Alberta
INDUSTRY-INDIGENOUS RELATIONS: A TREND TOWARD DEEPER ENGAGEMENT

INDUSTRY-INDIGENOUS RELATIONS: A TREND TOWARD DEEPER ENGAGEMENT
The Canadian oil and natural gas industry has a strong history of engagement with Indigenous peoples. Since its early initiatives, the petroleum sector has had many learnings and opportunities for growth with respect to its interactions with Indigenous communities. Consequently, these relationships have evolved towards ever-deepening forms of engagement including consultation and business partnerships. However, the nature of these relationships has been difficult to communicate with credibility; arrangements between companies and communities are often confidential, thus limiting the ability of industry to share positive stories of engagement.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), an association that represents Canada’s oil and natural gas producers, has utilized multiple surveys of its members in order to better understand the relationship between industry and Indigenous peoples. One of these surveys, known as the Telling Our Story survey, was commissioned by CAPP and conducted by Dr. Ken Coates of the University of Saskatchewan. Additionally, CAPP developed its own survey focused on procurement, community investment and consultation capacity funding in the oil sands. These surveys provide data that demonstrate the value producers place on building long-term, sustainable relationships with Indigenous communities. In particular, economic engagement is viewed as a primary opportunity to establish good relations and support Indigenous self- determination.
Survey Methodology
The purpose of the Telling Our Story survey was to collect information about the oil and natural gas industry’s efforts to engage Indigenous communities. Research was conducted by Dr. Ken Coates, Canada Research Chair in Regional Innovation at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan. Dr. Coates used a comprehensive survey of industry representatives, in partnership with CAPP, plus CAPP’s member companies and partner associations including the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, the Petroleum Services Association of Canada, the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, and the Canadian Association of Geophysical Contractors. A total of 122 companies participated in the study, representing a cross-section of the oil and natural gas industry in Canada. Data was collected in a confidential manner, anonymized and aggregated into a final report. The survey highlighted key themes related to industry’s engagement with Indigenous communities.
Consultation and Community Engagement
Companies within the oil and natural gas industry have developed long-term relationships with communities, and these relationships are multifaceted. Of course, a core aspect of relationship-building takes place through consultation processes. The trend toward consultation accelerated in 2004 with the Supreme Court of Canada decision on Haida Nation v. British Columbia, which determined the Crown has a duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous peoples when making a decision that could affect their constitutional rights. Procedural aspects of this duty can be delegated to industry, and now industry conducts the majority of project consultations. Survey respondents noted that today, companies are actively engaged in this process, seeking to ensure meaningful, two-way discussion in consultations. CAPP members indicated that they view these relationships formed through consultation as critically important to their business. Many companies have teams of staff dedicated to consulting and building relationships with communities, and funding is often provided to support community capacity to engage in consultations. A separate survey of CAPP’s oil sands members found that between 2015 and 2016, oil sands operators provided $40.79 million for consultation capacity funding to local Indigenous communities.
Associated with consultations are a variety of forms of engagement. CAPP’s members placed particular value on supporting various community activities, social and cultural priorities, and infrastructure needs. The aforementioned survey of oil sands members found that between 2015 and 2016 operators in the region spent $48.6 million on Indigenous community investment. According to companies, these focused investments positively impact relationships. Furthermore, there has been a trend toward the negotiation of long- term, collaborative agreements between project proponents and Indigenous communities in areas of operation that address community concerns and include clauses related to procurement, employment, community investment, dispute resolution, capacity funding and other topics of importance to the proponent and the community.
Economic Engagement
According to oil and natural gas producers, there is a strong emphasis on economic engagement as the priority in building relationships. In particular, procurement – the purchasing of goods and services from Indigenous businesses – presents a significant opportunity for mutual benefit. Both joint venture partnerships and preferential contracting arrangements with Indigenous-owned companies enable companies to build links and trust with communities. The focus on these arrangements is evidenced by substantial financial investment: in 2015 to 2016, oil sands producers spent $3.3 billion on procurement from 399 Indigenous owned- companies in 65 Alberta communities. While a sizable proportion of Indigenous businesses may be small or new, the data suggests their role in the sector will continue to increase.
