Aboriginal participation in Canadian hydroelectric development: political economy and public policy

Abstract

Cooperation in planning activities between governments, provincial hydroelectric Crown Corporations, and aboriginal peoples is a well-known trend in current Canadian hydroelectric development. Cases from Canadian economic history teach us that native communities were excluded from participation in hydroelectric development, even when their life was largely changed due to its negative effects. New forms of public debate assure the aboriginal peoples new pportunities for participation, but at the same time, as many critics note, they easily become instruments of control in the hands of the government. Our research is oriented towards comparing different stages of hydroelectric development in terms of aboriginal participation, and we will try to show why modern practices of deliberative democracy are (or maybe why they are not) different than before.

Keywords

• power
• empowerment
• hydroelectric development
• resource/environmental policy
• aboriginal peoples
• Canada