ACC Gazette Section Stories: Yukon
Chùzhaan Nà Kwaye
By John Serjeantson, Chair (Yukon Section)
Chùzhaan Nà Kwaye – pronounced roughly how it appears, is the Southern Tutchone phrase for “playing outdoors.” We might call what we do “rock climbing” or “ski touring,” but playing outdoors is something through which both settler and Indigenous Canadians can connect. And of all the beautiful parts of this country, there is perhaps nowhere this is more evident than in the Yukon.
The Yukon has a vast array of outdoor recreational opportunities, from big mountains and glaciers to many great crags. It also has the highest density of self-governing First Nations in the country with 11 of 14 Yukon First Nations having land claims and self-government agreements that together provide a complex landscape of land-use governance that recreationists in the territory consider, respect, and navigate. There are very few other places in the country where you will find such a diverse mix of people, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, practicing their activities on the land, side-by-side.
Yukoners of all backgrounds have deep connections with their local landscape, both for recreation and subsistence, and this connection should not be taken for granted. In 2021, in response to the Yukon First Nations’ Declaration of Climate Emergency, 13 Yukon and Transboundary First Nations youth began the process of developing a Yukon First Nations Climate Vision and Action Plan.
It is now known as the “Reconnection Vision” and it posits that the root cause of many of the various crises we face as a society today, including climate change, is actually rooted in our disconnection – disconnection from the land, from nature, from people, from culture. This is not a novel concept, for centuries the ontology associated with many Indigenous peoples globally, known as “animism,” has been recognized as antithetical to typical colonial worldviews that positions humans and their creations as distinct from, or superior to, nature. And in this regard, the Reconnection Vision is a modern articulation of this idea, delivered in a distinctly Indigenous way. These ideas are explored more fully at the beautiful website www.reconnection.vision and those who wish to learn more about this topic are highly encouraged to check it out.
Photo: Benjamin Monkman, TKC Youth Outreach and Support Worker
Climbing at Crag Ex. located onTa’an Kwäch’än Council settlement land looking out over the famous Lake Laberge.
Photo: John Serjeantson
As much as both groups spend time outdoors connecting with the land, there was a historically problematic gap in the ACC Yukon Section’s relationship with First Nations in the territory. The reasons for this might include the fact that many of our recreational activities are not traditionally practiced by First Nations Peoples. We wondered if there was perhaps an opportunity to strengthen our connections here – to both explain the motivations we have for our recreation, which often had us unknowingly following the fundamental values laid down in the Reconnection Vision – as well as to deepen those values in ourselves.
Furthermore, with the territory’s population growing rapidly, and some friction already showing from some recreational use of First Nations’ land, it was clear that there was a benefit to our being proactive in our relationships with First Nations.
It was in this desire to proactively head-off problems, and in the spirit of learning and reciprocity that, in June of 2024, the Yukon Section collaborated with Ta’an Kwäch’än Council (TKC) and the Yukon First Nations Education Directorate (YFNED) to provide rock climbing instructional days for the TKC summer youth camp. Supported by funding through Lotteries Yukon for new youth-sized gear, we delivered four days of rock climbing programming at crags scattered throughout TKC’s land. The section demonstrated our efforts at mitigating our impact as recreationists and showed how our community enjoys connecting with their lands. And the Reconnection Vision is showing us how we can do this more intentionally and respectfully.
We see this programming as the start of our path toward a more in-depth relationship with the First Nations whose land we recreate on — one based on respect for each other and for the land. We look forward to spending more time Chùzhaan Nà Kwaye, together.
The post ACC Gazette Section Stories: Yukon appeared first on Alpine Club of Canada.