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Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park
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The Social Ecologies of Borders
The Social-Ecological Aspects of Conducting a Transboundary Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment in Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park
By J. Todd Walters
Executive Director International Peace Park Expeditions
http://peaceparkexpeditions.org/pcia
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ABSTRACT - The Social-Ecological Aspects of conducting a Transboundary Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment in Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park
The 49th parallel latitude on earth delineates the world’s longest un-‐militarized border, between the United States and Canada, stretching from the shores of Lake Superior in Minnesota to Boundary Bay feeding the Pacific Ocean over 2,000 miles away. The results of an 1818 Treaty between the US and UK (prior to Canada’s founding in 1867) had far-‐reaching effects on the nations, the peoples, the environment and the actual landscape itself, as the treaty actually mandated that the 49th parallel be clear-‐cut of trees and brush for a span of 30 feet, for the entire length of the border. This chapter explores the combination of the impacts of this nearly 200 year old border on the landscape, the ecosystem, the people and the two nations through the lens of conducting a “Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment,”i thus combining multiple perspectives into a single analysis. Equal footing will be given to transboundary environmental issues, and transboundary social issues. Perspectives will be explored: from the Blackfeet Confederacy, to National Park Rangers and scientists from each country, to concerned citizens collaborating accross the border through their Rotary Club connections. Issues will be analyzed: from post-‐9/11 border security changes, Native American/First Nation (Canada) challenges with the US and Canadian Federal and State Governments; and the environmental impacts of climate change, water resources, extractive industries, and other land uses. The PCIA focuses on identifying the stakeholders living in the buffer zone around Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park and the issues that unite and divide them -‐ environmental, social, political, economic, cultural identity and security. It is essential to recognize the Conflict Drivers -‐ actions perpetuating conflict; and the Mitigating Factors -‐ actors mobilizing resiliencies. In doing so, one gains a lens of analysis that allows one to filter potential projects, programs and strategies through the sieve of their potential impact on conflict drivers and mitigating factors, allowing one to understand how the initiative builds peace or exascerbates conflict. After looking through this lens, one gains a perspective on the multiple layers that overlap from geographic, to cultural, to national security, to ecological; allowing large scale, long term strategic planning that seeks to minimize conflict drivers and enhance and strengthen mitigating factors. In that spirit the PCIA identifies recommendations for untapped potential that can minimize conflict drivers and enhance and strengthen mitigating factors. Serving as more then just a lens of analysis for academics, policy makers, and stakeholders, the PCIA contains a series of annexes that are meant to be customizable worksheets to help the reader to gather the information necessary to develop their own PCIA for their own particular geographic region -‐ and to identify the stakeholders and the ways in which they all inter-‐relate; and to recognize the conflict drivers and mitigating factors that they observe. In this way the PCIA is not
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just an academic analysis that serves as a snapshot in time of one particular social ecology; but a living dynamic tool that can be updated over time as context changes, stakeholders power profiles wax and wane, environmental impacts are realized, and proactive initiatives begin to reap what they have sown. This paper will discuss how to utilize those annexes through an easy step by step approach to be able to apply this methodology in other geographic contexts. International Peace Park Expeditions has developed a complementary methodology that includes interviewing stakeholders for the PCIA, while simultaneously capturing the conversation on HD video, and combining it with footage gathered in the region to produce a mini-‐documentary film. The film seeks to make the complex analysis and understanding of the PCIA accessible to a much wider audience. The documentary video provides a visual tool for understanding and sharing this story, raising awareness, and encouraging individuals to read the PCIA and utilize the tools included in the annexes to enhance mitigating factors and to understand and avoid exacerbating conflict drivers as they grapple with the complex relationship among people, cultures, borders, sovereignty, and the ecosystem upon which they all depend. The ability to do this effectively will determine the resiliency of this crucial region including the world’s first International Peace Park.
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CHAPTER The Social-Ecological Aspects of Conducting a Transboundary Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment in Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park
INTRODUCTION
In post 9/11 United States of America endures the world’s oldest International Peace Park, Waterton-‐Glacier (1932); contiguous with the transboundary Blackfeet Confederacy, both spanning the 49th parallel marked by surveyors, as the official international border with Canada. This geographic location is a special case that combines a UNESCO World Heritage site, with a bio-‐diversity hotspot called the “Crown of the Continent,” which is the heart of the Rocky Mountains continental divide; is surrounded by ranch land used for grazing and natural resource extraction; and administered by two national governments, two Canadian provinces, one US state and two Native American/First Nation reservations.ii Waterton Glacier International Peace Park and its surrounding buffer zone communities provide a small lens into this complex criss-‐crossing of worlds, cultures, socio-‐economic status, policies, nations, and ultimately ecosystems, that must be successfully navigated in this many bordered region.
One lens that can be used to examine this eco-‐region is a customized Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment (PCIA),iii which examines many perspectives, seeks to understand many issues, and most importantly, highlights the depth of relationships between all of the different stakeholders regarding all of the different issues. This allows power discrepancies to be acknowledged and helps to identify space for overlapping commonalities, while also ascertaining the conflict drivers and mitigating factors that go into shaping the conflict level. A PCIA seeks to create order from complexity, and distill understanding from confusion by providing a tool for information organization and analysis, and ultimately providing the basis for strategic planning and monitoring and evaluation. These multiple layers of value produced by the PCIA make it a worthwhile activity that can be supported by all of the different stakeholders. These layers of value can also help to make it a cost-‐effective tool; and as value is demonstrated over time, can provide impetus to continually update the PCIA – developing a historical timeline of “PCIA snapshots.”
