Itsa国际传媒檚 a landmark agreement to protect 45 sacred St贸:l艒 sites on Crown Land across St贸:l艒 Nation territory that marks a first in B.C.

The sacred, spiritual and ceremonial sites of the St贸:l艒 people, such as transformation sites, or cemeteries, have now acquired legal recognition, and protection under the Heritage Conservation Act.

Aitchlitz chief Angie Bailey, spokesperson for the Ssa国际传媒櫭砽h T茅m茅xw Stewardship Alliance (STSA), called the agreement sa国际传媒渁 major step forwardsa国际传媒� in gaining recognition of their rights as cultural stewards.

sa国际传媒淔or a very long time, the leadership of our organization, representing the 17 St贸:l艒 First Nation members of the STSA, have worked toward enhancing our decision-making authority over activities that affect our lands and our resources.

sa国际传媒淎 particular focus has been protecting our sacred heritage sites, including our transformation places, our ancestral cemeteries and our places of cultural practice. These are some of our most sensitive and important places in Ssa国际传媒櫭砽h T茅m茅xw (our world), which historically have been badly disrespected.

sa国际传媒淭his agreement marks an achievement in our efforts to gain greater recognition of our Indigenous culture and heritage, as well as our Indigenous rights as stewards.sa国际传媒�

The pilot agreement between the Ssa国际传媒櫭砽h T茅m茅xw Stewardship Alliance and the province came out of a government-to-government approach.

sa国际传媒淥ur Old People worked for generations alone in this effort,sa国际传媒� Chief Bailey said. sa国际传媒淭his is a major step forward for First Nations heritage conservation in British Columbia.sa国际传媒�

The deal outlines the consensus-seeking, and shared decision-making approach taken by STSA and provincial reps.

sa国际传媒淧rotection of sacred Indigenous heritage sites is critical to the spiritual well-being of Indigenous communities and an important part of our reconciliation journey,sa国际传媒� said Katrine Conroy, Minister of Forests. sa国际传媒淔irst Nations have long called for a more direct role in heritage conservation as part of reforming how heritage sites are administered in British Columbia. Through this pilot, we are acting on our commitment to working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to protect these important sites.sa国际传媒�

The agreement provides sa国际传媒渁utomaticsa国际传媒� protection of artifacts, features, materials or other physical evidence of human habitation prior to 1846, as well as burial places with archeological or historical value, Indigenous rock art and heritage wrecks.

Skowkale Chief Mark Point, an STSA executive board member, emphasized that the agreement offers sa国际传媒渞ecognition of our Indigenous world view and Indigenous landscape of sacred sites.sa国际传媒�

Leadership has been lobbying for this protection for years.

sa国际传媒淲e suffered serious losses to our heritage through the development of our lands over which we have had no say,sa国际传媒� Point said. sa国际传媒淣ow things are changing for the better.sa国际传媒�

Under the act, the Province can enter into an agreement with a First Nation with respect to the conservation and protection of its cultural heritage sites and objects. These agreements, like the pilot agreement with the STSA, can provide protection for heritage sites of spiritual, ceremonial or cultural value, which would not otherwise be automatically protected under the act. Examples include sacred spiritual practice areas or ceremonial belongings.

Through government-to-government negotiation, both parties entered into this agreement to protect sites identified by the STSA as holding spiritual or cultural meaning. An implementation framework was co-developed as part of the agreement.

The pilot agreement will be in effect for one year at which point the parties will evaluate the outcomes of the agreement and recommend whether to amend, extend or allow it to conclude. This agreement will provide important learning for potential future agreements with other First Nations and inform the recently launched Heritage Conservation Act Transformation Project.

sa国际传媒淒eveloping the Heritage Conservation Act agreement was a tremendous collaborative undertaking,sa国际传媒� said David Schaepe, director of St贸:l艒 Research and Resource Management Centre, and lead negotiator for STSA. sa国际传媒淲esa国际传媒檝e opened a new chapter in expanding the scope of Indigenous heritage recognition and protection in B.C. I believe this to be a good precedent for others to work with throughout the province and more broadly.sa国际传媒�

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