PSA: Canada's Truth & "Reconciliation"

https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-5/

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools

https://gem.cbc.ca/we-were-children

https://globalnews.ca/news/8458351/canada-residential-schools-unmarked-graves-in...

https://nctr.ca/memorial/national-student-memorial/

http://www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/robert-pickton-case

https://twitter.com/TheRealAgent_99/status/1644817155601625088?s=20

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/brady-road-landfill-search-first-nations...

https://sixtiesscoopnetwork.org/

https://sixtiesscoop.geoforms.ca/

https://www.firstpeopleslaw.com/public-education

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/customer-reviews/R2I2Y1ML1399EU?ref=pf_vv_at_pdctrvw_sr...

https://www.instagram.com/p/ClFpEAFLiTg/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

https://twitter.com/TheRealAgent_99/status/1647488351421997056?s=20

Question posed by someone where I work:(Please note that I am no longer working for the BC Government. My employment there officially ended on December 2, 2022)

You have $65M to resolve systemic disaster management and disaster recovery issues. Your Executive Lead has tasked you with implementing the funding. What investments and programs are you going to make to set BC and its indigenous communities up for more resilience? What changes would you make to processes?

My response written on May 10, 2022:

I do not profess to know all of the current laws, policies, and programs, along with their pros and cons, to fully and thoughtfully respond here. I do know that the best recovery and management requires a strong backbone of prevention and mitigation. Also, emergency management work is interconnected with so many other areas that I am not sure how we could keep the funding specifically defined within the Emergency Management BC (EMBC) box and truly make sweeping changes and differences to current processes.


“DRR also needs well-connected leaders in all sectors and locations to motivate more localised and focused responses.”
“It is essential to regard disaster risk management not as a sector alongside development and other economic and social sectors, but rather as a defined situation for which society has undertaken and will continue to undertake measures to secure the health, safety and welfare of its populations.”
https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/glass-half-full-or-half-empty-dialogue...

We already have lots of documentation in place to effectively guide us and help us utilize money in meaningful ways. We even have an action plan. I’m hoping that all of these words make the jump off the paper/screen someday soon. Sometimes I feel like we build frameworks and outlines, but then they just sit there like hollow trophies on a shelf for years and years. (I know change is slow, but I get rather impatient sometimes😊)

Here are some examples of things we already have in place to guide us:


United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/u-2.2/FullText.html

UNDRIP
https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/declaration-on-the-rights-...

Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (gov.bc.ca)
https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/19044

The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act Action Plan
https://declaration.gov.bc.ca/

"The overall emergency management structure and regime in B.C. is revised, in collaboration with the Government of Canada and Indigenous Peoples, to enhance Indigenous Peoples’ emergency management outcomes through a strong tripartite approach."
2.11 "Integrate traditional practices and cultural uses of fire into wildfire prevention and land management practices and support the reintroduction of strategized burning." (Ministry of Forests, Emergency Management BC)
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/british-columbians-our-governments/indigenous-...

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/environment/natural-resource-stewardship/consu...

An Emergency Management Framework for Canada - Third Edition (publicsafety.gc.ca)
https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/2017-mrgnc-mngmnt-frmwrk/index-...

"In 2007, the federal, provincial and territorial governments developed a coordinated emergency management framework to be used across the country. This approach is outlined in the Public Safety Canada document An Emergency Management Framework for Canada (the Framework), which was revised in 2011."
Emergency Management on First Nations Reserves (parl.ca)
https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications/20155...1

"Shortly after the release of the 2013 audit, the federal government announced certain changes to strengthen emergency management on reserves. Announcements of an intention to modify the policy and administration of the Emergency Management Assistance Program were made in 2013 and 2014. In November 2013, INAC announced that the department would revise the Emergency Management Assistance Program to clarify which emergency management costs would be eligible for reimbursement.56 At the time of this publication, it is unclear whether any proposed changes have been implemented."


Beyond what we have for documentation and reports specific to BC and Canada, the Sendai Framework and the UNDRR provides a wealth of information to draw from. We don’t need to build anything from scratch. There are tons of evidence based reports, research briefs, and even regional and national policies and plans on disaster risk, climate adaptation and resilience to draw from:

Policy and plans | Knowledge base (preventionweb.net)
https://www.preventionweb.net/knowledge-base/type-content/policy-plans

Learning from past disasters | Knowledge base (preventionweb.net)
https://www.preventionweb.net/knowledge-base/type-content/learning-from-past-dis...