This chapter will utilize a social ecology approach, with Waterton Glacier as the selected example, in order to explore how to operationalize a transboundary PCIA in the border region of two or more countries designated as an International Peace Park. To understand the value of a PCIA, this chapter will investigate the methodology in the field for gathering the data; will learn how to utilize the tools in the appendix to organize that data; and will explain the thought process behind analyzing the organized data. This will make clear the connections, the strength of each connection, and the influence and priorities of each stake holder regarding each issue. This assessment provides extremely valuable information, in order to
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develop new projects, analyze existing projects, and provide a bench line from which to measure project effectiveness on a number of important indicators. At the completion of this chapter the reader should be able to understand what steps are needed to conduct a transboundary PCIA, in order to better understand all of the complex issues and priorities of multiple stakeholders and how they inter-‐relate.
Adapted Nested Variables Conflict Analysis Diagram
Understanding the “nested variables” concept is crucial to putting together a snapshot of the context, the stakeholders, their relationships with each other, and with the issues that are influencing their behavior. This analysis helps to determine the Conflict Level at that particular point in time.iv
The Context is comprised of a set of “nested variables” upon which human-‐kind has layered different man-‐made concepts or systems on top of the natural world. An image of the earth and the different layers of the atmosphere represents a strong visual metaphor. Closest to the ground is the concept of “the environment;” on top of this layer, humans create a “social” layer. Some would dispute the order of the next three layers: “political,” “economic,” and “cultural identity.” Finally, “security” has become the paramount layer in the post 9/11 era of border issues. Some disagree on whether or not politics is a part of economics or whether economics is a part of politics; both sides of this argument can be correct, depending on the other aspects of the Context. Cultural identity can be characterized as including both politics and economics, and it can also be viewed as positioned before politics and economics, and built upon the foundations of environment and social norms. This nested concept is important because it elucidates the priorities of the concepts, as well as the embedded nature of each system upon the previous. Its role is important, facilitating understanding of the different layers of analysis, which must be applied when developing a PCIA.v
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The Stakeholders comprise an unending list that extend both above and below; this list evolves over time as people change jobs, as power changes hands politically, as organizations are founded, as companies go bankrupt, and as networks, associations, and alliances are formed, etc. All stakeholders must be tied to the geographic region in one way or another. All stakeholders have different levels of power, that they bring to bear on a different set of priorities, and they come together with other stakeholders to address different issues. The diverse representation of stakeholders includes: representatives from the USFG, to the province of Alberta, to the National Park Service, to the Blackfeet Tribal Council, to the Montana State Legislature, to the Crown of the Continent Research Scientists, and to the Browning Boys and Girls Clubs. All of these stakeholders relate to the issues differently; all of them relate to each other differently.
The Influencers are the events, actions, and activities that become conflict drivers or mitigating factors. The influencers can be laws passed by Congress, events organized by the Tribal Council, classes taught at the Blackfeet Community College, lawsuits brought by citizens, negotiations with the Federal Government, cross border ranger trainings, collaborative forest fire management, invasive species, global climate change, etc. How these “influencers” are addressed often determines whether they work to build trust, establish cross stakeholder relationships and effective cooperation to become “mitigating factors”; or whether they promote exclusion, move forward without community consultation, exacerbate conflict between stakeholders, even reinforce divisions causing entrenchment of stereotypes, and raise barriers to future cooperation, by acting as “conflict drivers.”vi
Context + Stakeholders + Influencers = Conflict Level
In the process of completing a PCIA, organization of data and observations form the Context; the people, organizations, and institutions involved both directly and indirectly form the list of Stakeholders; and the events and activities that occur within the Context, involving one or more of the Stakeholders, become the Influencers. These Influencers evolve towards either a mitigating factor or a conflict driver. Consideration of each of those concepts and of the nested variables within each of these variables, as well as the network of interconnections between them, can yield a Conflict Level for a particular “snapshot” moment in time.
It is also important to note that the limitations of a PCIA are numerous, and must also be taken into consideration as one develops conclusions and action plans based on the PCIA methodology and analysis. As a snapshot in time, a PCIA slowly depreciates over time, as the context, stakeholders and influencers evolve and change. With respect to space, the sheer size and scope of the geographic eco-‐system makes it challenging to physically visit all parts and all stakeholders to gain a complete perspective. With respect to money, this particular PCIA was conducted by 3 volunteers on a small budget that covered only travel expenses. Perhaps more importantly, the source of the funding must be transparent, as well as perceived as neutral by all stakeholders, so that it maintains independent legitimacy, and is not perceived as compromised from a credibility perspective. With respect to
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relationships, as stakeholders have relationships with other stakeholders, the PCIA examines the web of those connections, their strength, the length of their history, and whether they are overtly observable, or intimately private. Thus, it is important to not only understand each stakeholder’s perspective, but to also understand how that stakeholder perceives other stakeholders’ perspectives on the same issue. With respect to unintended consequences, a PCIA seeks to uncover many issues, both positive and negative, communicated by many different stakeholders. Occasionally, the very act of the interviews and conversations, during which the researchers are seeking to understand the dynamics and the relationships, can inadvertently open old wounds, reignite rivalries, and entrench stereotypical mindsets; not to mention, potentially starting a “local grapevine” of communication that can eliminate the prospects for future interviews with different stakeholders based on feedback from one stakeholder after a negative interview.vii
SOCIAL ECOLOGY OF BORDERS
The Institute for Social Ecology proposes that: “Social ecology envisions a moral economy that moves beyond scarcity and hierarchy, toward a world that reharmonizes human communities with the natural world, while celebrating diversity, creativity and freedom.”viii The key aspect of this definition is “reharmonizing” the relationship between the natural world and people – which implicitly acknowledges that at one time there was harmony; for some reason it was lost; and it now needs to be adjusted once again to seek a new harmony. Returning to the old harmony is impossible, as there are now many more voices on this planet (7 billion +), and the impact of all those people has already been felt by the natural world. As Bill McKibben notes in his book The End of Nature, the earth “has been irrevocably changed down to every molecule in the atmosphere.”ix
Borders according to the Associations for Borderlands Studies are: “land located on or near a frontier.”x They are most often associated with the concept of the Post-‐Westphalian nation state, and more crudely with a “line drawn on a map,” often considered arbitrary by the people who live in the borderland region, who were most likely not consulted by the people who drew the line. The people who drew the line had often never physically traveled to the borderland region under consideration. While not directly applicable here, it is also important to note that borders can also be metaphysical, internal to one’s own mind, one’s fears, one’s own self imposed limitations – and crossing those borders need not be a physical act in a real geographic location, but a personal internal act to overcome one’s own perceived inadequacies.
