal lands. The Funds are co-managed by Environment Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Parks Canada Agency, with the cooperation of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Fisheries and Oceans Canada must manage the funds pertaining to aquatic projects, and Environment Canada is responsible for land projects.

You can get more information regarding the Aboriginal Funds for Species at Risk, the Species at Risk Act and Canada’s strategy for protecting species at risk by visiting the following site: www.sararegistry.gc.ca.

LIST OF PROJECTS FUNDED IN QUEBEC AS PART OF THE ABORIGINAL FUNDS FOR SPECIES AT RIKS PROGRAM IN 2009-2010

Kailee Carr is Nuu-chah-nulth from the Ahousaht Nation. She is a teacher (and hobby writer) passionate about First Nations issues, especially within the contexts of education, health, and the environment.

When I was younger living on the Ahousaht reserve on the west coast of Vancouver Island I was aware of how greatly animals, the forest and the ocean influenced the Nuu-chah-nulth people’s history and culture, including our language, songs, stories, dances and traditions. Deeply etched in many other First Nations peoples’ way of life is their immediate link to the place in which they live, and with so many Aboriginal communities located in the boreal forests of Canada it is important to respect and protect these environments.

I wrote the following story in tribute to the value that many Indigenous people place on the interdependent relationship between humans, animals and the environment, recognizing the importance of Canada’s forests to every Canadian as we are all connected to the environment in which we live and share.

As I glanced around the large room I was amazed, not for the first time, at how different the world was now. In the first row three people were busy typing something into their cell phones/computers/cameras/3-in-1 cheese graters—it’s hard to compete with technology but I’ll share my story anyway.

“I was only twelve years old when it happened.” But I remember it like it was yesterday I thought to myself as my mind wandered back to that warm summer day seventy-one years ago. “One morning I was out picking salmon berries near my village and I got lost in the woods. As it turned out the forest was quite a large place and after walking for hours I wasn’t able to find the end of it.”

There were a few polite smiles in the audience as I began my account. Most of the people here were listening intently, some out of interest, others out of obligation, but on my far right there was one who sat with his arms crossed over his chest and a frown. I smiled at him.

“After hours of walking my legs felt very tired and when I looked up through the canopy of trees I realized that the blue sky above me was starting to fade. With the summer season coming to an end the temperature became cold after the sun went down, and I had never spent a night alone in the woods before—I was scared. I began to search for shelter, moving through the army of fir trees with my heart racing, and then it stopped.”

I paused and looked around the room, all eyes were on me.

“I came across a wolf standing alone beside a giant fir tree, and like any wolf, this one was wondering what I was doing so deep in the forest all by myself. As the gray wolf smiled menacingly back at me I knew I had to approach Wolf with great care so I immediately offered up the only thing I had, my basket of full of berries. Now, in my culture wolves are highly regarded animals; hunters by nature they are dangerous and I knew my fate was uncertain but in return for my politeness Wolf decided to help me find my way back home.”

“Are you saying you talked to a wolf?” a voice interrupted in disbelief.

“Well I certainly didn’t text the wolf.” I returned easily as a few laughs rang out in the crowd. Noting the doubt in some of the faces around me I continued on with my story. “It was very dark when we finally got near my village and I was so relieved to be home that I promised to give Wolf anything, but Wolf only asked that I always help keep the forest healthy. So I gave my word to Wolf that for as long as I lived I would be his helper as he had been mine and always help keep his home healthy.”

There were some murmurs from the back as I slowly addressed the audience. “Now I know a lot has changed since then but that same giant fir tree still stands today for Wolf to rest beside and I share my story with you now because it is up to us, to you, to help keep our forests healthy.”

After a brief silence Mrs. Coates stood up. “Thank you, Shirley. Let’s give her a round of applause,” she instructed her eighth grade class and one by one the people around me began to clap.

Glancing around the room I gazed into the eyes of all those present around me, our future, and saw understanding in many of them. I smiled because I knew I was keeping my promise to Wolf.

“It is a responsibility for all of us to protect the boreal forest and get it established as a UNESCO world heritage site,” Selinger said.

“We will work with communities on the east side of Lake Winnipeg to build a plan to protect the forest while providing sustainable economic opportunities for the people who live there.”

Selinger released the plan while meeting with members of the Manitoba Young New Democrats, who are holding a leadership vote tonight at the University of Winnipeg.

Some 108 delegate spots at the Oct. 17 leadership convention are up for grabs. MYND members from outside the city were sent ballots by mail. Those mail-in votes will also be counted tonight.

Unlike the delegate selection process in constituencies, the young New Democrats will vote directly for either Greg Selinger or Steve Ashton.

The leadership candidates will be able to choose youth delegates based on the percentage of the youth vote they receive.
Selinger said his economic development plan for the east side of Lake Winnipeg will include investments in eco-tourism and training programs plus the development of an interpretive centre to give visitors information on the historic, cultural and ecological significance of the boreal forest.

A spokesman for the campaign declined to say which community was being eyed for the interpretive centre at this point.

“We believe the boreal forest on the east side is a world-wide treasure equal to the Great Barrier Reef, the Galapagos Island, Serengeti National Park and Yellowstone National Park, all of which are already UNESCO world heritage sites,” Selinger said in a news release.

In addition the east side has a cultural component that makes it even more special. It is the duty of any premier of Manitoba to ensure that treasure is protected and preserved for today and for the future.

The province has been shamefully slow at moving park reserves’ processes forward. Over the last decade, we have witnessed the extension of the majority of Manitoba’s park reserves’ deadlines due to the Manitoba government’s failure to take the steps necessary to complete the job. CPAWS encourages the province to deal with this issue by allocating the human and other resources required to establish protected areas in our wilderness regions.

