Course:CONS370/Kitasoo/Xai'Xais Spirit Bear Conservation: the road to reclamation, reconciliation and Indigenous-empowering eco-tourism in the Great Bear Rainforest, British Columbia, Canada

From UBC Wiki

British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest—located on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of 26 First Nations—has shifted from an ecosystem threatened by extractive industries and industrial logging to a site of Indigenous-led reclamation and reconciliation by means of conservation and Indigenous-empowering eco-tourism. Centred around protecting the rare Kermode Bear (also known as the spirit bear)—sacred to many First Nations people[1], meeting community needs and as a mechanism to assert their claim to sovereignty and self-determination, the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais First Nation have created a thriving, world class conservation-based economy through a web of institutions at the top of which are the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais-owned Spirit Bear Lodge and Spirit Bear Research Foundation. Through these community-led institutions, the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais Nation is simultaneously reviving their systems of traditional governance and knowledge as well as working towards meaningful reconciliation with the Province of British Columbia as they reclaim a central management and authoritative role throughout their traditional territory thus setting a powerful national and international precedent that showcases how sustainable practices can succeed economically, environmentally and culturally.

Photograph of a Spirit Bear by Jon Rawlinson in the Great Bear Rainforest, September 2014. License: Open Creative Commons

Description

The Great Bear Rainforest (GBR) is located on the Pacific coast of British Columbia, Canada[2]. It spans approximately 400 km along the central and northern coast of British Columbia, spanning from the Knight Inlet to the Alaska Panhandle[3]. It is the largest tract of intact temperate rainforest left on the planet, covering 6.4 million hectares[1]. Nearly 25% of the world's temperate rainforest is located in British Columbia, with the Great Bear Rainforest representing the majority of this percentage.[4] The Great Bear Rainforest is not easily accessible by road, as entrance to the wilderness areas are typically by seaplane, ferries, cruise ships or charter tour boats[5]. One of the main points of entry is through Bella Coola, a community located in the Bella Coola Valley in British Columbia[6], known as the "heart of the Great Bear Rainforest."[7] Other popular access towns include Bella Bella, Klemtu and Prince Rupert.[8] Approximately 18,000 people live in the Great Bear Rainforest area, residing in small surrounding towns such as Bella Bella, Kitimat, Klemtu and Hartley Bay.[1] For over 10,000 years, 26 distinct First Nations groups have referred to the Great Bear Rainforest area as their traditional territory and home.[1] These First Nations groups include the Gitga'at Nation (Hartley Bay), the Heiltsuk Nation (Bella Bella), the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation (Klemtu), Metlakatla First Nation, Nuxalk Nation (Bella Coola), and Wuikinuxv First Nation (Oweekeno).[9]

Great Bear Rainforest legacy established, Photo by Province of British Columbia, September 2016.

Much of the area now known as the Great Bear Rainforest was used exclusively for logging by the provincial government. In recent times following long campaigns fought by Indigenous Peoples, biologists, environmental groups and activists, regions of the Great Bear Rainforest are known as protected conservation areas in which Indigenous-led eco-tourism is one of the main activities to provide funding and improve public education about the importance of conserving this region's biodiversity and ecosystem services[10] . This resulting shift has transformed the Great Bear Rainforest to rely on conservation-based economy that sustains the livelihoods of Indigenous People in this area.

History of Conservation Efforts

Historically, the area now known as the Great Bear Rainforest was designated by the government of British Columbia as the 'North and Mid-Coast Timber Supply areas.[11] The BC Ministry of Forests described these regions as "an area of Crown land designated by the minister of forests in accordance with the Forest Act and managed for a range of objectives including timber production" [12]. Traditional Indigenous title and sovereignty over these lands was not recognized, despite the territory being unceded and lacking a formal treaty process. Indigenous Peoples and environmentalists (both Indigenous and non-Indigenous) began challenging the Crown in the late 1960s and early 1970s in regards to their authoritarian control over the management of BC forests[12].

This struggle has continued all across British Columbia and Canada throughout post-colonial times. British Columbia in particular had only a few formal land treaties, with nearly all of its territory being unceded, yet controlled by the Crown. Due to colonial practices, Indigenous Peoples of the Great Bear Rainforest had been fragmented, with nations being forced to re-locate to land re-assigned as reserves, causing significant issues in a unity-based approach to the vast territory known as the GBR. Despite this, Indigenous Peoples continued to lobby for protection of the Great Bear Rainforest, but faced issues of disenfranchisement, impoverishment, high unemployment rates, and difficult access to conducting their own research. The Government of British Columbia did not recognize any Indigenous Peoples as being owners of the territory of the Great Bear Rainforest, and thus they were not consulted in regards to management plans of the area. “We had to live with hundreds of land use designations and zoning decisions that got applied to our territory without our consideration,” explained Dallas Smith, president of the Nanwakolas Council, representing six of the 26 First Nations that have traditional territory in the Great Bear Rainforest.[13]

War in the Woods (1980s)

