Habitat Conservation
Turtle Island
Canada and the United States of America share an outsized responsibility to address climate change and global inequality, at the same time. Our American dream must dare to limit global warming to no more than two degrees Celsius above the average pre-industrial surface temperatures, beyond which natural systems on Earth are tipped to unravel. Climate action by Canadians and Americans, alike, must call on institutional and political support for Indigenous stewardships of land across Turtle Island, then carry out financial and technological support of underdeveloped infrastructure in developing nations around the world.
“How […] could the North ever accept the necessity of large-scale financial and technological investments in a climate mobilization, including massive support to the South? How, given the [American] refusal of ‘top down’ obligations and its insistence on ‘flexibility,’ could any sort of principle- and indicator-driven framework come to guide the negotiations? How, given the North’s fear of a rising Asia, and its stubborn insistence that the South is both unwilling and unable to restrain its own emissions, will the North ever come to see the implacability of the logic – the fear of a foreclosed future – which most deeply animates the South’s negotiators? And how, given that the North’s blindness on these points is an almost perfect, ready-made excuse for its own continued free-riding, can there be any path to rapidly increased global ambition that does not begin in the North?” — Sevon Kartha, Tom Athanasiou and Paul Baer, What Next, Vol 3 (2012)
Indigenous land stewardships account for around eighty per cent of biodiversity on Earth, however, Indigenous communities constitute only around five per cent of the people on the planet. Many aboriginal and traditional ways of life in the world, today, are on the verge of vanishing… Animat Habitat has recognized Indigenous land stewardships and select wildlife conservation organizations working with Indigenous communities to protect and restore nature across Turtle Island.
Committees on Conservartion
Conservation in Canada
Conservation in Mexico
Conservation in the United States
Gitchi Mikinaak
Wherever the land we inhabit on this great turtle – in Canada, in the United States, or in México – we can learn about our local ecology and connect with the nature in our biosphere region. We can look to understand the role we share within our communal spaces, changing the way we think about the place we call home. Discovering the unique natural diversity of the landscapes and the seascapes – even in the shadows of the cityscapes – around us all will reveal ways to care for those wild places and the animals that live in them.
When travelling across Turtle Island, we can also look to learn from the cultures and histories of Indigenous communities with land claims or tribal lands where, to this day, biodiverse ecosystems have thrived under Indigenous stewardship. We can seek out interpretive programs that offer a better understanding of any fauna and flora found in our biosphere region or the biosphere region of our travel destination. And we can venture to visit national parks and reserves and national marine conservation areas where the money we spend will support Parks Canada, or the provincial parks departments, and the local communities that steward these wild places.
Canada
- Anticosti QC
- Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks AB-BC
- Gros Morne National Park NL
- SGang Gwaay [1, 2] BC
- Joggins Fossil Cliffs NS
- Miguasha National Park QC
- Nahanni National Park NT
- Pimachiowin Aki MB-ON
- Wood Buffalo National Park AB-NT
+ Alberta
- Blue Quills National Wildlife Area [3]
- Elk Island National Park
- Suffield National Wildlife Area [3]
- Meanook National Wildlife Area [3]
- Spiers Lake National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by the Ministry of Environment and Protected Areas of Alberta.
- Alaksen National Wildlife Area [3]
- Columbia National Wildlife Area [3]
- Glacier National Park
- Gulf Islands National Park Reserve
- Hecate Strait/Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area [4]
- Mount Revelstoke National Park
- Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
- Qualicum National Wildlife Area [3]
- Scott Island Marine National Wildlife Area [3]
- SGáan Kínghlas-Bowie Seamount Marine Protected Area [4]
- Tang.Gwan – hačxwiqak – Tsigis Marine Protected Area [4]
- Vaseux-Bighorn National Wildlife Area [3]
- Widgeon Valley National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Parks.
+ Manitoba
- Pope National Wildlife Area [3]
- Riding Mountain National Park
- Rockwood National Wildlife Area [3]
- Wapusk National Park
More habitats protected by the Manitoba Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.