So what are the social and ecological impacts of borders? How do we seek to restore the harmony in the relationship between nature and humans in these borderlands?
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SOCIAL ECOLOGY OF BORDERS CASE STUDY: WATERTON-GLACIER INTERNATIONAL PEACE PARK
Waterton-‐Glacier became the world’s first international peace park in 1932 after a successful lobbying campaign organized by local Rotarian members from the US and Canada spurred both federal governments to act and to link Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada with Glacier National Park in Montana, US. They did so for the purpose of highlighting the history of friendship between the two countries, and for the purpose of establishing a framework to collaborate to conserve and study the ecosystem of the two contiguous national parks.xi
The IUCN has defined International Peace Parks as: “transboundary protected areas that are formally dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity and of natural and associated cultural resources, and to the protection of peace and cooperation.”xii This definition goes far beyond any of the IUCN’s other Protected Area Management Categories and begins to touch on the social ecology in these border regions, as it focuses on both nature and bio-‐diversity, as well as cultural resources (human) and peace and cooperation. This definition starts to redefine a path that we can take in order to begin regaining that harmony – environmental peacebuilding.
Environmental Peacebuilding seeks to utilize the environment as an opportunity to develop cross border, cross group collaboration, that can serve to build trust, establish meaningful relationships that can dispel harmful stereotypes, and create a framework for cooperation that can then be used to extend that cooperation into other areas of society, and among other groups of people. This process galvanizes a critical mass of people – refining human relationship harmony through collaboration on human and nature harmony.
Why is Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park a relevant case to explore? It is the heart of the unique Crown of the Continent eco-‐system, part of the continental divide mountain range that stretches from the Northern Canadian Rockies all the way down to the Patagonia Mountains in the Andes of Argentina and Chile. Five large ecoregions are found within Waterton-‐Glacier: alpine tundra, subalpine forest, montane forest, aspen parkland, and fescue grassland. Geologically, Waterton-‐Glacier contains a stratigraphic record spanning more than 1,250 million years of sedimentary and tectonic evolution. UNESCO designated WGIPP as a World Heritage site in 1995 for its Bio-‐Diversity “hotspot” designation of having “more than 1,200 species of vascular plants, 70 species of mammals, including all North America’s native carnivores, 270 species of birds and 25 species of fish among an aquatic life richer than any place in the Rockies between the Yukon and Mexico.” The international peace park also includes the headwaters of three major watersheds which drain through significantly different biomes to different oceans – Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic. The biogeographical significance of this tri-‐ocean divide is enhanced by the many vegetated connections between the headwaters. The net
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effect is to create a unique assemblage and high diversity of flora and fauna concentrated in a small area.xiii Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park “occupies a pivotal position in the Western Cordillera of North America resulting in the evolution of plant communities and ecological complexes that occur nowhere else in the world.“ Additionally, on the US side of Waterton Glacier, the world’s most easily accessible high number of glaciers have been photographed over time – allowing time sequence photography to provide one of the first early warning signs of Global Climate Change. These photographs provide ample collaborative opportunities around scientific studies and field research; however, they also reveal a number of negative impacts on social ecology – on both nature and humans. “The effects of global climate change – species extirpation, species extinction, habitat fragmentation, lost business revenue and livelihoods – are threatening to destroy this pristine eco-‐system as well as the cultural identity of the original inhabitants of this area.”xiv Applying the Nested Variables Model indicates that the “environmental” layer is significant, and unique, and worthy of action to be protected and preserved. A critique of all of the Impact Assessments that were identified in the research phase of this PCIA was that they all focused solely on the Environmental dynamic, at the expense of often completely ignoring the social and cultural identity layers. In this case, on top of the environmental layer sits a century old structural conflict centered around land dispossession between the U.S./Canadian governments and the original inhabitants of the area, the 4 tribes of the Blackfeet Confederacy -‐ the Piikani, Siksiska and Blood/Kainai Nations in Alberta and the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. Historically, the establishment of national parks removed traditional land use rights like hunting, fishing, gathering timber, and medicinal roots and berries; and implemented policies toward Native Americans that systematically sought to impact their social and cultural identity, which was tied directly to their relationship with the land. The creation of Waterton Lakes and Glacier National Park was no different. The land dispossession was implemented through a series of disputed treaties, the artificial U.S./Canadian border, and the assimilation techniques imposed by the U.S. and Canadian Governments through the establishment of “Boarding Schools” where Native American youth were not allowed to speak their own language, practice their own traditions, rituals, and religious ceremonies – creating a whole generation where that traditional knowledge was discredited and breaking a century’s old link that provided for the transmission of that knowledge via oral history. All of these influencers combined have a deleterious affect on the cultural identity of the Blackfeet Confederacy, while creating a new border of animosity and distrust between the Blackfeet Confederacy and the U.S./Canadian Governments.xv
CONDUCTING A TRANSBOUNDARY PEACE & CONFLICT IMPACT ASSESSMENT
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It is helpful to have both a general and a specific reason for conducting a PCIA. In general providing all of the stakeholders with an organized compilation of all the nested variables, of all the stakeholders, and of all the influencers theoretically allows for a greater understanding of all the dynamics by all the stakeholders. This shared knowledge provides opportunities to identify unrecognized commonalities, to reinforce the effectiveness of successful existing initiatives, and to identify potential friction points that could escalate towards conflict if positive pre-‐emptive action is not taken. On the more granular, specific level, this PCIA will be used as a baseline for monitoring and evaluation of future programs in WGIPP. Surveys will be incorporated into future iterations of the PCIA to further analyze the changes in conflict dynamics and various programs’ impact on the conflict and creation of new peacebuilding opportunities. Combining this complex academic tool with documentary HD video footage of the ecosystem, the interviews with stakeholders, and crucial project locations allow the application of an innovative analytical tool that can help gather and distill PCIA findings for a much broader audience of policy makers, stakeholders, and the general public. This medium offers the unique ability of raising awareness about the triggers and mitigating factors of conflict in and around transboundary areas, as well as generating public support for conflict resolution initiatives.