The late 1980s demonstrated the start of a decade-long struggle over the direction of forest policy in British Columbia. This was referred to as “War in the Woods”. At issue was both the amount of land that would be protected from logging and the kinds of forest practices that would be permitted on the rest of the land base. Many demonstrations took place by activists in forests during active logging operations and several blockades and skirmishes throughout the decade. Responding to complaints that the relatively restricted kinds of public consultation then on offer confined non-forestry interests to drafting footnotes to logging plans, successive BC governments began to experiment with more extensive public involvement, first in forest management plans and later in large-scale planning for multiple resources on public lands. [14]

Organization of Efforts (1990s)

One of the catalyzing events for the Great Bear Rainforest movement took place in the 1990s, regarding the Province of British Columbia's declaration to ban clear-cutting activities in the rainforests of Clayoquot Sound. In this process, the province moved forward with more localized planning processes that included an interdisciplinary approach with scientists and Local Indigenous peoples. [15] This landmark case provided a blueprint of First Nations of the Great Bear Rainforest region to come together in a similar effort to push for a stop to mass clear-cutting and a shift to conservation efforts which not only included the rainforests, but also the biodiversity it supported which included grizzly bears, black bears, the rare sub-species kermode (spirit) bear, coastal gray wolves, Sitka deer, cougars, mountain goats, salmon, sea lions, sea otters, orca and humpback whales. For much of this time period, Indigenous Peoples were considered 'stakeholders' but not consulted or included in greater management decisions by provincial governing bodies. In 1997, the Delgamuukw v British Columbia case resulted in Aboriginal Title being recognized by the Supreme Court of Canada. This was significant as although it didn't result in Aboriginal Title being granted to First Nations fighting for territory rights over the Great Bear Rainforest, it did provide an opportunity for these types of claim to bear more weight.

The Indigenous Peoples of the Great Bear Rainforest worked to unify their nations through increasing public awareness and creating interest in their local conservation efforts. Through significant attempts which included town halls, inter-regional visits, awareness campaigns, two consolidated groups were formed: the Nanwakolas Council which was "comprised of five member First Nations whose traditional territories are located in the Northern Vancouver Island and adjacent South Central Coast areas of British Columbia. Nanwakolas serves as the vehicle through which the member First Nations regionally pursue land and marine resource planning and management and resource-based economic development activities[16]" and Coastal First Nations, "a unique alliance of nine Nations living on British Columbia’s North and Central Coast and Haida Gwaii," whose traditional territories lie in the Great Bear Rainforest and the coastal regions of their traditional waters. [17] These groups worked with environmental NGOs Greenpeace, Sierra Club of BC and ForestEthics to advocate for the conservation of the Great Bear Rainforest.

National & International Great Bear Rainforest Campaign (Late 1990s-2000s)

The combined efforts of the aforementioned groups were spread on both a national and international level through awareness campaigns that involved the United States and Germany to put pressure on the Canadian government on both federal and provincial levels. [18] One of the first moves to galvanize the strategic PR campaign was by re-naming what was known as the 'Mid-Coast Timber Supply Area' to the 'Great Bear Rainforest.' This name was conceived of by a group of NGOs including Greenpeace in order to evoke an emotional response by the public, but was not created in consultation with Indigenous Peoples of that area.[19] This name was declared alongside visual imagery of the vast territory of the Great Bear Rainforest through paid campaigns that appeared in international newspapers and other forms of media[19]. This served to increase public awareness, which increased public pressure on industries such as Home Depot in the United States and the German Publishing Industry which came under fire for the reliance of their pulp and timber companies on Canadian wood products procured from the Great Bear Rainforest. Over 80 companies, including Ikea, Home Depot, Staples and IBM, agreed to stop selling wood and paper products made from ancient forests.[20] This international pressure caused the Canadian government to open talks with environmental groups and First Nations representatives.[21]

Initially, the BC government, forest industries, conservationists, and logging companies individually approached First Nations groups with their own ecological understanding of the region, as described by Art Sterrit, member of the Gitga'at Nation and executive direction of Coastal First Nations from 2004-2015[13]. The First Nations of the GBR area noted this information was lacking factual evidence and was not representative of the true situation on the ground. The first initiative of First Nations leaders was to advocate for resources for First Nations to commission up-to-date research that would eventually define ecosystem-based management practices and land-use planning in the Great Bear Rainforest.[13]

Several of the communities, including the Kitasoo/Xai’xais and Gitga’at had already been developing their own land-use plans for their territories, and in the early 2000s, shared them with stakeholders and the provincial government. By 2001, First Nations had led the process to a new five-part framework for conflict resolution based on the principles of ecosystem-based management, independent science, strategic logging deferrals during negotiation, and economic diversification in the region. [13]

Compromise Solution (2004)

In May 2004, after years of conflict and negotiation, the various stakeholders agreed to recommend the BC government that about 3,500,000 acres (14,000 km2), about 33% of the Great Bear Rainforest, be put under some form of protection, and that new forms of ecosystem-based forestry be required throughout the rainforest[15]. This amount was still significantly less than what scientists recommended, but it demonstrated movement towards increased conservation efforts.

