Abstract

The Wet'suwet'en are currently struggling to affirm and clarify their aboriginal and territorial rights through the BC Treaty process. While this process has continued, resource extraction activities have continued to remove large volumes of economically and culturally important resources. At present, there are very few areas of Wet'suwet'en territory that have not been impacted by logging or mining development. Processes have been established which are intended to assist the Wet'suwet'en in protecting their cultural heritage resources and providing input into land use planning processes. However, despite these efforts, inadequate funding and increasingly 'streamlined' regulatory controls have eroded the ability of the Wet'suwet'en to influence the management of natural resources or the protection of cultural heritage features in a manner that reflects the Wet'suwet'en vision and supports cultural survival.As a result, the Wet'suwet'en have taken a proactive approach to managing archaeological concerns within their traditional territory. Using accumulated cultural heritage and traditional knowledge information, a new methodology for how archaeology is conducted has been developed. The Wet'suwet'en are now an 'active partner' with the proponent for all archaeological investigation within their territory. While this 'model' assumes a certain level of capacity on behalf of the First Nation, elements can certainly be adopted by other Nations that will allow them to have greater involvement and influence over cultural heritage resource management decisions made regarding their traditional landscape.