ment on our traditional territory. We have also
rewritten the way in which governance of our
territory takes place. Our communities have
significant jurisdiction over large parts of our
traditional territory, while at the same time,
we have established a unique regional govern-
ment involving our Cree communities and the
non-Indigenous communities of the region.
As you know, northern Quebec, similarly to
many parts of northern Canada, is an impor-
tant focus of the mining industry. There are
rich deposits of a wide range of industrial and
commercial minerals which can be exploited
and yield very significant economic returns.
On the basis of our rights being recognized
and confirmed, we established a “Cree Mining
Policy” which lays out the procedures which
a mining proponent must follow in order to
obtain our permission, and eventually formal
provincial authorization, for the project to
proceed. This policy has led to our concluding
a number of agreements which we refer to as
“Impacts and Benefits Agreements” involving
our respective communities, our Cree Nation
Government and the project proponents.
Community of Ouje-Bougoumou Fire Station
30 BUSINESS ELITE CANADA | JULY 2018
