The colonization of Indigenous Peoples in Canada echoes a corresponding colonization of Indigenous Lands – the imposition of the progressive ideal of “Improvement”, making land productive, stable and predictable to support the Resource Economy.  My presentation examines legacies of institutional land management (particularly wildfire suppression and industrial forestry) imposed upon Xáxli’p Survival Territory in southwestern British Columbia that have homogenized diverse habitats supported by Xaxli’p traditional management practices.  These institutional legacies have created conditions for catastrophic wildfire throughout their Survival Territory, threatening Xáxli’p cultural continuance.  Our community-directed partnership with the Xáxli’p supports their efforts to reassert Xáxli’p “relationality” as a land-management paradigm.  Ultimately, reconciling these conflicting paradigms to facilitate landscape restoration to support Xáxli’p self-determination and cultural continuance requires an institutional shift in perception and understanding of Xáxli’p values, leading to shared decision-making power between Institutional and Xáxli’p partners.

The Natural Resources & Environmental Studies Institute (NRESi) at UNBC hosts a weekly lecture series at the Prince George campus. Anyone from the university or wider community with interest in the topic area is welcome to attend. Presentations are also made available to remote participants through Livestream (Channel 1). Go to http://www.unbc.ca/nres-institute/colloquium-webcasts to view the presentation remotely.

Past NRESi colloquium presentations and special lectures can be viewed on our video archive, available here.