kiɁlawnaɁ Grizzly Bear

“kiɁlawnaɁ has been an integral and critical part of Syilx culture since time immemorial – its presence in Syilx Territory is an indicator of the health of Syilx land and people.” ONA Tribal Council Resolution 2014/15 No.292

For Syilx people, kiɁlawnaɁ (grizzly bear) are a significant part of our laws, protocols and central to our creation stories. They are a part of tmixʷ (all living things) and Syilx people have always regarded them as one of our relatives who guide us to respect the land and live in health.

Our territory was once home to thriving, interconnected populations of kiɁlawnaɁ, but population numbers have steadily declined since colonization, following decades of historic overhunting and persecution coupled with habitat loss and fragmentation. The combination of these impacts continue to suppress grizzly bear populations today and will only intensify with the effects of climate change.

The decline of grizzly bear populations in the territory demonstrates that the health and security of the land is in dire need of recovery. Trends in declining populations must be reversed and we must restore ecological resilience and health back to the land for kiɁlawnaɁ and all tmixʷ.

As such, the ONA has taken direct action to reduce pressures on kiɁlawnaɁ and recover threatened populations. In 2015, the ONA Chief’s Executive Council (CEC) passed a Tribal Council Resolution declaring kiɁlawnaɁ at risk and in immediate need of recovery, particularly within remnant transboundary populations found within Syilx territory. The ONA was directed by leadership to develop and undertake activities to assist kiɁlawnaɁ recovery in ways consistent with Syilx culture, traditional knowledge, values, laws, and customs. These have evolved to include specific recovery projects for the North Cascades, Kettle Granby, and Okanagan Highland grizzly bear populations. Guided by this mandate, the ONA has completed important initiatives to carry out ecological and cultural aspects of our responsibilities to kiɁlawnaɁ and form supportive relationships with other Nations, governments and organizations needed for success.

Working with elders, knowledge keepers, hunters and gatherers from Syilx member communities to understand and preserve traditional knowledge, interests and concerns about kiɁlawnaɁ

In 2019, the ONA gathered information on syilx Indigenous Knowledge of kiɁlawnaɁ populations, habitat, possibility of recovery and threats in the Okanagan and North Cascades regions of British Columbia. A report was submitted in 2020 to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COWESIC) Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge Subcommittee to inform the population status review process for the Western Grizzly Bear Population (in Spring 2023).

Summer 2020, the ONA co-hosted a field tour and workshop with the En’owkin centre to support of kiɁlawnaɁ habitat enhancement work for the Kettle-Granby population. Over three days, syilx Elders and Knowledge Holders and members of the syilx Huckleberry Women Protectors came together to discuss ways we can care for st̕xałq (black huckleberry) for the Kettle-Granby population. Together we visited areas in the Lower Columbia basin to assess st̕xałq patches and discuss traditional practices like burning, used to enhance the health and productivity of st̕xałq and other plants. As part of the workshops, ONA staff conducted interviews with participants to internally document syilx traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and receive guidance for next steps of this initiative.

February 2018, the CEC passed a tribal council resolution, which was collectively endorsed by partnering Nations, calling on a Multi-Nation Approach for kiɁlawnaɁ Recovery Efforts in southwest British Columbia. The ONA and partnering Nations, Sto:lo, St’ati’mc, Nlaka’pamux and Secwepemc, sent a renewed collective message to the Provincial Government, offering a partnered approach to grizzly bear recovery, as outlined in the 2017 Auditor General’s report on Grizzly Bear management in BC. Since, the collective has developed shared objectives, priorities and recovery plans as steps towards returning kiʔlawnaʔ back to traditional homelands across the BC Southern Interior.

The ONA will continue to lead and participate in joint Nation initiatives as part of the Southern BC Grizzly Bear Stewardship Steering Committee and Indigenous Working Group, along with the recently formed North Cascades Grizzly Bear Project Team.

Working together with external experts, we have conducted bear hazard assessments (BHA) in 2018 and 2020, in support of BC Parks’ efforts towards making park facilities safer for both humans and bears in the North Cascades. An assessment report was completed for C. Manning Provincial Park (in 2019), and report for the Skagit Valley Provincial Park will be submitted in early 2023.
Field assessments for habitat quality and security have been conducted by ONA crews in the North Cascades since 2018. We are presently using this information to identify priority locations and candidate restoration activities that can effectively improve habitat connectivity for ki?lawna?
Since 2020, we have been working with syilx knowledge keepers in conjunction with the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS), to develop a kiɁlawnaɁ habitat enhancement initiative for the Kettle Granby population. Through field investigations, candidate locations containing st̕xałq (black huckleberry) patches have been identified as needing treatments, to improve availability for kiɁlawnaɁ In 2023, the ONA will develop restoration prescription, burn plan and monitoring protocols, by applying syilx Traditional Ecological Knowledge and conducting ecological and cultural field assessments.

