What is an IPCA?
Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas, or IPCAs, are a conservation tool that protect nature and cultural values, while elevating the rights and responsibilities of Indigenous communities – and they are on the rise! IPCAs are defined as “lands and waters where Indigenous governments have the primary role in protecting and conserving ecosystems through Indigenous laws, governance and knowledge systems,” (ICE Report, 2018).
Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas, or “IPCAs”, are increasingly being established across Canada and globally, as Indigenous communities explore their potential for conservation and cultural protection. IPCAs exist globally under a range of names. “IPCA” is still a relatively new term in Canada, though the concept has been in action here for decades.
Indigenous Circle of Experts Report
In 2018, the Indigenous Circle of Experts (ICE) published a report on how Canada could reach international conservation targets through the creation of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs). The report laid out proposed terms and definitions for a spectrum of IPCAs, along with defining principles, characteristics, and elements.
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Elements of IPCAs
Indigenous-led
Indigenous governments have the main role in determining goals, management plans, and governance structures of the protected area. Other organizations (i.e., federal governments, provincial governments, ENGOs, etc.) may have a secondary role in management.
Long-term Commitment to Conservation
Indigenous Peoples often govern with a multi-generational lens, conserving lands for future generations. This is a framework that has kept ecosystems and communities thriving since time immemorial.
Elevate Indigenous rights and responsibilities
Some examples of rights and responsibilities include: the right to harvest, land-based practices, and the responsibility to care for and respect the lands and waters, in some cases through a formal co-management structure.
Critical Steps
Protection and Biodiversity Targets
Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas will be a critical step to meet land protection targets, and to address the biodiversity crisis. IPCAs and co-managed areas with Indigenous communities can help meet conservation outcomes.
Indigenous Guardians Programs
Shared responsibilities and management will help fill in the gaps where federal, provincial, and territorial governments do not have capacity to monitor or manage areas, particularly in remote locations, through tools like Indigenous Guardians Programs.
Traditional Knowledge
Traditional Knowledge, passed on for generations over millennia, provides deep insight on how to best manage lands and waters, and support biodiversity;
Maintenance of Biodiversity Hotspots
Locations that have historically been rich in biodiversity are often of high cultural and historical importance to Indigenous communities. Many generations of Indigenous practices have often supported the maintenance of this rich biodiversity, having been influenced by Indigenous practices for many generations.
IPCAs are an act of reconciliation
Recognizing Indigenous communities as authorities on their traditional territories.
IPCAs elevate the role of Indigenous communities in land use management, resource management, and conservation. By respecting and upholding the rights of Indigenous Peoples to be primary decision-makers on their lands, IPCAs are an act of reconciliation.Reframe and decolonize our current relationship with parks and protected areas.
IPCAs recognize the colonial, and often violent, history of the establishment of parks and protected areas – many of which were created based on the dispossession of Indigenous peoples from their homes and prohibiting their use or access to the land. IPCAs are a step forward in repairing some of this harm has perpetuated on generations of Indigenous peoples.Encourage us to rethink the concept of “wilderness”.
vast expanses of landscape and ecosystems are not absent of use by people or devoid of human influence. In many cases, the traditional territories of Indigenous peoples were defined by the rich biodiversity of those landscapes.Tying multiple ways of knowing
IPCAs provide opportunity to weave Indigenous ways of knowing with western science.
Both methods are incorporated in land management, monitoring, and research . This dual approach is the concepts of Two-Eyed Seeing. This ensures both knowledge systems are valued equally.IPCAs provide opportunity to weave Indigenous ways of knowing with western science.
Both methods are incorporated in land management, monitoring, and research . This dual approach is the concepts of Two-Eyed Seeing. This ensures both knowledge systems are valued equally.Traditional Knowledge refers to knowledge systems, creations, innovations, and cultural expressions.
