Land Decolonized Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Andrew Beynon is on a mission to support Land Code First Nations who want to overhaul Canada's flawed Additions-to-Reserve process. Mandated by Lands Advisory Board leadership, Beynon is working through layers of provincial and federal contacts to impress upon them the economic value of Nations moving more quickly to add lands to their reserve base. The system can be painfull...

Send us Fan Mail It's encouraging to see young professionals learning to manage the complexities of Canada's additions-to-reserve policy. And to join the cause promoting a new, more timely approach. Take Sara Lehman for example. This Laurentian University graduate ( Masters in Fisheries Ecology ) is the Lands Director at Wahnapitae First Nation, just east of Sudbury, Ontario. This small...

Send us Fan Mail In our continuing series on Canada's broken Additions-to-Reserve (ATR) policy, we speak with Desmond Peters , Lands Manager at Ts'kw'aylaxw First Nation in British Columbia. The path to reclaiming land governance isn't easy, but Peters believes the process can be improved to better positions First Nations for success. Reform is drastically needed so Nations can...

Send us Fan Mail Land sovereignty. What does it mean to a First Nation? How can it be achieved? Chief Gerry Duquette Jr. leads his community of Dokis First Nation in Ontario. He has hands-on experience with Canada's flawed Additions-to-Reserve policy. There's a huge backlog of communities that have to get federal approval before adding lands to their reserves – even tiny parcels that cou...

Send us Fan Mail Phil Goulais has strong opinions about the need to radically redesign Canada's flawed Additions-to-Reserve policy. He knows the process well. Goulais is a respected former chief of Nipping First Nation, Grand Chief of the Robinson-Huron Territory and former Indian Commissioner of Ontario. He has seen first-hand how Nations are hindered, even blocked from adding critical new l...

Send us Fan Mail Grand Chief Willie Charlie of Sta'ailes First Nation says a much faster Additions-to-Reserve process will help communities prosper. He has seen the cost of long delays. Politicians have always promised to make ATRs go faster, but he says it's the bureaucracy at different levels that ruins the process. He spoke recently with host Richard Perry . We apologize that the soun...

Send us Fan Mail Join us in our continuing series on Canada's Additions-to-Reserve policy and how it's failing our First Nations communities. If you’re unfamiliar with Additions to reserve - or ATR - it’s the process through which Canada allows land to be added to a First Nation’s reserve. But it’s often a long, frustrating, and inefficient journey.  In this episode with Melissa MacDonal...

Send us Fan Mail Joseph Tootoosis is a lands and economic strategy advisor with a special interest in sovereignty, land restitution and redress. He also sees the need for a drastic overhaul in Canada's Additions-to-Reserve policy, a complicated process that hurts First Nations trying to add to their reserve land base. Why do ATRs matter to First Nations? What opportunities are Bands missing o...

Send us Fan Mail In this special series we’re diving into Canada’s Additions-to-Reserve policy — a crucial yet complex issue for First Nations communities across the country.  If you’re unfamiliar with Additions to reserve - or ATR - it’s the process through which Canada allows land to be added to a First Nation’s reserve. But it’s often a long, frustrating, and inefficient journey.  In this episo...

Send us Fan Mail The path to reclaiming land governance is far from easy, but adding lands to a First Nation's land base is essential for a community's long-term sustainability. In this special series, we explore why the federal Additions-to-Reserve policy matters to First Nations. We unpack the intricacies of land rights in conversations with leaders demanding change to an often slow an...

Send us Fan Mail Chief Scott McLeod of Nipissing First Nation says his communty and most other First Nations have been disrupted by the process of colonization and are trying to find their way back. This includes what has been described as a crisis – the lack of enforcement of First Nations laws. He told host Richard Perry that so-called "Crown' land, where his people have been sustained...

Send us Fan Mail Tim Raybould is one of Canada's leading consultants in First Nations policy and governance. For over twenty-five years Tim has provided professional advice to First Nations and Indigenous organizations in Canada and has been directly involved in a number of Indigenous–led sectoral and comprehensive governance initiatives. Tim was Westbank First Nation’s self-government negoti...

