Foundation 4: Indigenous Environmental Justice

Privacy Act Notice Statement

The personal information is collected under the authority of section 5 of the Department of the Environment Act and subsection 7(1) of the Financial Administration Act.  

The Government of Canada is seeking input from individuals and communities across the country, particularly racialized, marginalized, and Indigenous peoples, to help inform the development of a national strategy to address environmental racism. Your feedback will support a better understanding of the issues and contribute to the creation of effective, inclusive policies.  

The personal information created, held or collected by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) is protected under the Privacy Act. Information will be used, disclosed and retained in accordance with the conditions listed in the Personal Information Bank Outreach Activities PSU 938.  

Any questions or comments regarding this privacy notice may be directed to ECCC’s Access to Information and Privacy Division at ECATIP-ECAIPRP@ec.gc.ca. If you are not satisfied that your privacy has been adequately respected, you have the right to file a complaint. You may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada by calling their information center at 1-800-282-1376 or by visiting the OPC contact page.   

Foreword 

Environmental justice and environmental racism are broad concepts that can be applied in various contexts. Environmental justice and environmental racism are new areas of work for the Government of Canada.  However, grassroots organizations have significant knowledge and experience in advocating for communities and raising awareness on these issues. The Government of Canada aims to work with these organizations, affected communities, and those with lived experiences. Their input will help to develop a national strategy to assess, prevent, and address environmental racism and to advance environmental justice (the Strategy). 

ECCC is conducting a series of engagement activities, which will help us develop the Strategy. These activities represent a significant part of the policy development process, in principle and in the  context of the requirements of National Strategy Respecting Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act. It is important to ensure that the Strategy reflects the needs and perspectives of all stakeholders and partners that it may affect. To achieve this, ECCC will engage with a broad audience during the next consultation phase of strategy development.  

Engagement documents are one way that governments can engage broadly with the public and various interested groups. They can be used when considering the development of new legislation or regulations or implementing a new policy or program. Each engagement document will focus on one of the following four key foundational topics: 

1. Advancing environmental justice 
2. Assessing, preventing and addressing environmental racism 
3. Examining the link between race, socio-economic status and environmental risk 
4. Indigenous environmental justice and racism 

Each engagement will include a focused webinar that will consist of one session of up to two hours in length. The webinars incorporate presentations from federal officials as well as time for discussion and questions. Following the completion of the engagement period, ECCC will: 

• review all feedback 
• engage bilaterally with respondents to discuss submission (as required) 
• publish a What We Heard Report to detail the input received 
• publish a What We Did Report to detail how we used the input provided 

The input received in response to the engagement documents, including through the accompanying webinars, will inform the development of the national strategy to assess, prevent, and address environmental racism.

Introduction 

This guide is intended to support First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in sharing their experiences, ideas and suggestions. Their contributions will help shape the development of Canada’s national strategy.

Environmental justice is a movement seeking to ensure fair and meaningful inclusion of affected peoples. It advocates for equal sharing of benefits and costs when making decisions about the environment. Environmental justice seeks to recognize and address the inequalities experienced by Indigenous, racialized, and other marginalized communities. These considerations are essential when making decisions that affect people and the environment.

The unique rights and perspectives of Indigenous peoples are often tied to specific relationships to the environment. As the national strategy is developed, it’s essential that ECCC considers the diverse perspectives of First Nations, Inuit and Métis rights-holders. Their voices are vital to ensuring the strategy reflects Indigenous priorities and knowledge. This engagement guide is one way for Indigenous peoples to share their ideas related to strategy development. 

This engagement guide is divided into three discussion topics:

1. First Nations, Inuit and Métis knowledge and understandings of environmental justice 
2. potential mechanisms to assess, prevent and address instance of environmental racism and advance environmental justice
3. communication and cooperation to address environmental racism and advance environmental justice

Topic 1: Knowledge and understandings of environmental racism and environmental justice

In Canada, there is no definition of environmental justice that is accepted by everyone. Instead, environmental justice is considered a concept that can be applied in various contexts. Environmental justice is a movement seeking to ensure fair and meaningful inclusion of affected peoples and equal sharing of benefits and costs when making decisions about the environment. Environmental justice aims to recognize and seek to address the existing inequalities faced by Indigenous, racialized, or otherwise marginalized communities throughout the decision-making process.

Further, the concept of environmental justice is broadly understood to include improved procedural, recognitional, and distributive justice.  

