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Marla Robson
I want to get people interested in supporting boreal conservation because it is important for our future, our cultures, and our existence. I would like to see people recognize their part, take responsibility, have humility, and show their appreciation by using less.
One of my first memories is an experience of senses. It takes place in Norway House, Manitoba, in the heart of the boreal. I kept my eyes shut tight as I listened intensely to all the sounds surrounding me. I heard the sound of trees bending against the wind, giving, flexing, and coming back to stand tall and straight. I heard the many songbirds, which were dependent on those very trees for shelter and protection. In the far distance, I could hear the lake lapping against rocky shores. All the while, my heart and cheek pressed against a hot rocky outcrop, sun beaming down on us, and it was in that moment that I recognized how intensely connected I am to this place. Since that moment that recognition has only deepened, and I understand more clearly how much I am a part of the boreal and how much our collective continuation is dependent on its sustained existence.
My maternal family has been, by far, the most influential driver in my commitment to the environment. I am proud to come from a long line of people with the knowledge to live off the land as trappers, hunters, and fishers. Sure, we are also administrators, nurses, health care aides, counselors, youth workers, and other professionals but we are always aware of who we are and continue to practice our traditions. My family was there along side me in those first memories, taking me on boats to learn about water, its importance to the gilled ones and other animals.
Sadly, as I have aged, they have also told me about its negative changes and how those changes have impacted everything else along the way, leading directly back to us. Through daily life, they taught me about recognizing your place and your part, to have humility, and to be truly thankful. They also taught me to show creation I understand those things by being resourceful instead of wasteful and to recognize the difference between need and want. It may seem odd but I cannot recall a single moment where anyone sat me down and told me these things; instead, I think I was shown.
I am sure those early teachings guided me through high school, a bachelor degree in environmental sciences, and through the initial stages of my career. Not surprisingly, it is those early teachings that are my touchstones, where strength comes from, and where inspiration to continue along this path originates.
While in school, I was fortunate to learn from both a team of Elders as well as professionals and instructors within the “western” knowledge system. It strengthened the belief in me that in order to move forward in a good way, both systems need to work together, continuing down the same path, and work towards common goals. One need not merge into the other, but instead they should continue along side one another on an equal plane. I think this idea applies to most things, but especially to boreal conservation and issues related to the environment.
While working internationally, I saw this occurring as an Australian conservation organisation began working with Aboriginals to conserve environmentally and culturally significant wild spaces in a way that respected both ways of knowing. Since my return to Canada, I have seen this work progress in Australia and have witnessed it occurring here in Manitoba as well.
Since 2004, my work in Canada has been heavily involved in projects related to First Nations and the environment, especially in relation to climate change. It has been an intense time of greater understanding that has only deepened my resolve to conserve and protect the boreal. During this past year, I worked on a project that related to adaptation to climate change and its impacts for First Nations across southern Canada. All forests, including the boreal, are at risk whether it is from increases in pests, droughts, or forest fires. The boreal produces the very air we breathe and it draws in the carbon we fill the atmosphere with, helping to curb one of the primary drivers for global climate change.
While in school, I was fortunate to learn from both a team of Elders as well as professionals and instructors within the “western” knowledge system. It strengthened the belief in me that in order to move forward in a good way, both systems need to work together, continuing down the same path, and work towards common goals.
Another concern I have for the future deals with projections that we will witness changes to important species within the boreal as our climate changes. In Manitoba, 80% percent of First Nations are located in the boreal. How will changes to the forest affect us directly or indirectly? How will changes to the forest affect those living in the city? Even though my family connects me directly to the boreal, everyone will be impacted by these changes in some way. One way of meeting the challenges presented by climate change is to work to maintain our forests as migratory routes, as the source of our air, and for me, the source of my identify and culture.
When I think about the boreal, I think back to that first memory, laying on that rock enjoying its intrinsic beauty. I think about all that I rely on from the boreal. Finally, I think about all the ways I can be a part of its protection. I am dedicated to being a part of process of keeping these places, which are so important, intact and do my share as a duty to my family, our traditions and culture, and all our future relations. I hope that more people will go out into the boreal (responsibly of course), connect to it, and return as committed to creation as it is to us.
July 9th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
Marla Robson is a true inspiration to us all. Thanks for being you Marla. I recommend that everyone takes her words to heart and joins the cause to protect Aboriginal culture and a robust ecosystems.