We all want healthy forest ecosystems, clean water, and vibrant communities. We can achieve these goals through sustainable forest management (SFM). However, we need to continue to push the boundaries of what SFM is in order to ensure we don’t miss something. This means constant research, consultation and not being afraid to change how we do things in order to protect all values for all people, forever. SFM means managing all values equally. It means thoughtful and comprehensive decision making, asking “what is the best use of this land”. Unfortunately, some values have been missed. Indigenous values have not been truly accounted for, until they have, we are not truly sustainable. We need to find a way to help indigenous communities feel heard and respected, so they can feel safe to share and help us all move towards a better system of forest management. Decades of poor communication and distrust have made seeing eye to eye difficult. It is time we fixed this relationship.

Resources

Indigenous consultation in Alberta

Sponsors

West Fraser

GreenLink Forestry Inc.

Damaged Timber

Quotes

40.29 - 40.36: “We value the land… [The] western way of thinking values what’s on the land.”

Takeaways

Growing up in the bush (05.53)

Fabian realized there was a big gap in western science and cultural, traditional ideas, which aren’t recognized in forest management.

Community resource (10.05)

Fabian took an environmental monitoring course and began doing assessments for First Nations. He even took training in Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

Healthy forests, healthy people (15.03)

Fabian recalls that he would drink water straight from the river but can’t anymore. The health of the people is determined by the health of the forests, which have been ill for a while now.

Spiritual land connections (20.05)

When Indigenous peoples know an area is not healthy, they won’t do any activities there and wait for nature to heal itself.

Everything has its place (24.46)

Fabian believes Indigenous knowledge needs to be shared to improve forest health so future generations can enjoy the environment.

Indigenous consultation (32.09)

Trust can be built by implementing a few ideas of the community into the forest management agreements and leaving some areas protected. Present consultation is about simply informing the community, but Fabian believes the community has so much more to offer. 

Protecting the land (37.04)

Fabian provides assessments of Indigenous lands to determine if they used to be traditional grave sites. He registers any gravesites he comes across with Alberta Heritage so that they can be protected. He believes that since all humans use the forest, we need to find a way that values the health of the forest alongside the products we value. Indigenous sustainability lies in the forest, and it needs to be healthy for the people.

Environmental monitoring (45.53)

Fabian describes the tools and processes he uses in his work in environmental monitoring. He speaks about how Indigenous peoples hunt, trap and pick medicines to ensure an area is not overused and the populations are restored.

“Reconciliation is an overused word” (56.00)

Regional forest plans need to be assessed to ensure the health of the forest and incorporate all the values of the community that it sustains. Fabian uses his monitoring data to inform other parties of the ways to achieve better results for the land and community.

Valuing the land (1.04.35)

Fabian speaks about how Indigenous peoples value medicines and how that knowledge is guarded. He shares the medicinal properties of some plants on his land, and how to truly get their benefits, in a physical and spiritual sense. He believes communication, inclusion and consultation are the paths to the future.