We continue working towards recovering healthy populations of kiɁlawnaɁ within Syilx territory, and in this way, we will re-establish our responsibilities and relationships with kiɁlawnaɁ to respect our tmxʷulaxʷ and live in health. Further information on kiɁlawnaɁ specific projects are found on the side tab to the left.

Since 2018, the ONA has been conducting field survey programs for the North Cascade and Kettle-Granby grizzly bear populations to assess habitat conditions and develop recommendations for increasing the availability of important bear foods and enhance habitat security and connectivity
Habitat suitability mapping and road density data for the North Cascades were compiled and updated by the ONA in 2018, and a list of interim measures and priorities was developed and communicated throughout partnering Nations.
In collaboration with wildlife researcher Clayton Lamb (University of Alberta), a study was conducted on the relationships between kiɁlawnaɁ and road density within the Kettle-Granby region. The results of this study provide a scientific foundation for access management and habitat securement for grizzly bears, and provides insights into other kiɁlawnaɁ population recovery initiatives being conducted in the BC Southern Interior.
In 2023/24 we will further our understanding of current kiɁlawnaɁ occupancy and distribution in the Okanagan Highland region using a camera trap survey. Field data collected from the remote camera traps will be used to map grizzly bear distribution and inform habitat stewardship strategies in the near future.

THE NORTH CASCADES

kiɁlawnaɁ in the North Cascades are critically endangered due to habitat loss and historical overhunting. ONA is leading recovery efforts through habitat restoration and collaboration.

The ONA will work towards the following initiatives for grizzly bear population recovery within the North Cascades, and have currently taken up the following activities:

Continue supporting the work of the Southwest BC Grizzly Bear Stewardship Steering Committee and Indigenous Working Group
Finalizing and implementing the North Cascades Grizzly Bear Stewardship Strategy and developing restoration plans to improve habitat quality and connectivity for kiʔlawnaʔ. This will eventually lead to kiʔlawnaʔ reintroduction in the region.
Developing a plan for education and outreach support needed to ensure kiʔlawnaʔ recovery and human-bear coexistence efforts are understood by both Nation members and the public

The North Cascade mountain range is characterized by rugged terrain mountains spanning both sides of the Canada-US border which once supported healthy transboundary grizzly bear populations.

In 2015, the ONA Chief’s Executive Council (CEC) passed a Tribal Council Resolution declaring kiɁlawnaɁ at risk and in immediate need of recovery throughout Syilx territory, including in the North Cascades. Furthermore, in 2016, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) recognized this population to be Critically Endangered due to its extreme demographic and genetic isolation. The main factors believed to be responsible for the extreme decline in date back to the mid-19th century when large numbers of grizzly bears were commercially trapped and killed due to fears over potential conflicts. Syilx Knowledge Keepers confirm that settlers historically overhunted grizzly bears to drive population numbers down and exploit bears for commercial markets. kiɁlawnaɁ populations in the North Cascades have only been further undermined due to ecosystems fragmentation, industrial, and commercial development, and increased environmental disturbances due to climate change, that have pushed grizzlies further and further out of their original range. Remnant grizzly bear populations on both sides of the Canada-US border have not recovered from these impacts.

The ONA continue to assess the quality and availability of bear habitat as part of the recovery actions to bring kiɁlawnaɁ back to the North Cascade mountain range ecosystem. These studies use traditional ecological knowledge and science in the assessment of human-bear relationships and to improve habitat conditions and connectivity.

Collaborative management processes help demonstrate Syilx presence and responsibility for the land and resources, and provide capacity to help position the ONA and its member communities as leaders in conservation management. We have partnered with other Nations and bands (Upper Similkameen Indian Band, S’ólh Téméxw Stewardship Alliance, Nlaka’pamux Nation Tribal Council, St’át’imc Nation and Simpcw First Nation), the Province, Conservation Northwest and the Coast to Cascades Initiative as part of the Southwest BC Grizzly Bear Stewardship Steering Committee and Indigenous Working Group. The ONA leads and participates in discussions with these groups to identify and address specific issues affecting population viability of the North Cascades grizzly bears.

In 2021, the ONA began developing the North Cascades kiɁlawnaɁ Stewardship Strategy. The Strategy will include long term objectives and provide a framework for implementing actions needed to restore habitat connectivity and ensure future viability of grizzly bears in the North Cascades. Understanding how humans and bears can coexist and share this landscape is foundational to the success of population recovery efforts. This process requires a deep understanding of relationships held by indigenous peoples to the land and how cultural values and knowledge systems can guide us in upholding our responsibilities to kiɁlawnaɁ. The priority actions and recommendations developed in the North Cascades kiɁlawnaɁ Stewardship Strategy are informed by indigenous knowledge, values and perspectives. The ONA is also applying scientific information we have gathered through updated GIS habitat models and field assessments conducted since 2018.