Send us Fan Mail Jackie Lombardi graduated from the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law on the Dean's Honour List with a Distinction in Aboriginal Law and Indigenous Legal Traditions. She brought her valuable perspective to the 2023 National Conference on the Enforcement of First Nation Laws, hosted by the First Nations Lands Advisory Board and First Nations Land Management Resource Centre. S...

Send us Fan Mail Whitecap Dakota First Nation, near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, has been a leading example of a community taking back control of law enforcement. Murray Long, Director of Self-Government,  joins host Richard Perry to explain how this progressive First Nation is working with government partners to make significant progress. The conversation was recorded in June 2023 at the National Con...

Send us Fan Mail Melissa Tokarek shares her community's interest in law enforcement from its perspective as a nation with its own land code. She takes a particular interest in environmental laws, no doubt due to her background as an Environmental Cooordinator with Defence Construction Canada and an Environmental Scientist with then-Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada. She earne...

Send us Fan Mail Lee-Ann O'Brien has a unique view of First Nation law enforcement, which she shared in this conversation with podcast host Richard Perry. O'Brien is deputy chief of the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service , a stand-alone First Nation police service with a very unique and complex jurisdiction. Today, the force has 42 sworn officers and 11 civilian members, including six full-...

Send us Fan Mail Few have such a deep understanding of Indigenous justice issues than Hon. Steven Point , a former judge and Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia. From 1975 to 1999, Point served as Chief of the Skowkale First Nation . From 1994 to 1999 he served as Tribal Chair of the Stó:lō Nation . He brought a positive, hopeful message to 600 delegates attending the 2023 Conference on the En...

Send us Fan Mail Grand Chief Garrison Settee has a bold vision for improved law enforcement in the member communities of MKO. He tells an impassioned story about helping a community grapple with non-existent enforcement during the Covid outbreak and the fortitude it took by a team of committed leadership to find a solution. He joined host Richard Perry at the 2023 Conference on the Enforcement of...

Send us Fan Mail SHOW NOTES Andrew Beynon, Director of Land Governance, gives us a sneak preview of the first national conference to be held on solving the crisis of ineffective law enforcement in our land code communities. The National Conference on Enforcement of First Nations Laws will be held June 6-8, 2023 in Ottawa-Gatineau. More than 500 participants are expected. 00:50 - Why it is critical...

Send us Fan Mail Lawrence Lamouche and Elvis Thomas share the unique and inspirational story of how both contribute to land management at Woodland Cree First Nation in Treaty 8 territory in northern Alberta. It is the first Alberta nation to enact its own land code. Lawrence manages the traditional land portfolio while Elvis is the go-to contact for land code on the reserve proper. Woodland Cree i...

Send us Fan Mail Jasmine Pouce Coupe has some advice for First Nations considering adopting their own land codes to take control of their lands and resources. Communicate well, and often! Repeat important messages to your community members. Jasmine is helping guide Doig River First Nation , near Fort St. John, BC, as it develops a community-based land code. Has the effort been worth it? Absolutely...

Send us Fan Mail Kim Guerin learned from an early age that a small First Nation could take on the Canadian government and win. Her father spearheaded a legal battle over lease rights that went to the Supreme Court. R v Guerin affirmed that Ottawa has a fiduciary duty to a First Nation, that it is in a position of trust to act on the First Nation's best interests. Musqueam is also part of the...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, land management trainee Bart Metansinine talks about his community of Animbiigoo Zaagi’igan Anishinaabek (AZA), which was once known as the Lost Nation. By signing onto the Framework Agreement on First Nations Land Management, Bart says his community can move forward with development that will attract members home. He credits fellow band staff members, Land Manage...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, you'll meet Tania Solonas , land management officer with the McLeod Lake Indian Band. With about 500 members, MLIB is one of the most experienced First Nations with the land code process, being the second in the province and among the first in Canada to sign onto the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management. You'll discover: how the Band'...

Send us Fan Mail Show Notes Down...but not out! On this episode of the Land Decolonized podcast, Jordon Hatton shares the incredible comeback story of Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabeck, an Ojibwa First Nation in Ontario. Its land was taken by the province in the 1940s to make a provincial park, but was eventually returned so a new reserve could be created. Jordan is Director of Economic Development. H...