This type of engagement allows Indigenous peoples to leverage their own expertise, build capacity, and ultimately establish pathways to prosperity. In this regard, industry can play an important role in supporting successful, self-determining communities. Although procurement was ranked most highly in terms of its benefit to the relationship between producers and communities, there are other forms of economic engagement; a number of companies have Indigenous recruitment strategies and support training programs intended to build the technical skillset of Indigenous employees and contractors.
Conclusion
The research commissioned by CAPP highlights the emphasis that oil and natural gas sector companies place on meaningful consultation, partnerships, and in particular, economic engagement. Industry has made strides in building deeper partnerships, and it is expected that the trend toward more meaningful engagement will continue. As an industry association, CAPP believes the oil and natural gas sector has an important role in tangibly advancing reconciliation together with Indigenous peoples in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 92. CAPP believes its role in reconciliation can be described as identifying and finding feasible ways to share economic opportunities arising from resource development, while continuing to learn, grow and improve strong relationships based on trust, respect, and open communication. Industry’s understanding will continue to develop, and the sector is open to further dialogue in order to inform its understanding of industry’s role in reconciliation.
Thanks to Todayville for helping us bring our members’ stories of collaboration and innovation to the public.
Click to read a foreward from JP Gladu, Chief Development and Relations Officer, Steel River Group; Former President and CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business.
JP Gladu, Chief Development and Relations Officer, Steel River Group; Former President & CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business
Click to read comments about this series from Jacob Irving, President of the Energy Council of Canada.
Jacob Irving, President of Energy Council of Canada
The Canadian Energy Compendium is an annual initiative by the Energy Council of Canada to provide an opportunity for cross-sectoral collaboration and discussion on current topics in Canada’s energy sector. The 2020 Canadian Energy Compendium: Innovations in Energy Efficiency is due to be released November 2020.
Click below to read more stories from Energy Council of Canada’s Compendium series.
PETER SUTHERLAND SR GENERATING STATION POWERS NORTHEAST ONTARIO
Alberta
Norad, Haiti, migration, critical minerals to top agenda for Trudeau and Biden

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden is embarking on a 27-hour whirwind visit to Ottawa, where he will meet Friday with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and speak to a joint session of Parliament — his first bilateral sojourn north as commander-in-chief.
Here are some of the issues the two leaders are likely to discuss:
Migration breakthrough: The two countries are already close to an agreement to expand the 2004 migration treaty known as the Safe Third County Agreement, which is designed to limit asylum claims in both countries but currently only applies to official entry points. As a result, critics say it encourages asylum seekers to enter Canada at unofficial border crossings, which allows them to make a claim. Sources familiar with the details say the two sides have been working on extending the agreement to cover the length of the Canada-U.S. border since the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles last June. Such an agreement would help resolve a major political headache for Trudeau, while giving Biden the political cover he would need to devote more spending to northern border security.
Modernizing Norad: Until last month, the binational early-warning system known as the North American Aerospace Defence Command might have been best known for tracking Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. But a February flurry of unidentified flying objects drifting through North American airspace, most notably what U.S. officials insist was a Chinese surveillance balloon, exposed what Norad commander Gen. Glen VanHerck described as a “domain awareness gap”: the archaic, Cold War-era system’s ability to track small, high-flying, slow-moving objects. Coupled with the brazen ambitions of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the ongoing but largely opaque joint effort to upgrade Norad — rarely mentioned in past Trudeau-Biden readouts — is suddenly front and centre for both governments. Media reports suggest Canada could agree to an accelerated timeline.
