Pimachiowin Aki

World Heritage Site

Bloodvein River First Nation

Land Management Plans: Protecting Pimachiowin Aki

Frank Duck sits in canoe with a paddle and gun in hand.

Twenty years ago, First Nation communities of Pimachiowin Aki formed a partnership to support each other in protecting ancestral lands. The vision and commitment are set out in the Protected Areas and First Nation Resource Stewardship: A Cooperative Relationship Accord (the Accord). The Accord recognizes formal protected area planning processes led by Anishinaabeg, which became the foundation of the Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Site. Elders provided the vision for the plans, based on traditional harvesting areas of Anishinaabe families associated with customary stewardship and governance.

Today there are six community-led plans in Pimachiowin Aki that govern land use and decision-making and guide the work of the Guardians. These are the first plans of their kind to be completed in Manitoba, and the third in Ontario.

Community Review: Poplar River First Nation Land Management Plan

Asatiwisipe Aki Management Plan – Poplar River First Nation

Developed out of respect for “our ancestors who loved and cherished this land and cared for it for centuries to ensure all future generations would have life” and to “keep the land in its natural beauty as it was created”, the plan provides for the protection of the entire 8,620 square-kilometre Poplar River First Nation traditional territory.

Planning Meeting: Bloodvein River First Nation

Pimitotah – To Care for Our Land (Bloodvein First Nation)

This plan is dedicated to the Bloodvein River Elders “for sharing their knowledge of the land and resources within our traditional area, and for their help and guidance”. Protection and management of the 3,916 square kilometre traditional territory is guided by a commitment “to look after and take care of the habitat and living things that use this land. To have water that is safe for all living things. To have land that has not been disturbed by industrial development. To smell the fresh air that is free from pollutants.  Protection means we will ensure that if economic development takes place, it will be respectful of the land and all life that exists on the land.”

Open House: Little Grand Rapids First Nation

Ni-Kes Lands Management Plan – Little Grand Rapids First Nation (Manitoba)

Little Grand Rapids First Nation Community-Based Land Use Plan (Ontario)

With ancestral lands in both provinces of Manitoba and Ontario, the Little Grand Rapids First Nation completed two land management plans. The plans are “dedicated to the memory of Ni-Kes (Frank Duck), an esteemed Elder, whose knowledge and way of life continue to be an inspiration to the Little Grand Rapids Anishinaabeg”. The plans provide for the protection and management of lands and waters, continued traditional use, and support community-led sustainable economic development opportunities in the 6,612 square-kilometre Little Grand Rapids First Nation traditional territory.

Open House: Pauingassi First Nation

Naamiwan: The Land of Fair Wind Lands Management Plan – Pauingassi First Nation (Manitoba)

Pauingassi First Nation Community Based Land-Use Plan (Ontario)

Pauingassi First Nation has ancestral lands in both provinces of Manitoba and Ontario, and two land management plans. The plans are “dedicated to the memory of Naamiwan (Fair Wind), a renowned medicine man and healer, whose dream, drum and the ceremonies he conducted illustrate the important role of traditional Anishinaabe knowledge, practices and beliefs in land management and protection to this day.”

The plans provide legal protection of lands and waters while supporting potential sustainable economic development opportunities. In finding this balance, the Pauingassi land management plans are contributing to a stronger future for the community. The combined Pauingassi First Nation traditional territory is 4,525 square kilometres in area.

The Pimachiowin Aki Management Plan

The Pimachiowin Aki Corporation participates in implementation of the community-led plans to ensure the area’s Outstanding Universal Value continues to be protected. A Pimachiowin Aki Management Plan was developed by the partners as a unifying document, integrating customary governance and legal prescriptions across the site. This site-level management plan draws its primary direction from the First Nations’ Accord to protect and care for Pimachiowin Aki as a sacred duty and trust to future generations.

Bloodvein River First Nation

Feature photo: Ni-Kes (Frank Duck), Little Grand Rapids First Nation

Dog Sledding for Land-Based Learning

Surrounded by the expansive boreal forest and the soft sounds of canine paws on snow, Sidney Klassen glides through Bloodvein River First Nation behind his team of dogs. Mr. K, as he’s known to students at Miskooseepi School, is providing a “hands-on experience for the kids to be out in nature.“ Dog sledding is part of the school’s newly-formed Land-Based Learning program.

