Quest for Resilience

“We Choose Life”

Interview with Chief Patrick Michell, Kanaka Bar

Introduction

For Chief Patrick Michell, of Kanaka Bar Band, it all starts with a vision - a long- term plan for his people. Speaking candidly over a virtual meeting, Chief Patrick’s exuberance and sense of humor was not diminished by the computer screen in the slightest. As Kanaka Bar completed its Community Resilience Plan (CRP) and commenced its implementation, we sat down to talk about his experience in developing the plan. We also talked about his childhood, history of his people, values, his mission as the leader of Kanaka Bar, and climate change. In 2015, he became the Chief of Kanaka Bar in the communities’ first election in over 30 years. Chief Patrick emphasized that the story he was telling me was not his, it was his community’s. To the various praises and recognition he’s received (such as the Lifetime Achievement Award given by Clean Energy BC) for his innovative and forward thinking over the last few decades, he said he was not doing anything that’s groundbreaking and personal accolades did not concern him. He counted on both hands the names of his 6 children - “I do it for them and their children”.

On Leading

You’ve been widely recognized as a progressive leader who has done great work in spearheading clean energy and sustainable projects such as the Kwoiek Creek Run-of-River project. What drives you and how do you pick your projects? 

On January 31st, 1973,  the Supreme Court of Canada recognized the rights of Indigenous people. Up to that point, we were marginalized, dispossessed and a burden. On that day, my parents came and took me out of residential school. And for the first time, I saw them, and my grandparents, holding their heads high and from that day on I never saw them look down again. It may sound basic but do not underestimate the power of acknowledgement. I was changed on that day and so was everyone else in my community. On a philosophical level, my intent is to change the expectation: un-write the stereotype and write our own future; On an instinctual level, I’m driven to survive and to do it the way I was taught by my parents.  I’ve never considered any of the projects I engage in as being exceptionally different or innovative. You do A, B happens; you do C, D happens. Therefore, you do more of A, and less of C. It’s logic. I’d rather be known for the action that’s happening on the ground, the completion of the projects over the next 5 years.

What do you think makes a strong Indigenous leadership team? 

We value our members. I want decisions to be made collaboratively so I ask again and again for people to get involved. We encourage everyone to use their voice. A strong leadership team is one that stands for what it believes in and aligns its actions with its values. A strong leadership means to lead by example. It is my and my council’s mission to retain and build up members who are interested in participating and working for our collective future. We have values and code of conduct that we have a responsibility of upholding. This is not a people-pleasing job. My job often entails having to make the hard decisions and telling people things they don’t want to hear. My job is to empower people to make proactive investments in life. This is why our model is to create education and work opportunities for our members. I will never be the kind of Chief that’s going to feed you for the rest of your life - but I WILL be the kind of Chief that’s going to help get you everything you need whether it’s tools or education, or a job so that you can feed yourself, and your family for the rest of your life.

“…These are challenges which also means they are opportunities. These challenges are proof that the CRP is critical and could not come at a better time. This is how we will stay focused and on track with our vision.”

Community Resilience Tree

On Community Resilience Plan (CRP)

What does “Community Resilience” mean to you?

Resilience by definition is not something of a temporary nature. It means to last. To continuously exploit resources, whether it’s from mother nature in a non-sustainable way or exist with the mentality of only taking and not contributing will never get us to “resilience”. This is true for Kanaka and this is true for humanity as a whole. The pervasive “me, now, more” is a learned behavior and that is fundamentally a major contributor to the climate crisis we are facing today. Imagine my surprise when I learned from reading a newspaper at the age of 18, that I was what they called “an impoverished Indian”, when I had all I needed to live. Apparently “I didn’t have ‘enough’”. To appreciate and achieve “Community Resilience”, we must acknowledge this underlying issue. First comes the awareness, then comes the choice. This also means waiting on no one, taking responsibility for your own future and well-being. Achieving our goal comes at the expense of two things: profit and money in the bank. Being proactive means spending your money today so you can have a life tomorrow.  And let’s be honest not everyone is a fan of this even if they claim that this is a good idea on paper. If a resilient Kanaka Bar is a tree, then the roots are: “Membership, Elections and Governance Codes”, “Land Use Plans”, “Community Economic Development Plan” and “Climate Change Adaptation Strategy”; the Community Resilience Plan is the trunk; and the branches (together with its leaves and fruit) are known as: Land and Resources, Governance, Health, Culture, Education, Infrastructure, and Economic Development. You can’t have the leaves without the trunk, and you can’t have the trunk without its foundations.

How did the CRP come to be?