Helping Haiti: The list of foreign-policy hotspots around the world that instantly bring Canada to mind is a short one, but Haiti is surely near the top. And as Haiti has descended ever deeper into lawlessness in the wake of the 2021 assassination of president Jovenel Moise, the need for military intervention has been growing — and some senior U.S. officials have expressly name-checked Canada as the perfect country to lead the effort. Trudeau’s response has been diplomatic but firm: the crisis is best addressed from a distance. “Canada is elbows deep in terms of trying to help,” he said last month. “But we know from difficult experience that the best thing we can do to help is enable the Haitian leadership … to be driving their pathway out of this crisis.” Military experts in Canada say the Canadian Armed Forces are in no state to be able to lead any sort of intervention. U.S. officials said Wednesday they are pursuing a solution with urgency, but insist the discussions are multilateral in nature and will have to involve Haiti itself, and perhaps even the United Nations.
Mission-critical minerals: No high-level conversation between the U.S. and Canada these days would be complete without talking about critical minerals, the 21st-century rocket fuel for the electric-vehicle revolution that Trudeau calls the “building blocks for the clean economy.” Canada has the minerals — cobalt, lithium, magnesium and rare earth elements, among others — and a strategy to develop them, but the industry is still in its infancy and the U.S. wants those minerals now. The issue has profound foreign-policy implications: China has long dominated the critical minerals supply chain, something the Biden administration is determined to change. “This really is one of the most transformative moments since the Industrial Revolution,” said Helaina Matza, the State Department’s deputy special co-ordinator for the G7’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment. “We understand that we can’t do it alone.”
Water, water everywhere: Canada and the U.S. have been negotiating since 2018 to modernize the Columbia River Treaty, a 1961 agreement designed to protect a key cross-border watershed the size of Texas in the Pacific Northwest. Despite 15 separate rounds of talks, progress has been middling at best. Meanwhile, Canada is under U.S. pressure to allow the International Joint Commission — the investigative arm of a separate 1909 boundary waters agreement — to investigate toxic mining runoff in the B.C. Interior that Indigenous communities on both sides of the border say has been poisoning their lands and waters for years. Add to all of that the mounting pressure on Canada to supercharge efforts to extract and process critical minerals, and the plot promises to thicken.
Border blues: The flow of irregular migration isn’t the only bilateral issue focused on the border. Critics on both sides say travel between the two countries hasn’t been the same since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nexus trusted-traveller program, a popular fast-tracking system in Canada, broke down last year amid a dispute over U.S. border agents working on Canadian soil; the fix is widely seen as less streamlined than the old system. Many of those same critical voices are taking issue with Canada’s imposed new tax measures to discourage foreigners from owning real estate north of the border; some on Capitol Hill have been vociferous in pressing the Biden administration to demand an exemption.
A trade deal by any other name: Regardless of what the two leaders end up talking about, it will happen within the framework of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, known in Canada as CUSMA. The USMCA era of continental trade, which began in earnest in 2020, has not been without its hiccups, including disputes over U.S. access to Canada’s dairy market and the way the U.S. defines foreign automotive content. The Biden administration is also staunchly opposed to Canada’s plans for a digital services tax, which it considers a violation. The agreement is due to be reviewed in 2026, and a lot could happen — especially on Capitol Hill and in the White House — between now and then. It’s also worth noting that while it’s not covered by the trade deal, the softwood lumber dispute remains a perennial irritant. International Trade Minister Mary Ng met earlier this month with industry leaders to discuss “unwarranted and illegal U.S. duties” on softwood lumber, vowing that a solution that protects Canadian jobs “is the only resolution that we will accept.” In other words, don’t hold your breath for a breakthrough on a dispute “that’s been going on since Adam and Eve,” said Tony Wayne, a former U.S. ambassador to Mexico and the former U.S. assistant secretary of state for economic and business affairs.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2023.
James McCarten, The Canadian Press
Alberta
Thompson’s 37-save effort leads Golden Knights to 3-2 win over Flames

Vegas Golden Knights goalie Logan Thompson scrambles to block the net during third period NHL hockey action against the Calgary Flames in Calgary, Alta., Thursday, March 23, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
By Darren Haynes in Calgary
Logan Thompson’s triumphant return for Vegas after six weeks on the shelf was overshadowed by him exiting the game late in the third period with another injury.
Before he departed with just over six minutes to go, Thompson made 37 saves as the surging Golden Knights picked up a 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames on Thursday.