“We take the dogs out and I show students how to handle them, how to bring them to the truck and bring them to the staging area where we launch,” Sidney explains. Students practise getting the sled ready and hooking up the team. They also learn parts of the sled, like rigging and lines. But their learning runs deeper than physical skills.

“The kids learn about the connection between the dogs and humans when they take care of the dogs,” says Sidney. “They develop responsibility. The implications for learning are endless.”

Who is Sidney Klassen?

Sidney is a former physical education teacher. He has grown to love his new role as Land-Based Instructor but he’s not comfortable with the title. “I’d change Instructor to Coordinator or Facilitator,” he says. ‘Instructor’ is more suitable for a local, not a former Winnipegger like him, he explains.

Sidney with the dogs and a student

“I’m not from Bloodvein River First Nation and I don’t know the land like the locals do.”

Sidney works closely with teachers and residents of the Manitoba First Nation community to connect traditional knowledge to classroom learning.   

“The goal is to get the kids outside on the land, in the bush behind the school, out on the river in canoes, or on hiking field trips,” he says. It’s all part of learning science, social studies and mathematics in new ways. 

From the Circus to Teaching

Sidney became a teacher at age 39, after an unusual career route.

His inspiration to teach started when he “ran away with the circus.”  

Years ago, Sidney worked as the crew chef with the Caravan Stage Company, a traveling circus on a tall ship sailing boat. “The pirate ship theatre was started by two old, card-carrying hippies and it led me to look at my life and chase my dreams. I thought that if they can build a hippy pirate ship, I can do what I want to do.”

What he wanted to do was teach.

How Sidney Started Dog Sledding

He left the traveling circus with a plan to go to university. But first, he took a trip to the Yukon. The trip sparked a new passion. “I took up dog sledding and fell in love with it. I was working for an esteemed champion dog musher and he taught me about dog mushing. I loved being able to see beautiful territory, and I loved the interaction between the humans and dogs.”

When he returned to Winnipeg for university, Sidney formed a dog sled team of his own. With his two dogs, and sometimes a friend’s dog, he traveled the city’s river trails. He had no idea that his love of dog sledding would one day carry into his classroom in Bloodvein River First Nation.

“When I got to Bloodvein, I wanted to start a dog team,” he says. “I put together a fundraiser to raise funds for equipment and got started.”

The team began with six dogs donated by Kevin Lewis who runs the Cree cultural immersion camp in Saskatchewan called kâniyâsihk Culture Camps.

Showing Students the Ropes

The dogs live with Sidney. He has a kennel with doghouses behind his home. “I take students on a tour of the kennel to meet the dogs. I show them how the kennel is set up, and how to care for them.”

Sidney also takes students dog sledding along Indigenous travel routes. The trip includes Ojibwe teachings from an Elder and local trapper.

“Gabriel Green, drives ahead with his snowmobile and takes us down his trapline,” Sidney shares. “He pulls a cargo toboggan behind his snowmobile. The students take turns driving the dog sled or riding in the sled or the toboggan.”

Stopping at designated spots, Gabriel shows his traps and tells stories about the dog team that he had years ago. “Having that platform for Gabriel to share his knowledge and stories is really great,” says Sidney. “We tie-in classroom learning and we’re getting the kids out into nature, over the river and on the trail.”

Students enjoy the adventure. “Just being out on the sled with the kids, even though they might be acting cool at the time, I know they’re excited,” says Sidney. “It’s a beautiful, sunshine-y day, running through a beautiful trail…one of the best feelings ever for me.”

“Word gets around that Mr. K has a dog sled team and takes kids out sledding,” says Sidney. Students like to share stories about their experience of driving the dog sled on their own, he adds.

Each trip includes eight to 10 students from grades four to nine. “Last winter we were out with the kids about five or six times,” Sidney says. The most recent trip was in March, before COVID-19 school closures.

Other Land-Based Learning Activities

The Land-Based Learning program involves more than dog sled education.