Coast Land-Use Decision - Great Bear Rainforest Agreements (2006)

In 2006, the province of British Columbia and First Nations groups announced the Coast Land Use Decision, which committed to ecosystem-based management throughout the Great Bear Rainforest. This agreement around the long-term management of the GBR was the first of such a comprehensive plan including a large number of actors and stakeholders in British Columbia. The provincial government, First Nations, environmental non-governmental organisations (ENGOs), forest industry representatives and other relevant actors agreed to increase protected areas from 9% to 33% of the land base. They also agreed to employ principles of ecosystem-based management (EBM) in commercial forestry and find new ways to promote economically viable, stable communities. The process also gave rise to new relations between area First Nations and the provincial government. [22]

Codification into Provincial Law - Great Bear Rainforest Act (2016)

In 2016, the Provincial Government issued the Great Bear Rainforest Land Use Order and Great Bear Rainforest (Forest Management) to legally implement elements of the long-term ecosystem-based management plan.[23] Together, the Great Bear Rainforest Land Use Order and the Great Bear Rainforest (Forest Management) Act "will conserve 85 percent of the forest and 70 percent of old growth over time, achieving a high level of ecological integrity. This leaves 15 percent of the area available for sustainable forestry. These initiatives fulfill cultural, social and economic objectives of First Nations and other communities to meet a high level of human well-being and ecological integrity, the two concurrent goals of ecosystem-based management (EBM) announced in 2006."[24] Later that year, the Great Bear Rainforest was endorsed under The Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy initiative that recognizes new, collaborative initiatives for forest conservation.

"You did it," said then B.C. Premier Christy Clark, congratulating Indigenous leaders and stakeholders for coming to a landmark agreement protecting 85 per cent of Canada's magnificent Great Bear Rainforest. "It is proof of the strength of what we could do if we decide to find common purpose."[25]

The Great Bear Rainforest Land Use Order announced that 3.1 million hectares of coastal temperate rainforest will be off limits to industrial logging. Under the new agreement, "logging is being transformed through a process called ecosystem-based management (EBM). Timber harvesting takes place with a much lighter touch and is restricted to just 15 per cent of the forested area with additional restrictions on tree species such as red cedar and western yew. Bear dens, rivers, swamps, and estuaries are also off limits, and a complex system of eight new land use management zones addresses biodiversity, mining and tourism areas (BMTA). A conservancy has also been added to safeguard King Island, the seventh largest island in B.C. in the heart of Nuxalk territory, roughly 20 kilometres east of Bella Bella." [25]

Indigenous-led Eco-Tourism in the Great Bear Rainforest: Spirit Bear Lodge

Indigenous-led eco-tourism was a particularly significant industry that resulted from the 2006 Great Bear Rainforest Agreements signed between First Nations and the BC Provincial Government. [26] The creation of these was possible through the establishment of Coast Funds (Coast Conservation Endowment Fund Foundation), and Indigenous-led conservation finance organization[27]. Coast Funds consists of two distinct organizations that manage funding provided by six private foundations, the Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada. Their aim is to support conservation by First Nations within the Central Coast and North Coast of British Columbia and Haida Gwaii, including islands and coastal areas through the provision and acquisition of funding towards research and development of conservation initiatives. They are a registered society under the BC Societies Act.[28][27]

Coast Funds was established in 2007 to manage the $120 million raised to protect the Great Bear Rainforest in perpetuity and develop a sustainable local economy — the federal Canadian government and the provincial government of British Columbia each committed $30 million, and that $60 million was matched by philanthropic donors.[29]

One such eco-tourism venture invested in by Coast Funds was known as the Spirit Bear Lodge, managed by the Kitasoo/Xai'Xais people. The Kitasoo/Xai'Xais people reside on reserve land of Klemtu. Unemployment rates in the community of Klemtu had reached nearly 80% and in a largely remote and inaccessible town, logging campanies placed pressure on local officials to support job creation by increasing clear-cut and logging activities.

Doug Neasloss, Chief Councillor of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation believed that more job creation could result from an intact forest and the biodiversity it supported, namely the grizzly, black and Kermode bears. Neasloss felt that this brand of eco-tourism would be better able to include the entire community and drive interest to the remote area of Klemtu. The funds generated from these tourism efforts would then support community livelihoods and support further research and conservation efforts.[30]

Spirit Bear Lodge

The Kermode or Spirit Bear is one of the most unique features of British Columbia's Great Bear Rainforest's biodiversity. The Kermode bear is a black bear that presents with a full white coat due to a recessive mutated gene, in which non-synonymous nucleotide substitution in the MC1R gene causes the inhibition of melanin production. This existence of this bear had not been widely known for decades, as the Indigenous Leaders of these remote areas had been carefully about protecting its existence and avoided mention of it due to fears of trophy hunting and endangerment. As information about the Spirit Bear became more widely known, activities such as bear-watching through conservation-based eco-tourism became popularized.

In 1999, Neasloss helped to launch the Spirit Bear Lodge, with all profits going directly to the tribe. Through the substantial growth of the Spirit Bear Lodge, eco-tourism became Klemtu's second-largest industry, and unemployment fell from 80% to 10%.

