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Manitoba Minister Recognizes Importance of Trapping for Aboriginal Youth
The Honourable Stan Struthers, Manitoba Conservation Minister, attended a meeting in Winnipeg yesterday, in support of the Reconnecting with the Land program for Aboriginal youth, led by the Fur Institute of Canada and the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre. The program is the initiative of ten First Nations communities, education departments and hunting and trapping associations, to reinforce traditional culture and land based activities, through local elders and educators. Subjects include hunting, fishing, trapping, language skills and traditional ecological knowledge.
Minister Struthers sat in on Working Group discussions and heard about the importance of trapping and hunting to Aboriginal people throughout Manitoba, and concerns about the lack of traditional skills being passed on to youth. Bailey Colon, former Chief of Bunibonibee Cree Nation, stated, "This program is very important for our youth and for the cultural survival of our people."
Strong support has been received for the development of provincially recognized curriculum models that can be used by communities, from Manitoba First Nations communities and from Minister Struthers, the Honourable Eric Robinson, Minister of Culture, Heritage and Tourism, and the Honourable Oscar Lathlin, Minister of Aboriginal and Northern Affairs. Minister Struthers stated, "It is my belief that this alternative land based learning curriculum will provide an excellent education tool for Manitoba youth." He went on to say, "The program will serve to enhance participation in traditional activities related to the harvesting of natural resources, as well as increase ecological awareness."
Noting the Fur Institute of Canada's three years of experience developing programs in the Northwest Territories for at-risk youth, Executive Director Rob Cahill said, "The program is based on respect. Respect for self, family, elders, peers, the community and the land." He added, "We have witnessed remarkable changes in kids, where a local elder is the teacher and the environment is used as a classroom."
The Fur Institute of Canada, a national non-profit organization based in Ottawa, was established in 1983 on the initiative of the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Wildlife Ministers. Its overall mission is to promote the sustainable and wise use of Canada's fur resources.
For more information, please contact: Robert B. Cahill, Executive Director, Fur Institute of Canada, 130 Slater Street, Suite 605, Ottawa Ontario K1P 6E2. (613) 231-7099 x 226