- Cape Jourimain National Wildlife Area [3]
- Fundy National Park
- Kouchibouguac National Park
- Musquash Estuary Marine Protected Area [4]
- Portage Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Portobello Creek National Wildlife Area [3]
- Shepody National Wildlife Area [3]
- Tintamarre National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by NB Parks under the Department of Tourism, Recreation and Outdoor in New Brunswick.
- Akami−Uapishkᵘ−KakKasuak−Mealy Mountains National Park Reserve
- Eastport Marine Protected Area [4]
- Gilbert Bay Marine Protected Area [4]
- Laurentian Channel Marine Protected Area [4]
- Terra Nova National Park
- Torngat Mountains National Park
More habitats protected by Parks NL under the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife in Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Anguniaqvia niqiqyuam Marine Protected Area [4]
- Aulavik National Park
- Edéhzhíe Protected Area [3]
- Nááts'ihch'oh National Park Reserve
- Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area [4]
- Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve
- Tuktut Nogait National Park
More habitats protected by the Northwest Territories Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment.
- Big Glace Bay Lake National Wildlife Area [3]
- Boot Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Cape Breton Highlands National Park
- Chignecto National Wildlife Area [3]
- Country Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Isle Haute National Wildlife Area [3]
- John Lusby Marsh National Wildlife Area [3]
- Kejimkujik National Park
- Sable Island National Park Reserve
- Sand Pond National Wildlife Area [3]
- Sea Wolf Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- St Anns Bank Marine Protected Area [4]
- The Gully Marine Protected Area [4]
- Wallace Bay National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources.
+ Ontario
- Big Creek National Wildlife Area [3]
- Bruce Peninsula National Park
- Eleanor Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Georgian Bay Islands National Park
- Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area [1]
- Long Point National Wildlife Area [3]
- Mississippi Lake National Wildlife Area [3]
- Mohawk Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Point Pelee National Park
- Prince Edward Point National Wildlife Area [3]
- Pukaskwa National Park
- Rouge National Urban Park
- Scotch Bonnet Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- St Clair National Wildlife Area [3]
- Thousand Islands National Park
- Wellers Bay National Wildlife Area [3]
- Wye Marsh National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by Ontario Parks under the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks in Ontario.
- Basin Head Marine Protected Area [4]
- Pituamkek National Park
- Prince Edward Island National Park
More habitats protected by the Prince Edward Island Department of Fisheries, Tourism, Sport and Culture.
+ Québec
- Baie de l'Isle-Verte National Wildlife Area [3]
- Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area [4]
- Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area [3]
- Forillon National Park
- Îles de Contrecoeur National Wildlife Area [3]
- Îles de la Paix National Wildlife Area [3]
- Îles de l'Estuaire National Wildlife Area [3]
- Lake Saint-François National Wildlife Area [3]
- La Mauricie National Park
- Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve
- Pointe-au-Père National Wildlife Area [3]
- Pointe de l'Est National Wildlife Area [3]
- Saguenay–St Lawrence Marine Park [1]
More habitats protected by the Société des établissements de plein air du Québec under the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks in Québec.
- Bradwell National Wildlife Area [3]
- Grasslands National Park
- Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Area [3]
- Prairie Pastures Conservation Area [3]
- Prince Albert National Park
- Raven Island National Wildlife Area [3]
- Stalwart National Wildlife Area [3]
- St Denis National Wildlife Area [3]
- Tway National Wildlife Area [3]
- Webb National Wildlife Area [3]
More habitats protected by Saskatchewan Parks under the Ministry of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport in Saskatchewan.
+ Yukon
- Ivvavik National Park
- Nisutlin River Delta National Wildlife Area [3]
- Vuntut National Park
More habitats protected by the Yukon Territory Department of Environment.
There are a number of national parks and reserves not listed in the provinces and territories where these overlay those listed in the heritage sites. More habitats protected under the Canada National Parks Act, and administered by Parks Canada under the jurisdiction of the Department of Environment and Climate Change, Canada (ECCC).
Canada – United States
- Kluane – Wrangell-St Elias – Glacier Bay – Tatshenshini-Alsek AK-BC-YT
- Waterton Glacier International Peace Park AB-MT
United States
We should have taken that left turn at Albuquerque.
México
Publicado pronto.