Douglas Neasloss, Chief Councillor of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation, said in a statement. “It’s not just about viewing bears. You learn communication skills, you learn how to work with wildlife, there’s the science work that we do. It’s a lot broader and this means a lot for the community. We went from a community largely dependent on resource extractive jobs to a community whose economy was largely based on conservation and non-extractive activities.”[30]

The Spirit Bear Research Foundation

The Spirit Bear Research Foundation was established in 2011 by the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation in collaboration with the University of Victoria to inform ecosystem-based management practices within the greater Great Bear Rainforest region. In their own words, they aim to "undertake ecological research questions that our community of Klemtu was interested in addressing to inform the management of Kitasoo/Xai’xais Territory. [31]

Tenure and Administrative Arrangements

In British Columbia, 95% of forests are publicly owned. The province then allocates forest tenures to companies that can then operate within given regions.[32] The government of British Columbia has committed to 'Ecosystem-based managment' within the Great Bear Rainforest, and as such, forest tenure holders must abide by ecosystem-management principles and are obligated to engage with local Indigenous Peoples regarding their management plans. The provincial government can be regarded as the 'landlord' of the majority of BC forests.

The Great Bear Rainforest is a government-managed region, it is not under control of the First Nations of the area. However, for the first time in the province of British Columbia a management plan for a region of this size was undertaken in full collaboration with Indigenous Peoples in both non-formal and formal approaches codified in law. [33]

1/3rd of the GBR region is part of a 'Protected Areas Network' with two main zones:[34]

1) Protected Areas encompass 28% of this region (2 million hectares). These are fully protected areas under the control of the Crown and are set to conserve the ecological diversity of the region.

2) Biodiversity, Tourism, and Mining Areas are 21 in number, which cover 5% of the region (300,000 hectares). In these areas commercial logging and hydro development is not permitted, however mining and tourism development can continue. Primary uses of this area include biodiversity conservation and protection of key ecological and cultural values.

122 Landscape units within the Great Bear Rainforest allow some degree of timber-harvesting. This means that forest companies and industries are granted forest tenures to and hold timber-harvesting rights in these regions. However, these companies are beholden to the agreed-upon ecosystem-based management system and must work with indigenous communities of that region.

Although the First Nations of the Great Bear Rainforest maintain traditional ownership land claims to the entirety of the region, this is not recognized by the provincial government of British Columbia. However, profit-sharing practices are in effect, which means theoretically, First Nations groups may receive 3-5% of the government's share in profits of logging practices within the Great Bear Rainforest. Indigenous groups are also allowed to apply for forest licences and participate in their own harvesting practices.

Forest companies holding timber-harvesting rights within the area are required to file their harvesting plans under eco-system based management regulations, with provincial forestry-ministry staff required to audit and ensure that the terms are met. However, this mechanism is still being developed. In the 122 landscape units where timber-harvesting is allowed, logging plans known as 'Landscape Reserve Designs' are meant to be submitted by each major forestry company. None of these have been developed, however the BC Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development states that these plans do not have to be filed until the end of 2021, in which the province of British Columbia will uphold their responsibility of quality-assurance and following up on sustainable land-use practices by industry holding forest licenses.[35]

Affected Stakeholders

Kitasoo/Xai’Xais First Nation

  • Their relevant objectives include fixing their unemployment rate, creating a sustainable industry, holding and stewarding the land for future generations, revitalising their culture, protecting wildlife, conserving the ecosystem and the web of life etc.
  • The nation’s focus was not profitability, rather creating meaningful jobs in the community and provide opportunities for youth within the community and ultimately the workforce.
  • By operating Spirit Bear Lodge, the Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation has established itself as a competitive economic stakeholder within their ancestral territory.
  • According to Coast Funds, previous to the establishment of the lodge, outsider tour companies would take tourists through the region irrespective of the negative impacts on bear populations or the effects it had on the local community.[36]
  • In recent years, the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation has taken a proprietary role in the research and management of the area, which has allowed them to “...assert a schedule that has minimised the impact on estuaries” (Coast Funds). This has resulted in minimal impact from the tourism industry in the region.[37]
KITASOO DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (KDC)
  • A holding company that is owned and operated by the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nations community. The main goal of the KDC is to help further the Nation's economic development through the development and management of various companies. Companies run by KDC have provided sustainable jobs and revenue for members of the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nations community.[38] Below are a few companies that are run by the KDC:
  1. Kitasoo Seafoods
  2. Spirit Bear Lodge
  3. Kitasoo Forest Company
  4. Kitasoo Band Store
  5. Kitasoo Fuels
SPIRIT BEAR RESEARCH FOUNDATION
  • A foundation based on collaboration between the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nations and conservation scientists. Their objectives as listed on their website are as follows [39]:
  1. To advance locally relevant scientific knowledge of grizzly, black, and Spirit Bear populations, and the ecosystem that supports these populations, in Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation Territory.
  2. To support and assist with the development of local scientific monitoring capacity within the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation.
  3. To incorporate perspectives, knowledge, and priorities from the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation into the development and implementation of our scientific programs.
  • The creation of the foundation attracted the attention of new investors who were interested in supporting bear and sustainability related research at Spirit Bear Lodge. The increased interest in the Spirit Bear Lodge has resulted in the increased number of tourists to the nearby Bella Bella area thus providing residual benefits for members of the Heiltsuk and other First Nations".[36]
  • Their primary responsibility is to assist local leaders in sharing their knowledge and insights with outsider conservation efforts and policy making.[40] They consider their stewardship responsibilities as extending beyond their lands and rainforest and into the surrounding waters of the Pacific Ocean. Members and supporters of the foundation believe that protecting the nonhuman members within the GBR means protecting each other, as maintaining the health of this complex ecosystem will inevitably benefit our health.[40]