The ONA is also supportive of the ongoing grizzly bear recovery efforts conducted within the North Cascades Ecosystem in Washington State (which borders our work here in Canada), following the announcement of a new environmental impact statement (EIS) process for the North Cascades Ecosystem Grizzly Bear Restoration Plan. The ONA will continue to contribute towards discussions about the ecological and cultural considerations for bringing kiɁlawnaɁ back to their traditional lands on both sides of the border.

The overarching goal of the North Cascades kiɁlawnaɁ Stewardship Strategy is to recover and re-connect self-sustaining, viable grizzly populations across healthy ecosystems across the North Cascades mountain ranges.

To achieve this goal, the Okanagan Nation Alliance is working in close partnership with neighbouring Nations, the provincial government and Conservation Northwest’s Coast to Cascades Grizzly Bear Initiative to see that the following spheres of committed actions are met, ensuring all necessary elements of shared stewardship are achieved:

Communication, Engagement and Educational Outreach

Communicate and engage with Indigenous communities, local non-indigenous communities and the broader public to grow support for grizzly bear re-establishment, develop coexistence strategies and minimize risks for human-bear conflicts
Engage stakeholders and key interest groups in the North Cascades in the grizzly bear recovery and habitat restoration process so that they may support Stewardship in their management plans and operations
Maintain communications with Tribal, Federal and State government agencies in the US in support of transboundary North Cascades grizzly bear enhancement efforts

Enhance Habitat Availability, Connectivity and Climate Resiliency

Work together with resource managers in partner Nations, provincial government, liscencees and stakeholder groups to increase the availability of high quality habitat and forage for ki?lawna? through habitat restoration and proactive resource management planning. We will collectively continue to plan for improvements to habitat security and quality by working with forest licensees, recreational users, hunters and other land users to reduce the density of roads in areas important for kiɁlawnaɁ. Habitat restoration and management decisions need to also be adaptive to the changes we are experiencing in climate conditions now and into the future, to ensure both ecological and human communities in the North Cascades are able to cope with the events and trends associated with climate disruptions.

Promote and Support Human-Bear Coexistence to Minimize Potential for Conflicts between Humans and Bears

Guided by indigenous cultural knowledge we will develop coexistence strategies which are also rooted in the learned experiences gained in other grizzly bear recovery programs. We will work with indigenous and local communities, governmental agencies, non-government organizations, stakeholder groups and the general public to develop and implement these strategies so that potential for human-bear conflicts are managed proactively and thereby reduced.

Population Enhancement

Increase the number of grizzly bears in the population through augmentation from other viable population(s). Ensure that population fragmentation is prevented in the future, so as to maintain genetic diversity among subpopulations.

Monitoring Conducted Within an Adaptive Framework

The North Cascades ki?lawna? Stewardship Strategy is a living document promoting habitat restoration and on the ground actions needed to achieve grizzly bear recovery and protection. To ensure plans and actions are effective in meeting the above objectives, ongoing monitoring of effects and outcomes are necessary within the cultural, ecological and social realms so that any necessary adaptations can be made to the strategy and plans. Monitoring programs are therefore fundamental to the long term success of returning a self-sustaining grizzly bear population back to the North Cascades. We must monitor habitat restoration effectiveness and landscape forage supply to guide future resource management and restoration decisions, especially in the face of uncertain trends from a changing climate. Grizzly bears and population demographics (including birth rates and cub survival) must be regularly monitored to assess success of habitat stewardship efforts and efficacy of human-bear coexistence strategies. Equally important, we must monitor human experiences and social responses within the recovery process at the community level to ensure coexistence objectives are successful and sustainable

Continue supporting the work of the Southwest BC Grizzly Bear Stewardship Steering Committee and Indigenous Working Group and lead the North Cascades Grizzly Bear Project Team
Share knowledge and continued discussions with the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee’s (IGBC) North Cascades Ecosystem Subcommittee to support transboundary recovery efforts including promotion of cultural values, ecological processes and outreach programs.
Finalizing and implementing the North Cascades Grizzly Bear Stewardship Strategy and begin implementing priority actions identified in the Strategy. This includes developing ecological restoration plans for high priority restoration locations identified through collective process. The restoration work will lead to improvements in habitat quality and connectivity for kiʔlawnaʔ. This will eventually lead to kiʔlawnaʔ reintroduction in the region.
Developing a plan for education and outreach support needed to ensure human-bear coexistence strategies are successfully adopted by Nation communities, local communities and tenure holders and the general public