Why does consultation matter? Well, as journalist Salimah Ebrahim tells us, “You can’t propose a solution in isolation. You have to be really invested. Ideally, the best solutions come when they are co creations happening between the people that are being affected and the people that want to support and find change.”

And for that to happen? Well, we all need to channel our inner Fin Donnelly.

“I have a perspective; I share that perspective. But I also have said, I’m interested in hearing your perspective. You come from a community; you have a story; you have something you’re passionate about in your community. We need to share that. We need to find that common ground and we need to come up with solutions that make sense.”

Which sounds intuitive, but so often it’s a process we don’t do well.

Why?

Well, for starters, we make assumptions about consultation based on the stories we consume.

As in, we don’t actually need to consult community X because we just know what they’re going to say. But the problem is that the stories we consume might lack the totality of the perspectives we need to hear, as former cabinet minister Donna Kennedy-Glans points out.

“Most of the stories about our place, say, here in Alberta, are written by people who live in New York or Toronto or someplace else. And they may have talked to somebody from here, but they may not have. It’s an useful opinion, but it’s not a grounded opinion.”

We need to hear that grounded opinion. We can’t assume we know it; we need hear what stakeholders and communities and individual citizens actually think, in their own words, on their terms.

“I do think that there are certain communities that really do have an obligation to start to peel back the layers of their assumptions about places and about how land is managed and used. They need to have tough conversations and approach communities that they haven’t necessarily really interacted with.”

Sierra Dakin Kuiper is a cultural anthropologist and that means she works to understand what and why people feel the way they feel.

“For my research, a lot of what I do is find ways of describing what’s going on, ways of documenting perspectives. Kind of really contemplating and thinking critically about how people were reacting and responding about the problems in their lives – and how communities or groups of people are coming together and thinking and reacting to the problems in their lives.”

Sierra believes we all need to understand that context to create the better solutions that allow more people to see themselves within what we create.

“It’s really just about going out and meeting new people and asking open questions about how people feel about something or about what they value.”

See? Good consultation really is just good conversations. So, why don’t we do this more often? We asked Sierra.

“It’s really complicated and it takes a lot of time. And that’s something that’s very valuable and also something that we’re often lacking.”

It’s not just that good conversations can’t be rushed, it’s also the volume of good conversations required to really understand a problem – to really weigh a possible solution or to really understand our own blinders and biases.

As Sierra says, “there’s so many ways to see the world and there are many values. It’s really good to really think about where you’re coming from first.”

True. Because here’s the other issue with consultation, even when we do it well, we often only speak with those who are active and engaged in an issue, as youth leader Brandon Nguyen explains.

“Previously, I’ve been involved in a couple (youth) organizations and I think those organizations were very much self-selecting. You have a responsibility to make sure that you’re advocating for not just what these politically active youth want.”

And that’s true for any issue, across society, says Dr. Aleem Bharwani of the Cumming School of Medicine.

“My bias as an urban male is that I need to make sure I’m understanding rural perspectives and to make sure I’m understanding other identity perspectives. I think it’s important that you then run that up against those differences so that we can understand and grow as a community. It doesn’t just become one special interest just driving change, but we’re moving forward, slowly, together.”

That’s why, Aleem tells us, we need to make sure we’re consulting diverse communities.

“We often think about diversity in terms of ethnic diversity. And I’m talking about not just ethnic diversity. I’m talking about any kind of diversity: The way we think, the way we feel, the way we understand, the way we talk, the way we listen, the way we build a community. When you just start to reconcile and understand those differences, we see how we can create yet another more powerful, additional integrative way (to solve problems).”

Social innovator Marie-Eve Marchand agrees, adding that when we don’t consult, this often happens:

“Why is my idea not gelling in my head? It should be so natural. Well, that means I haven’t really asked all the people and understood all the narratives.”

Youth advocate Jane Thompson says “no one person is going to have everybody’s point of view. But at least if you can bring different points of view into the room, you stand a better chance (of understanding a problem).”

Exactly. We can’t ask every question or hear every perspective, but we can almost always do better if we work to hear the voices that don’t speak out often or loudly or even at all, says Sierra Dakin Kuiper.

“There’s a whole field called multi-species ethnology, where anthropologists are really considering our relationship with other beings, like animals, and also trying to approach what our world is from the perspective of other species.”

The importance of consultation is even more fundamental though.

Donna Kennedy-Glans is a former Alberta cabinet minister and someone who helped oversee the Alberta Fair Deal Panel, a consultation process that sought to hear from the disenfranchised. As she explains, good consultation is the lynchpin of our democracy, even if it’s time consuming and even if we lack a clear sense of what good consultation looks like for every community.

“Coming to some reconciliation of what that can look like in a place, like Alberta, I think is a lot of work. And it changes. And I think figuring out how to get people’s voices heard and understood is an imperative. It’s our imperative. It’s what we have to learn to do better.”

In fact, it’s both a legal and moral imperative, as you know, adds Indigenous decision-making advocate Shianne McKay.