KITASOO/XAI’XAIS COASTAL GUARDIAN WATCHMEN

  • "A network of First Nations people who monitor, patrol and enforce Indigenous laws in parts of the Great Bear Rainforest that are too remote for federal or provincial officers to reach regularly" (Langlois).[41]
  • While in 2017, British Columbia announced that they would be enacting a band on trophy hunting the Spirit bears in the Great Bear Rainforest (GBR), Doug Neasloss - the Chief Councilor and Stewardship Director of the Kitasoo/Xai'Xais Nation - and other experts claim that this alone is not enough to protect the bears of the GBR. Neasloss claims that for as long as black bears are allowed to be hunted, then the Spirit bear will continue to be at risk as the black bears are the carriers of the recessive genes that produce the Spirit bear.
  • One of the major setbacks is the small number of wildlife officers available to enforce hunting regulations, "which means much of the work will continue to fall to the Coastal Guardian Watchmen" (Langlois).[41] In 2017, it was reported that the cost related to the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nations increasing the presence of their Coastal Guardian Watchmen was estimated to be $210,000 a year, "a fraction of the funds activists say the network needs".[41]

THE KITASOO/XAI'XAIS INTEGRATED RESOURCE AUTHORITY (KXIRA)

  • They provide technical advice and support for effective decision-making by the Kitasoo/Xai’xais community and its leadership, ensure that Kitasoo/Xai’xais laws, customs, traditions, policies and practices are included in resource planning and management decisions, and advocate for the recognition of Kitasoo/Xai’xais Aboriginal title and rights.”[42]
    • Kitasoo Band Council - a governing body of the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation. They work to protect the wealth of forests, fish, wildlife and the complexity of all life. "To remain here as Kitasoo and Xai’xais people, we need to protect and enhance our culture and protect our heritage. We also need to live in the modern world. We need jobs to sustain our families. We need revenue and economic development to sustain our community” (Shea).[43]

Other First Nations

“Some twenty-six First Nations have called this coast home for well over 10,000 years” (McAllister).[1] A win for the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais First Nation’s conservation where colonial government comes to an agreement that suits the Nation is a win for all other nations who call the Great Bear Rainforest home bc it ensures the protection of their lands too from logging, extractive industry etc. and it sets a precedent relevant to many overlapping factors for future engagement between other first nations and the government on similar terms.

CENTRAL COAST INDIGENOUS RESOURCE ALLIANCE (CCIRA)

  • They engage government, industry environmental organizations and other third parties to implement our marine use plan and create further positive change in our territory. Mechanisms for realizing plan implementation include[44]:
    • Securing joint-management agreements with government to give the Central Coast First Nations’ jurisdiction and governing authority over our marine environment and its resources, which enable revenue and benefit sharing, and provides for equitable First Nations’ participation in economic development and capacity building.
    • Acquiring specific resource tenures and licences through government negotiation, existing programs, and market buy-back.
    • Developing partnerships with industry, environmental organizations and other third parties through memorandums of understanding, and impact-benefit or joint venture agreements
    • Affirming Aboriginal rights and title to our lands and resources through treaty, litigation and other means, as appropriate.

Government

In writing this Wikipage, there was some debate as to the accuracy of including government under the heading of affected stakeholders because while the Kitasoo/Xai'xais claim sovereignty over their land and its management, legally, the Canadian government is an affected stakeholder because it holds sovereign legal claim to the land and all related agreements. This confusion speaks to the legal pluralism issue.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

  • Involved in the designation of reserve land in areas such as Klemtu and the registration of Indian status.

PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

  • Involved with Crown land, and thus all tenure, bundle of rights related agreements, etc.
    • In the early 1990's the BC Government was interested in protecting the forest industry because of the revenue, employment, and rural riding support it provided.

Interested Outside Stakeholders

NGO's & Environmentalist Groups

COAST FUNDS (COAST CONSERVATION ENDOWMENT FUND FOUNDATION)

  • consists of two distinct organizations that manage funding provided by six private foundations, the Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada.
  • Their aim is to support conservation by First Nations within the Central Coast and North Coast of British Columbia and Haida Gwaii, including islands and coastal areas through the provision and acquisition of funding towards research and development of conservation initiatives.
  • They are a registered society under the BC Societies Act.

