Ontario conference examines Indigenous-led forestry, biomass
October 16, 2024
By Mike Stimpson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter for NWO Newswatch
Jason Rasevych, president of the Anishnawbe Business Professional Association and director of Waawoono Consultancy, says many communities in Northern Ontario “have been able to increase their participation in the forest sector through a process of having a stronger voice and decision-making role on the forest units that are within their traditional territory.
“There’s also been communities that have utilized innovation and technology to be able to advance their projects on leveraging the local forests for the production of energy or electricity related to biomass projects,” he continued.
Rasevych made a presentation on “Heavyweights of Indigenous Forest Tenure” at the recent National Summit on the Indigenous Forest Bioeconomy.
“The (National Aboriginal Forestry Association has) done a great job to bring people from across Canada that are involved in the forest sector, mainly Indigenous-led forest management companies and also government and some of the technical capacity that communities work with,” he said of the conference organizers.
Rasevych said communities can find new ways to use forests to help support themselves, from biofuels, including sustainable aviation fuels, to the electric vehicle battery market related to bio-graphite.
“So [there are] a lot of new ideas that are coming together and being shared here, but a lot of that has to do with the increasing role for First Nations to be decision makers on what is called these Crown units,” he said.
Bradley Young, NAFA’s executive director, said conference participants shared stories of how Indigenous and First Nations peoples are leading the charge on the new forest bioeconomy, including”developing the economy, working with their culture, working with their values, working with their young people’s innovation, new technology, and just trying to build (a) good way of life in our communities that our elders had a vision for,” he said.
The summit, hosted by Fort William First Nation, included presentations by people from Cat Lake, Whitesand, Pikangikum and other First Nations in Northwestern Ontario.