Wild Salmon Summit – Summary Report
On September 19-21, 2018, the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN), the First Nations Summit, and the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) hosted the “Wild Salmon Summit: In a Time of Reconciliation” at the Westin Wall Centre located on the unceded territory of the Musqueam Nation.
The Wild Salmon Summit was held to explore issues related to the current health and management of wild salmon and their habitats and develop a shared strategic vision for this important resource. First Nations leaders and technicians from across BC were invited to share their perspectives and engage in dialogue about the future of wild salmon.
Each day of the summit was designed around achieving an overarching objective outlined below:
Day 1 - Conduct an environmental scan of the mandates and operations of First Nations fisheries organizations in BC;
Day 2 - Discuss the current state of wild salmon health and identify barriers to ensuring healthy wild salmon populations;
Day 3 - Develop a shared strategic vision for wild salmon in BC. Three (3) key overarching themes of discussion emerged over the course of the three-day event that formed the basis of the
suggested priority actions outlined in this report. These themes include:
- Developing a Shared Vision;
- Centralizing and Improving Access to Knowledge, Data and Information; and
- Affecting Legislative and Policy Change.
Delegates at the event presented a number of recommendations for actions that could be taken within each of these key themes. These recommendations are provided within the report as suggested priority actions to be taken by First Nations leadership.