UBCIC: Our Homes Are Bleeding

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Our Culture Lives in the Land

Indigenous economies are based on what the land could produce. For example hunting and fishing, for instance, are not merely for food, but for economy and culture. Items for trade were made from different resources in the different territories. Pollution, resource extraction and industrialization all affect the habitats of many species in addition to the land itself. When Indigenous interests are rejected out of hand, it is Indigenous economies and cultures that are being denied.

Land and resource rights are of vital importance to Indigenous peoples worldwide since they are the basis of their economic livelihood as well as the source of spiritual, cultural and social identity. Dispossession of traditional lands and territories remains one of the major challenges facing Indigenous Peoples today. The importance of collective rights, in terms of recognition as Peoples and rights to self-determination, are paramount. If the culture, identity and spirit of Indigenous peoples are to survive, the land must be maintained with respect and understanding among all peoples in these lands.

Audio	Video
On the effects of pollution on the land and water (1974)	Chief Roger William on language, place names and the need to control land use on traditional territories (1992)
Cut-off demonstration in Victoria

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UBCIC Vancouver Office:
500 - 342 Water Street,
Vancouver, BC, V6B-1B6, CANADA
Ph: 604.684.0231, Fx: 604.684.5726

UBCIC Kamloops Office:
345 Yellowhead Highway,
Kamloops, BC, V2H-1H1, CANADA
Ph: 250.828.9746, Fx: 250.828.0319