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NATIONAL ABORIGINAL FORESTRY ASSOCIATION |
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There can be no doubt since recent negotiations on the constitution and on land claims that Aboriginal people are going to become more involved in forestry and natural resource management. Where agreements have been reached, such as in the James Bay area of Quebec, in the western Arctic where land claim settlement negotiations are well advanced, and in the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and elsewhere where new arrangements are being discussed, Aboriginal groups are exercising control over natural resources on large areas and will have a strong voice in resource management on other lands in their traditional use areas.
This means more trained Aboriginal foresters, wildlife managers, range managers and other professionals, technicians and workers are required. The training and education of Aboriginal resource managers and workers will be a major challenge for Aboriginal people, governments, training institutions and forest companies.
The population of Aboriginal people is growing more rapidly than that of other Canadians. About 37% of the Aboriginal population is under 15 years of age, compared to about 22% for all Canadians. The future of these children is a great concern. For the adult Aboriginal population, 1986 Census statistics indicate that 65% of a total enumerated Aboriginal population of 451,000 over 15 years old worked for income during some portion of 1985 or 1986. Of this 65%, 8,850 found work in the logging and forest industries. Only half this number were employed at the time of the census, making up 7% of the total forestry and logging work force, 5% at the foreman/woman level. The highest concentration of Aboriginal workers in 1986 was in the forestry conservation category, primarily fire control, making up 13% of that work force.
The Indian Lands Program of the Forest Resource Development Agreements (FRDA) has served to introduce a large number of Aboriginal people to the possibilities of careers in renewable resources.
INAC reports that the proportion of on-reserve students that complete secondary school has increased from 3% in 1960/61 to 47% in 1990/91. Less than 1% of status Indians receiving support for post-secondary school from INAC have been studying natural resources.
Several observations were made about the future of the forest industry in Canada:
Canada's forest industry is going through a difficult period as a result of the recession, increasing competition from foreign sources of pulp, pressures to convert to new pulp bleaching methods, the demands for newsprint containing recycled paper and U.S. import duties on Canadian lumber.
The combination of factors listed above and continuing industrial efforts to reduce labour forces through mechanization suggest a gradually reducing forest operations work force, at least in the near term, except in Manitoba and Alberta, where new pulping facilities may offer new opportunities in forest management.
Opportunities in other sectors, particularly silviculture and activities related to integrated resource management, including wildlife and recreation management, may experience small increases over the next decade.
In addition to poor outlook for employment in the forest industry, Aboriginal people face other barriers in employment and training, including:
A highly competitive, mechanized and cost-driven timber harvesting sector creates employment barriers including high costs of entry for contractors, the need for entrepreneurial and business management skills, training and experience with sophisticated machinery and relatively high education levels.
Several Aboriginal representatives who were consulted believe that a fundamental barrier to employment in the forest sector is a lack of commitment by industry to employ Aboriginal people.
Forest management plans emphasizing timber production are seen as diminishing opportunities in traditional pursuits of fishing, hunting and trapping.
Although there are exceptions, most Aboriginal communities do not have access to sufficient forest land to maintain even a small forestry employment base.
The short-term nature of many reforestation and stand improvement projects makes it difficult to attract workers, in competition with either the social welfare system or full time employment in other fields.
With few role models in their communities, some young Aboriginal people perceive woods work as menial employment.
A low level of self esteem exhibited by many young Aboriginal workers tends to be self-fulfilling, with low achievement levels in training programs and poor productivity on the job which reduces job opportunities.
Some training courses fail to attract enthusiastic response because they are not seen as part of an integrated training package required for a multifaceted career in the forestry sector.
Many Aboriginal students have difficulties adjusting to the environment of urban colleges and universities.
Secondary school career counsellors and governmental bodies involved with training and education do not seem to have highlighted the possibilities in natural resource management.
The relevance of course content and communication between instructor and student are enhanced when training courses are developed and offered by Aboriginal instructors.
Many educational institutions recognize the need to incorporate Aboriginal values and culture in course content but it remains to be seen how well this has been accomplished.
Past studies and consultations with Aboriginal representatives show a chronic need for human resource development in all aspects of forest related education and training. The Proposal for a First Nations Natural Resource Sciences Program at the University of British Columbia defined the need very well:
First Nations have direct management responsibility for a significant share of B.C.'s natural resources and through emerging co-management approaches, will have indirect control over a much larger fraction. Yet very few Aboriginal people have formal training in natural resource management. The creation of a pool of Aboriginal experts in resource management has the potential to offset problems of communications, respect, trust and knowledge between Aboriginal groups and B.C.'s government ministries charged with resource management. Formal education in natural resource management, combined with traditional knowledge, would instill in Aboriginal people the kind of expertise needed to manage their lands effectively and to increase their participation in the resource management sector in general.
What is true in B.C. has parallels across the country. Initial findings suggest that there may be fewer opportunities in the timber harvesting sector in most provinces other than Manitoba and Alberta. On the other hand, activities are expected to continue at existing levels or increase in forest renewal and silviculture. Pressures for more integrated forest management are expected to increase demand for professional and technical personnel with education in holistic resource management. Opportunities for Aboriginal communities to acquire access to larger forest land bases appear to be increasing in several provinces.
A professional resource manager is only as good as the technicians and workers who are applying natural resource management techniques in the field. The few graduates of the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, the National Indian Forestry Institute at Meadow Lake and the Native Resources Technician Program at Sault College are working in their communities and in the forest industry to implement Aboriginal natural resource management objectives.
More effective training for natural resource workers is needed in all fields. While ad hoc training has assisted some Aboriginal people to become involved in forestry, the training has often lacked focus and has not been structured for progression to higher levels of training. The need for training in the business end of silviculture and contracting has been identified. Aboriginal businesses are operating in a very difficult and competitive business environment.
The purpose of Phase 1, and therefore of this study, was to review information available on the human resource development needs of Aboriginal people in the forestry sector. This study provides the background information with a discussion of the issues and needs of the emerging Aboriginal forestry sector. The report is focused primarily on opportunities within the existing forest industry with its focus on timber harvesting. This is simply a reflection of current sources of information and activities. More and more, other values of the forest are being given equal weight in integrated resource management programs. Aboriginal people are well suited to lead the movement toward integrated resource management.
Phase 2 will provide a framework and a plan of action to meet the human resource development needs of Aboriginal people over the next ten years. The purpose of Phase 2 should be to:
Define training, education programs and hiring practices that will encourage and ensure full access to jobs and economic development opportunities for Aboriginal people in the current forestry sector and encourage the enhancement of traditional Aboriginal forest values.
The title for Phase 2 should be, "An Education and Training Strategy for Aboriginal People in the Forest Sector."
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