Wabinaki
People of the dawn—Wabanaki people of the Atlantic provinces in Canada and northeastern states of Maine, New England and, once upon a time, New Hampshire and Vermont in America include the Abenaki, the Mi’kmaq, the Peskotomuhkati… More.
People of the dawn—Wabanaki people of the Atlantic provinces in Canada and northeastern states of Maine, New England and, once upon a time, New Hampshire and Vermont in America include the Abenaki, the Mi’kmaq, the Peskotomuhkati, the Penobscot and the Wolastoqiyik. These First Nations are those entered in the number of Maritime Peace and Friendship Treaties with the Crown. Wabanaki territories remain unceded.
Maritime Peace and Friendship Treaties (1725-1779) [6]
- Abenaki Nation
- Mi'kmaq First Nations
- Peskotomuhkati Nation
- Penobscot Nation
- Wolastoqiyik First Nations
More about the Wabanaki.
Haudenosauneega
Six nations of the grand river—the Cayuga, the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Seneca and the Tuscarora constitute the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Haudenosauneega, also known as Iroquoia, once extended from New York State… More.
Six nations of the grand river—the Cayuga, the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Seneca and the Tuscarora constitute the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Haudenosauneega, also known as Iroquoia, once extended from New York State, north into the great hills and great swamps of Ontario and Quebec, along the lower Great Lakes – upper St Lawrence, and south on both sides of the Allegheny Mountains into Virginia, Kentucky and the Ohio Valley. Six Nations reserve in Ontario, Canada, has returned Indigenous rights to around two twenty-fifths of the territory.
Upper Canada Land Surrenders (1781-1862) [6]
- Cayuga Nation
- Mohawk Tribes
- Oneida Nations
- Onondaga Nation
- Seneca Nation of Indians
More about the people of the long house—Haudenosaunee.
Anishinabewaki
The original people—Anishinaabe are a group of culturally related Algonquian peoples from the Great Lakes and the Northern Plains of Canada and the United States of America, also commonly related to the Wabanaki and the Haudenosaunee. … More.
The original people—Anishinaabe are a group of culturally related Algonquian peoples from the Great Lakes and the Northern Plains of Canada and the United States of America, also commonly related to the Wabanaki and the Haudenosaunee. First Nations from the Great Lakes region include the Bodwéwadmi—also known as the Potawatomi, the Mississaugas, the Nipissing, the Odawa, the Ojibwe and the Omàmìwininìwag—also known as the Algonquin. Anishinaabe territories, in part, in eastern Ontario and southern Quebec, where there is now the city of Ottawa, remain unceded.
Lake Huron Treaty (1850), Lake Superior Treaty (1850), Georgian Bay – Ottawa River Treaty (1923), Lake Ontario – Lake Simcoe Treaty (1923) [6]
- Algonquin Nation
- Mississauga First Nations
- Nipissing First Nation
- Ojibwe First Nations
- Potawatomi Nation
More about Anishinabek Nation.
Nêhiyaw Askiy – Nishnawbe Aski
The original people’s land—the Anisininew, the Cree, the Niitsítapi—also known as Blackfoot people, the Oyate—Assiniboine and Stoney, and other Indigenous peoples from the Great Lakes region, across the Great Plains region, into the western mountains… More.
The original people’s land—the Anisininew, the Cree, the Niitsítapi—also known as Blackfoot people, the Oyate—Assiniboine and Stoney, and other Indigenous peoples from the Great Lakes region, across the Great Plains region, into the western mountains entered in a number of the earlier so-called Numbered Treaties with the Crown. The first seven of the Numbered Treaties settled lands that closed the great distance between land settlements of the Lake Huron and Lake Superior Treaties in the east and the Vancouver Island Treaties in the west. These land settlements consolodated the British colonies in the face of American advances on the Hudson Bay watershed, also, conferred access to natural resources across the Great Plains. Numbered Treaty 9 settled lands of the Hudson Bay and James Bay watersheds. In the case of these Numbered Treaties, Indigenous peoples have disputed a number of colonial promises made, and not kept. The Great Plains of Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta remain contested original people’s land.
