One with Nature

For thousands of years, the Boreal Forest sustained generations of Aboriginal peoples, providing food, medicine and shelter. Plagued by a housing crisis of third world proportions, some First Nations are finding solutions in the forest, and in the use of age-old methods of harvesting these resources.

Recently, commercial and chemical based farming has moved in to the Muskoday area and the old ways were starting to become lost. Today, the First Nations people of Muskoday are forming organic co-ops where they are resurrecting the gardening techniques their elders used.

The Innu have thrived in the vast expansive Northeastern Canada for thousands of years doing what has always defined them as the people; living on the land. Today, the Innu have finally gained the means to defend themselves and their territory.

Near the shores of the Bay of Fundy, along the edge of the Annapolis valley is the tiny Mi'kmaq community of the Bear River First Nation. On the brink of extinction, Mi'kmaq traditions slowly returned through the stories and knowledge conveyed by Elders.

This is a telling of Mae Louise and her founding of the Grandmother Moon Lodge as an educational resource for First Nations women and Thunderbird House a First Nations resource and gathering place to bring attention to the daily abuse and sexual exploitation of women and children.

The severe impact of climate change is one of many challenges of the 21st century. In many aboriginal communities across Canada, people are turning to traditional ecological knowledge when dealing with modern environmental problems.

The food of Haida Gwaii tells a story of the food-gatherers on an island paradise that is so abundant that it enabled a sophisticated civilization to flourish. In this secluded island paradise, ties binding the generations are reflected in every facet of life.

For thousands of years, all along the west coast of North America, indigenous nations thrived by living in harmony with the natural world around them. This age-old way of life on an island paradise is threatened but, the sacred spirit of a rarely seen animal may hold the key to their survival.

The story of how Shoal Lake 40 ended up without access to clean drinking water and cut off from the mainland goes back a century. Shoal Lake band members are turning to traditional ways where they are discovering the deep-rooted values and sacred knowledge that will guide them in their fight.

The struggle of the Oujé-Bougoumou to create a place of their own not only brought the world to their door, but it revolutionized the concept of what it means to be a community.

In 1971, life as the Cree people of James Bay knew it came to an end, with the start of Quebec's James Bay Hydroelectric Project. Now, scientists and Cree elders work together to preserve the lands and the Cree's traditional environmental knowledge.

When Chief Cowessess signed Treaty 4 in 1874, he wanted to ensure his people retained their independence and self-sufficiency. Today a new chapter is being written in the history of Cowessess First Nation, one that will see their vision of a sustainable future realized.