“One of my highlights every year is the overnight trip to the Manitoba Museum,” Sidney reflects. The Miskooseepi students spend an overnight inside the museum. It includes a behind-the-scenes tour of the curator’s room to view artifacts from Pauingassi First Nation. Students learn about the importance of protecting their cultural heritage.

“These are items from their culture. They learn that their culture is significant and valued by the world.”

Knowledge keepers like Culture and Language teacher Yvonne Young take students out on the land where they learn to identify plants and pick medicine. They also learn how to use plants, like offering tobacco.

Last winter, a few students took an ice fishing day trip. “We’re fortunate to have William Young be a part of the program. He had ice fishing equipment donated and took us to Round Lake to go ice fishing,” Sidney says.

“The kids have their Anishinaabe culture in their blood,” he says. He notes that many students can teach him about hunting, fishing and living off the land. “They go out with their fathers, uncles, grandfathers or aunts, and they have a lot of knowledge.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, instructors and students are now doing remote learning. Sidney is running logistics, getting homework packages delivered and monitoring social media. He plans to set up a spot this winter so that students can get out onto the land. “We’ll have the ice fishing shacks, cross-country skis and snowshoes, and let the kids use them.”

A Little Paper Creates a Big Problem

At eight years old, Michael Zelniker had no problem admonishing adults to stop littering in the streets of Montréal. Today, his dedication to protecting the environment has grown into a quest to protect the boreal forest for future generations.

The Issue with Tissue

“Tissue companies are flushing away our forests and our future,” warns the filmmaker from his Los Angeles home. 

‘The Issue with Tissue’ is the title of his latest project—a film to let the world know that “the boreal forest is being clear cut so we can wipe our bums with softer, more plush toilet paper.”

Michael was shocked when he first learned that one of the most ecologically important forests in the world—Canada’s boreal forest—is being destroyed to make toilet paper.

“What we do to each other, we do to ourselves; what we do to the land, we do to ourselves,” he says. 

Who is Affected?

There’s more to the boreal forest than just trees. The boreal forest plays an important role in slowing the effects of climate change. It stores almost twice as much carbon as tropical forests and has more surface freshwater than any other ecosystem on the planet. 

“I discovered that more than 600 First Nations call the boreal forest home and have for thousands of years; that the boreal is home to caribou and other wildlife. It is the nesting ground for the songbirds we hear in our parks and our backyards.” Michael’s backyard is in California but as a child growing up in Montréal, he went to summer camp 100 miles north at the southern edge of the boreal forest.

“I hated camp. I was a troubled kid and as a result, I was always in trouble,” he remembers. He discovered his love of nature during this otherwise unhappy camp experience.

“The breathtaking view of endless forest was the one thing that comforted me at camp.” It forged in him a deep lifelong connection to trees. “When I’m in a forest today, I feel like I’m with long-lost family.”

While researching the toilet paper issue, Michael spent dozens of hours on Zoom talking with scientists, activists, and First Nation leaders. “Everyone opened their hearts and shared their story with me,” he says. It was an incredible privilege, he adds.

Inspired by the conversations, Michael knew he had to share the untold story with the world.

Lessons from Indigenous Elders and Leaders

“I began to feel, ‘If not me, then who? If not now, then when?’”

Elder Leslie Orvis Sr. and William Young

Those two questions led to an inspiring filmmaking experience. Michael collected over 100 hours of footage as he traveled across Canada to interview First Nation Elders and leaders, including Bloodvein River First Nation Elder Leslie Orvis Sr. and Pimachiowin Aki Board Director William Young.

His journey began in BC with Canadian cameraperson Abanoub Andraous. The two of them drove, with multiple stops along the way, to Eastern Quebec where they flew north by bush plane to the George River. There, they met with Valérie Courtois, Director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative, and Innu as they celebrated the migration of the caribou. “It was a profoundly moving experience,” Michael says enthusiastically.

He describes the entire filmmaking experience as “eye-opening and life-changing.” He hopes the film will have a strong impact on others, much like the journey has had on him.

