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Chief Shirley Costel
October 23rd, 2007Written by C. Hunnie
“Hello?”
There is a pause as she awaits the transmission of my voice through the phone line. The consistent delays throughout our long-distance telephone conversation make Shirley Costel, Chief of Mathias Colomb First Nation, seem a world away.
I want to understand what compels her to be an advocate of environmental issues. She has been active in encouraging First Nations people to become involved in boreal forest protection. She tells me her great great-grandmother influenced her significantly.
“She was a medicine woman. Through her I learned to respect the land itself and the life of the water and the forest,” Chief Costel remarks. “That’s how I’ve been brought up, respecting Mother Earth. In whatever I do I try to protect it as much as possible.”
For Chief Costel it is an unconscious and understood statement that the world is alive. She doesn’t perceive the earth as merely a resource for human consumption, but as a living entity that should be protected.
She remembers the threat to her community ten years ago that would have seen major destruction of the region’s forest by clear-cut logging. The community protested against the government and lumber company. The protest was a success and the forest was selectively cut instead. But the Mathias Colomb First Nation would like to see more ecologically friendly ventures instituted in the region. Initiatives such as Fishing tourism is part of a resource management strategy that her First Nation invites. Catch and release methods would be encouraged to maintain the area’s ecology intactness.
Chief Costel explains the importance of maintaining the heath of our northern boreal forests to First Nations people. She points out, “All species are connected to First Nations because of our traditional way of life.” Local conservation programs will not only help ensure the preservation of healthy environments at home, but globally as well. This is the main reason behind the recycling program spearheaded by the Mathias Colomb Nation.
“All this garbage is destroying our land; the store bought foods, the wrapping, the cans, they’re just going into our dumps and piling up,” Chief Costel contends. “The waste gets burned and goes into the air. Global warming affects the boreal forest, and it affects the surrounding areas including the water and the animals. We have to do something as First Nations people in order to protect our resource areas and our land.”
Chief Costel and Mathias Colomb First Nation are actively trying to protect the boreal forest which they depend on for their survival including continued practice of their traditional activities. They have initiated a pilot project on moose management that seeks to map the migration patterns of moose in the region. The study also looks at fish spawning territories and will determine what areas need the most protection. In this way the community will plan their land use according to the needs of the forest that surrounds them. The Earth’s needs are to be met first which subsequently will insure the needs of their community are met. Chief Costel comments, “This is the only land we have and if we destroy it how will we survive?”As I reflect on our conversation I realize that what seemed like a world away is the really same world. We occupy a single living planet and therefore we all have a stake in its well-being and a responsibility to protect it. Chief Costel and Mathias Colomb First Nation deserve a standing ovation for setting a strong example that we can all learn from.
March 5th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
iT IS NOT AS EXCITING AS TREE HUGGING AND HERB HIKING BUT HELP YOUR PEOPLE OUT OF POVERTY WITH NORTHERN JOBS. cONSERVATION IS THE KEY IN THE WAY OF REDUCING GHGs, AIR TRAVEL EXCESSIVE ACQUISITION OF USELESS GOODS. nORTHERN PEOPLE WILL NEED ROADS JUST TO SURVIVE AND YOU ARE MISLEADING YOUR PEOPLE IF YOU DON’T RECOGNIZE THIS!
May 9th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
WE AS FIRST NATIONS LIVED WELL FROM WHAT OUR CREATOR HAS GIVEN TO US.WE ALL LIVED WELL BEFOR ASHFAULT CAME ABOUT
CONCRETE,POWERLINES,PIPELINES,MASSIVE HOLES FR DRILLS,
OILTANKERS,PLANES,AUTO’S AND SO MUCH MORE GARBAGE. “JOBS”
FOR HOW LONG? 50 TO 2,300 YEARS? I DON’T THINK SO!!
OUR PEOPLE AND SURVIVAL FOR OUR YOUTH COMES 1ST!!!!!
SO ALL THAT GARBAGE DEVELOPMENT CAN RUST AND ROT!!!
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WE HAVE SO MANY POWERFUL LEADERS!!
IT’S TIME WE STOP TALKING!!!
IT’S TIME WE STOP DEALING!!!
IT’S TIME WE??????????????????????????????????????