2020 – Assembly of First Nations

On March 3 and 4, 2020, the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) held its first National Climate Gathering (the Gathering) in Whitehorse, Yukon, on the traditional territory of the Ta’an Kwächän and the Kwanlin Dün. Well over 300 First Nations experts, leaders, youth, women, knowledge keepers, and professionals, gathered to discuss the most urgent crisis of our time – climate change. The Gathering was designed to act on the Chiefs-in-Assembly Resolution, Declaration of a First Nations Climate Emergency (Resolution 05/2019) and offer a uniquely First Nations-perspective on climate impacts, risks, and opportunities at a local, regional, national, and international level.

The Gathering offered an opportunity to show that, despite the disproportionate risks, First Nations possess a deep and holistic understanding of the root-causes of the climate crisis. This way of understanding and interacting with all of creation positions First Nations as active leaders in the drive to avert catastrophic climate change. In this light, the Gathering sought to achieve a better understanding of how the climate crisis is accelerating and exacerbating existing challenges facing First Nations (e.g., increased flooding, forest fires, biodiversity loss, etc.), as well as to examine and discuss solutions from across the country in a multidimensional, interconnected, and interrelated way.

This report, entitled the National Climate Gathering Report: Driving Change, Leading Solutions, reflects on the presentations, discussions, experiences and knowledge shared at the Gathering. It aims to inform the scope and direction of First Nations climate leadership, the development and finalization of an AFN National Climate Strategy, and to set the stage for a second National Gathering.

Go to resource: National Climate Gathering Report: Driving Change, Leading Solutions