Numbered Treaties 1-7 (1871-1877), James Bay Treaty – Numbered Treaty 9 (1905-1906, 1929-1930) [6]
- Apatosi Piikani, Kainaiwa · Blackfoot Nations
- Cree First Nations
- Northern Cheyenne Nation
- Dakota, Nakota · Oyate Nations
- Tsuutʼina Nation
More about First Nations entered in Treaty 1, Treaty 2, Treaty 3, Treaty 4, Treaty 5, Treaty 6, Treaty 7 and the James Bay Treaty.
Modern Treaties in Manitoba
More about the Siksikaitsitapi—the Blackfoot Confederacy.
More about the Cree in Eeyou Istchee.
More about the Oyate, also called Sioux, in Očhéthi Šakówiŋ.
More about the Tsuutʼina—formerly known as the Sarcee.
Dënéndeh
The land of the people—the Dene, the Gwich'in and other Athabaskan-speaking or otherwise Indigenous peoples from the northern Great Plains region into the Northwest Territories entered in a number of the later Numbered Treaties with the Crown. … More.
The land of the people—the Dene, the Gwich'in and other Athabaskan-speaking or otherwise Indigenous peoples from the northern Great Plains region into the Northwest Territories entered in a number of the later Numbered Treaties with the Crown. Numbered Treaties 8, 10 and 11 settled lands that opened access to natural resources in the north. Thirty-nine First Nations entered in Treaty 8, the most comprehensive of the eleven Numbered Treaties in terms of area. Seven First Nations entered in Numbered Treaty 10. Another twenty-one entered in the last of the Numbered Treaties, Numbered Treaty 11. Indigenous peoples retain limited rights on ceded lands of the people and the unceded territories of the Dënéndeh.
Numbered Treaties 8 (1899), 10 (1906-7), 11 (1921) [6]
- Cree First Nations
- Dene First Nations
- Gwich'in First Nations
More about First Nations entered in Treaty 8, Treaty 10 and 11.
Modern Treaties in Northwest Territories [7]
- Gwich'in Land Claim (1992) [gwichintribal.ca]
- Sahtu Dene and Métis Land Claim (1994)
- Tłı̨chǫ Nation (2005) [tlicho.ca]
- Délı̨nę (2015) [9]
Modern Treaties in the Yukon [7]
- First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun (1995) [nndfn.com]
- Champagne and Aishihik First Nations (1995) [cafn.ca]
- Vuntut Gwich'in First Nation (1995) [vgfn.ca]
- Teslin Tlingit Council (1995) [cyfn.ca]
- Selkirk First Nation (1997) [selkirkfn.com]
- Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation (1997) [lscfn.ca]
- Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in First Nation (1998) [trondek.ca]
- Ta’an Kwäch’än Council (2002) [taan.ca]
- Kluane First Nation (2004) [kfn.ca]
- Kwanlin Dün First Nation (2005) [kwanlindun.com]
More about the Cree in Eeyou Istchee.
More about Dene Nation.
More about the Gwich'in.
Pacific Coast
People of the salt water and the open sea and so on—Indigenous peoples in Canada along the Pacific coast of Turtle Island include Haida, Kwakwaka'wakw—called Kwakiutl, Lingít Aaní—called Tlingit, Ts’msyen—called Tsimshian, Tse’khene… More.
People of the salt water and the open sea and so on—Indigenous peoples in Canada along the Pacific coast of Turtle Island include Haida, Kwakwaka'wakw—called Kwakiutl, Lingít Aaní—called Tlingit, Ts’msyen—called Tsimshian, Tse’khene—called Sekani, and many more. Historically, only two treaties were signed with First Nations within British Columbia: the Vancouver Island Treaties and the eighth of the Numbered Treaties. In the 1990s, the British Columbia Treaty Commission entered its provincial government into the treaty process as an extension of the federal authority to negotiate treaties with First Nations. As per Delgamuukw v The Queen, Aboriginal title still exists in British Columbia.
Vancouver Island Treaties (1850-1854) [6]
- Esquimalt First Nation
- Kwakiutl First Nation [kwakiutl.bc.ca]
- Pauquachin and Tseycum First Nations
- Snuneymuxw First Nation [snuneymuxw.ca]
- Songhees First Nation
- T'sou-ke First Nation
More about Te’mexw Member Nations.
