Community

"Almost a decade after the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP, 1996) - an international decade dedicated by the United Nations to Indigenous People - it is timely to reflect on the state of the Aboriginal economy, on what has been achieved in Aboriginal economic development, how success is measured, and what barriers persist.

"At one level, the story of Membertou First Nation is inspirational. But, this paper identifies some of the unique challenges and barriers faced by First Nations people pursuing opportunities as entrepreneurs. Challenges include issues of political stability; the need to respect the value placed upon community, conservation and sustainability by the culture the limited access to traditional sources of capital and other possible barriers.

"There has been a great deal of development and change in Aboriginal communities since 1966, the year the Hawthorn Report was released. The Hawthorn Report examined about 17 different Indian communities across the country and documented their social and economic conditions in the early 1960s. The report lays out contemporary social thinking about how these communities ought to be developed and what strategies the Government of Canada ought to follow. The report's main idea is to treat Indians as citizens plus.

"....document, examine, and reflect on the transitions in Aboriginal society that I see going on around me. As a society, we are starting to move away from the time of great pain and to lay the foundations for what I have come to call "modern Aboriginal society." Across the country, I see a strong desire to build Aboriginal communities on a foundation of Aboriginal tradition, custom, and ideas. Accomplishing this goal is difficult as a result of our position as Aboriginal peoples as a small minority within an environment dominated by western ideas.

"There have been enormous and significant changes within aboriginal society within the last generation. We need to reflect upon them in order to discern their meaning and impact. I present these stories as examples of the type of change of the last two decades as prelude to my topic. I have been asked to write on the unique perspectives that aboriginal belief systems have for development, how these can be preserved, and what lessons these might have for future development efforts both within aboriginal communities and the mainstream.

The objectives of this study are the following: (1) to determine with greater precision the number, type and geographic location of these partnerships; (2) to gain a better understanding of the motivations behind agreements and the obstacles and challenges in developing these partnerships and making them succeed; (3) to estimate the nature of the results in terms of employment, new business formation and other benefits to Aboriginal communities; and (4) to gain a better appreciation of the implications of this growing phenomenon for public policy and for future action on the part of industr

The purpose of this paper is to describe a framework for Aboriginal capacity building in the forest sector which will serve as a guide enabling community and regional level strategic planning. The framework provides conceptual approaches to Aboriginal governance and institutional reform and suggests that governmental programs be aligned so as to effectively utilize/maximize available resources enabling focussed initiatives in human resource development relative to the Aboriginal needs in the forest sector.

If Aboriginal communities across the country are to derive economic benefit from the forest resources that surround their communities – for many this is the only major development option – then they need to develop strategies encompassing new and different approaches to forest-based development. Basically, overall there has to be a diversification of the Aboriginal forest-based economy and now is the time to address this matter. This report assesses potential avenues that First Nations could pursue.

Nobody believes that certification will solve all problems confronting Indigenous Peoples as they wrestle with resource uses on their traditional lands. But it presents opportunities. It is not a substitute for the full recognition of treaty and aboriginal rights. Nor is it a convenient opportunity for the provincial or federal governments to continue ignoring the basic human rights and freedoms of Indigenous Nations. It is, however, a means for the forest industry to demonstrate leadership, good citizenship and responsible stewardship.

As Aboriginal communities increase their involvement in the forest sector, the need for development in various areas arises. Trained workforce, access to capital, business experience, research capabilities and heightened institutional capacity are all required, both to undertake management and, in cases, rehabilitation of reserve forests, and to derive benefits from opportunities in the broader forest sector.