Indigenous Governance Database
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Best Practices Case Study (Meaningful Information Sharing): Miawpukek First Nation
Miawpukek First Nation (MFN) are Micmac people living on the south coast of Newfoundland. In 1998 they indicated to the Government of Canada their desire to move toward self-government negotiations. Recognizing the nature and scope of achievements of the community within its short existence as an…
Best Practices Case Study (Respect the Spirit in the Land): Champagne and Aishihik First Nations
Located in far north-western British Columbia, Tatshenshini-Alsek Park was one of the last areas of B.C. to be mapped. The area's earliest residents were the Tlingit and Tuchone First Nations. Today, with the park in the traditional territory of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations (CAFN),…
Best Practices Case Study (Respect the Spirit in the Land): Haisla First Nation
The primary residence of the Haisla people is Kitamaat Village, found at the head of the Douglas Channel on British Columbia's north coast. In 1990, elders of the Haisla First Nation found a logging road flagged into the Kitlope Valley -- the largest unlogged coastal temperate rainforest watershed…
Tribal sovereign immunity: An obstacle for non-Indians doing business in Indian Country?
Native American tribes consider sovereign immunity to be crucial for the protection of tribal resources and the promotion of tribal economic and social interests. Because of the uncertainties surrounding this doctrine, however, this very same tool of self-determination may be viewed as a…
Native American Lands and Natural Resource Development
The rules that govern oil, gas and mining on American Indian tribal lands are complex, and the tribes that seek economic development through natural resources face a range of challenges. In this report, Revenue Watch gives an overview of the issues and describes current approaches to natural…
Tribal experience with children's accounts
“Accounts at birth” is an important idea at the frontier of savings and asset-building policy. How to make them effective is an important topic for research. This paper presents ideas and initial findings from the experience of American Indian nations–America's first asset-builders–with such…
From Gove to Governance: Reshaping Indigenous Governance in the Northern Territory
This paper attempts to identify the key challenges facing Indigenous people and governments in reshaping the architecture of Indigenous governance in the Northern Territory of Australia, and considers some strategic options for a way forward. First, a brief historical background is provided to…
Like An Ill-Fitting Boot: Government, Governance and Management Systems in the Contemporary Indian Act
Few people are satisfied with the Indian Act, but no one will deny its importance. For the individuals to whom it applies, the Act is a basic and specific constitutional document. It defines their rights and entitlements, their citizenship and their relationship to the federal and provincial…
The Indian Act and the Future of the Aboriginal Governance in Canada
The Indian Act is no longer an uncontestable part of the Aboriginal landscape in Canada. For decades, this controversial and intrusive piece of federal legislation governed almost all aspects of Aboriginal life, from the nature of band governance and land tenure systems to…
The Structure of the Indian Act: Accountability in Governance
The Indian Act has been criticized for giving the Chief and Council too little power to make their own decisions. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples counted nearly 90 provisions that give the Minister of Indian Affairs powers over the Band and Band Council. But the Indian Act…
The Governance and Fiscal Environment of First Nations' Fiscal Intergovernmental Relations in Comparative Perspectives
This paper examines the Canadian Aboriginal fiscal inter-governmental system by comparing it to other countries, and also focuses on the key characteristics of the Canadian system. Over the last 20 years governments have decentralized power and responsibilities in response to an…
Seven Generations, Seven Teachings: Ending the Indian Act
Six generations have passed since the Indian Act was introduced and the seventh generation, now rising, will be healthier and our communities will enjoy more freedom if we assist them in getting rid of the Indian Act. Communities and the next generation can overcome the Indian Act’s hold over all…
The Jurisdiction of Inherent Right Aboriginal Governments
Since the recognition of Aboriginal and treaty rights in Canada by section 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982, the inherent right of the Aboriginal peoples to govern themselves has become a generally accepted aspect of Canadian constitutional law. But what is the scope of the…
The Crown's Constitutional Duty to Consult and Accomodate Aboriginal and Treaty Rights
The Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate Aboriginal and treaty rights is a fundamental matter of social justice that invokes very solemn legal obligations. Reconciliation and win-win situations can be achieved with good faith negotiations if the federal and provincial Crown immediately…
Colonial Fracture And Community Cohesion: Governance In The Stó:Lõ Community Of Shxw'õwhámél
This paper has three goals: 1) To briefly outline the process through which Shxw’õwhámél came to adopt the Siyá:m System in 1994; 2) to highlight certain concerns about the limitations of that system as articulated by community members in 2006; and 3) to provide a detailed discussion of those…
Indigenous Governance: Questioning the Status and the Possibilities for Reconciliation with Canada's Commitment to Aboriginal and Treaty Rights
Indigenous peoples have always had governance. This fact has been a matter of great debate among Canadian politicians and scholars for many years, but there is little doubt that Indigenous Nations had developed for themselves complex systems of government prior to colonization. The…
Indian Act Colonialism: A Century Of Dishonour, 1869-1969
In 1867, with the passage of the British North America Act, Canadians began the process of nation building. Over the next few years, new provinces emerged--Manitoba, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island--and Canada became, by 1873, a nation from sea to sea. At the same time, by way…
Aboriginal Nationhood and the Inherent Right to Self-Government
Canadian governments and courts recognize that pre-contact Aboriginal societies possessed their own legal and political systems and that to this day these nations have not surrendered the powers they fully exercised before colonial policies undercut their authority. …
Systems of Conflict Resolution Within First Nations Communities: Honouring The Elders, Honouring The Knowledge
First Nations people are well aware that many of our governments and citizens struggle to move beyond the violence and dysfunction that characterizes some individuals, families and communities. Within some community settings, drugs and alcohol prevail, family members are involved in…
Indigenous Justice: Clearing Space and Place for Indigenous Epistemologies
The realization of Self Determination for Indigenous Peoples is an exhilarating and fascinating movement that encourages human perseverance and an unfaltering belief in human potential and responsibility. It is a multi-dimensional movement that acknowledges and accepts human flaws…