Including Indigenous perspectives in policy-making processes: natural resource development in Northern Ontario

Abstract

This research seeks to understand the experience of the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek with the Ontario Government, specifically with consultation on legislation pertaining to natural resource development (NRD). It also seeks to build an understanding of whether or not the experiences of Atikameksheng, an Anishnawbek Nation whose territory includes the Sudbury Basin, are applicable to NRD policy-making contexts surrounding Indigenous communities in Treaty 9 near the Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire is located in remote Cree and Ojibway territories in the Northwest of Ontario. Economic and environmental interests there have resulted in new legislation for natural resource development and land-use management and these remote First Nations are having to interact with the resource development sector for the first time. Following an Indigenous research methodology based on Anishnawbek relationship building principles, qualitative data was collected via semi-structured interviews. Participants came from three groups: Atikameksheng Anishnawbek employees and community members, Ontario Government employees, and/or a mining company. There were five participants in total. Key informant interviews with research participants established that there is a clear gap in terms of consultation for legislative policy making. It is commonly misunderstood that consultation is continually occurring within the NRD sector as it is only happening formally for specific projects, but not for the development of legislation that mandates consultation. The results of this research suggest that the demands of regulatory and consultation processes established by the Crown do not align with the expectations of First Nations. These demands often also outweigh the required resources available for First Nations to effectively participate in this engagement.