“I had so many special moments filming,” Michael says. He was touched by the hospitality and generosity of the people that he got to visit and talk with. “I felt deeply honoured.”

“What has caused us to go so wrong as a species?” he asks. Learning from First Nation Elders and leaders, Michael says that we have lost connection to the land and with each other. “As a result, settler colonial types like me look at how to value land based on dollars and cents, and as a way to exploit rather than as a member of our family.”

Elder Dave Porter of Kaska First Nation in northern British Columbia shared his wisdom with Michael. “Mother Nature, since the beginning of time, takes care of us because Mother Earth has provided us this environment to live so well. If we don’t begin to take better care of Mother Nature, we’re going to destroy her ability to take care of us.”

Elder Porter also told Michael that “when you’re in a forest, you’re with family.” Michael heard similar themes from others across the country.  

Chief Darrell Bob of the Xaxli’p Community in Lillooet, BC invited Michael into his sweat lodge. “He pointed to the stones that warmed the sweat lodge and said, ‘These are our grandfathers.’”

The lessons continued as Michael met with Elder Dave Courchene from Turtle Lodge in Sagkeeng First Nation in Manitoba. He explained about natural law—to only take as much as you need.

“Give thanks to what you take with an eye for the seven generations in front of you,” explains Michael. He had never heard this lesson until he met with Indigenous people.

“In American white culture we believe that a lot is good, more is better, and too much is just right. And we see it even with the pandemic—what were people hoarding? Toilet paper.”

After his footage comes together and is shared with the world, Michael hopes that North Americans will make the connection between trees and paper products like toilet paper, and become “more mindful of how we’re using them.”

He recalls a memorable statement that Elder Courchene made to him, and it is a mighty ask: “If you can do one thing, get them to give us back the boreal and we can take care of the rest.”

Imagine the possibilities if that were the result.

Here are ways that Michael suggests for you to make a difference:

  • Buy recycled paper products made from post consumer content
  • Buy wood, pulp & paper products with the FSC certification seal
  • Whenever possible, stop using single use disposables—use reusables
  • Demand that governments fulfill their commitments to Indigenous Peoples to protect/conserve their ancestral home­—the land, air and water—the animals, plants and trees that inhabit these wild spaces
  • Support the establishment of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCA)
  • Spend time in nature. Bring your child to wild spaces. Connect with the other creatures, the trees, plants, and animals that make up Mother Earth’s creation. They are all members of our wider family. Treat them as such
  • Support First Nation Guardian Programs

Michael Zelniker is a Canadian-born award-winning actor/director based in Los Angeles. He is a member of the Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps (led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore), serving as Co-Chair of the Los Angeles Chapter. His film, ‘The Issue with Tissue’, is set for release in 2021. We will keep you posted on its release date and how/where to watch it.

5 Spectacular Pictographs Explained

The Bloodvein River waterway in Pimachiowin Aki contains the largest collection of pictographs in Canada. Hundreds of millennia-old pictographs (rock art paintings) have been documented at over 30 locations, including this cliff face on Artery Lake, beautified with handprints, animals, canoes, snakes, and other symbols painted with a paste made of a red ochre and fish oil or bear fat.

Paddling up to one of these rare images is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Canadian author and pictograph-hunter Selwyn Dewdney called these particular sites along the Bloodvein River a “rare experience” and a “supreme reward.”

Elder Leslie Orvis of Bloodvein First Nation suggests making an offering each time you pass by a pictograph.

Here’s a close-up look at five spectacular pictographs in Pimachiowin Aki:

1. Moose

Recently, Pimachiowin Aki Board Co-Chair William Young took Elder Leslie Orvis to the site of this moose pictograph on the Bloodvein River. Leslie believes that the message behind this drawing is of respect. 

“Respect the land,” he says. He then echoes the words of Elder Kenneth Owen—“If you are looking for moose to hunt, you put down tobacco in order to have a successful hunt.” 

Leslie and other Elders in Bloodvein River First Nation aim to teach local students about Anishinaabe history, culture, and language. They are developing a program that will be a part of the curricula after the community’s new school is built.

