Speaking for sockeye, speaking for themselves : First Nations engagement in the Cohen Commission (2009 - 2012) ...

• Main Author: Clarkson, Molly
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2016
• Subjects: First Nations
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0300047; https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0300047

This thesis examines First Nations’ perspectives on sockeye conservation through the 2009-2012 Commission to Inquire into the Decline of the Sockeye Salmon in the Fraser River, struck in response to low and falling sockeye returns. Specifically, this project asks: what can the experiences of First Nations participants at the Cohen Commission tell us about creating more space for the consideration of Indigenous peoples' knowledges and perspectives about conservation in natural resource planning and management processes? Interviews with First Nations leaders and technical and legal staff, as well as a review of Commission documents and transcripts, suggest that integration, holism, and place form some of the key characteristics of First Nations peoples’ understandings of sockeye conservation. However, those interviewed for this study identified a significant number of structural and procedural challenges and constraints to their ability to have their approach to sockeye conservation understood and incorporated ...