From Treaty Peoples to Treaty Nation

Greg Poelzer has written extensively on Aboriginal and northern issues and is co-author (also with Ken Coates) of Arctic Front: Defending Canada in the Far North, winner of the 2009 Donner Prize. He has worked as an adviser and negotiator for governments, First Nations organizations, and industry and is the founding director and executive chair of the International Centre for Northern Governance and Development at the University of Saskatchewan.Ken S. Coates is the author and editor of over a dozen books on Aboriginal issues, including Best Left as Indians: Native-White Relations in the Yukon; The Marshall Decision and Native Rights; and A Global History of Indigenous Peoples. Raised in Whitehorse, he is the Canada Research Chair in Regional Innovation at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan. He is a frequent contributor to magazines and newspapers throughout Canada and appears regularly on radio and television programs.

• Preface: Towards Equality of OpportunityIntroductionAboriginal Leaders and Scholars Point the Way1 The Traditionalists2 Treaty Federalism3 Bridging the SolitudesNon-Aboriginal Views on the Way Forward4 Legal Rights, Moral Rights, and Well-Being5 Political and Institutional ApproachesComing at It from a Different Direction: Aboriginal Success Stories6 Culture and Education7 Business and Entrepreneurship8 Governance and Civic EngagementSteps towards Social, Political, and Economic Equality9 Global Lessons10 Equality of Status11 Citizenship and a Commonwealth of Aboriginal Peoples12 Aboriginal Self-Government13 Community-Based Economic Well-Being14 Finding Common Economic GroundConclusionPostscriptAppendicesReferences and Further ReadingIndex

What is clear from this survey is that no consensus exists around how to improve Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal relations. This sketch by Poelzer and Coates does, however, do more than provide the reader with a useful review of proposals aimed at solving the "Indian problem" in Canada; it allows the authors to situate their own approach within a very complex debate characterised by a diversity of opinions (both within the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal intellectual communities). From Treaty Peoples to Treaty Nation's originality flows from its focus on the practical elements of these problems. By contrast, most other scholars' approaches are philosophical, idealistic, and theoretical … With the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's release of its Final Report earlier this year, Poelzer and Coates' work could not be timelier.- Darius Bossé (Saskatchewan Law Review) The greatest value of this volume [is that] it seeks to force productive debate, not fruitless fingerpointing and rancor. Whether or not it succeeds in doing so for Canada remains to be seen. Whether the United States, including the many indigenous peoples in the Great Plains, takes notice and begins more meaningful discussions of Americans as "Treaty Peoples" and a "Treaty Nation" likewise remains unclear. As a region with strong indigenous history and presence, these are debates worth having — on both sides of the border. - Brenden W. Rensink, Charles Redd Center for Western Studies Brigham Young University (Great Plains Research) The book provides an excellent summary of the work of various Canadian Indigenous political scholars such as Kiera Ladner, Bonita Beaty, Dan Russell, John Borrows and Glenn Coulthard. The treaty theme runs throughout the book, with historical and contemporary examples. This allows the reader to understand the past but also facilitates awareness of the modern-day treaty process that is underway in some parts of Canada. - Cora Voyageur, professor of sociology at the University of Calgary, and member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (Alberta Views, Vol. 19 No. 10) … a welcome help to understanding ourselves as a nation and as individuals … Greg Poelzer and Ken Coates offer an accessible primer to the many ways Canada's Indigenous peoples are retaking charge of their lives. - Jean Barman, 2015 recipient of the Governor General's History Award for Scholarly Research (Canada's History)