June 9, 2015

It has been a powerful few weeks in Canada. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was working for five years, assembling an extensive report on Indian Residential Schools in this country. The recommendations from the report have now been released.

One of the greatest marks against Canada as a developed country is the relationship between Indigenous peoples and descendants of settlers who came to this land. And the TRC is highlighting one of the most damaging components of that relationship. It is not an overstatement to say that the TRC’s work will change Canada for future generations.

The TRC report is accompanied by an ever-growing understanding of colonization, and what it means to decolonize Canada. Our institutes of government, our decisions on lands and waters, and the spending of government money are all part of colonization. Decolonizing is a daunting task, but it’s not one we can ignore or put off any longer.

At the Wilderness Committee, our work involves protecting the environment – keeping nature and wild places intact, while at the same time ensuring that healthy communities are sustained. On the ground in rural Canada, we are building relationships with First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities. The nature and wilderness that is intact in Canada exists within the territories of First Nations, and in many cases, these areas are under threat due to industrial activity.

Through our work, we are invited into Indigenous communities to talk, share ideas and experience local life. We are asked our opinions, and for some of our expert research on various environmental processes. Sometimes we bring volunteers into communities, to share trail building and gardening projects. We are asked to be a contributing ally. We are, in some ways, a bridge between our members and supporters across Canada and Indigenous communities. We are able to share some of the stories we’ve been told about Indigenous life on Turtle Island, as North America is referred to.

Talking with an elder about gardening from generations before, hearing of the grandparents taking the grandkids out on walks to collect blueberries – these are experiences that have a profound impact on me. Contemplating these histories that are shared with me requires reverence for a culture that goes back to time immemorial, for a culture that knows the Earth must be preserved in order for it to provide.

It is humbling to be welcomed into discussions with Indigenous communities. I have had the privilege – and responsibility – of publishing the vision for a tribal park in a Manitoba First Nation’s territory. I feel a weighty responsibility as I am trusted with the stories that at once demonstrate a loss of culture and a vision for resurgence.

It is a privilege that, at times, I have a hard time living up to. My fear is that I am not going to get it right, that the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians will not be improved. Yet this desire to get the relationship right is exactly what we need to move forward: when non-Indigenous Canadians sincerely want to improve the way we interact with Indigenous people, it means we are becoming more engaged and committed to understanding the struggle of First Nations, and learning what we can do to make things better.

As I look at life as a settler descendant, I realize that the very act of being invited into a community to share knowledge is incredibly rare. I am often asked about my experiences being in First Nation communities, about being an ally. I always answer that a First Nation community has many similarities to other small, rural communities – a variety of different people with different opinions. I explain that partnering with Indigenous communities requires the same basic components that are needed in every other relationship: thoughtfulness, respect and positive action.

To me, the TRC report brings more awareness of work that needs to be done to reconcile and decolonize. The recommendations laid out in the report must be implemented. Canada needs to recognize Aboriginal governments and put them back in a position of power, and this respect must be reflected in decision-making.

Bringing Aboriginal governments into their rightful place of authority in our democracy can only result in a better Canada. 

It will continue to be a difficult journey. But I am hopeful that Canadians are ready and able to make it work.

From Treaty One territory,

- Eric