• procedural justice and recognitional justice seek to improve the ways in which decisions are made.
  • they aim to ensure that those affected by environmental injustice have their values and priorities meaningfully reflected in decision-making spaces
• recognitional justice recognizes the unique relationships with the environment, and ensuring peoples’ knowledge, values, and voices are respected in environmental decision-making.
• distributive justice involves identifying the ways in which certain populations face disproportionate environmental burdens, such as pollution.
  • it seeks to improve environmental benefits for those communities

Discussion question: In the context of a national strategy to promote efforts across Canada to advance environmental justice, how would you define environmental justice? 

In answering this question, you may wish to think about:

• how do your lived experiences/worldviews inform your understanding of ER/EJ
  • how may it be distinct from others’
• what is challenging for you and your community in addressing instances of ER
• what opportunities do you see for improved recognitional, procedural and distributive justice in your community
• what is something you wish ECCC could know about environmental justice before they draft a strategy

Topic 2:  Tools to assess, prevent and address environmental racism and advance environmental justice

There are many tools that can help prevent and address environmental racism and advance environmental justice in Canada, including:

• the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (UNDA) 
• the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA)

Including Indigenous peoples in federal environmental decision-making helps ensure their rights, knowledge and perspectives are respected. This has been done in different ways, such as:

• advisory bodies that offer expert guidance
• governance tables where decisions are made together 
• co-management agreements that support joint implementation of programs

Some things to consider:

• the strategy will be developed in line with Canada’s commitment to recognizing and implementing the rights of Indigenous peoples. This includes following the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), as required by federal law under the UNDA
• measures that can be taken to advance environmental justice and assess, prevent and address environmental racism may include: 
  • possible amendments to federal laws, policies and programs
  • the involvement of community groups in environmental policy-making
  • compensation for individuals or communities
  • the collection of information and statistics relating to health outcomes in communities located in proximity to environmental hazards

Discussion question: What tools and mechanisms do you believe should be used to support efforts to advance environmental justice?

In answering this question, you may wish to think about:

• how might UNDA principles be considered in the context of our work
• do you know of any tools that help address environmental racism or support environmental justice? If you’ve used or know of any, we’d like to hear how they work and what makes them effective
• are there specific principles, protocols or ways of working with First Nations, Inuit or Métis peoples that the federal government may be missing in environmental policy
  • are there any key ideas or actions we should include to make this work stronger and more inclusive

Topic 3: Communication and cooperation to address environmental racism and advance environmental justice.

Environmental racism can result from many decisions made by different people and organizations. Environmental justice is often led by local communities and grassroots efforts. The Government of Canada recognizes that it does not own these concepts and cannot act alone. It also does not have authority in all areas—its jurisdiction is mostly limited to federal lands, including Indigenous territories, and specific laws and regulations.

Even so, governments can work together to support environmental justice. They can do this by identifying emerging issues, encouraging coordinated actions, and finding ways to collaborate. The Government of Canada can also strengthen partnerships through existing networks, including with Indigenous peoples and governments, to share knowledge and best practices. A key priority in developing the strategy is to build on feedback already shared by Indigenous peoples in past engagements.

What we have heard

• It’s important to be clear from the beginning about the purpose, scope and possible outcomes of engagement. This means being honest about what is possible, so that expectations are realistic and communities can make informed decisions about participating
• Emphasizing regional and community-level perspectives, Indigenous governance structures and adopting a distinctions-based approach early into the creation of initiatives 
• Before engagement begins, it’s important to provide clear background information—not just about new initiatives, but also about the broader context. This helps ensure that participation is in line with the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). This means communities have the time and information they need to make informed decisions

Discussion question: What could the Government of Canada do to support the advancement of environmental justice?

In answering this question, you may wish to think about:

• what structures do you currently use to convey your specific concerns around environmental racism and justice? who represents you on these issues 
• what approaches or mechanisms could improve the federal government’s engagement with Indigenous peoples on environmental policies or decisions 

Concluding question 

Is there anything else you would like to add at this stage to contribute to the development of a national strategy for Canada?  

Next steps 

ECCC developed this engagement guide to facilitate the contribution of Canadians’ experiences, ideas and suggestions to aid the creation of the Strategy. 

Public engagement on the Strategy will include opportunities for individuals, businesses and communities to join the conversation. Please provide input by December 12, 2025. Information is available on ECCC’s environmental justice webpage. 

Organizations and interested parties are encouraged to hold their own engagement sessions and share the results with the government. A guide on how to do this and a presentation deck with additional information are available. 

Environment and Climate Change Canada will compile and publish input received in a “What We Heard” document. We will publish the document online by Winter 2026. 

This information will form the foundation of a national strategy for Canada. We will share the Strategy with Canadians for consultation in 2026. 

If you would like more information on environmental justice and how to contribute to the strategy development, visit ECCC’s environmental justice webpage.