ID: 55
Presenting Author: Kevan Berg
Status: pending
The aim of this poster is to present findings from an Indigenous-led assessment of cumulative effects for the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation located in southwestern Ontario.
Deshkan Ziibiing Anishinaabeg, also known as Chippewas of the Thames First Nation, is located in the heart of southwestern Ontario in Canada at the nexus of intense economic activity. The community faces significant challenges due to cumulative effects from extensive industry, agriculture, urbanization, and transportation networks within the Nation’s Treaty and Traditional Territory. To better understand impacts to the Nation’s rights and to preserve high priority areas for future generations, the Nation has undertaken an Indigenous-led assessment of cumulative effects that brings together Indigenous Knowledge shared during focus groups and surveys with landscape modeling using the ALCES Flow simulation model. The assessment explores how cumulative anthropogenic development has led to dramatic shifts in land cover, wildlife habitat, and Indigenous land use opportunities within the Nation’s territory from the pre-colonial era to present day. Impacts to opportunities for Indigenous land use were assessed by tracking shifts in both the capacity of ecosystems to support Indigenous land uses and the ability of community members to access the land. Findings from the work will empower the Nation to bring forward their own information to cumulative effects discussions and negotiations across diverse industries in the territory. The project is also intended to build capacity within the Nation for ongoing cumulative effects assessment in response to future development proposals.
o Kevan Berg is an ethnoecologist at Integral Ecology Group where he leads projects relating to cumulative effects and land use planning. IEG will be presenting the poster with COTTFN.
Coauthor 1: Jennifer Mills