Canada's First Nation: Caretakers of the land

One hundred and thirty-three years ago, the Beaver Lake Cree Nation signed a treaty with the Canadian Government whereby they were guaranteed the ability to continue their traditional rights to hunt, fish, trap and gather food in exchange for giving up ownership of huge tracts of land.

But last year, the Beaver Lake Cree launched a lawsuit asserting their role as caretakers of the territory and charging that the expansion of oil-sands projects impinged on traditional hunting and fishing grounds, thus violating the treaty.

About 7,000 km away a banker in England stumbled across the plight of the Crees while working on a bank campaign aimed at investing in social justice causes. Figuring they'd make great partners, it wasn't long before he was flying the Cree Chief Al Lameman and his councilors to London to attend a rally in Trafalgar Square and meet members of parliament.

The bank itself is contributing funds toward the Cree lawsuit. As told to the Edmonton Journal, it's one piece of the Co-operative Groups' "Toxic Fuels" Campaign, which was launched in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund. Representatives of the Bank say that corporations must report "carbon risk," making investment less attractive and told the Edmonton Journal that they feel the "battle of Beaver Creek is a small yet resonant part of a growing global consensus."

The Cree, although not getting much press at home, have become something of an issue overseas. MPs from all parties in England have signed on to a motion to have oil companies disclose carbon liabilities in their financial statements. The Financial Times states the oil sand industry has been a lightning rod for environmentalists because of its carbon dioxide emissions, which are typically higher than those from conventional oil production, and because of its affect on the area, which is scarred by huge open-cast mines and ponds that collect polluted waste water. Back in Alberta, lead council and expert on aboriginal land claims Jack Woodward told the Edmonton Journal the case has become for him, a "battle of a lifetime."

Many residents in the Northern Alberta region are tied directly or indirectly to oil-sands development with jobs, housing prices, tax rates and the strength of Canadian currency. Bill Abougoush, president of the County of Lac La Biche Chamber of Commerce spelled it out to the Edmonton Journal: "You touch oil and gas? It's a sacred thing around here. They're still burning effigies of (former Prime Minister) Pierre Trudeau for the National Energy Program" -- a reference to a time when unemployment rose in Alberta from 4 percent to 10 percent following passage of the NEP in 1980.

Abougoush however admits the issue is "complicated."

"We all want money. But we also want clean land and air for our kids," he said.

Speaking of sacred – I wonder what First Nations people have to say about that one?

Photo courtesy of the Co-operative Campaigns via Flickr.