PACIFIC WILD

  • A wildlife conservation organization operating in the Great Bear Rainforest.
  • Ian McAlister is a photographer and conservation leader and executive director of Pacific Wild, began filming Great Bear Rainforest in 2016, intended to bring awareness to the area, and inspire young people to join in on the movement. His movie filmed in the GBR aims to “film wildlife in a non-invasive manner” (McAllister).[1]

OTHER RELAVANT ORGANIZATIONS

  • Moore Foundation
  • Nature United
  • Tides Canada
  • Supporting Emerging Aboriginal Stewards (SEAS) - supported by Coast Funds, Moore Foundation, Nature United, Tides Canada
    • Aims to connect Kitasoo/Xai’xais youth with their traditional knowledge and culture.
  • National Geographic
  • Greenpeace

CENTER FOR RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL

  • Research done by the Centre for Responsible Travel in 2014 found that tourism to view bears in the GBR generated higher value to the economy in comparison to tourism related to bear hunting. This was observed in both visitor expenditures as well as employment opportunities.[36]
  • The Center for Responsible Travel is another stakeholder involved with the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais First Nation who share in the objective of ending trophy hunting as protecting the bears and the relationship between bears and humans is ultimately beneficial to the tourism industry.

Tourists and Trophy Hunters

  • Tourists and trophy hunters are user groups. Their main relevant objectives would be access to this unique ecosystem and wildlife for recreational purposes.
  • Lodge guests are recognized as potential donors to the Foundation and at the very least as ambassadors for the research work conducted by the Watchmen and Foundation scientists[37], and so Spirit Bear Lodge view their guests as stakeholders in this sense.

Discussion

The aim of Indigenous Peoples within the Great Bear Rainforest region was the cessation of large-scale logging activities that were not-sanctioned by First Nations. In addition to this, they wanted to pour significant efforts into the conservation of this region while improving the livelihoods of Indigenous communities through increasing financial investment, job creation and improved living conditions. Through significant decades-long negotiations and appeals, the First Nations of the Great Bear Rainforest, represented by the Nanwakolas Council and Coastal First Nations, were successful in their appeals. Conservation of the territory has gone from 9% to 33% of the entire region, which represents a massive shift in protected land areas.

The Great Bear Rainforest Conservation Efforts were a marked success, hailed as "never before seen in British Columbia resource management." In an approach never before seen in BC, environmental groups and forest companies agreed to work together to generate solutions. This is significant as these coalitions are often on opposing sides[33]. Perhaps even more importantly, in 2001, the Coastal First Nations and the Province of British Columbia signed a protocol affirming that the parties would interact as governments, a fundamental shift in the Province's rules of engagement with First Nations. Individual First Nations developed their own land-use plans for their traditional territories, then entered into negotiations with the Provincial government. Previous land-use planning processes in BC have always been led by the provincial government. This fundamentally different planning model based on coalitions was unsettling for many in the provincial government, but in the end was essential in building a degree of consensus among historical antagonists. [33]

The creation of Coast Funds to manage research and endowment funds is key in the success of thriving Indigenous-led ecotourism companies. For the first time, significant amounts of money were invested in First Nations community to harness their knowledge and land-stewardship experience to revolutionize conservation efforts of the GBR and build a profitable and beneficial eco-tourism industry which generates funds that go directly back into First Nations communities.[45] Moreover, these successful eco-tourism exploits have generated both funds and public awareness which have significantly contributed to continuing research and support for the area and its biodiversity. Despite the remote location of the Great Bear Rainforest communities, their strategic compaigns and marketing have led to consistent interest in the region's activities. It has also allowed for a greater 'watchdog' effect in which many national and international stakeholders serve as auditors in holding the provincial government accountable to promises and established agreements.[35]

Assessment & Recommendations

This section talks about political and redistribution of power relations successes while the discussion section above talks more about eco-tourism and conservation successes. Many of the following points also speak to further successes (beyond those discussed in the discussion section) of the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais nation in being able to leverage their relative power against the larger dominant institution that is the government and forestry industry. These are relevant in a national and global context because they set powerful precedents and blueprints for other small nations striving for reclamation to follow. While government has ultimate authority, the Kitasoo/Xai'xais First Nation has largely been successful at asserting it’s right to manage the territory and carry out their research and ecotourism based on the Indigenous research approach. This has allowed them to develop protocols that all outsiders have to follow and create a Watchmen program to enforce their protocol and management. This relative power ended up taking the GBR from the hands of extractive industry to 85% of it now being protected and trophy hunting has ended for grizzlies and Spirit bears.

