Balancing Community autonomy with Collective Identity: Mi'Kmaq Decision Making in Nova Scotia

Historically the Mi’kmaq, one of the indigenous people of Eastern Canada, governed natural resource of their traditional territory of Mi’kma’ki, known today as parts of Maritime Canada and Quebec. Today, the Mi’kmaq of... [ view full abstract ]

Historically the Mi’kmaq, one of the indigenous people of Eastern Canada, governed natural resource of their traditional territory of Mi’kma’ki, known today as parts of Maritime Canada and Quebec. Today, the Mi’kmaq of Nova Scotia are organized as the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs. The polity is an aggregate of the 13 Mi’kmaq communities represented by their respective Chiefs who are elected according to sections 74 - 80 of the Indian Act in Canada. Among the Mi’kmaq leadership, there has been a revived interest in Mi’kmaq governance processes to implement the constitutionally protected rights of the Mi’kmaq of Nova Scotia. This paper examines the decision-making process of the Mi’kmaq of Nova Scotia using fisheries-related decision-making as a case study and influenced by the 2007 tripartite Mi’kmaq-Nova Scotia-Canada Framework Agreement. Key factors influencing decision-making include the use of different ways of knowing; the importance of inclusivity; a willingness to bridge traditional with modern aspects of governance; the challenges associated with balancing collective identity with community autonomy; the tacit incorporation of Mi’kmaq ontology and epistemology in decision-making; and the use of interactive models to reconceptualise research use as a process rather than a single event.