AMC calls for Premier Pallister and Manitoba government to take the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report seriously
August 10, 2021
Treaty One Territory, Manitoba
alexpapineau
Treaty One Territory, Manitoba – Yesterday marked International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples under the theme, ‘leaving no one behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract.’ The same day the IPCC released the Climate Change Report. Decade after decade, both the climate scientific community, their research, and our First Nations Elders and Knowledge Keepers have been ignored in regards to their warnings and observations about the effects of climate change on our lands and on our ways of life.
“Given the dire nature of this report and what we are seeing within our Nations, this trend of ignoring climate science, data and ignoring First Nation leadership, Elders and Knowledge Keeper must end across the country and in this province,” said Grand Chief Arlen Dumas.
Grand Chief Dumas further states, “There is no surprise to our AMC member First Nations that the climate is being severely impacted by the effects of human activity, and there is little to no action in relation to repairing it. Increasingly, every year thousands of our people are being driven from our homes due to forest fires, our Fishers are watching the waters warm which is impacting the lakes affecting the livelihoods and the Treaty Right to fish for hundreds of First Nations citizens; animals that First Nations hunt have no food source, and are starving because of these fires and floods. Therefore, our traditional and cultural way of life is being threatened. Our treaty right to hunt and fish can no longer exist if these detrimental and life altering effects of climate change continue.”
“The 2021 IPCC climate report says the widespread and severe effects of climate change are here to stay,” added Grand Chief Dumas, “and it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. A new social contract must combat exclusion and marginalization and place First Nation solutions and voices at the forefront of the fight against the existential threat of climate change. The AMC member First Nations recognize the need for responsible resource development, including the need for clean renewable energy sources within our lands and territories, and call on Premier Pallister and the Manitoba Government to take the comments and recommendations in this report seriously and immediately create a table for us all to collaborate in a meaningful way.”
“There has not been a lot of reaction by the province to the outline in the report, and little to no reaction to yesterday’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples by the new provincial Minister of Reconciliation. More concerted efforts need to be immediately taken to reach a social contract with our First Nations in the face of the IPCC reports. We are the original stewards of the land and have a depth of experience and knowledge to guide everyone in the direction that ensures the earth’s protection for future generations. Not only is Traditional Indigenous Knowledge key to combatting climate change and informing climate change policies within provincial and federal sectors, it is critical to the establishment of new social contracts,” concluded Grand Chief Dumas.