Kitsumkalum First Nation Indigenous Land Use Study: Vopak Pacific Canada (Completed 2020)

Beginning in 2019, Kwusen worked collaboratively with the Kitsumkalum First Nation (Kitsumkalum) to conduct an Indigenous Land Use Study (ILUS) related to the Vopak Pacific Canada Project. The study and report were designed to assist Kitsumkalum in assessing the potential impacts of the proposed Project on past, present, and future Indigenous Land and Marine Use Values, cumulative effects, and Kitsumkalum’s Tsimshian Rights and Title. Tasks included interviews with Kitsumkalum community members and the recording of spatial data with Kwusen’s GeoKeeper app. Interview recordings, interview notes, and spatial data were uploaded to Kitsumkalum’s Community Knowledge Keeper (CKK). Kwusen produced an ILUS report that included a summary of Kitsumkalum’s use and occupancy of their Territory, a detailed ethnographic background, a results section outlining community concerns about Project effects, and an assessment of Project related effects on Kitsumkalum’s Title and Rights. All information and findings from this study are accessible to Kitsumkalum for future use in their Community KnowledgeKeeper database.

Since 2019, Kwusen has had the pleasure of working alongside Kitsumkalum’s team to create a rich collection of archival and oral history materials in their Community KnowledgeKeeper, train Kitsumkalum community researchers to conduct ILU interviews, and conduct over 50 interviews with Kitsumkalum community members.