FEBRUARY 2020 BCBUSINESS 33
FROM KITIMAT TO VANCOUVER, B.C. FIRST NATIONS
ARE MAKING STRIDES TO BUILD CAPACITY FOR
THEIR COMMUNITIES AND BECOME KEY PLAYERS
IN THE PROVINCIAL ECONOMY
Crystal Smith left no doubt where she stood. In late 2018,
soon after the Haisla Nation backed the
LNG Canada/Coastal GasLink
energy megaproject based in her hometown of Kitimat, the charismatic
chief councillor wrote an open letter to critics suspicious of its social and
environmental impacts.
Besides an education and employment department for Haisla seek-
ing work, funding from the community benefit agreement between the
nation and the $40-billion project's proponents had already financed a
traditional language program, Smith noted. "If it weren't for the open
communication and the continued offer of respect from
LNG Canada and
Coastal GasLink as they engaged with Haisla, we would not have those
services in place."
/ / / b y S T E V E N T H R E N D Y L E
/// p o r t r a i t b y PA U L J O S E P H
FIRST
MOVERS