The CRP is both our commitment we made to ourselves and a declaration to the world - both say, “at Kanaka Bar we choose life”. For 8,000 years, our foundations of life have always been six things in this order: Air, Water, Food, Shelter, Energy, and Communications. There were 8,000 years of sustainable living in our history and the CRP is about taking us back to the old ways. Going back to the old ways does not mean going backwards. We need to use what worked in the past and apply them here and now. Kanaka Bar always placed importance on planning and governance. We always made sure there were a vision, objectives, strategy and action plan. The CRP was the product of a natural evolution from our Land Use Plan, and Community Economic Development Plan. It was also clear to leadership that issues relating to climate change needed to be a focal point so the CRP replaced the previous two plans, to help Kanaka Bar grow and advance sustainably. It is our blueprint to achieve our vision - to use land and resources to maintain a self-sufficient, sustainable and vibrant community.

What has developing the CRP done for you and your community so far?

The biggest thing for me is that the CRP has given us a clear actionable plan for the next 5 years. It has inherited the important and relevant parts of the previous plans and added elements that align with Kanaka Bar’s values in the face of climate change. The plan will put all these actionable pieces into motion. The development of it, like anything worth doing is bittersweet. It doesn’t come without its challenges. Some tough questions were revealed: How can we get all the members to believe in the CRP? How do we make people see that their voices matter? How can we cut through the social media chatter noise, when there’s so much misinformation out there online, and when some people simply choose not to believe that climate change is real? These are challenges which also means they are opportunities. These challenges are proof that the CRP is critical and could not come at a better time. This is how we will stay focused and on track with our vision.

If you could do the CRP all over again, what would you have done differently?

Everything has a “trial and error” element, and this process was no exception. One thing we wanted for the CRP was for it to be a members’ document. As a result, my Council and I made a conscious decision not to participate as “leadership”. We participated in the process as members and parents. If we had an opportunity to do this again, I’d like to increase the role of leadership and see if the community participation level increases.   

Selective photos from the CRP

On Collaboration

You have a very transparent and collaborative leadership style. How did the development of the CRP involve your community?

We actively engaged the members throughout the CRP planning process, via 12 community engagement sessions. Input and feedback from the community was sought after and incorporated at various stages of the development process. We also made a StoryMap that’s available online so that members can view and track the progress of the plan at their convenience. This is for the future of Kanaka Bar, not just me and my immediate family. It was important to me and the council that all the members left this exercise with a sense of ownership of the document. The CRP was written for the people, on and off the reserve - to focus and reinforce existing efforts and to show those who may be struggling, that there is a better way to live and they CAN make the decision to take back the power that was stripped from them over 170 years ago. 

You mentioned several times about the importance of choosing wisely. A good leader knows how to assemble a good team. What’s your insight in this area?

I’ve had the fortune of working with very hard-working staff in the band office who have been there since the beginning. Fate if you want to call it, has brought some very gifted people into Kanaka’s world. One of them is without a doubt Zain Nayani from ZN Advisory. Their expertise and contribution as a management consulting firm helped actualize the CRP. Yes, I/We had a vision but they made it happen. It has been a long haul and you can see our words and their fingerprints all over this document. We are all connected, and we need one another to succeed. Collaboration is one of the values we uphold as seen in the band’s code of conduct. 

On the Future

Now that the course has been set for the next 5 years. What are you most excited by and what do you foresee as being challenging?

Without our people, we are limited to how much we can achieve. We can put up the most beautiful community building, but it wouldn’t amount to much if we don’t have a healthy community. It always comes back to the power of choice. Healthy people make healthy families and healthy families make healthy communities. The CRP candidly acknowledges the deep damage done to my people’s collective psyche, as a byproduct of colonization and oppression. I’m proud of the work we’ve put into this document because the CRP does not try to conceal our history and our pain, but it captures all the “whys” and turns them into fuel or motivation to get us past yesterday and to take our lives into our own hands, without dependency. There is a lot of work to be done to meet the deliverables as set out in the plan. Part of the challenge is to have people jump on board with our vision, move to a rural community and stay the course. I’m most excited to witness what’s to come, to see the tangible results of the plan 30 years from now.

If you were to give a TED talk to a group of young, future Indigenous leaders, what are the top three pieces of advice you’d give them? 

One, to understand the power of choice. Only you determine your future. Choice is about self-awareness - you can choose to be informed or to be ignorant; Two, your action - choose wisely and be aware that your choice today affects what happens tomorrow. Lastly know your why and believe in it. I will also encourage them to look at empowerment vs. enablement and how enablement has affected our children and society.

Image Source: Indigenous Clean Energy

At 10am yesterday, Chief Patrick spoke to an audience at “Sharing Circles”, a recurring series of events organized by “Preparing Our Home” the community-based resilience planning group. It was both inspiring and exhilarating to hear Kanaka Bar’s journey thus far. Although delivered through a Zoom session, one could feel the excitement and hopefulness shared by participants who could not wait to share what was delivered to them today with their own community and organization. The story of Kanaka Bar and its quest for resilience is what need more of today. It’s about a community that’s making proactive investments that are sustainable, and an exemplary leadership team that’s brave and determined enough to challenge the status quo. The Community Resilience Plan, as I have learned is the first of its kind among Indigenous communities. The value of it becomes crystal clear, when one chooses life over all else.