The Great Bear Rainforest Agreements were novel in its approach to negotiations between the BC and First Nations governments. In this agreement, both parties participated in government-to-government negotiations which was almost virtually unprecedented for the time and were set forth by the Supreme Court of Canada, and through the determination of the First Nations. They were no longer interested in accepting a stakeholders role in the decision-making of their own traditional and ancestral territories. According to the article by Low and Shaw[10], the First Nations fought for their legal status of their claimed rights and titles as well as authority to decision-make to be recognized by the government. The government-to-government negotiations also changed the way forest industry could influence policies regarding forests and harvesting methods. In the past, forestry companies were accustomed to a close relationship with the BC government because of  the revenue they generated for the province (Pralle 2007). Subsequently, forestry companies have now been incentivised to work more collaboratively with environmental groups, the First Nations community and this has resulted in forestry companies taking a less influential role (with regards to the BC government) in the designation of land-use policies. For the BC government, these negotiations meant that the legal rights of First Nations needed to be addressed in a new way, one in which innovative processes were required to negotiate real, substantive land-use agreements. Instead of “consultation” with First Nations, a loosely-defined term with varying degree and scale, the BC government agreed to sign a protocol agreement with eight First Nations that committed the government to a new process.”[10]

While the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation were participating in the negotiations for the agreements, the community simultaneously used the free publicity and growing interest in the region to establish a lucrative tourism business in Klemtu. According to the Coast Funds website, 50% of the Kitasoo/Xai'xais territory is now protected from logging, mining and other resource extraction, however community members are permitted to use the land as a source of necessities extraction, traditional and cultural practices as well ecotourism thus the strand from the bundle of rights of withdrawal and use was taken from the hands of extractive industry and handed over to the Kitasoo/Xai’Xais Nation. Later on, community members fought to shift focus from the importance of Spirit Bear Lodge as a business to the lodge as a place to nurture stewardship and management of their sacred lands. According to the Coast Funds website, "the Lodge contributes to conservation in the area by helping to protect visual corridors, educating visitors, and working with researchers in the Fiordland and Spirit Bear Conservancies and elsewhere in the territory.” [37]

Unfortunately, while the The Kitasoo/Xai’Xais and other Coastal First Nations decided in 2012 to ban trophy hunting, the BC government technically held legal jurisdiction over the majority of the Great Bear Rainforest and so despite the Nation's ban, they continued to authorize licenses to kill bears for their head and fur. That is until November 2017. Ian McAllister, the executive director of Pacific Wild (as mentioned in the Interested Outsider Stakeholders), worked with Douglass Neasloss —elected Chief Councillor and resource stewardship director of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation in the small coastal community of Klemtu to ultimately end the the trophy hunting of grizzly bears in the GBR. Their collaboration strengthened the ties between environmentalists and First Nations community members, as it fostered solidarity between both parties for the benefit of the health and well-being of the GBR ecosystem. Ian McAllister is reported to have had great respect for Douglas Neasloss, he was quoted saying "We can be thankful to First Nation leaders like Doug for stopping the hunt"[1]. This shows that the First Nation was able to leverage their power to end trophy hunting by partnering with an NGO. By backing their position with research provided by the Spirit Bear Research foundation and the Center for Responsible Travel this played a big role in establishing that ban. "The success of Spirit Bear Lodge has helped provide a basis to have this comparative analysis and support the Kitasoo/Xai’xais decision to end trophy hunting in their territory" (Coast Funds). That being said, the larger goal of ending trophy hunting of all large carnivores such as black bears and wolves is yet to be achieved. This threat to the Nation’s sovereignty and values is crucial to consider as it speaks to the unequal power dynamics and conflicting claims to jurisdiction at play as well as room for improvement on the part of the Canadian government on the path of reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.