COMPILING A STAKEHOLDER PROFILE
Identifying who are stakeholders, and arranging the opportunity to interview them is part of the research and logistical planning and preparation. Care must be taken not to overgeneralize individuals as representatives of their particular group, unless they hold a leadership position in an organization or institution – whose members they can represent. Care must also be taken to identify as many different stakeholders as possible, and to realize that the list is incomplete, and that when stakeholders are interviewed, one of the questions should be “who else should we interview?” in this way the list of stakeholders becomes as comprehensive as possible, while acknowledging the near impossibility of identifying and including every possible stakeholder.
When interviewing stakeholders the goal is to utilize the Stakeholder Profile framework to gather standardized information from all the different stakeholders within all of the different nested variables: Environmental, Cultural Identity, Political, Economic, Social, and Security. For each stakeholder it is important to gather details on his/her actions, and to seek to understand the motivations behind those actions. Once the Stakeholder Profile has been filled out, it becomes possible to identify opportunities for conflict mitigation – both latent and un-‐utilized, as well as creative new potential ideas.xvi
Stakeholder Profile
Level of Analysis Stakeholders Actions Motivations Opportunities for Conflict
Mitigation*
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Environmental
U.S. National Parks Service, Canada Parks, Crown of the Continent Research Institute, Natural Resource Summer Institute, University of Montana (other Universities), Ranchers
Research projects, conservation initiatives, guided tours of cultural and environmental important sites in the Park,
Protect the Park, Encourage Transboundary Coordination,
Network already established with commitment to protect the park
Cultural Identity Blackfeet Community College, Red Crow Community College
Imparting cultural heritage to the next generation, ensuring transboundary ritual celebrations
Looking for more ways to hold cross-cultural programs, encouraging more connections within the Blackfeet Confederacy
Has all the old records at their disposal, as well as very eager and capable leaders who can impart cultural information to the next generation
Political Blackfeet Tribal Council, County governments, state governments, Department of Interior
Tribal Council holds all powers on the reservation, government bodies are able to repeal/initiate policies
Tribal Council does not want anyone gaining more power than it holds. Government bodies want established laws to be respected
Tribal Council has supreme power on the reservation. The needs of the county, state, and Department of Interior are uncertain.
Economic Sun Tours, Red Buses (Dial Corp), Hotels/Small Businesses
Guided tours through the park, tourism in general
Make money, promote culture and park
Cultural awareness is low on the list of tourism concerns. There are competing tourism companies.
Social Rotary International, Rotary Clubs of Whitefish, Kalispell, etc, Boys & Girls Club, Americorps
Transboundary celebration, civic education
Nurture transboundary celebration, encourage positive citizenship
Need more involvement from Boys and Girls Club and Rotary Club members. AmeriCorps has a very energetic leader at the Blackfeet Community College.
Security
Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, U.S. Board Patrol, Homeland Security, Blackfeet Peace Officers Cross-cultural programs
Abide by the rule of law in the U.S. and Canada and respect the culture of Blackfeet Confederacy Tribes
Need more buy-in from all security bodies involved. Need more community involvement.
ASSESSING CONFLICT DRIVERS
Unlike the Stakeholder Profile, it is more challenging to identify and assess the conflict drivers during the process of interviews. It is more effective to compile research beforehand, and then gather all of the data, and through the process of analysis complete the Conflict Profile by filling in the historical root causes of conflict between the stakeholders, the factors perpetuating the conflict structurally and institutionally, and the ways that conflict currently manifests itself. However, as with the Stakeholder Profile, it is still important to compile the data using the same nested variables level of analysis; this allows for the ability to assess information within each of those nested variable across the Stakeholder Profile, Conflict Profile, and Mitigating Factors Profile.
