Collective Bio-Cultural Heritage: Meaningful Indigenous Participation and Consultation in Land and Land Use

COLLECTIVE BIO-CULTURAL HERITAGE: MEANINGFUL INDIGENOUS PARTICIPATION AND CONSULTATION IN LAND AND LAND USE IRA GILBERT PROVOST Bachelor of Arts, University of Lethbridge, 2014 A thesis submitted In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree MASTER OF ARTS in INDIGENOUS STUDIES Department of Indigenous Studies University of Lethbridge LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA, CANADA © Ira Provost, 2020 WHY COLLECTIVE BIO-CULTURAL HERITAGE: MEANINGFUL INDIGENOUS PARTICIPATION IN CONSULTATION IN LAND USE IRA GILBERT PROVOST Date of Defence: June 26, 2020 Dr. M. Hogue Associate Professor Ph.D. Thesis Supervisor Dr. L. Fowler Professor Emerita Ph.D. Thesis Examination Committee Member Dr. J. Newberry Professor Ph.D. Thesis Examination Committee Member Dr. Y. Poitras Pratt Associate Professor Ph.D. External Examiner University of Calgary Calgary, Alberta Dr. I. Genee Professor Ph. D. Chair, Thesis Examination Committee Dedication I dedicate this thesis to the people of the Piikani Nation, past, present and future. I sincerely hope you grow as a strong and bountiful Indigenous Nation that is proud of who you are. I also dedicate this thesis to my wife Ruth and daughter Aryelle Viola Molly who have stood beside me and inspired me through their words and experiences, and above all their love. I also dedicate this to my children Tyrone, Miracle and their families who have guided me to keep our culture protected and intact. iii Abstract The Piikani Nation, a vibrant Indigenous community, has enjoyed their territory since time immemorial. In 2006 the Mikisew Cree won a precedent-setting case proving the need for government and industry to appropriately and adequately consult with Indigenous Nations who have interest in areas proposed for development of public or Crown lands. Since this Mikisew decision, industry, government and Indigenous nations alike have struggled to develop effective and efficient methods to conduct consultation with Indigenous communities. Government and Industry want to develop resources to ensure that their concerns regarding equal opportunity in resource development is attained while respecting their Indigenous ties to the land. Through six conversations, this thesis explores collective bio-cultural heritage as a central concept in authentic consultation and as a way to meaningfully address these concerns through an Indigenous Research Methodology in consultation processes and for re-understanding land, land use, and land planning. iv Acknowledgements For her support and continuing mentorship, I would very much like to thank my supervisor in this endeavor, Dr. Michelle Hogue. It is through her guidance and encouragement that I was able to find my voice in academia and to realize its strength. I also thank Dr. Hogue for her patience that allowed me to find my path at my own comfort of personal and academic growth. I would also like to thank my committee members Dr. Leah Fowler and Dr. Janice Newberry for their support and for unique critical lenses they brought to bear on my thinking and writing. I sincerely thank my external Dr. Yvonne Poitras Pratt who gave me many challenging insights to consider in my final work, A warm thank-you also to the colleagues I have worked with during my secondment to the University of Lethbridge, my friends and office partners with whom I have shared important questions, conversations, and many cups of tea. I must also thank Dr. Gleb Raygorodetsky for his critical questions and inquiry. I sincerely thank Dr. Scott Heckbert for being there to challenge my thinking. I sincerely thank my participants of whom I had rich conversations with and invaluable insights. I thank the Peigan Board of Education Post-secondary Support Program for their patience and much appreciated funding support. v Table of Contents Dedication…………………………………………………………………………. iii Abstract……………………………………………………………………………. iv Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………… v List of Tables……………………………………………………………………… vi List of Figures……………………………………………………………………… vii List of Abbreviations………………………………………………………………. viii Chapter 1: Introduction……………………………………………………………. 1 1.1 Locating Myself in the Research……………………………………………. 1 1.2 The Road Leading to a Thesis ……………………………………………… 3 1.3 Key Terms ………………………………………………………………….. 8 1.4 Climate Change …………………………………………………………….. 12 1.5 Indigenous Relations with Government and Industry ……………………… 12 1.6 Indigenous Knowledge Systems …………………………………………… 13 1.7 Protocol ……………………………………………………………………. 14 1.8 Collective Bio-cultural Heritage …………………………………………… 15 1.9 The Piikani Nation and Territory …………………………………………... 16 1.10 Research Objective, Questions and Thesis Structure ……………………... 18 1.11 Methodological Approach ………………………………………………… 20 1.11.1 The Sixth Voice ………………………………………………………. 22 Chapter 2: Policy and Literature Review …………………………………………. 