Tribal Councils and other collaborative bodies – are organizations where multiple bands sit together to provide services, to create access to the resources, to meaningfully advance the rights of Indigenous communities, to lessen competition and to take care of internal business before meeting with external organizations or governments.

Collaborations such as Tribal Councils are important because they are Indigenous governance structures. Their unified voice challenges the colonial argument – that western governments need to manage territory because First Nations are divided and do not have the structures in place to manage shared spaces. W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council (WLC) Policy and Negotiations Manager Joni Olsen spoke to the power of this, sharing:

There are approximately 99 tribal councils in Canada. These bodies bring First Nations together to talk about common issues and to get internal business in order before sitting with external organizations. I have a belief that if we do things with a united voice, we are more powerful.  This is not amalgamation into one Chief and Council, it’s about working together with leadership and staff from each of the communities to make sure that we are being efficient, effective and providing a consistent message, to do this, we need to be sitting together at a collaborative table.

Collaborations provide Indigenous communities with the resources and the structures necessary to fully take advantage of colonial frameworks that can benefit First Nations.

While there are some requirements that mandate external bodies to notify and/or consult with Indigenous communities before conducting activities on traditional territories, many individual bands do not have the capacity to adequately review and address all of these requests, and even if they do, they would be providing external bodies potentially different responses, putting First Nations at odds with each other. Tsartlip First Nation, for example, once had a month where it corresponded with “42 different organizations that wanted to conduct activities within W̱SÁNEĆ territory.” These would have gone to each of the W̱SÁNEĆ Bands, who are all responding in silos. 

Olsen highlighted the importance of bands working together through creating their own way of doing things and she quotes Albert Einstein, “We cannot solve our problems by using the same systems that created them. Olsen continues, “Individual bands were not created to manage territory, they were created by the Indian Act to manage reserve land and the people who live there. There are other governing bodies making decisions on our land every day that benefit from the division of, or disagreements between First Nations.” This was part of the impetus for the creation of WLC and also spurred the creation of other collaborative W̱SÁNEĆ bodies, South Island Tribal Council, Saanich Tribal Fisheries and the SENCOTEN Alliance.

The need for Tribal Councils and other collaborations among First Nations is also emphasized by the number of overlapping and shared interests that each band has with the surrounding communities. The process of colonization divided Indigenous communities with labels and borders that never existed before, making it difficult to advocate for access to shared territories that, traditionally, were not divided. In Olsen’s words, “We didn’t actually become separate reserves until the fifties. We have been separated and have had colonial government structures imposed on our communities that create competition and dissuade us from moving forward as a collective.” WLC Director of Operations ȻELOȽEMKEN also recently spoke to this when he said:

Establishing a collective and coordinated voice for the protection and implementation of W̱SÁNEĆ rights has been an ongoing issue. In large part, this is due to Indian Act policies that have separated us and redefined our concepts of nationhood. This has created a complex governance challenge that benefits non-First Nations people and governments; it also makes it difficult for W̱SÁNEĆ to come together in modern-day W̱SÁNEĆ governance systems to implement traditional inherent right protocols.

By coming together and having multiple Councils work towards common goals, it is possible to efficiently advocate for the rights of all communities with an interest in shared and overlapping territories.

The power of this collaborative approach to restoring rights has been demonstrated time and time again.

For example, in 2019, the WLC (representing Tsartlip First Nation, Tsawout First Nation, and Tseycum First Nation) joined together with the member bands of the Historic Cowichan Nation (Cowichan Tribes, Stz’uminus First Nation, Lyackson First Nation, Halalt First Nation, and Penelakut Tribe), and Malahat First Nation, Snuneymuxw First Nation, and Pauquachin First Nation to sign the IEȽȻIȽTEL Accord. The accord outlines a commitment to work together on issues related to Parks Canada’s operations within the territories”, including issues related to the Gulf Island Park Reserve “which was finalized without any consultation with the Indigenous people in the region,” and “the proposed Southern Strait of Georgia National Marine Conservation Area Reserve.”

Also, W̱SÁNEĆ and Cowichan communities collaborated during the Grace Islet controversy. That controversy began when a settler “obtained the permits from the province to build a mega-mansion on Indigenous gravesites.” First Nations were ultimately able to stop the development, but only by working together.

Additionally, to address the reclamation of rights in shared and overlapping territories, the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC), the First Nations Summit (FNS) and the BC Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN) have come together to form the First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC).

Another good example is Stó:lō Connect, “where the Aitchelitz, Chawathil, Cheam, Kwaw’Kwaw’Apilt, Leq’á:mél, Semá:th, Shxwhà:y Village, Shxw’ōwhámel, Skowkale, Skwah, Soowahlie, Sq’ewá:lxw, Sq’éwlets, Squiala, Stó:lō Nation, Stó:lō Tribal Council, Stó:lō Xwexwilmexw Treaty Association, Ts’elxwéyeqw, Tzeachten, Yakweakwioose, and Yale all work together to respond to referrals in their individual and common territories.”

Finally, the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) – which represents the Okanagan Indian Band, Upper Nicola Band, Westbank First Nation, Penticton Indian Band, Osoyoos Indian Band and Lower and Upper Similkameen Indian Bands and the Colville Confederated Tribes – is another excellent example of what is possible when communities come together. Among many other successes, the ONA has actively worked to conserve, protect, and restore fish stocks – particularly sockeye salmon – in the Okanagan River and have brought wellness initiatives to the communities served.

These are just a few of the many examples of the power created when First Nations come together. You can find other examples of Tribal Councils in Canada if you follow this link: Tribal Councils in Canada

W̱SÁNEĆ has come together before under the W̱SÁNEĆ School Board, South Island Tribal Council, Saanich Tribal Fisheries and the SENCOTEN Alliance. These organizations were brought together with the recognition of the need to work together and have had different levels of success. Even though many of these organizations are not , there is still a recognized need to work together.

WLC is proud to have the opportunity to enhance recognition of W̱SÁNEĆ Douglas Treaty rights and W̱SÁNEĆ Aboriginal rights and title, promote sustainable and equitable resource development in W̱SÁNEĆ Territory, and promote respect for W̱SÁNEĆ culture by providing a platform where W̱SÁNEĆ can come together and make the greatest possible impact through the power of collaboration. 

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