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People Protecting the Land

Kaska Dena have lived in over 240,000 square kilometres of land in the southeast Yukon, southern Northwest Territories, and north-western British Columbia for tens of thousands of years; long before both recorded history and the existence of provincial land and territorial borders.

The Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh Network is an important initiative for Kaska, as wildlife and land stewardship have always been and remain an integral part of Kaska Dena culture. Through this program, Kaska Dena are building capacity and increasing presence on the land as guardians, participating in the management of lands and resources – a role that will strengthen as we assume more responsibility through Government to Government Agreements and ultimately, Kaska Dena Self-Governance.

Our Land Guardians practice responsible stewardship in many ways, including helping to educate the public, interacting with hunters during peak hunting season, providing local knowledge, undertaking harvest data collection, and monitoring wildlife health and climate change.

Our Land Guardians are the “ears and eyes” on the ground – an approach we believe to be integral to responsible land stewardship.

For more information about Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh Network – Kaska Guardian Program, please contact Tanya Ball, Coordinator, on the ‘Write to Us’ contact form.

Information

2017/2018 Program Summary

# Trips Purpose
59 Wildlife Patrol/Surveys
41 Environmental Concerns
37 Hunter/Patrol Survey Card
35 TK Observations
20 Butterflies/Birds/Insects/Frogs/Toads Identification
11 Plant/Fungi Observations
4 Morel Mushroom Monitoring
2 Climate Change

2018/2019 Program Outcomes

Monitoring of
Land Use
Community Engagement & Knowledge Mobilization Wildlife & Ecosystem Monitoring Training & Certification
252 Wildlife Observations
139 Environmental Concern Surveys
40 Hunter Harvest/Camp Surveys

4 Traditional Knowledge
Monthly water monitoring at high cultural use sites and at the Liard River (for YTG)
Game check with conservation officer (BC)
2 Community Meetings
2 Kaska Culture Camps
Kaska Elders Gathering
Canadian Parks Council Climate Change Working Group in Yellowknife
On panel at the WWF water monitoring roundtable
Presented at climate change workshop in Whitehorse
Updates on program to 3 Nations/Collaborative Stewardship Forum partners
GigaMetals – conducted archaeology test sites
Jade Boulder Road – conducted a mine site inspection with the BC Government
Cantung – participated in a mine site tour and received update on reclamation planning underway
Ecofor – conducted an archaeology assessment at the Silvertip mine site
Kutcho Copper Corp – assisted with the collection of baseline data, moose surveys & water sampling
Canadian Aquatic Biomonitoring Network Protocols
Wildlife and Ecosystem Health Training
RISC Archaeology & CMT Inventory Certification
Conservation Officer Training
Communications
Swift Water Rescue
Community Climate Change Monitoring Training
Microsoft Office
Ice Rescue
Ice Safety Rescue
Wilderness First Aid
GPS Operation
Field Documentation Apps
Regulatory Enforcement and Compliance
Mining Compliance

Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh Network Strategic Plan

Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh Network Strategic Plan 2018–2022 / Dena Kayeh Institute (2018)
2.05 MB 6877 downloads

    Kaska Land Guardian Program Update

    Dane Nan Yḗ Dāh | Kaska Land Guardian Program Update, June–August 2019 / Tanya Ball (2019)
    12.60 MB 8241 downloads

      Meet the Kaska Land Guardians. The Narwhal / September 4, 2019