2. Kingfishers

In some cases, scholars suggest that Anishinaabeg created pictographs to mark significant personal events or associations between certain clans and areas used for traditional land use and ceremony. This pictograph found at Sasaginnigak Lake shows two Kingfishers, one of the clan emblems of Anishinaabeg in Pimachiowin Aki.

This particular pictograph was probably painted in the early 1800s by members of the Kingfisher clan who wintered at Sasaginnigak Lake and used the lake as part of their family harvesting area (Petch 2010).

3. Bison

The bison in this pictograph is recognized for its circular hooves and the dark outline that appears to indicate its heart. 

In the 1950s, guided by Ojibwe elders, Selwyn Dewdney began his studies of pictographs on the Canadian Shield. His book titled Indian Rock Paintings of the Great Lakes names this pictograph the Bloodvein Bison and describes it as “beautifully proportioned.” 

The book, co-authored by Kenneth E. Kidd, suggests that this pictograph is located a hundred miles north of where the bison herds once roamed, and the person responsible for the drawing was from that region or had traveled a far distance to hunt there.  

4. Shaman

Dewdney titled this pictograph the Bloodvein Shaman. The shaman is carrying a medicine bag. Dewdney notes that the zig-zag lines that appear above the shaman’s head are also seen in other pictographs, and are often interpreted as thoughts or magical powers. He adds that the “large canoe beneath and the porcupine to the left might represent the fighting prowess and clan of the shaman.”

5. Wigglers

Dewdney refers to these pictographs as the “two curious wigglers” but does not provide details on what they represent. In his Ramblin’ Boy blog, True_North suggests “they may be representations of the medicine serpent.”

Many of the drawings in Pimachiowin Aki include animals and people that one can assume were based on powerful spirit beings and first-hand experiences of the artists. Each pictograph has its own significance. Archaeologist Jack Steinbring writes, “The imagery may often be prompted by dreams, or visions sometimes induced by fasting or prolonged concentration.”  

How Pimachiowin Aki Guardians Help Preserve Pictographs
The spectacular pictographs in Pimachiowin Aki are well preserved. Guardians keep the sites clean of any litter, in addition to educating people about the importance of respecting the pictographs (i.e. leaving offerings, not touching or wetting them, etc.).

The rate at which the pictographs are deteriorating due to natural weathering is unknown. Lichen encroachment is probably the most serious threat.  

Locating Pictographs in Pimachiowin Aki
Pictographs are usually found on steep granite rock-faces overhanging the waterways of the boreal forest.

The drawings are typically found in places associated with powerful spirit beings, such as next to water, at the intersections of sky, earth and water, underground, and underwater. 

Not all pictograph locations are to be revealed. 

“There are rock paintings at Dog-skin that are sacred because the people of Little Grand Rapids believe that those paintings were made by the little rock people (memegwesiwag). The rock people were part of creation and were here from the beginning.” 

—Joseph Levesque, Sr. (in translation, 2014)

Anishinaabeg communicate with memegwesiwag at particular pictograph sites by presenting offerings to demonstrate respect and request assistance in travel or hunting.

“There is a cliff-rock-painting of a snapping turtle [on a certain river]. When someone travels along over there, they’d cut some tobacco. They would say, ‘I will kill a moose’ as they placed tobacco in their pipe. Sure enough, that was exactly what would happen. That person would get the blessing to kill a moose.” 

—Elder Kenneth Owen of Pauingassi First Nation (in translation, 2007) explains the importance of a particular pictograph in communicating with the memegwesiwag responsible for the painting

For more images of pictographs, including a link to the digital version of Dewdney and Kidd’s book, click here: 

https://archive.org/details/indianrockpainti00dewd/page/n1/mode/2up

Anishinaabe Pictographs On The Bloodvein: The Artery Lake Site

Sources

Indian Rock Paintings of the Great Lakes by Selwyn Dewdney and Kenneth E. Kidd
Discussion paper: Rock Paintings in the Eastern Lake Winnipeg Watershed by Jack Steinbring 
Cultural Landscape: Macro Scale Document. Virginia Petch, August 2010

How a Meeting with Hunters and Trappers Led to the Idea for a New School Program

Melba Green grew up in Bloodvein River First Nation. Today, she is a Pimachiowin Aki Guardian; a responsibility she takes very seriously. “This is what I’m supposed to do, help people, help the youth and watch over the land,” she says.