“Right now, obviously concerned about Logan,” said Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy. “ Obviously, Logan missing that much time, we’ll have to look closely at that one.”
It was unknown if the latest setback is related to the lower-body injury he suffered back on Feb. 9.
“I don’t know what happened, to be honest. He just got up and left,” Cassidy said. “He knows his body. I have no idea. At the end of the day, let’s hope it’s not related to the previous injury and it’s something that will be short term.”
Up 3-2 at the time, Jonathan Quick came in and turned aside all five shots he faced as Calgary poured on the pressure in search of the tying goal.
“It doesn’t happen really often but when he got out there (Quick) made a couple really good saves to keep us in the game,” said Vegas forward Ivan Barbashev.
The best chance to tie came off the stick of MacKenzie Weegar with a minute to go but he couldn’t beat Quick from 30 feet out.
“I saw the net and I missed my shot,” said the Flames defenceman. “If there was one chance I can get back all year, it would be that one.”
Nicolas Roy scored in his return from an 18-game absence for Vegas (45-21-6). Jonathan Marchessault and Michael Amadio added the others.
Milan Lucic and Nazem Kadri replied for Calgary (32-26-15). Jacob Markstrom stopped 29-of-32 shots in his 11th start in the last 12 games.
In avenging their 7-2 home loss to the Flames on March 16, the Golden Knights earned their seventh win in eight games and are 16-3-2 in their last 21 contests.
Vegas opened up a four-point cushion on the Los Angeles Kings atop the Pacific Division.
Meanwhile, the Flames took a blow to their flickering playoff hopes, falling six points behind Winnipeg for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
It’s the Flames’ 27th one-goal loss this year, which leads the NHL.
“We’re in every game, and we have a chance to win every game we’re playing, so it obviously makes it more frustrating that we lose and it feels like we’re always losing by that one goal,” said Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson.
“I don’t know how many games I’ve played back in my head thinking that ‘Ah, I should have scored that’ or ‘How did we not score that’ and we would have been in a different situation, but it’s the reality.”
Up 2-1 entering the third period, Vegas got some breathing room at 5:19 when pressure from Roy forced a defensive zone turnover from Rasmus Andersson. Roy then went to the net, received a pass from Phil Kessel and fired a shot over Markstrom.
The Flames crept back to within one at 12:33 when Kadri ended his 16-game goal drought with a power-play marker, but that’s as close as they would get.
“When it’s big games, we need guys to step up and be big players and we didn’t have that tonight from everyone,” said Lucic.
Calgary fell to 0-18-3 when trailing after two periods. The Flames are the only NHL team without a comeback victory this season.
Vegas, which entered the night having outscored teams 70-45 in the first period this year, jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame, with both goals coming less than four minutes apart.
Jack Eichel sprung Marchessault who whipped a shot past Markstrom on a 2-on-1 at 11:43.
Slipping behind the Flames defence and after being stopped on his first shot, Amadio rattled in his own rebound at 15:23.
Lucic cut the deficit in half with 58 seconds left in the frame off a slick cross-ice setup from rookie Walker Duehr.
SHOW OF SUPPORT
The Flames wore #SnowyStrong stickers on the back of their helmets in support of assistant general manager Chris Snow’s ongoing battle with ALS. The stickers that feature a blue cornflower, the international symbol of hope for the fight against ALS, were created by a parent from the U9 hockey team in which Snow’s daughter plays and were first worn by that team and its coaches.
STREAKS SNAPPED
Golden Knights forward Reilly Smith had his career-best point streak snapped at nine games (four goals, 11 assists). It equalled the franchise best, also held by Alex Tuch, Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty.
Four Flames also had their scoring streaks come to an end. Defenceman Noah Hanifin at six games, while Tyler Toffoli, Elias Lindholm and Blake Coleman each had their four-game streaks halted.
UP NEXT
Golden Knights: Wrap up their road trip in Edmonton on Saturday night.
Flames: Play host to San Jose in an afternoon game on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2023.
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