The final step of analyzing the conflict drivers is to identify the synergies where multiple conflict drivers combine to create a much more powerful force perpetuating the conflict, as it taps into multiple layers of the nested variables. For example in Waterton-‐Glacier the continued environmental degradation of the ecosystem due to a number of different factors, impacts the cultural identity of the Blackfeet Nation. As they lose species that were part of the traditional hunting rituals, they lose glaciers that are part of the traditional vision quests, and they need to move sacred sites to new locations when the flora/fauna change and no longer
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meet their needs. Two conflict drivers combine as one feeds the strength of the other, and this in turn makes it more challenging for mitigating factors to overcome them, as well as for projects to be identified that can actively address both drivers simultaneously.xvii
Conflict Profile
Level of Analysis Historical Root Causes Structural/Institutional Perpetuating Causes Current Manifestations
Environmental 1) Global warming and human involvement in the degradation of the park
1) Lack of mainstream transboundary cooperation programs and collaborations, different business sectors not working with Park Management
1) Only 25 glaciers left, weed infiltration, poaching wildlife, timber extraction up river affecting the eco-system, all around degradation of the Peace Park
Cultural Identity
1) Artificial border constraining the Blackfeet Confederacy tribal connections. 2) Changes in use of land changes the cultural identity of the Blackfeet Confederacy 3) Legacy of the development of U.S. national, state borders, and reservation borders
1) Assimilation procedures adopted by the U.S. government vis-à-vis Blackfeet people after the Blackfeet "leased/sold" their land to U.S. Government. 2) Stricter regulations since 2011 on border crossing items
1) Disconnect between Blackfeet Confederacy in Canada and in U.S. 2) Disconnect between the Blackfeet on Reservation and other areas around their traditional territory 3) Risk of changing/losing identity as the degradation of the Park continues
Political
1) The Blackfeet Treaty with the U.S. is superseded by the federal laws adhered to by the Park Management 2) Legacy of creation of Canada and the U.S. border at the 49th parallel and Native American/U.S./Canadian relations
Tribal Government of Blackfeet and Blood are organized as both a political and economic business corporation. 2) Strained relationship between Tribal Councils and Park Management
1) Blackfeet Confederacy and their livestock can't enter the park without prior permission. Blackfeet can't shoot game or extract timber. 2) Park Management have strained relations with Tribal Elders
Economic 1) Tribal Council does not want to give up monopoly on business decision on the reservation. Legacy of tourism
Poverty, autocratic business decisions by Tribal Council, lack of a free and open market for small to medium business ventures to thrive; There is additional tourism in towns closer to the park
1) Blackfeet Reservation is in economic decline. 2) Only 1 Blackfeet owned tourism company, 4 other commercial companies can operate in the Park 3) Natural Resource extraction occurring in the Park (poaching, coal)
Social 1) Legacy of the development of Reservations in the U.S. and Canada
Weak educational system, lack of readily available jobs; Culture of drug dependencies
1) High levels of drug use. 2) Domestic violence on Blackfeet Reservation
Security 1) Different code of laws that apply to an area that separates the Blackfeet Confederacy
1) Lack of cultural awareness among law enforcement agencies and jurisdiction problems between the Blackfeet Confederacy Nations and U.S./Canada
1) Blackfeet Confederacy members have a difficult time crossing borders with items for sacred bundles to perform rituals 2) Peace Officers vs. Montana Sheriffs Jurisdiction disconnect
Conflict Driver Synergies
1) Environmental Degradation of the park threatens to erode the cultural identity of the Blackfeet Confederacy and destroy an entire eco-system.
2) Legacy of U.S. government and Native Americans’ conflict.
3) U.S.- Canada border caused a strain on the cultural ties between the Blackfeet Conference tribes that were separated by the artificial border, specifically Blackfeet Nation (U.S.) and Kainai National (Canada).
4) Different codes of law and understanding of land ownership: The Blackfeet Confederacy believes no one can own land - humans are only caretakers of the land. The U.S. and Canadian governments believe land can be bought and sold.
CONFLICT DRIVERS IDENTIFIED IN THE PCIA
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The conflict drivers and the synergies between those drivers are crucial pieces of information, not just for the PCIA and for future project development, but also for the stakeholders’ general awareness. Often, all of the stakeholders are not aware of all the different conflict drivers and synergies, and how their actions and relations with other stakeholders serve to unknowingly perpetuate a cause of conflict. The first edition of the PCIA serves as an educational tool not just for students, academics and policy makers, but for the stakeholders themselves; as it is often the first time that all of the information has been compiled in one document in such a way that it allows all the stakeholders to see their own views reflected, to see their allies and their competitors’ views from an independent perspective, and to identify where there are commonalities and differences. In Waterton-‐Glacier we identified 3 major Conflict Driver categories: environmental degradation, cultural erosion of the Blackfeet identity, and the legacy of land dispossession. Each of these 3 major categories has a number of different factors and nuances that cause them to continue to maintain and sometimes escalate the structural and institutional conflict that remains simmering just below the surface of the Peace Park and the buffer communities.xviii Environmental Degradation Global climate change evidence and impact is evidenced by the diminishing number of glaciers in the Glacier National Park side of the Peace Park. In the 1880s, scientists reported and photographed 150 glaciers; in 2010 only 25 remained, and scientists estimate those 25 will vanish by 2030. Scientists believe the ripple effects will reach far beyond the borders of Waterton-‐Glacier, impacting the livelihoods of landowners and communities around the Peace Park. Scientists predict that “a slightly higher average annual temperature will cause greater fragmentation and homogenization of alpine vegetation, expansion of cedar-‐hemlock forests at lower elevations, and accumulation of forest fuels that could cause more large, catastrophic fires. All of these changes could force plants and animals to seek suitable habitat elsewhere, causing significant alterations in species composition.” In the nested variables model this extends the environmental impact into the economic wellbeing and social welfare of communities in the buffer zone of Waterton-‐Glacier. In addition to the impacts of global climate change, environmental degradation of WGIPP could be manifested in other forms including: highway expansion effects; open-‐pit coal mining; extraction of oil, gas, and timber; poorly planned residential and commercial development; and illegal wildlife hunting.xix Cultural Erosion of the Blackfeet Confederacy Identity
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The Blackfeet origin stories are based on landmarks located within and around Waterton-‐Glacier. These landmarks clearly fit into UNESCO’s definition as traditional cultural property “associat[ed] with cultural practices or beliefs of a living community that (a) are rooted in that community's history, and (b) are important in maintaining the continuing cultural identity of the community." The Blackfeet cultural identity is rooted in these landmarks embedded in the sacred eco-‐system – mountains, plants, animals, and minerals – form the basis for sacred ceremonial bundles that transmit origin stories and power. If landmarks change or plants/animals become extinct or scarce due to the effects of global climate change, Blackfeet origin stories will necessarily need to change or become irrelevant, further eroding their cultural identity. Security measures at the U.S./Canada border also erode the Blackfeet Identity as they no longer allow for the free movement, particularly between the Blackfeet Nation (U.S.) and Kainai Nation (Canada), of 1) sacred ceremonial bundles and of 2) the tribal members who have been ordained to transport, open, and process the bundles. The Blackfeet cultural identity has been disrupted by the imaginary line at the 49th parallel that creates an artificial separation between the tribes. The events of September 11, 2001 led to an increase in the amount and level of security at the 3 U.S./Canada border crossings in and around Waterton-‐Glacier. As a result, the border crossings have become more difficult for Blackfeet Tribal members seeking to carry their sacred ceremonial bundles across the border to perform rituals. Often times, Blackfeet members are either turned away because of restrictions regarding perishable items (plants/animal parts) or the bundles are desecrated because security officials open the bundles without going through the religious process necessary to make the bundle opening possible. As one Blackfeet Tribal member stated, “bundle transfers have been happening for millennia...agencies need to understand the meaning of the bundles. It’s not just a suitcase. They must follow process/protocol.” If the origin stories are not transmitted both physically and verbally from one generation to the next, the origin stories and cultural understandings will be lost.xx Legacy of Land Dispossession During interviews with Blackfeet Tribal members, they often lamented about Blackfeet land being “stolen” by the US Government. Successive treaties in the late 1880s between the U.S. Government and the Blackfeet Nation considerably reduced the Blackfeet Nation’s land size and rights until a final treaty in 1910 set the final boundaries and land rights for the Blackfeet Nation which still exist today. The Blackfeet Nation thought they were signing a 99-‐year lease, whereas the U.S. Government considered the treaty a land sale.
