Resources & Tools
Aboriginal communities and location-based information
Addressing matters of concern to Aboriginal people requires that a broad range of organizations and stakeholders effectively coordinate with one another and share information. The issues invariably cross community, provincial/ territorial, and federal jurisdictions, and often involve federal and provincial/ territorial departments, Tribal councils, community Chiefs and councils, community groups, and non-government organizations (NGOs).
Complexity of information requirements
Typically complex, issues can seldom be dealt with in isolation. Their relationships cross not only organizations, but also each other. For instance, access to resources is directly linked to legal issues, sustainable development, and health, and youth issues are affected by all.
The critical information needed to address the concerns of Aboriginal people is linked to locations. It is held by many different organizations and distributed in many different places. By enabling this location-based information to be shared over the Internet, the Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure (CGDI) is ideally positioned to support the goals of Aboriginal people. The CGDI allows Aboriginal communities and their stakeholders to effectively, efficiently, and promptly share information across jurisdictions, interests, and issues.
Land and resource planning
Land and resource planning for many Aboriginal communities includes recognizing and incorporating traditional values into land-management practices and systems. At the same time, Aboriginal communities increasingly need to cooperate with governments and private industry through either consultative processes or co-ventures as partners.
Today, Aboriginal communities and the Government of Canada regularly negotiate self-government agreements, land-claim agreements, and other federal initiatives, such as the First Nations Land Management Act. Consequently, land and resource management is more important than ever. To make sound decisions, Aboriginal communities need practices for incorporating both traditional and Western knowledge systems.