Journal of Aboriginal Economic Development
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Incremental Planning: The Tsawwassen First Nation Experience
No full textIn terms of community planning in Canada, it can easily be argued that the Tsawwassen First Nation in British Columbia is undergoing one of the most challenging processes in present-day planning practice. Since the signing of the Tsawwassen First Nation Final Agreement - the first contemporary urban treaty in the country, several economic development activities have been negotiated, all within a comprehensive land use planning strategy initiated by Tsawwassen Chief Kim Baird, that can only be referred to as \u27innovative\u27 and \u27bold\u27. Several multimillion dollar projects are in the works, including a four hundred (400) million dollar shopping mall, an inland port, and a series of subdivisions that will eventually accommodate 4,000 new residents. The planning process of integrating the First Nation lands within a peri-urban framework, all-the-while maintaining a progressive, jurisdictional approach that places traditional values, transparency and community well-being at the forefront of a list of several important and at times competing planning tenets, is, at best, ambitious. The objective, to Chief Baird, is to create an economy that welcomes investment, all-the-while attracting families, within a First Nation regime that is fair to all stakeholders. The journey has been a long one, having its roots in colonial times, with the Chief\u27s great grand-father\u27s eventual address to the McKenna-McBride Commission, adhering to the British Columbia Treaty Commission\u27s Treaty Process, becoming a signatory to the Framework Agreement on First Nation Lands Management, and culminating in what would arguably be the most significant urban treaty in Canadian history-the Tsawwassen First Nation Final Agreement. The whole has provided for a complex blend of lands whose uses together must satisfy needs that extend from the culturally important past into an economically viable future. The land use planning process for this very special set of lands and stakeholders is therefore not straightforward, having required an incremental approach that is novel and worth consideration for other communities undergoing rapid change
Aboriginal Employment: Continuing to Improve in 2012
No full textThe employment rate for Aboriginals living off-reserve in Canada continued to improve in 2012. It increased to 56.9%, a rate of two percent (2%) over 2011. This is impressive when compared to the zero growth rate for non-Aboriginals. The participation rate for Aboriginals living off-reserve in Canada also increased. It grew from 64.1% to 65.2%. In addition, the gap between Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals for employment rates and participation rates continued to narrow in 2012. When employment is examined by educational level, there is no meaningful difference between Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals. There is also a clear relationship that increased levels of education are associated with higher employment rates and participation rates. Aboriginal employment in 2012 increased the most in Ontario. It is also the province with the largest Aboriginal as well as non-Aboriginal populations. The sectors in which the largest increases in Aboriginal employment in 2012 occurred were in construction, manufacturing, health care and social assistance and information, culture and recreation
“Full Circle”: Theories of Property Rights as Indicated by Two Case Summaries Concerning the Individualization of Collective Indigenous Lands Interests
No full textThe "Rule of Law" and "Individual Property Rights" are often regarded as necessary conditions for economic growth and development. Recently, the common ownership of First Nation reserve lands in Canada was identified as "Dead capital." Apparently, the problems of delayed development can be traced to a dysfunctional property system. A serious critique of collective ownership with its concomitant high transactions costs suggests a stronger on-reserve role for market relations. Only by individualizing land ownership and coming out from under the Indian Act can the commercial potential of reserve lands be realized. Clearly, a closer look at the property rights paradigm is required. To assist with a discussion of such proposals for development, this paper will employ a critical economic history approach, by (i) explaining the foundations of the property rights paradigm; (ii) employing two case summaries to demonstrate how US and Canadian authorities directed the conversion of collective Indigenous land holdings to individual transferable titles; and (iii) identifying some outcomes associated with the creation of transferable individual rights in property. Two case summaries demonstrate how economic history can illustrate the private property rights experiences of Indigenous peoples. Coercion by the United States government resulted in the breakup (allotment) and sale of large Indian territorial reservation lands. In the Canadian prairie west, Métis entitlements took the form of grants of millions of acres of scrip and the assignment or conveyance of their interests left them without a land base. In these cases, lands and entitlements ostensibly reserved for Indigenous peoples were diverted to emerging settler land markets. Evidence suggests that the weaker property rights of speculators/settlers triumphed over the legally recognized rights of Indigenous peoples. In other words, the Rule of Law in respect of property was somewhat different for settlers/speculators and Indigenous peoples. In these historical cases, the individualization of collective ownership into transferable assets had similar outcomes that do not seem to accord with predictions that economic growth will ensue from the promotion of private property rights and the reduced transaction costs