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According to the treaty’s terms, the Blackfeet Nation maintained the right to gather, fish and hunt on the land. Although the Congressional Act that created Glacier National Park stated that all rights prior to the establishment of the Park would be honored, the National Parks Service did not historically honor those rights. Water rights, among other natural resource rights (i.e. oil and gas) have also been a contentious issue between the Blackfeet Nation and the U.S. Government due to the legacy of land dispossession. The Blackfeet Nation, the state of Montana, and the federal government have been negotiating water rights over the past two decades.xxi
ASSESSING MITIGATING FACTORS
Peace Profile
Level of Analysis Ongoing Peace Efforts Structures & Processes in Place Peacebuilding Gaps
Environmental 1) Transboundary Cooperation among Scientists, Research, Park Management on specific issues 2) Natural Resource Summer Institute for youth established by the Blackfeet Community College's center for Natural Resource Management
1) Crown of the Continent Conference in August bringing together researchers/scientists 2) Park Management designated Ranger/Warden responsible for transboundary cooperation 3) Academic programs bringing university students together for transboundary environmental conservation 4) Summer Institute bringing together Blackfeet youth living in Browning, MT and 2 other Blackfeet communities in SD and WY
1) Creation of a Map where researchers/scientists/park management/cultural heritage/tourism companies can see the various projects occurring in the park 2) More transboundary cooperation between youth who will be stewards of the park over the next generation
Cultural Identity
1) Crown of the Continent National Geographic map detailing the cultural sites in and around the park 2) Blackfeet Elders hold ritual ceremonies around the park
1) Network between Conservation, Cultural Heritage, and Transboundary Cooperation exists 2) Connection between the Cultural Studies professors between Red Crow Community College and the Blackfeet Community College
1) More programs to connect the Blackfeet Confederacy across the 49th parallel 2) Need to further engage and encourage the Park Management to work with Blackfeet Tribal Elders to conduct ritual ceremonies in the park
Political
1) No violent reactions 2) Non-violent protests during the 1990s when the only Blackfeet owned tourism business tried to receive a tourism concession from the Park 3) 1st International Peace Park and UN designated the Park a World Heritage site
1) Blackfeet Tribal Council are open to discussions with Park Management
1) Additional dialogues between Park Management and Tribal Councils
Economic 1) Tours through the Peace Park
1) There are Blackfeet-owned companies that provide guided tours
1) More tourism outlets that connect Blackfeet community (specifically youth) with the Park
Social 1) Rotary International Assembly in September bringing together Canadian, US, and international groups
1) Rotary Club Connections 2) Boys and Girls Clubs established on Blackfeet Reservation and surrounding counties
1) More Rotary Club and Boys and Girls Club interactions between students on Blackfeet reservation and communities around the Park
Security
1) Cross-cultural understanding programs between Law enforcement agencies in Montana and Blackfeet Community College
1) Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association and Blackfeet Community College representatives are interested in doing more programming incorporating the Park and the community
1) Using experiential learning techniques within cross-cultural programs that incorporate environmental stewardship and the community
Peacebuilding & Conflict Mitigation Synergies
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1) Networks already established that can carry out peacebuilding programs.
2) Positive receptiveness from park management to engage in transboundary activities.
3) Commitment on the part of Blackfeet Community representatives to engage in youth-focused and environmental conservation oriented programs.
4) Blackfeet Community buy-in for dialogues between the Blackfeet Tribal Elders and the Park Management.
5) Cultural Heritage is a main focal point of Park Management-led tours, tours conducted by Blackfeet owned tourism companies, and National Geographic maps.
6) Helping AmeriCorps implement environmental conservation, civic responsibility and positive social development initiatives.
MITIGATING FACTORS IDENTIFIED IN THE PCIA
Similar to the Conflict Drivers the Mitigating Factors are not often considered as such, and so to have the PCIA actively “name” them, brings them to the consciousness of all the stakeholders, and allows the stakeholders to strategize regarding how to actively capitalize and reinforce existing mitigating factors, while also seeking to identify and develop new potential mitigating factors. Being aware of these factors can change the lens of analysis that stakeholders bring to their existing relationships with other stakeholders and the projects on which they collaborate, allowing conscious design of projects that capitalize on those mitigating factors and the synergies of combining multiple mitigating factors.