Sendai Framework for DRR (preventionweb.net)
https://www.preventionweb.net/sendai-framework/sendai-framework-for-disaster-ris...

Partnerships and Initiatives | UNDRR
https://www.undrr.org/implementing-sendai-framework/partners-and-stakeholders/mu...

Themes in Recovery | IRP (preventionweb.net)
https://recovery.preventionweb.net/build-back-better/themes-recovery

Post-Disaster Needs Assessments | IRP (preventionweb.net)
https://recovery.preventionweb.net/build-back-better/post-disaster-needs-assessm...

"Emergency Management British Columbia (EMBC) is the lead coordinating agency on behalf of the provincial government for all emergency management activities in British Columbia. EMBC provides executive coordination, strategic planning, multiagency facilitation and strives to develop effective working relationships in an increasingly complex emergency management environment. EMBC works with local authorities, First Nations, local and federal governments, industry, non‐government organizations, and volunteers to support the emergency management phases of mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. EMBC also engages provincial, national and international partners to enhance the collective emergency capabilities of the Province."
https://news.gov.bc.ca/files/EM_MOU_Ecopy.pdf

36."We confirm that indigenous peoples’ knowledge and strategies to sustain their environment should be respected and taken into account when we develop national and international approaches to climate change mitigation and adaptation."
http://www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/69/L.1


With all of this in mind, I do have a suggestion for a first step.

Step one: Discuss this monetary investment with Indigenous communities:

First Peoples Map of BC
https://maps.fpcc.ca/

First Nations Profiles Interactive Map
https://geo.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/cippn-fnpim/index-eng.html

And Indigenous organizations/groups such as:

The Emergency Planning Secretariat (EPS):
https://www.emergencyplanningsecretariat.com/

S’ólh Téméxw
https://thestsa.ca/

First Nations Emergency Services Society (FNESS)
https://www.fness.bc.ca/core-programs/emergency-management

First Nations Health Authority (FNHA)
https://www.fnha.ca/what-we-do/environmental-health/wildfire-information

ISC
https://www.sac-isc.gc.ca/eng/1309369889599/1535119888656


Also, from what I have read it sounds like the federal government needs to be involved in some capacity:

“The federal government may also play a role in emergency management in areas within its jurisdiction.
https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications/20155...

"Section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 provides that the federal government has exclusive legislative authority over “Indians, and Lands reserved for the Indians.”
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-3.html#h-18\


Also important:

Section 35.1 of the Constitution Act, 1982:
The government of Canada and the provincial governments are committed to the principle that, before any amendment is made to Class 24 of section 91 of the "Constitution Act, 1867", to section 25 of this Act or to this Part,
(a) a constitutional conference that includes in its agenda an item relating to the proposed amendment, composed of the Prime Minister of Canada and the first ministers of the provinces, will be convened by the Prime Minister of Canada; and
(b) the Prime Minister of Canada will invite representatives of the aboriginal peoples of Canada to participate in the discussions on that item. (95)
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-13.html#h-53

And, VERY IMPORTANT:
Common Core Document of Canada The whole document is key.
https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/18c0e073-6ce2-4dc0-bbc6-44dcc55adb2f/reso...
https://open.canada.ca/data/dataset/18c0e073-6ce2-4dc0-bbc6-44dcc55adb2f/resourc...

General principles of constitutional interpretation
⦁ The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms forms a part of the Canadian Constitution and should be interpreted in a similar fashion.
⦁ The Constitution of Canada includes the Constitution Act, 1867, and the Constitution Act, 1982. It is the supreme law of Canada. It reaffirms Canada's dual legal system and also includes Aboriginal rights and treaty rights.
https://justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/just/05.html#:~:text=The%20Constitution%20of%2...

So, yeah. I certainly don’t have all the answers – none of us do. The answers will be found as we tread lightly and respectfully, as we listen without judgement, and as we reflect upon what we learn. The journey is now.

Sincerely,
The pagan mage ❤️‍🔥
My name is Chantelle Marie Smith🩸♾️

https://twitter.com/TheRealAgent_99/status/1645166782548951040?s=20

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https://flic.kr/p/2nZ3dBK

https://goo.gl/maps/XRC4ej7S6KjZGPbKA

https://twitter.com/therealagent_99/status/1644947683331969024?s=46&t=G3tQpDauUJ...

Footnotes
1  https://twitter.com/TheRealAgent_99/status/1644449695010529281?s=20