2012 Economic Developer Of The Year Award Winners
No full textEileen works together with Aboriginal Business Canada (ABC), Ulnooweg Development Group and other federal, provincial and community economic development agencies to determine how best to provide investment capital and funding to support new business ventures in Membertou. In keeping up with the needs of her clients, Eileen maintains memberships in several organizations including the Atlantic Aboriginal Economic Development Network (AAEDN), the Sydney and Area Chamber of Commerce, the Canada-Nova Scotia-Mi\u27kmaq Tripartite Forum, CANDO, E-Spirit Youth Entrepreneur Program and she is also a member of the Membertou Governance Committee. ABENAKI ASSOCIATES - PARTNERING WITH FIRST NATIONS FOR SUCCESS In today\u27s competitive business environment, a company\u27s reputation and market knowledge are precious assets. Abenaki was the first company to provide First Nations related financial software training on topics including Financial Reporting, Accounts Receivable and Payable, Payroll, Asset Management, Purchase orders and Commitment Accounting
Land Management On Individually Held Lands Under The Indian Act Reserve Land Tenure System: Experiences from the Penticton Indian Band
No full textThis paper is based on case study research with the Penticton Indian Band (PIB) that examined the land management implications of individual landholdings (Certificates of Possession, CPs) on First Nations reserves under the Indian Act, both historically and today. We summarize the history of the landholdings system on PIB\u27s main reserve and report on how CPs impact PIB\u27s contemporary local land management. We also discuss PIB\u27s efforts to adapt its land tenure and management systems locally while continuing to operate within the overall land management framework of the Indian Act; efforts that make PIB\u27s experiences particularly interesting for other First Nations and their land managers, federal officials and policy makers, and researchers. Our objective in this paper is to complement and broaden existing research on CPs by focusing on land management challenges from PIB\u27s experiences
Land Management on First Nations Reserves: Lawful Possession and Its Determinants
No full textMuch debate concerning property rights on reserves in Canada focuses on socio-economic impacts and the potential for individualized land tenure to support economic development, thereby reducing poverty. Study of existing forms of individual property on reserves is needed to inform these debates. In this article, we examine data on the lawful possession (Certificate of Possession) system that is currently used on reserves across Canada. We provide descriptive statistics regarding the variability of lawful possessions across First Nations and using regression analysis we assess which socio-economic, demographic, and locational variables influence the use of lawful possessions instead of communal land or other customary land holding systems. We show that use of the lawful possession system is surprisingly low and very uneven. As well, our regression results suggests that using the system requires a relatively educated community with low levels of poverty, with a favourable geographic location. Overall, the results are consistent with the view that lawful possessions are not primarily used to foster economic development
Institutional Change On First Nations: Examining Factors Influencing First Nations’ Adoption of the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management
No full textIn 1999 the Canadian Federal government passed the First Nations Land Management Act, ratifying the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management signed by the government and 14 original signatory First Nations in 1996. This Agreement allows First Nations to opt out of the 34 land code provisions of the Indian Act and develop individual land codes, and has been promoted as a means of increasing First Nation autonomy and facilitating economic growth and development on reserve lands. There are currently 77 First Nation signatories to the Agreement, 39 with operational independent land codes. This paper is the first to empirically examine factors that may influence a First Nation\u27s decision to become signatory to the Framework Agreement. A unique dataset characterizing each First Nation by socio-economic and demographic characteristics is used with a probit model to determine the effects of these characteristics on the probability of First Nation adoption of the Agreement. The results of this study indicate that proximity to an urban centre positively affects the probability that a First Nation will adopt. However, the statistical strength of this finding is sensitive to the inclusion of an education variable in the regression