The knowledge is defined by those that practice and are guided by them – that are passed down from generation to generation through means such as culture, language, and ceremony (ICE report). As it is passed down, it changes over time reflecting changes in the natural world. This unique perspective is invaluable and must be protected through language and ceremony, which is the core of an IPCA.How are IPCAs created?
IPCAs are first and foremost led by Indigenous communities.
This means Indigenous communities lead in every aspect of the protected area: from proposed identification to core values, from management planning to monitoring and enforcement, and even governance to determine sharing of power.There is no distinct template for IPCAs.
No standard exists for how IPCAs function, how large they should be or how they will be managed. Each IPCA uniquely reflects the values of the specific Nation leading it.There are currently 55 different types of legislation in Canada for creating protected areas,
There is no distinct national legislation for the creation of protected areas by Indigenous People. While this means that creating an IPCA is not straightforward, it reflects the flexible and open-ended nature of IPCAs.IPCA Management
IPCAs can involve co-management with various agencies including the provincial, territorial and/or federal governments.
Though IPCAs are a relatively new designation name, co-managed protected areas have existed for decades in various forms. Co-management, or cooperative management, generally refers to the sharing of power and responsibility for protected area planning and management between government and local users.
We continue to push for true co-management with Indigenous communities, where communities have expressed interest. Co-management is an equitable sharing of power and decision-making responsibility. Although cooperative management reflects a collaborative spirit, the Crown government retains primary authority and “final say” in decisions, and in practice remains more consultative than truly cooperative.
Are there IPCAs in Alberta?
Currently, there are no IPCAs in the province of Alberta. That does not mean there is an absence of Indigenous-led conservation initiatives in the province. Approaches to establish IPCAs are diverse and may or may not include formal recognition of Crown law.
What happens if laws do not recognize IPCAs?
If an IPCA is not recognized by provincial or federal law then there is a risk that it will not have protection under the Canadian legal system. This is an unfortunate reality of the current colonial system we live within. As such, some Nations may choose to work within these systems to eliminate the risk of unwanted resource development. However, these designations can be limiting to Indigenous communities.Under the Alberta parks legislations, some designations may align better with IPCA principles than others. For example, Wildland Provincial Parks could meet the principles of an IPCA since they allow for hunting and fishing and have relatively little infrastructure and no industrial development. Other land management tools that might apply include conservation easements, conservation directives, or lands considered to be OECMs (Other Effective Conservation Measures).
Progress in updated approaches to support Indigenous-led Conservation.
While Alberta still explores opportunities to support IPCAs, the provincial government has shown some progress in management actions that are getting closer to reflecting the three principles of an IPCA.
IPCAs can also be designated on federal lands, applying principles of Indigenous leadership in land-use plans to National Parks, National Wildlife Areas or National Park Reserves, as seen in the Northwest Territories with Edéhzhíe (co-designated as the Edéhzhíe National Wildlife Area and Dehcho Protected Area) and Thaidene Nëné (designated under Dene Law in 2019, with portions of the IPCA proceeding to be designated a National Park Reserve (NPR), a Territorial protected area (TPA), and a Wildlife Conservation Area (WCA).
Indigenous Protected Areas
M’behcho Cooperative Conservation Area, Dene Tha’ First Nation
Located in the northwest corner of Alberta, the Dene Tha’ First Nation hopes to achieve the protection and long-term management of the Bistcho Lake (M’behcho) region to conserve caribou habitat, cultural sites and practices, and areas of high biodiversity and soil carbon, while enhancing food security and supporting the Nation’s Guardian Program.
K’ihtsaa?dze Tribal Park, Doig River First Nation
K’ih tsaa?dze Tribal Park is an area declared by the Doig River First Nationon the border of British Columbia and Alberta. Since 2011, Doig River First Nation has committed to protecting the area from oil and gas and forestry activities, while maintaining Doig River traditional and contemporary cultural uses, and restoring and maintaining ecological integrity and biodiversity. The Alberta portion is not yet recognized by the Government of Alberta, but DRFN continues to pursue provincial protected area status.
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