In this first edition of the PCIA the mitigating factors that were identified include: existing transboundary collaboration, peacebuilding networks and activities, law enforcement cultural sensitivity trainings, and Blackfeet Native Science educational programs. Like the conflict drivers, each identified mitigating factor has multiple layers of nuance and detail that gives it the power to actively mitigate the structural and institutional forces that seek to perpetuate the status quo.xxii
Transboundary Collaboration The effects of global climate change creates enormous challenges for Park management and helped to spur increased cross-‐border collaboration to address species extirpation, species extinction, and habitat fragmentation. The park management staff in both parks realize that the parks are part of one eco-‐system, where the vegetation, fisheries, and wildlife roam free and do not stop at the border. In order to understand the eco-‐system, the Park Management staff studies both sides of WGIPP and the impact on and from the surrounding communities. In 2005, the Crown of the Continent Research Learning Center (CCRLC) in Glacier National Park initiated the Citizen Science Program where volunteers monitor wildlife and vegetation to track the distribution of species over the years. Waterton Lakes has begun to follow Glacier’s lead to assess the distribution of species in their half of WGIPP.
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In addition to the Citizen Science Program, the CCRLC initiated WGIPP Science and History Days to provide researchers with a platform to present their work in the park to the public. This event alternates the Park hosts, and allows both Park management staff as well as researchers from each country to learn about the other park’s activities and research studies. Another example of Transboundary scientific colorization in WGIPP was the creation of the seamless vegetation map that documents all the plant and forest areas within WGIPP. This map as been invaluable for wildlife biologists and other scientists who need the vegetation map to track the location of different forest types in order to link them to wildlife species types and movements. Finally, in conjunction with a Canadian anthropologist, the National Park Service published a 2002 baseline ethnographic study entitled, “Ethnographic Overview and Assessment for Glacier National Park.” Using information gathered from Blackfeet elders in the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana and the Kootenai tribe in Alberta, the National Park Service identified areas of importance within both Glacier and Waterton Lakes national parks.xxiii Peacebuilding Networks and Activities For the last 78 years, the Rotary Clubs in Alberta and Montana have met at the U.S./Canadian border in various parts of WGIPP to shake hands, symbolizing the enduring friendship between these two countries. U.S. and Canadian students, Rotary International Exchange students, and Rotary Club members shook hands this past year on the 100th Anniversary of the creation of Glacier National Park. Leading up to the September 2010 hand-‐shaking event, current Glacier National Park Superintendent Chas Cartwright said,
"While not open to the public at large, these annual festivities provide a significant symbol of enduring friendship between citizens of the United States and Canada and a manifestation of the fruitful longstanding fellowship of Rotary Clubs in Montana and Alberta. The Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park serves as a venerable, successful model of cooperation across international boundaries worthy of emulation around the world."
Another peacebuilding activity is the long-‐standing Montana State-‐Tribal Relations Committee in the State Legislature that acts as a liaison with the Blackfeet Nation and encourages state-‐tribal and local government-‐tribal cooperation. This Committee meets on a quarterly basis to discuss activities or existing laws, and to propose new laws or recommendations to the legislature. Rep. Frosty Calf Boss Ribs (D-‐MT 15th District), the first Blackfeet Indian woman to sit in the Montana Legislature, serves on this committee.xxiv Cultural Sensitivity Training for Law Enforcement
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The Blackfeet Community College (BCC) and the Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association began cultural sensitivity trainings in 2010 for law enforcement officials at the local level. They plan to expand the trainings to include state, federal, and border control authorities. BCC Blackfeet Department Chair Lea Whitford taught the cultural training in collaboration with MSPOA Executive Director Jim Smith who lectured on the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2009, clarifying the responsibilities of federal, state, tribal, and local governments with respect to crimes, communication, and empowerment of public safety in tribal communities. According to the law, tribal police cannot arrest non-‐Native Americans outside the reservation. There is a significant lack of law enforcement on the Blackfeet Reservation due to lack of empowered and trained officers. At certain times, there are only two law enforcement officers patrolling 1.5 million acres of the reservation. Future cultural sensitivity trainings are anticipated for prosecutors, judges, and other law enforcement officials, in addition to police officers.xxv Blackfeet Community College Native Science Field Center Blackfeet Community College Natural Resource Department hosts a six week program with the Forest Service bringing together elementary and secondary students from three Blackfeet communities in Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming to teach them about indigenous science from the Native American perspective. During the culminating field trip to Chief Mountain at the border of WGIPP and the Blackfeet Reservation, Blackfeet Confederacy Elders from the North come down to speak to the students and give them another perspective about the medicinal value of vegetation in and around WGIPP. The cultural program teaches the Blackfeet students about their cultural identity and connects them to their relatives in Canada with whom they normally do not interact due to the heightened border security.xxvi
SNAPSHOT CONFLICT ANALYSIS CHART
Chart: The Conflict Level is determined by the weight of the Conflict Drivers compared to the weight of the Mitigating Factors. Additional Mitigating Potential are identified and recommended as potential projects or collaborations.xxvii
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WHY DEVELOPING A PCIA IN A BORDER REGION WITH A SOCIAL ECOLOGY FOCUS MATTERS
PCIAS and their direct connection with Social Ecology, particularly in border regions, are significant. The following two worksheets are important, because they provide a framework to Measure and Assess both the Environmental Impact, and the Peace & Conflict Impact, of any current project or any future project proposal.
