The Project: Land Conservation

The lands and waters of Kitaskeenan Kaweekanawaynichikatek are part of the Hudson Bay Lowlands and home to the plants and animals that we have lived in relationship with for thousands of years. The Nayhenaway Ininewuk do not see the elements of Askiy as separate from each other. What affects the water, affects the plants and animals, the land, and ultimately the people. Anytime we see development happen in our territories, we see the changes to the living things we are in relationship with.

We, the Cree People, have special relationships with the caribou, moose, wolves, eagles, black bears, polar bears, moose, beluga whales, sturgeon, and all other fish that live throughout our territory. The land and waters hold many medicines that our people gather and have used to keep us healthy.

For the Western world, the Hudson Bay Lowlands holds significant ecological values and biodiversity. Kitaskeenan Kaweekanawaynichikatek includes significant polar bear denning and movement areas and is believed to be the only habitat where dens are dug in earth rather than snow. It is home to endangered eastern migratory caribou of the Cape Churchill and Pen Islands herds, as well as wolverine, moose, and other species.

Kitaskeenan contains portions of four Important Bird Areas. It hosts at least 165 different species of birds, including rare and threatened species of rusty blackbird, ross’ gull, and red-necked phalarope, alongside tremendous flocks of geese that have sustained the Ininewuk for centuries.

90% of the Hudson Bay Lowlands ecozone is covered in carbon-rich peatlands, making this the second largest peatland complex in the world, storing an estimated 35,000,000,000 tonnes of carbon. It annually sequesters an amount equal to approximately 8% of Canada’s total carbon emissions. Protecting this area therefore has global implications for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Our people have always believed that everything has a spirit. In our culture, women are the life givers and keepers of water. Water has a powerful spirit and we give thanks to water for the life it gives us in our water ceremonies.

Kitaskeenan Kaweekanawaynichikatek is also home to many major watersheds including those of the Hudson Bay, Churchill River, Nelson River, and the Hayes River. The Hayes River is formally designated as a Canadian Heritage River through Parks Canada’s Canadian Heritage River System. The waters are home to lake sturgeon, brook trout, seals and numerous other species long used and managed by the Nayhenaway Ininewuk.

These waters were used as main transportation routes by our peoples to travel to different hunting, trapping, fishing, and trading areas. The rivers are the lifeblood of our people, yet we have directly experienced the devastating impacts of hydro developments, which have impacted not only the drinking water and fish, but the migratory routes of the animals as well.

The Hudson Bay Lowlands ecoregion, which stretches across our ancestral lands, is home to the largest wetland in North America. This wetland provides significant benefits, such as improving water quality through filtration, flood control, recharging groundwater, and providing habitat for fish, birds, and wildlife.

Life cannot continue without water. This is why it is so important that we protect the watersheds that have not yet been developed in our territories.

Protecting the land is essential not just for securing a better future for our Nations, but for the benefit of all peoples. Our land sustains life and everything within it. In protecting our land, we consider all aspects of its past, present, and future, to meet the needs of our children, grandchildren, and those yet to come. To support all of the world’s people.