Guardians of Our Future
Indigenous Peoples have cared for lands and waters since time immemorial. And in the face of impacts from climate change and the dramatic loss of species, Indigenous Peoples across the world are leading successful conservation projects that protect healthy lands and help sustain biodiversity.
Guardians of Our Future, a short documentary produced by the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and Country Needs People, reveals the transformative power of Indigenous-led conservation through three compelling stories from Canada, Australia, and the United States.
These stories are examples of Indigenous-led conservation that occur on a large scale around the world, and about how these projects benefit not only local communities, but all of us. Governments of the world should recognize and invest in the leadership of Indigenous People – for the health of our planet and our shared future.
About the project
While the landscapes may change, the connection with plants, animals, lands, and water remains the same: over 80% of the world’s remaining biodiversity is on lands managed by Indigenous Peoples.
Guardians of Our Future showcases three Indigenous-led conservation initiatives stewarding this biodiversity.
In northern British Columbia, the Kaska Dena are working to protect one of the largest intact areas of the Boreal Forest in the heart of their traditional territory. In Australia, the Bardi Jawi Rangers’ use of traditional burning techniques prevents large-scale bushfires. And along the Columbia River Basin in the United States, tribes are working to restore fish species from near extinction.
Canada
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Indigenous Nations have led the creation of almost 90% of protected areas in Canada in the past 2 decades. Scores of proposed Indigenous Protected & Conserved Areas like this could span over 500,00 square kilometres. IPCAs are a key part of the world reaching its 30x30 commitments. The film takes us to Dene K'éh Kusān, a proposal to protect one of the largest intact areas of the Boreal Forest in the heart of the Kaska Dena people's traditional territory. The area is home to some of the highest concentrations of biodiversity in Canada, including some of the last remaining caribou herds. By establishing an IPCA, the Kaska people can reclaim their responsibility for the lands they have managed for millennia.
Australia
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Over half of the protected areas in Australia are Indigenous Protected Areas, managed by traditional land owners. Over 2000 Indigenous Rangers work on the country, protecting land and preserving biodiversity, by combining traditional knowledge with modern tools. The film follows the Bardi Jawi Rangers as they manage the country using fire, a practice that goes back thousands of years. Today, it helps prevent huge wildfires, which threaten homes and release enormous amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. The smaller, cooler burns remove the fuel that drives these fires, while maintaining habitat for the species who live. This knowledge is vital to confronting the threats before us today.
United States
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Indigenous People in the United States lead conservation initiatives in massive diversity of ecosystems, on the frontlines of the effects of climate change and biodiversity loss. Throughout the Columbia River Watershed, one of the largest in North America, the member tribes of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission engage in holistic management practices from the mountains to sea. Their work has brought salmon back from near extinction, a key species in the watershed and cornerstone of the tribes’ cultures. And by building the infrastructure and practices to protect a well known species like salmon, they have been able to direct the same energy into protecting other species vital to the tribes and the watershed. The film follows the work of the Nez Perce Tribes’ efforts to restore populations of pacific lamprey, a culturally important fish that has been decimated by dams on the river. We see how the tribes’ approach supports the health of the entire web of life, where everything has its place.
This short documentary was produced by the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and Country Needs People, in partnership with:
The Bardi Jawi Rangers Program, Dena Kayeh Institute and the Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh Guardian Program, the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Kimberley Land Council and the Nez Perce Fisheries Department.
Many thanks to everyone who participated in or were involved in the production of Guardians of Our Future.
About ILI & Our Partners
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The Indigenous Leadership Initiative is dedicated to facilitating the strengthening of Indigenous Nationhood for the fulfilment of the Indigenous responsibility to our lands, the emergence of new generations of Indigenous leaders, and helping communities develop the skills and capacity that they will need as they continue to become fully respected and equally treated partners in Canada’s system of governance and its economic and social growth.
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Country Needs People is an alliance calling to grow and secure Indigenous ranger jobs and Indigenous Protected Areas in Australia. The Country Needs People campaign is made up of more than 41 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations, who work directly on Indigenous land and sea management and more than 100 000 Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, who have called on their political representatives to support this work.
Country Needs People works continually with partner groups and supporters to ensure the message about keeping the country healthy is heard.