British Columbia Treaties [8]
- Cheslatta, Lake Babine, Nazko, Yekooche · Dakeł Keyoh Nations
- Gitxsan Nations [gitxsan.ca]
- Gwa’sala-‘Nakwaxda’xw Nations [gwanaknations.ca]
- Haisla Nation [haisla.ca]
- Heiltsuk Nation [heiltsuknation.ca]
- Homalco First Nation [homalco.com]
- Liard, Ross River · Kaska Nations
- Katzie First Nation [katzie.ca]
- K'ómoks, Kwiakah, Tlowitsis · Southern Kwakiutl First Nations
- Ditidaht, Hupačasath, Tla-o-qui-aht · Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations
- Quatsino First Nation [quatsinofn.com]
- Squamish Nation [squamish.net]
- Taku River Tlingit First Nation [trtfn.com]
- Lax Kw’Alaams, Tsimshian · Ts’msyen First Nations
- Sekani, McLeod Lake, Wet’suwet’en · Tse’khene First Nations
- Tsleil-Waututh Nation [twnation.ca]
More about the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations.
Modern Treaties in British Columbia [7]
- shíshálh Nation (1986) [shishalh.com] [9]
- Nisga'a Nation (2000) [nisgaanation.ca]
- Westbank First Nation (2005) [wfn.ca] [9]
- Tsawwassen First Nation (2009) [tsawwassenfirstnation.com]
- Maa-nulth First Nations (2011)
- Yale First Nation (2013) [yalefirstnation.ca]
- Tla'amin Nation (2014) [tlaaminnation.com]
- Lheidli T’enneh First Nation (initialed, 2018) [lheidli.ca]
Modern Treaties in the Yukon [7]
- Carcross/Tagish First Nation (2006) [ctfn.ca]
More about the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council.
More about the Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance.
More about the Council of the Haida Nation.
Inuit Nunangat
Inuit Nunangat represents all fifty-one inhabited and serviced Inuit communities living in four Inuit regions across northern Canada, east to west: Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut and Inuvialuit.
More.
Newfoundland and Labrador
- Labrador Inuit Land Claim (2005) [7]
Northwest Territories
- Inuvialuit (1984) [7]
Nunavut
- Nunavut Land Claims (1993) [7]
Québec
- Nunavik Inuit Land Claims (2008) [7]
More about Inuit Nunangat.
Abitibi – Eeyou Istchee – Nitassinan
Where the water divides—Abitibiwinni Aki, in the southwestern part of Québec, includes the territory where water flows both north towards Hudson Bay and south towards the St Lawrence River. These lands are represented by the Conseil de la… More.
Where the water divides—Abitibiwinni Aki, in the southwestern part of Québec, includes the territory where water flows both north towards Hudson Bay and south towards the St Lawrence River. These lands are represented by the Conseil de la Première Nation Abitibiwinni. Innu land—Nitassinan, or Nehirowisi Aski (Nitaskinan) to the Atikamekw people, is the boreal territory in the eastern part of Québec and the northeastern part of Labrador. These lands are represented by the Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw and the Innu. The people's land known to eleven commnuties of Cree—Eeyou Istchee is the boreal territory in the western part of Québec. These lands are represented by the Grand Conseil des Cris.
Modern Treaties in Québec [7]
- Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach (1975-1978) [naskapi.ca]
- Eeyou Marine Region Land Claims (1975-2012)
More about the Conseil de la Première Nation Abitibiwinni.
More about the Grand Conseil des Crees.
More about the Mamit Innuat Conseil Tribal.
Očhéthi Šakówiŋ
The people of the seven council fires… More.
The people of the seven council fires—to be continued…
There are a number of First Nations in Canada not listed in context of the named or numbered treaties. Animat Habitat honors all Indigenous stewardships of the lands and the waters across Turtle Island. Our studio commits to an ongoing process of collaboration and education. We work to update and replace information that is a continuation of trauma caused by theft, injustice, misinformation, and ignorance. This list is presented as an honouring of Indigenous resilience past, present and future.