For more detail and maps of the Chitek Lake and Poplar/Nanowin Rivers park reserves, please visit:

http://www.gov.mb.ca/conservation/parks/public_consult/index.html

When Dan Thomas was in grade 11, he decided he had enough. Like many other students before and since Dan’s time at boarding school, he was taught a version of Canadian history that glorified the Europeans and made footnotes of the vast and ancient history of Canada’s First Nations. As an Anishinaabe youth from Matheson Island and later Sagkeeng First Nation who grew up listening to the words of his Elders, it was clear to him that the stories being taught about Canada and its peoples were incomplete. He had to do something about it.

“We decided to go on strike,” says Thomas, referring to the small cadre of students who banded together to protest the school curriculum. Their strike made a strong statement indeed, and won them some face time with the principal. When they finally met with him, they issued a demand to be taught their history. A period of negotiations soon followed, resulting in an agreement to let the students work on different projects on First Nations history for their history credits. But there was one proviso — they had to keep their projects a secret. The students agreed to the terms, and the students completed their projects enthusiastically, but asking Dan Thomas to keep silent on First Nations’ history was misguided. If anything, such a request galvanized his interest in telling those stories, and a young Dan Thomas realized that he had to become an educator to teach the things he thought needed to be taught.

For Dan’s project, he contacted his aunt to learn more about Midewiwin, the traditional belief system of the Anishinaabe. Being a practicing Midew, his aunt responded with enthusiasm and passed on to him a great volume of information on the subject. As Dan began to thumb through the information for his project and then later attend ceremonies, he found himself moved by the joy and love practitioners felt when they conducted their ceremonies. This, thought Thomas, was a notable contrast from what he was being taught about Christian ceremonies and ideas that appeared to center around guilt and repentance. During these years, Dan made a powerful connection to Midewiwin, something he would later realize was the most powerful vehicle for him as an educator.

But this was not the first time Midewiwin came into his life. In fact, it had a way of coming up time and again since his grandmother had started to pass on the teachings when he was a young child of about four years old.

“She told me that I had a responsibility not to let it go. She gave me the teachings necessary to be part of it, but when I was little, it seemed so big. Everyone seemed to be going right when I decided to go left at the request of an old lady,” says Thomas with a chuckle.

Now a fourth degree Midewinini and a Research and Development Specialist with the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Center (MFNERC), Dan Thomas works from a place that values spirituality, traditional ways of life, and an appreciation for a broader context of history.

“All of history is important, and that’s the big lesson. We have to look at all of it, and see how it all fits together. We need to look globally and respond globally,” says Thomas, explaining the philosophical thrust of his work. At MFNERC, this idea is enshrined in the tools and services they offer, ranging from the school courses they have developed and sent out to schools that utilize traditional activities to meet the demands of modern school curricula, posters on First Nation values, and a book on First Nation teachings.

“We also have a First Nations law course, and have completed a workbook on teaching mathematics, specifically geometry through the process of creating star blankets, “adds Thomas. “We are also working on units that study traditional hunting, trapping, fishing and gathering. These units will highlight the traditional teachings that are transferable to other aspects of life. We are also working on other courses that involve traditional activities, such as teaching math and geometry through the process of creating star blankets, and are completing videos on treaties, ” says Thomas, later adding that a unit on Education for Sustainable Development for First Nations schools is also in development.

It is certainly a mission that could have significant implications for boreal forests under constant pressure from industrialization and for First Nation communities on the east side of Lake Winnipeg still struggling to adjust to the ways of the colonial Europeans. Given the connection many communities have maintained with the boreal forest they have called home for generations, empowering the communities with knowledge taught from traditional activities will likely serve to strengthen that relationship with the land, possibly leading to the creation of more protected areas and sustainable development initiatives. While Dan Thomas tells me that he believes that it is ultimately up to the communities living in the boreal forest on the east side to determine how they will deal with issues in their treaty territories, “communities usually have a certain outlook on how they see the land. If they live on the land, they already have an idea, ” later adding that those who endeavor to cause the least amount of harm to the boreal forest, and work with the land in a way that fosters healthy communities should be supported.

“As far as I understand, when our people signed treaties with the Crown, there was some understanding as to how the land and water would be looked after,” explains Thomas. “But when settlers saw the boreal forest as a bunch of trees that needed cutting, it became a free-for-all. Actually, in every resource area the settlers seemed to have depleted the resources.”

To one end, Dan’s work endeavors to heal the damage caused by colonialism, including the harm caused when the new settlers took the children away from their parents and put them in residential schools where they were taught to disrespect their Elders, spirituality, and way of life. The effects of colonialism, in Dan’s view, are at the heart of many of the stories in the news.

“I don’t think we need to deal with it by building bigger alarm systems, creating more laws, and hiring more police,” says Thomas. “What we need to do is teach more respect.”

With regards to protecting the boreal forest and other natural resources, Dan Thomas tells me that people looking to live healthy lives, while protecting these resources, will “lead the good life”, as living without our natural lands would be “quite the opposite.”

At the Interlake Tourism Awards ceremony today, Wayne Copet of Travel Manitoba spoke highly of Fisher River’s Visitors Centre. “Sometime in life, projects start as one thing and somewhere along the path they verve sharply,” said Wayne. “This is the case for the Leigh Cochrane Memorial Visitors Centre that started as a project to teach some Fisher River Cree Nation residents how to build log cabins. Now it’s a site for country music acts such as Charlie Major, Marty Stuart and Johnny Reid. When you have kids booking their acts for next year, you know you have a product that works.”

The Leigh Cochrane Memorial Visitors Centre, run by Fisher River’s Ochekwi-sipi Economic Development Corporation, received the Product Development award for a business or organization that developed or expanded a new or existing tourism product.

• Learn more about the Leigh Cochrane Memorial Visitors Centre