“There’s over 620 First Nation and Metis and Inuit organizations and communities across Canada with diverse cultural backgrounds. We need to think about incorporating everybody’s perspectives in the best way possible.”

Indeed, those voices are increasingly being sought, as Indigenous tourism advocate Joe Urie tells us.

“Indigenous people who call this place their traditional territory are being brought back in and maybe their insight or their words (can help us). They’re beginning to carry a lot more weight.”

That’s because the government has a legal duty to consult, as lawyer Kerrie Blaise reminds us.

“The duty to consult has to start, the test says from the Haida nation, at just the contemplated impact (of an idea or project).”

Ian Waddell, who helped author Article 35 that enshrined the duty to consult, says it’s a lesson even he had to learn the hard way.

“I had this issue come up when I (was in cabinet and) put the freeze on grizzly bear hunting. I had the Nisga’a treaty (in place) and they didn’t want this. They said: ‘You’re not the boss. We’re the boss!’ And I’m the minister! And I didn’t win the battle! I got defeated and I should have won it. But I didn’t do my preparatory work in government to get people on my side, to get support.”

And that’s why we all need to embody the duty to consult, Kerrie argues.

“Time and time again, we’re seeing when there hasn’t been adequate, let’s say public consultation, that has become a huge influence on whether or not the decision will go through or the final approval will be given for a project.”

Shianne McKay agrees.

“In order to determine which tools and resources are appropriate to meet the goals of the community, we have to listen to them and understand what the issues are. We have to help work with them collaboratively to find solutions and when you understand the issues facing the communities, you can do a lot more.”

How to do that?

Indigenous negotiator and community builder Brock Endean says

“Learn about the nations and which territory you’re residing on. Where are you living and where you’re working, where are you learning? And if you can just start by learning some basic language, some basic readings within that language, (that’ll show that you’re trying to understand and respect) the culture. That’s not to say that you’re going to fully understand it, or that you’re going to fully embrace that culture, but just respecting that this has been here since time immemorial, before colonization; that it’s critical to where we are now.”

Indigenous leader Larry Casper offers even more, specific ideas on what good Indigenous consultation looks like.

• Any project involving resource extraction or impacts to the land, should be conceptually introduced to the Indigenous Chief and Council of the community being affected. It is not a good idea to go to the first meeting with maps in hand and ribbons already in the field. The earlier that you can discuss a project with the respective First Nation will be much appreciated, and may save you time and resources if the project is subsequently dropped due to unsatisfactory consultation.
• While it is okay to communicate by phone to introduce yourself or share information, it is never recommended that this is how you base your consultative approach, as you may be expected to send a letter or email outlining your request to meet with either Chief and Council or a designated community representative.
• Keep in mind that the First Nation may be independent or a member of a larger body such as a tribal council or higher-level body like a Chiefs Council. If the First Nation belongs to any of these groups, you can expect to meet with them as the territory in mind is or may be viewed as a shared interest area by the other member First Nations.
• First Nations interest with any project includes a number of factors: how a proposal might impact fish, water, wildlife, medicinal plants and wildlife values; whether the proposal will provide meaningful job creation and apprenticeships (not just minor opportunities such as flagging, catering and labour support); and if the proposal offers a fair percentage of revenue sharing based on industry or project returns.

Or, simply put, Shianne McKay explains, “reconciliation is all of us working together, not just doing something for the other, or oppressing or controlling the other. It’s about collaboration and making those differences, accepting differences, finding common ground. It’s about learning about each other, then working, sometimes for a very long time, to find solutions so that there’s a win-win scenario. For humans and the ecosystem.”

Which isn’t to say that consultation is easy, says Dawn Carr, the former executive director of the Canadian Parks Council.

“Being in uncomfortable situations – in a room, in a process where people don’t see eye-to-eye – that’s hard work. It’s so hard to be in a room without knowing what the outcome is exactly going to look like. But that hard work of having conversations and truly understanding what collaboration looks like is critical if we’re going to actually be successful in achieving these long-term outcomes of maintaining and sustaining some of these really special places.”

Joe Urie agrees, adding it’s important for another reason.

“It’s one word: It’s partnerships. You can’t do anything by yourself.”

To create them, Joe argues “show up, be who they are. And don’t be afraid to step on a few toes by saying something dumb.”

But a fear of stepping on toes – of setting back an important issue – is often what holds us back from the kind of consultation we must embrace.

Which brings us back to the importance of listening – that skill that we sometimes lack, but one that is central to good consultation of any type, with all people and peoples.

As Indigenous leader Larry Casper tells us, “Each one of us, though we may come from different backgrounds – with different challenges or successes in our upbringing – are nonetheless equal to one another in value, knowledge and spirit.

“We are all students and constantly learning from one another, as each one of us has something that can be shared or taught to another person, whether it be a simple teaching tool or one complex. This keeps us humble and respectful of one another, as each of us is equal in the eyes of the creator.”

For that reason, just as it’s vital we take the time to consult and ask questions and listen, sometimes we also need to be heard.