Brunswick House: the full film

Overview

Voices from Brunswick House First Nation on forestry, moose, Missinaibi Lake and blueberries, and why protecting the land protects the way of life it teaches.

About this video

The four short films in one: Cody van Buskirk of the Lands and Resources department on forestry, Chad Kwakajesuk on moose, an elder's story of travelling Missinaibi Lake by canoe, shared on behalf of Lucy Tangie, and Chad again, speaking as one of the community's youth, on blueberries.

Each speaks to the same idea from a different place on the land: the forest, the animals, the water and the plants are one system, and decisions made today decide what the next generations can still learn from it.

Transcript

Forestry

Hi everyone, my name is Cody van Buskirk. I work with Brunswick House First Nation in the Lands and Resources department. I want to tell you a story about forestry because forestry isn't only something that happens out there. It becomes a part of the way the land behaves. And when the land changes, people feel it. Especially when they rely on it for food, for travel, and for staying connected to tradition.

For Brunswick House First Nation, the forest is not just a resource, it's a living home. It's connected to the animals, the people that harvest it, the plants and the people that gather them. And the places families return to year after year. When forestry happens in a way that doesn't consider these connections, the effects can last a long time.

It can change habitat, it can change the water, and it can change the wetlands. It can affect access to how easy it is to reach places for hunting, trapping, and gathering. And it can affect the timing and availability of things our community depends on. So when we talk about forestry, we ask a clear question.

How do we protect the values that matter to Brunswick House First Nation? Those values include protecting habitat for wildlife, protecting water in sensitive areas, and protecting traditional land uses, as well as harvesting areas. And respecting community knowledge, because local experience matters.

People know where things are found, and they know what patterns keep the land healthy. This is also where relationships are important. Consultation shouldn't be treated like a box to check. It's responsibility.

We need partners to listen, understand our priorities, and follow through with protections that are built into planning, not just promised. When values are protected early, and when protections are monitored in practice, forestry can happen with less harm.

But when values are ignored or treated like an afterthought, the impacts can ripple through many seasons. We want forestry that supports the land, and supports the people who depend on it. We want decisions today that don't cut off choices tomorrow. Miigwech.

Moose

Hello, my name is Chad Kwakajesuk, and I'm a member of Brunswick House First Nation. I'm thankful for the opportunity to speak, and I'm thankful for the land that continues to teach us. When I think about our connection to the territory, I don't think about just one animal or one season. I think about how everything is connected, how the land supports life, and how life returns a favour to those who live with respect.

Today, I want to talk about moose. Moose are a part of the land. The way you read the land, you learn where the browse is good. You learn where the ground feels like after the thaw.

You learn how the seasons change, the wetlands, the trails, and the cover where animals feel safe. Moose tell you when a season is changing. Moose show you where the land is healthy, where food is available, where water is steady enough, and where travel routes still make sense. And for us, moose aren't the only animal you hunt.

They're part of the landscape teaching. They're connected to habitat, connected to water, connected to plants and movement. And when that system is healthy, our community is able to live the way we were taught. That's why protecting moose matters, but it's important to understand that protecting moose means protecting the system that protects them.

Healthy habitats, safe movement areas, clean water, and places where animals could feed and rest. When we protect moose, we also protect food security. We protect traditional land use. When we protect land use, we protect the ability for elders and youth to keep learning from territory through real experience, through travel, through observation, and through respectful use.

I always come back to this. Our children and grandchildren, we want them to grow up knowing the land in the same way we were taught, through discipline, gratitude, and care. Our goal isn't just to protect moose for today. Our goal is to make sure moose continue to thrive so future generations can still experience the land the same way, with confidence that the land will provide.

At Brunswick House First Nation, Lands and Resources is here to protect those values, so they remain strong not only now, but for what becomes possible tomorrow. Miigwech.

Missinaibi Lake

Now I'm going to share a story on behalf of Lucy Tangie, one of our elders within the community. Hello, I'm an elder from Brunswick House First Nation. I'm thankful for the chance to share these words here today about Missinaibi Lake. Because when you speak about that place, you're not only talking about water and trees, you're talking about memory, family, and how life was taught.

Missinaibi Lake has a way of staying with you when you're there. You can feel how the land holds history. It reminds you of the days when people travelled with patience, when they listened to the weather, and when they respected the animals because they depended on them. I remember a time back in the day when we travelled by canoe with family.

It wasn't just a trip to get from one place to another. It was a part of how you live when you grow up connected to the land. We prepared the way we always did, knowing the lake would be the road, knowing the water would decide how the journey felt. You watched for signs, you watched the wind, and you watched the surface of the water.

You paid attention because attention keeps you safe. It also keeps you respectful. On that trip we weren't rushing to finish. We were learning, we were noticing. You learn so much when you travel slowly enough to listen.

And in those days, trapping and living traditionally was more than work. It was living. It taught responsibility. You learn to set things carefully.

You learn that every action has meaning. You learn patience because the land doesn't rush. And you can't control it. Trapping teaches discipline and respect.

You provide for your family, but you also understand the balance. You understand that the land has to keep living. If you take without respect, it doesn't only affect one season. It affects the next season too.

Missinaibi Lake taught us balance. It taught us gratitude. It taught us that survival and respect go together. Today, we still need to protect the places where these teachings happened.

Missinaibi Lake is one of those places. Protecting it means more than history. It means protecting the ability for young people to keep learning the land through experience. Through travel and through tradition.

And through respectful living. Miigwech.

Blueberries

And I'm happy to share a message today about blueberries. Blueberries are one of those things that feel like they belong to summer. But they connect to so much more than a season. For me, blueberries remind me of being out with family.

Walking the trails. Looking for patches and paying attention to what the land is doing. You learn which areas are ready. You learn that some patches need more time.

And you learn how the land changes from year to year. When you harvest blueberries, you're not only getting food. You're learning the land. You're learning timing.

You're learning how things grow and how the territory supports life. That's why it matters when we harvest in a respectful, sustainable way. Sustainable harvesting means we take what we need. We don't destroy the plants.

And we leave enough so the patch can come back strong next season. Because if we harvest without thinking, the berries can disappear or the patch can weaken. And when that happens, future seasons get harder and future generations lose out. Forestry connects to this too because forest and berry areas are part of the same landscape.

When the forest changes, it can affect sunlight, moisture and how plants grow. It could also affect access, whether it's still easy and safe to reach for harvesting places our families rely on. So it matters that forestry planning respects harvesting areas, including berry areas.

Because these are a part of everyday life and our traditions. As youth, we want to keep learning these ways. We want to keep going out picking berries and sharing experience with our families and community. If the land is protected and we harvest it sustainably, the berries and teachings behind them can continue for future generations.

Miigwech.