Two Canoes

The purpose of “Two Canoes”:

It became clear to us after years of working with First Peoples, and other communities and individuals, that in order to affect deep, positive change in the way mining is undertaken (if at all) upon the land, the Indigenous view has to be understood by the non-Indigenous, ‘settler’ population.

When we kept getting asked (sometimes by high level officials in government and industry) questions like “Why do we need to include elders?” or “Why can’t we just do what we want – it’s all Crown land anyway?” – the need for a cultural bridge-building exercise became abundantly clear.

Out of this need, FMC’s “Two Canoes” was born.

Embracing the spirit of the iconic Haudenosaunee treaty belt which envisions the two worlds (Indigenous and settler) living in peace and non-interference, we hope it is the beginning of a better understanding in the mining relationship as we move toward an era of reconciliation and restitution in Canada.

Thank you for being part of positive change.

ELDER FRED JOHN TEACHES THE MEDICINES