With her one-year-old Rottweiler Rocky by her side, she takes daily walks on the land. “I stop and listen to hear activities like gun shots, walking, people hunting or on a quad,” Melba explains. “I check on the water, the plants, medicines and trees.” 

Melba also listens to the concerns of people in her community. She has regular meetings with local hunters and trappers who talk with her about what is happening on the land. It was during one of these meetings that the idea for a new school program was born—Melba often talks to the students in the Miskooseepi School about what it means to keep the land. When she shared this at a meeting, she quickly had four male volunteers who wanted to share their knowledge and meet with students regularly to discuss the roles and responsibilities of men and women. Melba pitched the idea to women in the community and, once again, had eager volunteers.

Melba Reflects on Her Childhood
Anishinaabeg have very specific roles within their families and in their communities. Melba grew up the oldest sibling with three brothers and one sister. She says that when boys turn eight years old, they go out onto the land to learn how to hunt. Melba was surprised when her own young brother was being taken out into the bush. “I was scared that something bad might happen to him,” she remembers. My mom told me, ‘That’s just how it is’.” 

“Girls are supposed to know what our mothers do at home; cook, clean, help with the kids… That’s what we’re taught, through oral lessons,” she adds.

While many young people learn from their own parents or grandparents, some children may not have a role model to teach them. “But they do have guidance in the community and at the school,” says Melba.

Looking back, she notes that she ran to her grandmothers when she wanted to know something. “Now when I see young kids, a lot of their grandparents are gone.” 

The new program will help young people understand their roles and learn the skills needed to become responsible adults. The COVID-19 school shut down has put the program on pause but Melba and her group of volunteers look forward to implementing it as soon as they are able.  

The Roles of Men and Women
Male students will learn about:

  • Hunting and trapping
  • Fishing
  • Being respectful towards the land
  • Being respectful to others

Female students will learn about:

  • Harvesting plants and medicines
  • Responsibilities caring for the home
  • Their moon time
  • Parental responsibilities

Today’s Culture Shock  
Without a high school, after grade 9, students go to live with extended families in urban centres like Winnipeg, Selkirk or Riverton to finish their schooling. 

“It’s culture shock,” says Melba. “We have to do our jobs to help the youth. We want to show them that there is another way of life.”

The new program will do just that—help students learn to survive on the land and live healthy lifestyles.

Bloodvein River First Nation is looking forward to completion of a new K-10 school within the community in August 2021. New K-12 schools being constructed in Poplar River First Nation and Little Grand Rapids First Nation are also expected to open in August 2021.

First Nation Youth Spend a Night at the Museum

Thirty middle school students from Miskooseepi School in Bloodvein River First Nation enjoyed a thrilling overnight stay at Manitoba Museum, where they explored the wonders of technology in the Science Gallery and a private behind-the-scenes tour of the museum galleries.

Before they unrolled their sleeping bags and settled down for a sleepover at the museum, the students had a first look at the new Pimachiowin Aki exhibit. 

“It’s a part of who we are,”13-year-old Jenelle said about her ancestral homeland. 

Ainsley, age 13, said that keeping the land and water clean is one way to help protect the land. This sentiment was echoed by many of her classmates.

Miskooseepi’s language and culture instructor Yvonne drummed and sang with the students in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language). She reminded the youth of the importance of Pimachiowin Aki.  

“Let’s honour those who have walked on our land before us,” Yvonne said. “We thank the Creator for them.”

The students shared their gratitude for the cultural teachings they experience in their school, including taking ice-fishing day-trips, Anishinaabemowin, and going on dog-sled rides.

“I’ve learned how to trap different animals,” Trinity, age 12, said when asked what makes her school unique. They also learn at a young age how to care for, and respect, the land. Anishinaabe knowledge has been passed down from generation to generation. These young students receive the ancient teachings that will allow them to carry on the sacred responsibility of keeping the land.

Join the private tour: https://youtu.be/vdAyfWOB7G8