(The Memory (It Will Be OK Mom) by Jim Logan via Joshua Nichols, “The Limits of Meaningful Aboriginal and Treaty Rights”, (27 June 2019), online: Centre for International Governance Innovation <https://www.cigionline.org/articles/limits-meaningful-aboriginal-and-treaty-rights>.)
Tansi Nîtôtemtik,
Reconciliation is the responsibility of everyone who shares this land. While many of the TRC Calls to Action have focused on government action and funding, the corporate sector is responsible for a lot of land and resource development, employment and servicing in Canada. Indigenous people managed the land and resources for thousands of years through relationships of interdependence with the earth, animals and other people. More than a century of colonial development has stripped Indigenous people of access to their traditional lands and most economic development has created further inequities to the detriment of Indigenous communities. Now, as we face a climate crisis in addition to a wealth favoring patriarchal model of capitalism, we have to wonder if the corporate sector can work with Indigenous people and communities to make decisions that improve the current situation and allow for sustainable economic growth as well as the possibility of a future for humankind.
Call to Action #92 calls upon the corporate sector to:
- commit to meaningful consultation and seek the free and informed consent of Indigenous peoples prior to any economic development projects;
- ensure equitable access to jobs, education and training and ensure that Indigenous communities gain long-term sustainable benefits from economic development projects;
- Educate management and staff on the legacy and history of Indigenous people, and on UNDRIP, treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, human rights and anti-racism. [1]
For part one of this call, the courts have already downloaded the procedural aspects of the duty to consult onto corporations, and has ensured that consultation involves meaningful two way communication and engagement.[2] However, it has been made clear that consent is not included in the scope of the duty to consult.[3] This means that economic development can proceed even when the affected Indigenous groups do not consent, for the benefit of the greater public (ie. Profit). The exclusion of consent from the duty to consult removes incentive to build strong, meaningful and reciprocal relationships with the true caretakers of the land.
To address parts two and three of this Call, the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business has started a certification program for Progressive Aboriginal Relations (PAR).[4] The level of certification is determined by a panel of Indigenous judges and is meant to signal to communities and vendors that a company is a good business partner, a great place to work, and is committed to prosperity in Indigenous communities. The program relies on independent 3rd party evaluation of four key drivers. Companies must demonstrate a clear and cascading commitment to Indigenous relations through their leadership actions, employment initiatives and recruiting activities, business development and relationship building with Indigenous businesses, and through their community engagement.[5]
Much like the growing demand on corporations to roll out green initiatives, there is growing demand for PAR certification as well. These types of corporate social responsibility indicators are appealing to vendors and could influence better relationship building even in the absence of required consent.
(Photo by Michael Toledano via Amanda Follett Hosgood, “One Year after RCMP Raid, Tensions Rise as Wet’suwet’en Evict Pipeline Company”, (5 January 2020), online: The Tyee <https://thetyee.ca/News/2020/01/05/Year-After-RCMP-Raid-Wetsuweten-New-injunction/>)
There is still much work to do in getting corporations to participate in reconciliation and be actively anti-racist. The PAR certification is a start, but the blockades and protests during the TransMountain and Coastal GasLink pipeline development in early 2020 are a clear indication of a missing element in corporate-Indigenous relations. Companies should collaborate with community leaders on environmental preservation and sustainability, and should work to include Indigenous voices in executive level decision making. The idea that destruction of vulnerable lands is in the greater public interest is short sighted and not only impacts Indigenous communities, but everyone alive today.
For Call #92, we are assigning a grade of D.
Until Next Time,
ReconciliAction YEG
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[1] Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future: Summary of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. (Ottawa: Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2015) at 306.
[2] Haida Nation v British Columbia (Minister of Forests), 2004 SCC 73 [Haida]; Coldwater First Nation v Canada (Attorney General), 2020 FCA 34 [TransMountain].
[3] TransMountain, supra note 2; William v British Columbia (Attorney General), 2019 BCCA 74 [William].
[4] “Progressive Aboriginal Relations (PAR)”, online: Candian Council for Aboriginal Busines <https://www.ccab.com/programs/progressive-aboriginal-relations-par/>.
[5] Ibid.
