On October 25th, 2018, the Wilson Center’s Canada Institute held an event titled “Indigenous Involvement in North America’s Energy Future: Respecting Rights through New Relationships”. The goal of the event was to discuss the relationships between Indigenous Peoples, Energy Projects, and Governments. The Enbridge Line 3 Replacement Pipeline was examined as a case study in this event. Joe Daniels (Indigenous Co-Chair) and Corey Dekker (Natural Resources Canada) were invited to participate in a panel session, discussing the IAMC as a partnership between Indigenous groups, the Government of Canada, and the National Energy Board.
During the discussion, Joe and Corey spoke about how the IAMC was formed through a co-development process, its mandate, Terms of Reference, purpose, and the key priorities the committee has set for itself in its first year of operations. Participants in the event were very interested in hearing about the IAMC as a model for how Indigenous groups and governments can work together in partnership, and several attendees noted that they would be following up with the committee for more information when they returned to their home organizations. Participating in this event highlighted how innovative the IAMC initiative is, including from an international perspective, and it is anticipated that as news about the IAMC spreads there will be additional requests from international partners to learn about the IAMC experience. Updates on activities like these will be shared here through the website – stay tuned!