The Spirit Bear Lodge has shown that moving away from extractive industries is not only possible, but lucrative. The business has offered stability in income for First Nations community members, as well as working towards fulfilling their goal of protecting the region and all who live in it. The business has created a proven model for the conservation economy that is replicable in other coastal First Nation communities. Significant new sources of revenue are generated in the community and economic leakage is minimized. Larry Greba[46] - director of the Kitasoo Economic Development Corporation points to the importance of bringing in outside expertise to benefit the people of Klemtu when undertaking something new like this business, “there’s other skills that are brought in and there’s a sharing that happens. There’s a sharing of Kitasoo culture and there’s other skills that are brought in from the outside. That’s critical in terms of capacity building" [36](Coast Funds). One of our recommendations would be the creation of a supportive network where start-up Indigenous ecotourism businesses can connect with successful examples like the Spirit Bear Lodge for support. The building of new enterprises is very important in driving the economy, and in order for such a venture to be successful, it would be helpful to receive the endorsement of a successful business such as the Spirit Bear Lodge.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 McAllister, Ian (2019). Great Bear Rainforest: A Giant-Screen Adventure in the Land of the Spirit Bear. Victoria, British Columbia: Orca Book Publishers.
  2. ↑ Moore, Michele-Lee; Tjornbo, Ola (2012). "From coastal timber supply area to Great Bear Rainforest: exploring power in a social–ecological governance innovation". Ecology and Society. 17(4): 529–539 – via UBC EBSCO.
  3. ↑ Government of BC. "Great Bear Rainforest".
  4. ↑ "Five Facts About BC's Temperate Rainforests". Destination BC.
  5. ↑ "A Quick Guide To The Great Bear Rainforest". Destination Canada. 2020.
  6. ↑ "British Columbia Health Boundaries" (PDF). BC Government Website.
  7. ↑ "Gateway to the Great Bear Rainforest". Bella Coola Valley Tourism Association.
  8. ↑ "How to Visit the Great Bear Rainforest in BC". Destination Canada.
  9. ↑ "Great Bear Rainforest First Nation Communities". Government of British Columbia.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Low, M; Shaw, K (2011). "FIRST NATIONS RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE: Lessons from the Great Bear Rainforest". BC Studies. 172: 9–33.
  11. ↑ Clapp, Alex (September 2004). "Wilderness ethics and political ecology: remapping the Great Bear Rainforest". Political Geography. 23(7): 839–862 – via Elsevier.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Page, Justin (2014). Tracking the Great Bear: How Environmentalists Recreated British Columbia’s coastal rainforest. UBC Press.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Mcsheffrey, Elizabeth (2016). "Thunder in the Air". The National Observer.
  14. ↑ Burda, Cheri; Gale, Fred; M'Gonigle, Michael (1998). "ECOFORESTRY VERSUS THE STATE(US) QUO: Or Why Innovative Forestry Is Neither Contemplated nor Permitted within the State Structure of British Columbia". BC Studies. 119: 45–86. line feed character in |title= at position 38 (help)
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Esbjörn-Hargens, Sean; Zimmerman, Michael E. (2009). Integral ecology: uniting multiple perspectives on the natural world. Shambhala Publications. pp. 451–469.
  16. ↑ "Guardians of Monumental Cedars". Nanwakolas Council.
  17. ↑ "Why a Coastal Alliance?". Coastal First Nations Great Bear Initiative.
  18. ↑ "International Timber Customers Catalyzed Change in the Great Bear Rainforest". National Observer.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Yakabuski, Konrad (2016). "Great Bear Rainforest: Small deal, big impact". The Globe and Mail.
  20. ↑ "The Great Bear Rainforest Agreement". Northward Magazine. 2006.
  21. ↑ Mcsheffrey, Elizabeth (2016). "From Conflict to Collaboration". The National Observer.
  22. ↑ Saarikoski, Heli; Raitio, Kaisa; Berry, Janice (May 2013). "Understanding 'successful' conflict resolution: Policy regime changes and new interactive arenas in the Great Bear Rainforest". Land Use Policy. 32: 271–280 – via Elsevier.
  23. ↑ "Agreement Highlights". BC Government Website.
  24. ↑ "Great Bear Rainforest - Coast Land Use Decision Update". BC Government.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Mcsheffrey, Elizabeth (2016). "Premier Clark announces landmark Great Bear Rainforest agreement". The National Observer.
  26. ↑ "First Nations lead transition to conservation-based economy in Great Bear Rainforest, Haida". The Narwhal. June 2019.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 "First Nations have created a robust conservation economy in Great Bear Rainforest: Report". Mongabay Series: Indigenous Peoples and Conservation.
  28. ↑ "Who We Are". Coast Funds.
  29. ↑ "Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii". Coast Funds.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Langlois, K (October 2017). "First Nations Fight to Protect the Rare Spirit Bear from Hunters". National Geographic. Missing or empty |url= (help)
  31. ↑ "Spirit Bear Research Foundation".
  32. ↑ "British Columbia's Forests and their Managements". Government of BC.
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 Price, Karen; Roburn, Audrey; MacKinnon, Andy (July 2009). "Ecosystem-based management in the Great Bear Rainforest". Forest Ecology and Management. 258(4): 495–503 – via Elsevier.
  34. ↑ "Conflict Resolution and BC's Great Bear Rainforest" (PDF). Coast Funds.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 Hunter, Justine (February 2020). "Logging in B.C.'s Great Bear Rainforest not meeting protection promises, environmentalists say". The Globe and Mail.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 "The Success of Spirit Bear Lodge: How a Remote, Community-led Business Became a Global Model for Ecotourism". Coast Funds.
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 "Environmental Conservation: First Nations are leading conservation and research initiatives in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii to protect and sustain the ecological integrity of the region". Coast Funds.
  38. ↑ "Economic Development". Klemtu: Kitasoo/Xai'xais.
  39. ↑ "About Us: Our Vision". Spirit Bear Research Foundation.
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 "About Us: Broader Context". Spirit Bear Research Foundation.
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 41.2 "First Nations Fight to Protect the Rare Spirit Bear from Hunters". National Geographic.
  42. ↑ "Resource Stewardship: The Kitasoo/Xai'xais Integrated Resource Authority (KXIRA)". Klemtu: Kitasoo/Xai'xais.
  43. ↑ Shea, Greg. "Kitasoo Band: A governing body of the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation". Klemtu: Kitasoo/Xai'xais.
  44. ↑ "Marine Use Planning & Management". Klemtu: Kitasoo/Xai'xais.
  45. ↑ Lemelin, R.H; Koster, R; Youroukos, N (2015). "Tangible and intangible indicators of successful Aboriginal tourism initiatives: A case study of two successful Aboriginal tourism lodges in Northern Canada". Tourism Management. 47: 318–328.
  46. ↑ "Minister of Agriculture's Advisory Council on Finfish Aquaculture". Government of British Columbia.


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