Stewarding Indigenous marine territories in Canada

First Nations are combining the latest in scientific understanding with generations of place-based knowledge and wisdom to safeguard natural and cultural landscapes and seascapes for the future.

Image © Coastal First Nations

Image © Coastal First Nations

In October 2021, Only One partnered with the Coastal Guardian Watchmen to help sustainably manage traditional natural and cultural resources in the Great Bear Sea off the lush shoreline of British Columbia in Canada.

Only One Collective

The Coastal Guardian Watchmen is a regional initiative supported by Coastal First Nations, a unique alliance of First Nations on the  north and central coasts of British Columbia and Haida Gwaii. Covering 63,000 square miles, the traditional waters of the member communities of the Coastal First Nations Great Bear Initiative are among the most biologically diverse cold-water ocean environments on the planet.

The Coastal Guardian Watchmen provide baseline knowledge of the health of aquatic ecosystems, along with data to inform future resource management and decision-making · Coastal First Nations

Working to uphold and enforce Indigenous laws passed down by countless generations, the Coastal Guardian Watchmen monitor, protect, and restore First Nations’ ocean resources. They have a strong presence throughout their territories and are indispensable first responders to major marine spills or accidents. Although the Coastal Guardian Watchmen initiative provides a regional focus, each Nation also carries out its own distinctive stewardship traditions.

“We talk about protecting our ecosystems for the future, and we cannot do that without having an active presence out on the water.”
Marilyn Slett
Chief Councillor, Heiltsuk Nation
Earlier this year, four First Nations reached a groundbreaking agreement with Fisheries and Oceans Canada to close the commercial and recreational fisheries in 17 crab harvesting sites indefinitely. The decision was supported by 14 years of collecting data and integrating Indigenous knowledge with fisheries science · Coastal First Nations
Dive into what the Coastal Guardian Watchmen have planned for the coming months to explore your impact:
  • New uniforms and flags will make the Coastal Guardian Watchmen more recognizable to the public while they are out on the water

  • Indigenous gathering in 2022 will provide a vital opportunity for all the member Nations to decide upon marine stewardship priorities

  • Regional monitoring system will be enhanced to improve data analysis of Great Bear Sea ecosystems, species, and sport and commercial fishing

  • New computers and coasttracker tablets will boost natural and cultural resource management with methods including the creation of illustrative ocean maps

Why traditional stewardship of the Great Bear Sea matters

For as long as settlements have existed along the Pacific coast, First Nations peoples have cared for the remarkable ecosystems and species found in the Great Bear Sea. The ocean is their grocery store—a lifeline of salmon, sablefish, geoduck clams, Dungeness crabs, herring roe, red sea urchins, and many more traditional foods. Sustainable livelihoods, such as sport fishing, tourism, and scallop aquaculture, are supported by their coastal waters.

Salmon has sustained Indigenous communities along the British Columbia coast for countless generations · Cristina Mittermeier

Yet, for decades, colonialist mindsets and practices disrupted or outlawed First Nations governance of their own terrestrial and marine territories.

Kermode bears, a subspecies of black bear with a rare recessive gene that makes their fur white or cream, are called spirit or ghost bears by local First Nations · Cristina Mittermeier

The Coastal First Nations Great Bear Initiative was founded in 2005, and its member communities are now taking back their role as guardians of the land and sea, an effort buoyed by Canadian courts ruling in their favor. Despite the recent impositions, the traditions of the Indigenous peoples of coastal British Columbia remain the living law of the environment.

Humpback whales create unbelievable balletic scenes under the canopy of the Great Bear Rainforest · Cristina Mittermeier

The Coastal Guardian Watchmen are at the leading edge of a worldwide movement toward Indigenous-led stewardship, combining the latest in scientific understanding with generations of place-based knowledge and wisdom to safeguard natural and cultural landscapes and seascapes for the future.

“I think trying to introduce more of a holistic approach to management is extremely important. At the end of the day, we’re not going anywhere. We’ve been here for thousands of years and we hope to be here for thousands more.”
Doug Neasloss
Chief Councillor, Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation
Photo: Stretching from north Vancouver Island to the southern border of Alaska, the Great Bear Sea is one of the largest marine planning areas in the world · Cristina Mittermeier
Want to dive deeper? Watch the short film to hear from some of the inspiring individuals who are Coastal Guardian Watchmen.
Coastal First Nations

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