Boreal Forest

The boreal forest is the Earth's largest terrestrial carbon sink, storing 208 billion tons of carbon, or the equivalent to 26 years of global carbon emissions. The Nature Conservancy’s project is located in one of the most intact areas.

For thousands of years, First Nations communities thrived within the richness and sustenance of the Boreal as the land’s original stewards. But as demand for resources grew, their authority over their traditional territories was challenged, their economies were destabilized and their immemorial way of living was threatened.

Chief Clarence Easter leads the Chemawawin Cree Nation in Manitoba, Canada, which is partnering with Nature United: “We belong to the land; the land doesn’t belong to us. I’ve always lived off the land. Growing up, the land was your provider, your mentor, your healer; the berries you pick, the medicines you get, everything you got from the land … you didn’t rely on anyone else."

We work in partnership with Indigenous Nations to support Indigenous-led conservation and sustainable resource management. This includes: Indigenous Guardian program development; community-led land use planning; establishment of Indigenous protected areas; and youth-on-the-land programs. 

We believe conservation must go hand-in-hand with building local economies, which is why we also support sustainable economic development that aligns with cultural values and durable financing opportunities to fund stewardship in the long term. We also support initiatives that allow for collaboration and collective action among Indigenous nations as well as with other actors.

Moose are a cultural keystone species, with critical importance as a food source and for traditional practices. And while moose may not yet appear on federal or provincial Endangered Species lists, declines in populations are impacting Indigenous communities and have ripple effects in the forest ecosystem. The pressures on moose are compounding, according to Indigenous communities who report industrial pressures, over-hunting, poor monitoring and management, disease, habitat loss and climate change.

Barren-ground caribou are expert navigators. They migrate long distances throughout the seasons and across ice, water and tundra. But these migration patterns are changing, and the Indigenous peoples who rely on caribou for physical, cultural and spiritual sustenance have felt the impact.