Moose Protection and Anishnabe Governance as Climate Policy

The Anishnabe Moose Committee (AMC) identifies the decline of moose in the La Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve and the broader Ottawa River watershed as a result of colonial practices, including industrial logging, unsustainable sport hunting, and climate change. The authors argue that standard wildlife management plans and co-management agreements are insufficient because they do not address the root cause: the imposition of colonial government control and the disruption of traditional Anishnabe governance. They propose a process of treaty renewal, starting with a community-led forum for knowledge sharing among eastern Indigenous nations, to restore Indigenous sovereignty and decision-making over land use. This approach is presented as a critical climate adaptation strategy to ensure the survival of the moose and the health of the ecosystem for future generations.

• Moose populations in the Ottawa River watershed, specifically within the La Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve in western Quebec, are experiencing an alarming decline driven by climate change, industrial forestry, and over-hunting.
• Industrial logging negatively impacts moose by reducing the quality of their habitat, increasing their vulnerability in open cutblocks, and removing the shade and cover essential for cooling during hotter summers caused by climate change.
• Climate change increases moose vulnerability through the proliferation of winter ticks in warming climates and the northward migration of deer, which exposes moose to fatal parasites such as brainworm.
• Provincial moose management in Quebec and Ontario is criticized for prioritizing the economic benefits of sport hunting tags and outfitting over the sustainability of the population, with Quebec's system failing to limit the number of tags sold per hunting zone.
• The authors reject standard wildlife management plans and co-management agreements as inadequate solutions because they do not address the systemic power imbalances of colonialism or the history of broken agreements between the Quebec government and the Anishnabe people.
• The Indian Act and the Band Council system are identified as colonial tools that usurp traditional Anishnabe governance, creating internal division and acting as barriers to nation-wide decision-making regarding land stewardship.
• The document proposes the renewal of original sacred treaties, such as those represented by wampum belts, to restore Indigenous sovereignty and incorporate specific climate change considerations into land-use decision-making.
• As a first step toward treaty renewal, the authors recommend a multi-day, community-led forum for eastern Indigenous nations to share knowledge and recite treaties, with Crown governments acting as listeners and providing funding.

APA

Shannon, & Jaimie (2025). Moose Protection and Anishnabe Governance as Climate Policy. Canadian Climate Institute. https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/moose-protection-and-anishnabe-governance-as-climate-policy/

Chicago

Shannon, and Jaimie. Moose Protection and Anishnabe Governance as Climate Policy. Canadian Climate Institute, 2025. https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/moose-protection-and-anishnabe-governance-as-climate-policy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Shannon |last2=Jaimie |title=Moose Protection and Anishnabe Governance as Climate Policy |publisher=Canadian Climate Institute |date=13 June 2025 |url=https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/moose-protection-and-anishnabe-governance-as-climate-policy/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{shannon2025moose, author = {Shannon and Jaimie}, title = {{Moose Protection and Anishnabe Governance as Climate Policy}}, institution = {Canadian Climate Institute}, year = {2025}, month = jun, url = {https://climateinstitute.ca/publications/moose-protection-and-anishnabe-governance-as-climate-policy/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }