Indigenous Services Canada, through the help of NWAC, is engaging Indigenous Women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ to amplify their voices in issues of water by promoting them as the rightful carriers and protectors of water.
Phase 2 of the project focused on engaging Indigenous Women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals on their traditional water knowledge and teaching, their knowledge and experience with access to clean and safe water, their experiences with impacts of climate change with particular focus on water and their recommendations for conservation and protection of navigable waters and environment.
During the engagement process, NWAC sought opinions of Indigenous Women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals from 13 regions and territories of Canada, among other things, on what roles they can play in issues of Water Governance.
13 Sharing Circles were conducted between August and November 2022 with the help of NWAC’s Provincial Territorial Member Organizations (PTMA). An additional 2 Interviews were conducted with community Knowledge Keepers to further represent the voices of Indigenous Women, girls, and gender diverse individuals on the topic.
The information gathered through these engagement processes will be used to develop reports highlighting regionalized issues, the matters of concerns (related to water) to indigenous communities within those regions and their recommendations for inclusion of Indigenous women, girls, and gender diverse individuals in decision-making
Water insecurity is widespread throughout Indigenous communities across Canada. For example, in November of 2022, there were 31 long term drinking water advisories in effect in over 27 communities (in Canada), all of which comprise of indigenous populations, on reserves or elsewhere. More than 28 Indigenous communities were also under short term drinking water advisories. There were more than 10 Do Not Consume (DNC) advisories established in five Canadian provinces.
Water insecurity can have disastrous impacts on the most vulnerable population in any community. WG2STGD+ People are often among this vulnerable group. Indigenous WG2STGD+ People, in both Traditional Roles and in roles as Water Carriers, are often the first to be affected by water related issues arising in the household, as they are the ones with primary contact to water.
Presenting the voices of Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals in a national and regional scale will help push their agendas and issues to government entities. The distribution of information on women’s roles as Water Carriers in their community will allow for sharing of traditional knowledge, encouraging more women to stand-up and advocate for their inclusion in decision making around water management which could help to reduce inequalities in socio-economic and political structures overtime.
Table 1: Water Carriers Sharing Circle Sessions:
Region |
No of Participants in Attendance |
Date |
Link |
Ontario |
8 |
20th September, 2022 |
|
Quebec |
6 |
22nd September, 2022 |
|
Alberta |
9 |
26th September, 2022 |
|
British Columbia |
7 |
29th September, 2022 |
|
Saskatchewan |
9 |
3rd October, 2022 |
|
Manitoba |
11 |
5th October, 2022 |
|
Newfoundland and Labrador |
16 |
11th October, 2022 |
|
Prince Edward Island |
7 |
14th October, 2022 |
|
Nova Scotia |
11 |
17th October, 2022 |
|
New Brunswick |
12 |
21st October, 2022 |
|
Nunavut |
7 |
24th October, 2022 |
|
Northwest Territories |
12 |
28th October, 2022 |
|
Yukon Territory |
11 |
1st November, 2022 |
Table 2: Elder Engagements
Elder/Knowledge Keeper |
Date |
Link |
Suzanne Smoke |
9th February, 2023 |
View |
Crystal Semaganis |
10th February, 2023 |
View |
Phase 2 of the Water Carriers project is a continuation of the work conducted in Phase 1. Phase 1 of the project focused on the following areas:
To tackle the objects of Phase 2, NWAC engaged Indigenous communities across Canada in order to identify, the role of Water Carriers in their communities and concerns related to its sustainability and future. The engagement activities with the communities involved two data collection methods:
The engagements conducted help understand the perspectives of indigenous women, girls and gender diverse individuals on issues related to water use, availability, issues, and governance in their communities. Understanding these concerns will allow us to develop future programs and activities that will tackle the identified issues and will also serve to the larger goal of capacity building.
All data collection methods used, target:
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