25 2.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………… 27 2.2 Historic Indigenous Policy ………………………………………………… 28 vi 2.3 Government Policy …………………………………………………………. 30 2.4 Indigenous Education ………………………………………………………. 32 2.5 United Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) ………. 36 2.6 Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission …………………………. 37 2.7 Indigenous Law Regarding Land ………………………………………….. 41 2.8 Indigenous Knowledge and Protection ……………………………………. 43 2.9 Indigenous Knowledge Protocol …………………………………………. 44 2.10 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………. 45 Chapter 3: Context ………………………………………………………………… 49 3.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………… 50 3.2 Piikani Perspective of Land Use …………………………………………… 51 3.2.1 Piikani Profile …………………………………………………………. 51 3.2.2 Piikani Perspective on Land ……………………………………………. 52 3.3 Settler Perspective of Land Use ……………………………………………. 54 3.3.1 Settler Perspective ……………………………………………………… 54 3.3.2 Settler Perspective on Land ……………………………………………. 56 3.4 Consultation ………………………………………………………………… 58 3.4.1 What is Consultation? ………………………………………………….. 58 3.4.2 Inherent Aboriginal and Treaty Rights ………………………………… 59 3.5 A Discussion of What is Meaningful ………………………………………. 63 3.6 Traditional Land Use Studies ………………………………………………. 65 3.7 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………. 66 Chapter 4: A Different Way – Bio-cultural Heritage ……………………………… 73 vii 4.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………… 75 4.2 Collective Bio-cultural Heritage …………………………………………… 76 4.3. Creating Bio-cultural Protocols ………………………………………….… 77 4.4 Well-being ………………………………………………………………… 79 4.5 Community Engagement …………………………………………………. 81 4.6 Values and Indicators ………………………………………………………. 83 4.7 Community-based Monitoring ……………………………………………. 85 4.8 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………. 88 Chapter 5: Conversations .………………………………………………………… 89 5.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………. 91 5.2 Conversations ………………………………………………………………. 92 5.3 External Actor Conversations ……………………………………………… 94 5.3.1 External Actor Profiles ………………………………………………… 95 5.3.2 Conversations with External Actors …………………………………… 96 5.3.3 External Actor Conversational Themes ………………………………. 102 5.4 Piikani Elders ………………………………………………………………. 107 5.4.1 Piikani Elder Profiles …… …………………………………………… 108 5.4.2 Conversations with Piikani Elders …………………………………… 110 5.4.3 Piikani Elder Conversational Themes ………………………………… 114 5.5 Discussion.…………………………………………………………………. 120 5.5.1 The Oldman River Dam ………………………………………………. 121 5.6 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………. 123 Chapter 6: Conclusion ……………………………………………………………. 130 viii 6.1 Reflections…………………………………………………………………. 130 6.2 A Meaningful Terms of Reference ……………………………….………… 138 6.3 Recommendation: Creation of Bio-cultural Framework …………………… 142 6.3.1 Piikani Bio-cultural Ceremony ………………………………………….143 6.3.2 Piikani Bio-cultural Research ………………………………………… 144 6.3.3 Piikani Bio-cultural Action ……………………………………………. 145 6.3.4 Piikani Bio-cultural Advocacy ………………………………………… 146 6.4 Applications Beyond Piikani………………………………………………. 147 6.4.1 Climate Change ………………………………………………………. 147 6.4.2 Meaningful, Efficient and Effective Consultation Possible ……………. 147 6.4.3 Respect and Protection of the Knowledge ………………………………148 6.5 Limitations of Research…………………………………………………………149 6.6 Suggestions for Further Study ………………………………………………….150 References …………………………………………………………………………. 152 Appendix A: PIIKANISSINI ……………………………………………………....162 Appendix B: Blackfoot Language Declaration ……………………………….…....164 ix List of Tables 1. Piikani Nation Identified Values and Indicators Pilot Example …………... 86 x List of Figures Figure 1: Map of Piikani Territory – Original Map Created by Ira Provost……......16 Figure 2: The Consultation Process – Defined by the Government of Alberta ….…60 Figure 3: The Piikani Consultation Process ………………………………………...61 Figure 4: Bio-Cultural Protocol Toolkit Development Considerations ………….…78 Figure 5: Values as defined by Piikani Nation for its Cultural Monitoring Plan ….. 84 Figure 6: Summary of the research-action-advocacy-ceremony CRAA agenda…...142 xi List of Abbreviations AANDC Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada ACO Aboriginal Consultation Office AEP Alberta Environment and Parks AER Alberta Energy Regulator APF Aboriginal Policy Framework BBK Blackfoot Body of Knowledge CAU Consultation and Accommodation Unit CBM Community-Based Monitoring CER Canadian Energy Regulator CICADA Center for Indigenous Conservation and Developmental Alternatives CRAA Ceremony Research Action Advocacy CTA Calls to Action EDS Electronic Disposition System FNMI First Nations, Métis and Inuit FNMI-EPF First Nations, Métis and Inuit Education Policy Framework IA Impact Assessment IAC Indigenous Advisory Circle IKCMCS Indigenous Knowledge

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