This article is intended as a primer for the development of First Nations Settlement Land in the Yukon. The article builds on a previous Northern Review article by this author exploring the possibilities for development on Yukon First Nations Settlement Land since the Yukon updated its Land Titles Act in 2016 (see https://doi.org/10.22584/nr57.2025.007). This unlocked the potential of Settlement Lands for the benefit of Yukon First Nations citizens and beneficiaries, encouraging economic development throughout the Yukon. Three hypothetical scenarios are described in this report, with illustrations (swim lane diagrams) setting out the roles, steps, and activities required for collaborative development among Yukon First Nations, municipal, and Yukon governments. The three development scenarios are a Yukon-Yukon First Nation housing co-development, Yukon Government staff housing, and an industrial park on settlement land in an unincorporated community. The potential fiscal effects (personal income tax and property tax) of Settlement Land development for each of the scenarios are also explored.
Climate change is affecting Northern Canada at a rapid rate and posing challenges to Indigenous ways of life. Climate solutions in the North are often applauded for protecting carbon rich ecosystems, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and cultivating economic development, but when northern Indigenous perspectives, world views, and leadership are not integrated, solutions become little more than green colonialism. Indigenous Peoples have been leading land stewardship initiatives for millennia. Implementing nature-based solutions for climate (NbSC) using Two-Eyed Seeing could provide intersecting benefits for Indigenous communities including cultural revitalization, economic development, youth empowerment, reconciliation, carbon storage, ecosystem stewardship, and biodiversity. The Athabasca Denes & uogon;#in & eacute; First Nations care for their Traditional Territory, Nuhen & eacute;n & eacute;, across Northern Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.Through interviews with members of theAthabasca Denes & uogon;#in & eacute; First Nations and supporting organizations, we consider six NbSC that could be options for sustaining Athabasca Denes & uogon;#in & eacute; Peoples, lands, and waters, and for supporting the local economy in the face of climate change. Our analysis, utilizing a structured evaluation criteria, suggests that the most appropriate NbSC for Nuhen & eacute;n & eacute; territory are wildfire management, Indigenous-led area-based conservation, and supporting barren-ground caribou conservation.These recommendations assume leadership by Indigenous Peoples, stewardship of the land in line with Dene values, and recognition of the legacy of colonialism. Our work stems from a commitment to respect and honour Indigenous voices, build trustworthy relationships, and provide useful information for local communities, with particular attention paid to economic opportunities associated with climate mitigation and adaptation.
In October 2025 the authors organized a workshop in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The Niniibawtamin Anishinaabe Aki Gathering (stand up for Anishinaabe land gathering) brought together First Nations leaders, community organizers, civil society groups, and scholars to discuss plans for nuclear waste disposal, critical mineral extraction, and associated infrastructure development in northern Ontario. Several cross-cutting themes emerged over the course of the event. Conversations mostly hinged upon prospective critical mineral extraction in the "Ring of Fire" development area and a proposed high-level radioactive waste repository in northern Ontario. Numerous delegates referenced federal and provincial "fast-tracking" legislation as a serious challenge to Indigenous rights. First Nations leaders spoke about the challenges they face in meaningfully participating in decisions because their institutional capacity is taxed with addressing social crises in their communities. Several legal challenges that create uncertainty regarding critical mineral extraction and nuclear waste disposal were discussed. Another common theme was the limitation of settler decisionmaking processes, including the use of colonial courts to advance Indigenous justice. Several delegates spoke about the value of coalition building and grassroots mobilization. In the context of debates about using critical mineral extraction and nuclear power generation to drive the transition away from fossil fuels, some delegates noted it is important to consider whose way of life will be sacrificed for the clean energy transition.
