MNC :: Métis Cabinet :: Environment :: MNC Environment Committee

Kelowna, British Columbia (March 3, 2006) – Future directions for the Métis National Council’s Environment Committee was one of the key issues recently discussed at a meeting in Kelowna, British Columbia. The MNC Environment Minister, Dwayne Roth and MNC Director of Environment Dr. Donald Sharp lead the meeting.

There was extensive discussion surrounding the National Aboriginal Committee on Species at Risk inaugural workshop and whether it accomplished the goal of building a stronger relationship with federal government departments and helped to open the lines of communication.

Besides reviewing the outcome of the workshop, the environment committee also examined “where to go from here.”

Byron Louis Interim Coordinator of the NACOSAR Secretariat, joined the meeting to provide a workshop overview and to highlight the next steps such as the needs to ensure Aboriginal participation in conservation efforts under Species at Risk Act (SARA).

And there was further discussion on the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and the Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge subcommittee (ATK) and the challenges faced with identifying species at risk whether they be plant or animal.

Other key objectives discussed included the need for sufficient funding to build capacity and to include traditional knowledge along with western science when accessing species at risk.