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Why a collaborative approach?
Our shared purpose and voice rekindles our connectedness with each other and our lands.
NORTHEAST SUPERIOR REGION
Wahkohtowin is a Cree word that means kinship and connectedness and recognizes the complexity and interconnectedness of our people, animals, lands, air, and waters.
Wahkotowin is a social enterprise made up of three Northern Ontario First Nations. Each is a distinct Nation, with its own culture, governance, and territory.
The shared traditional territories of our member Communities lie in the Northeast Superior (NES) region of Ontario, a place of abundant forests and freshwater, and home to a powerful nexus of First Nations.
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When the 2008 financial crisis caused a wholesale shut down of the natural resource-based economy in the region, these Nations realized that they would need to come together and create new opportunities for their people.
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This realization required a new approach to bring balance through recognition and reconcilitation.
OUR VISION
Nationhood,
collectively building pathways to ensure
sustainability and harmony
within our lands, our people, and our livelihoods for future generations.
A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
Wahkohtowin Development GP Inc. was created to support this new approach through an alternative economic model focused on Nation building with partnering communities meeting objectives and aligning with community needs.
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Promoting the prosperity of our member First Nations through greater access to natural resources within the territory.
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Promoting the sustainability of our member First Nations through greater environmental vigilance.
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Planning for seven generations forward by building on lessons learned over the last seven generations.
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Advancing a model of regional resource sharing and general cooperation consistent with the traditional concepts of caring and sharing.
UNDRIP
The United Nations Declaration on the Right of Indigenous People identifies our rights in relation to our shared Traditional Territories. This resource comprehensively informs our Communities on the details a universal framework of minimum standards for the survival, dignity and well-being of the indigenous peoples of the world and it elaborates on existing human rights standards and fundamental freedoms as they apply to the specific situation of indigenous peoples.
WE ARE WAHKOHTOWIN
Our People
and Lands have stories to tell
We have been stewards of our lands and waters for thousands of years. Today, we find richness and vibrance through innovation for a conservation economy, the revitalization of our culture and practices, and rekindling our relationship with our Land.
Join our conversation, and share in our collaborative approach to ensure sustainability and harmony within our lands, our people, and our livelihoods for future generations.
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