"Indigenous communities are leading Canada’s clean energy transition", 9 May 2024

"My territory is rich in natural resources like oil, gas, timber and water. Oil and gas industries have come and ravaged and exploited these resources for their benefits,” says Taylor Behn-Tsakoza, a member of the Fort Nelson First Nation....

The downturn in the gas sector, beginning in 2008, resulted in numerous job losses, business shutdowns and a decrease in real estate values, not to mention deserted gas wells, wastewater pits, aging compressor stations and abandoned pipelines snaking through the territory....

Since then, Fort Nelson First Nation is making efforts to clean up the damage, and shift from fossil fuels to clean and renewable energy.

Indigenous lands are often the birthplace of clean energy initiatives aimed at repairing the damage done by gas extraction, addressing environmental degradation and economic challenges alike....

In 2015, for example, the First Nation won a decision from the B.C. Environmental Appeal Board that stopped the company, Nexen, from being granted a long-term license to extract 2.5 billion litres of water a year from a small lake about 90 kilometres northeast of Fort Nelson....

The Indigenous Clean Energy social enterprise (ICE), provides training and mentorship opportunities to Indigenous youth participating in clean energy projects...

It’s important to use technologies that don’t harm the environment and that align with Indigenous knowledge and values.... Community-led renewable energy initiatives in rural areas are symbolic of a shift toward redefining communities on Indigenous peoples’ terms...