This study pertains to the governance of renewable energy development in Nunavut. Despite the strong environmental and security risks posed by diesel use and dependency, the development of renewable energy in the territory is slow. As domestic, regional, and international actors are moving toward decarbonizing energy infrastructure, the energy transition of Nunavut is facing structural obstacles ranging from the costs associated with modernizing and decarbonizing the energy grid, to human capacity constraints. In what ways are community consultation practices and Inuit Knowledge embedded in renewable energy decision making in Nunavut, and how effective are they under Nunavut, Canadian, and international frameworks? As global attention is veering towards the Arctic, with strong emphasis on mining potential, the global energy transition becomes an opportunity for Inuit rights holders to develop local economies and livelihood opportunities, as well as invest in their own energy security needs. Since the signing of the Nunavut Lands and Resources Devolution Agreement in 2024, the cascading security threats of diesel dependency have become intertwined with needs to develop industries supporting the territory's energy transition.As such, through a qualitative content analysis of grey literature and seventeen interviews with key stakeholders and rights holders in Nunavut, this study offers insight into the governance of renewable energy infrastructure development in Nunavut.
As Arctic ice recedes, previously inaccessible seabed resources are becoming increasingly viable for extraction, drawing global attention to deep-sea mining (DSM) in the region. This article examines the evolving legal landscape of DSM in the Arctic, which is fragmented and shaped by competing national interests, unresolved territorial claims, and differing commitments to international law. As the Arctic coastal states weigh the economic potential of DSM against environmental and geopolitical concerns, the region remains a contested space where law, policy, and strategic interests continue to evolve. This article begins with an overview of the international regulatory framework, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the International Seabed Authority, and key regional agreements such as the Arctic Council's guidelines. It then provides an in-depth analysis of the DSM policies of the five Arctic coastal state-Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Norway, Russia, and the United States-assessing how each state's approach is shaped by its political priorities, legal commitments, and strategic interests. A comparative discussion explores how these states navigate their obligations under UNCLOS, their extended continental shelf claims, and their broader geopolitical strategies.Additionally, the article considers the growing interest of non-Arctic states, particularly China, in Arctic deep-sea mining, highlighting the broader international implications of resource development in the region.
Ontario's 2025 Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act (Bill 5) authorizes the creation of special economic zones that suspend environmental assessment requirements for selected projects, including those in the mineral rich Ring of Fire region of the James Bay Lowlands in Northern Ontario. This policy directly conflicts with the ongoing federal regional assessment, co-led with fifteen Treaty 9 First Nations whose purpose is to establish baseline data and cumulative-effects frameworks before development begins. By allowing development to proceed in advance of these baselines, Bill 5 removes the scientific control condition required to distinguish natural variation from mining impacts and undermines Indigenous participation in environmental governance. Historical evidence from the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement demonstrates that accelerated project approvals without adequate baseline science produced decades of ecological and health harm. The Ring of Fire presents a comparable inflection point: safeguarding both scientific integrity and Indigenous self-determination depends on completing multi-year baseline studies before development proceeds.
In February 1947, Pierre Berton led a daring, mid-winter expedition into the South Nahanni River Valley (Nah?& aogon; Deh & eacute;) in the Northwest Territories to find a secret tropical paradise. Berton's syndicated reports for the Vancouver Sun created one of the most exciting and bizarre media spectacles of the early postwar period, and it set in motion a series of events that would lead to the establishment of Nahanni National Park Reserve. Placing Berton's expedition to the Nahanni in a broader context, this essay traces and examines the narrative origins and evolution of a series of lurid tales about the Nahanni wilderness that are collectively known as the Legend of Headless Valley.The Legend of Headless Valley-which includes stories about a secret tropical valley, a lost gold mine, murdered and decapitated prospectors, evil spirits, prehistoric cave-dwelling monsters, and a tribe of head-hunters-remains one of the most enduring legends in the Canadian North and a fundamental feature of the Nahanni wilderness. In examining the narrative history of this northern legend, this essay helps reinforce the idea that stories about northern Canada-however lurid, speculative, or even untrue-are constitutive parts of northern geographies, both real and imagined, and mediating factors in their colonization by outside forces.