Customizing and utilizing these worksheets in the field while conducting interviews and gathering data allows one to organize and standardize the information gathered, and increases the effectiveness of the information included in the Stakeholder Profile, the Conflict Profile, and the Peace Profile. This form of data gathering helps to bridge the gap between the natural sciences and their environmental focus and the social sciences and the human relationship with the environment – reflecting Social Ecology.xxviii
NATURE Worksheet to Assess Environmental Impact
1) Program Title:
Program Dates:
2) Environmental Situation:
3) Standards Used:
A. SPHERE standards (www.sphereproject.org)
B. IUCN and UNEP Guidelines
4) Evaluation of Environmental Impact
Description of Program Activities:
Program Phase/Activity Low Risk
Moderate Risk
High Risk
Potential Environmental Impact* Mitigating Actions*
1) 1) 1)
2) 2) 2)
3) 3) 3)
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Definitions
Low Risk - not likely to have adverse impacts at all, or the impacts would be negligible (i.e. workshops, trainings, etc.)
Moderate Risk - site-specific in nature and do not significantly affect human populations or alter environmentally important areas, including wetlands, native forests, grasslands, and other major natural habitats.
High Risk - likely to have significant adverse impacts that are sensitive, diverse, or unprecedented, or that affect an area broader than the sites or facilities subject to physical works.
*If Moderate or High Risk, complete the Potential Environmental Impact and Mitigating Actions columns
5) Monitoring
Evaluator
HUMAN Worksheet for Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment
1) Program Title:
2) Program Dates:
3) Program Activity/Timeline:
4) Program Effects/Impact
Level of Analysis Effect on Conflict Driver Peacebuilding & Conflict Mitigation Impact
Environmental See Environmental Impact Worksheet See Environmental Impact Worksheet
Cultural Identity
Political
Economic
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Social
Security
Analysis of Effect/Impacts:
5) Linkages to Other Stakeholder's Programs/Activities
(Add to M&E plan)
6) Stakeholders Involvement
7) Long-term Sustainability Plans for the Program
Evaluator
CONCLUSION
This PCIA for Waterton-‐Glacier seeks to provide a snapshot in time that can serve as a lens through which to view the people and the place – the social ecology of the Peace Park and its surrounding buffer zone communities and the human created borders that fragment this unique ecosystem in the heart of the “Crown of the Continent.”
The PCIA provides a framework and a methodology for systematically exploring the ecosystem, and how the humans that live there relate to it, and to each other, and to the issues that unite and divide -‐ environmental, social, political, economic, cultural identity, and security. These nested variables promote a comprehensive approach that includes multiple viewpoints on key issues including multiple perspectives from a diverse group of stakeholders.
The core of the PCIA rests on identifying the conflict drivers and the mitigating factors and the synergies that amplify each factor. In understanding these forces, humans can make better decisions on how to relate to nature, and how to relate to
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each other, in a fragmented border-‐filled region. The purpose of the PCIA, and the tools included in the annexes, is to enhance the identified mitigating factors and to understand and avoid exacerbating conflict drivers as humans navigate the complex relationship between people, cultures, borders, sovereignty, and the ecosystem upon which they all depend. Anyone wishing to understand the social ecology of borders – from students, to scientists, to politicians, to the actual stakeholders themselves -‐ will appreciate the wealth of information, analysis, and insight that a PCIA can provide.
ENDNOTES
i Megan Greeley, Todd Walters, and Cory Wilson. 2011. “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” International Peace Park Expeditions, The Collaborative, and The Institute for Environmental Diplomacy and Security. http://peaceparkexpeditions.org/sites/default/files/documents/ippe_pcia_wgipp_11ed01.pdf ii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 6; United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 2005. World Heritage. http://www. whc.unesco.org/. iii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 8. iv “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 8. v “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 8. vi “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 8. vii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 8. viii The Institute for Social Ecology. http://www.social-‐ecology.org/ Accessed on November 15, 2012. ix McKibben, Bill. The end of nature. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2006.
x Associations for Borderlands Studies. http://www.absborderlands.org/ “Border definition” Accessed on November 15, 2012. xi “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 6; Saleem H. Ali. 2007. “Introduction: A Natural Connection between Ecology and Peace?” in Saleem H. Ali, ed., Peace Parks: Conservation and Conflict Resolution, Cambridge: The MIT Press: 2. xiii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 6; P. R. Dingwall, K. Rao. 2009. “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Report of the Reactive Monitoring Mission,” UNESCO World Heritage Centre/International Union for Conservation of Nature. xiv “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 6.
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xv “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 6; National Geographic Society. 2008. “Long the great warriors of the eastern slopes, the Blackfoot Confederacy includes the Piikani, Siksiska and Blood/Kainai Nations in Alberta and the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. On the west side are the mountain bands of the; Ktunaxa Nation in British Columbia and the Ksanka/Kootenai in Montana. Farther south, the Interior Salish people, including the Bitterroot Salish and Pend d’Oreille, are closely related to other Salish-‐speaking nations in British Columbia, Washington, and Idaho.” http://visitmt.com/Images/cofc/CoCHistLowResFinal.pdf Spence, M.D. 2000. Dispossessing the Wilderness: Indian Removal and the Making of the National Parks. New York: Oxford University Press. xvi “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 17. xvii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 18. xviii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 10 and 11. xix “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 10; National Parks Conservation Association. 2002. State of the Parks: A Resource Assessment– Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park. http://www.npca.org/stateoftheparks/glacier/glacier.pdf xx “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 10 and 11; U.S. Department of Interior, National Park Service 1998. “Guidelines for Evaluating and Documenting Traditional Cultural Properties,” National Register Bulletin No. 38. http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/publications/bulletins/nrb38/nrb38.pdf xxi “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 11; Kappler, Charles J. 1904a. Agreement with the Indians of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation Montana (1896). Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties. (Vol. I; Sec 9). Compiled by the Clerk to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. xxii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xxiii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xxiv “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xxv “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xxvi “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 12. xxvii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 13. xxviii “Waterton-‐Glacier International Peace Park: Peace & Conflict Impact Assessment,” 22-‐23.
