Guardians Programs Support Healing on the Land
August 10, 2021
On the land in the Thaidene Nëné Indigenous Protected Area, NWT. Photo: Pat Kane
When the Honourable Ethel Blondin-Andrew brought Sahtu youth out on the land for Guardian training camps last year, she saw the transformation before her eyes. “These camps were rich cultural experiences and spiritually rewarding. But most of all, they were healing,” said Blondin-Andrew. “Residential schools caused great grief and intergenerational trauma because they taught that we are not worthy of love. We are worthy of love. The kids in our camps get it. They know that being on the land is where they are the best human beings they can be,” said Blondin-Andrew.
The healing power of the land has gained renewed significance this summer. Each report of children’s graves at so-called residential schools has stirred devastating pain and loss. The findings don’t come as a surprise; Indigenous communities have known about the suffering at these institutions for generations. But reminders in the media trigger familiar trauma.
They also underscore the need for antidotes that restore health and strength. Indigenous Guardians programs provide one of those remedies.
Guardians programs support healing within individuals, communities, and the country as a whole. They embody the Indigenous teaching that if we take care of the land, the land will take care of us. By honouring this cultural responsibility for traditional territories, Guardians help strengthen our Nations after decades of colonization.
Over 70 Guardians programs are operating on the ground currently, and 25 are in the design phase. With added, sustained investment from Crown governments, more Indigenous Nations will launch Guardians programs, and more healing will unfold within communities and between Indigenous Nations and Canada.
“We need Guardians on the ground now more than ever,” said Blondin-Andrew. “We need them to address climate change and biodiversity loss. And we need them to help create beautiful futures for our communities and our country—despite what was done to us.”
Youth canoe trip, Dehcho First Nations, NWT. Photo: Amos Scott
Land-Based Healing from Trauma
For many young people, becoming a Guardian opens up opportunities to heal and recover. “The Guardian work I do has helped me with trauma, grief, and the loss of family members and friends,” said Tanya Ball, a member of the Dane nan yḗ dāh Network in British Columbia. “Going out on the land with Elders and learning the culture and language is a way of healing. You don’t want the day to end because there’s so much to learn.”
Jarrett Quock used to be a heavy equipment operator, working on job sites far from the traditional territory of the Tahltan First Nation in BC. He faced racism outside of his community and struggled with addiction. When a job opened at the Tahltan Wildlife Guardians, he decided to take it.
“Being a guardian helped me get through some of the tough times in my life,” Jarrett said. “Being connected to the land and talking with Elders helped me overcome addictions. It brought pride to me. At the end of the day, I can walk away with the pride of being First Nations.”
Launching a birch bark canoe with Wahkohtowin Guardians in Chapleau, Ontario. Photo: Amberly Quakegesic
Jarrett and Tanya are not alone. Research from Australia and Canada shows that Guardians programs create a host of benefits, including improved health and wellbeing. In fact, for every $1 invested, Guardians programs generated up to $3 in social, cultural, and economic benefits.
Reclaiming Knowledge
For too long government policies have criminalized, belittled, or sidelined Indigenous knowledge. In contrast, Guardians programs are rooted in Indigenous expertise and Indigenous law. Guardians are trained in western science techniques, but they are also guided by knowledge holders, learning how caribou herds have changed over time, where sturgeon can rebound, and why time on the land teaches important lessons.
Ka'a'gee Tu First Nation Elder and child. Photo: Pat Kane
“Listening to Guardians talk about their connection to the land and the pride they feel in Indigenous culture and knowledge, it feels like reclamation—like we are taking back what those schools tried to rob from us,” Dahti Tsetso, the deputy director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative (ILI).
Guardians programs provide a way for young people to immerse themselves in this knowledge. “I never got to learn from my Elders when I was younger,” explained William Alger of the Dehcho K’éhodi in the NWT. “Now as a Guardian, it’s so powerful learning all this stuff I missed out on. When I tell the Elders this, they get so filled with joy knowing there’s people who work toward the improvement of our people and our Nation.”
Reclaiming that knowledge is good for our communities, but it’s also good for the planet. A United Nations global assessment of biodiversity concluded that lands managed by Indigenous Peoples tend to be healthier and more vibrant than other areas. A University of British Columbia study looked at species data from Canada, Australia and Brazil and found that birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles were highest on lands cared for by Indigenous communities.
Ni Hat'Ni Dene Guardians prepare a meal near Lutsel K'e, NWT. Photo: Pat Kane
Where We Are at Our Best
Indigenous Peoples’ relationships with traditional territories help ensure these lands remain healthy. And in turn, these lands keep our communities healthy and strong. Stephanie Thorassie is the Director of Operations for the Seal River Watershed Alliance, which is working to establish an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area in northern Manitoba. “We know that to have a strong future for our communities, we need to have a strong base,” she said. “We need to have both feet on the ground, and we need to have a place to practice our culture. We want the future—the youth—to be strong. And to do that, you have to be strong in the land.”
Guardians are part of the larger movement of Indigenous-led conservation that ensures our communities are strong in the land. That includes having Guardians on our territories representing our Nations. As ILI Senior Leader Miles Richardson explained, Guardians are an expression of Nationhood, and “the best way to decolonize programs is to respect and implement your own Nations’ laws.”
But most of all, Guardianship calls for time on the land, especially in difficult times.
“The mass graves opened up wounds in our own community and across the country,” said Chief Heidi Cook of the Misipawistik Cree Nation in Manitoba. “Maintaining our relationships with the land is healing for a lot of our people. Going back to those natural laws and feeling the love that the land has for us—feeling the belonging in our space—that's the important thing.”
But as the chief also pointed out, Guardianship requires sustained investment. “With real change happening and real support for our communities to rebuild and heal through this work, I'm hopeful for the future.”
Going to a Dene Hand Games tournament in Bechoko, NWT. Photo: Peter Mather