Native River

EcoMaris partners with First Nations to offer internships to Indigenous youth.

Through direct action, nature’s elements build Indigenous confidence, motivation, leadership and solidarity, as well as a deeper connection to the environment.

Winds, tides, shores, bays, fjords and marine species circle the EcoMaris training vessel, which allows participants to reconnect with a ‘marine territory’. To many, this program offers a first expedition on ancestral waters.

Native River was - and is - developed in a co-creation process with Indigenous peoples. It aims to focus on their specific needs. At the end of each expedition, youth are referred to various resources by members of their community.

Native River provides participants with an opportunity to reconnect with their own Indigenous culture, and regain pride in it. This program encourages reflection on the role of First Nations within their territories. It also immerses them into tradition, through a concrete experience on the great ocean river.

Native River allows participants to:

• Reconnect with a marine territory through the discovery of the St. Lawrence
• Reflect upon the protection of the river and the global ocean
• Reclaim traditional knowledge in favour of solidarity
• Express themselves freely towards healing (through collective connection to nature)
• Build constructive interactions between community members of all ages
• Become or choose ambassadors of change

These week-long expeditions aboard the school ship are the first initiatives created as part of the River of Origins program. These collaborative activities with the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation are offered to teenagers and adults from the community.

Twice a season, they enable a dozen participants to develop their team spirit by taking part in the ship's operations. Young people learn the basics of navigation and marine ecosystems, while integrating their own realities. Leadership and communication skills are encouraged, thanks to a human approach that inspires hope. These expeditions provide an opportunity to discuss Wolastoqey identity, native leadership and the importance of Wahsipekuk.

The communities involved in these seminars fund the initiative directly, thanks in particular to the support of the Parks Canada Guardians program and the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation.
 

Parks Canada’s and the Wahsipekuk Wolastoqiyik First Nation’s Indigenous Guardians program aims to re-establish and strengthen the role of the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation as stewards of the lands and waters of the Wolastokuk traditional territory. Its other objective is to ensure the transfer of traditional knowledge in the community.

This program fulfills Parks Canada's mandate through the acquisition and sharing of traditional knowledge. Such knowledge promotes conservation, as well as awareness of Indigenous peoples’ roles and responsibilities when it comes to heritage protection.

Indigenous Guardians will help fund various initiatives falling under the Native River program.