Aboriginal Co-Management of Natural Resources: Is It Working?

The management and allocation of diminishing natural resources is characterized by conflict, and this is particularly true in Canada where aboriginal communities are affected. Here, conflict is attributed to the difference in scale between such communities and massive extractive projects, and to the reliance of these communities on subsistence gathering and hunting. Most important, Canadian law does not clearly identify or protect native rights. Co-management has been developed to support the fragile social and economic ties of aboriginal communities, stressed by the pressure of development.