Response of the Minister of the Environment to Recommendations Made
at the Third Minister’s Round Table on Parks Canada (2005)
Executive Summary
From February 20 to 23, 2005, over 70 people attended the Minister’s
Round Table on Parks Canada, held at the Chateau Laurier National Historic
Site of Canada in Ottawa. Drawn from across Canada and broadly representative
of the environmental, Aboriginal, heritage, academic, tourism and other
communities, these individuals engaged on several themes in order to
provide advice to the Minister of the Environment, the Honourable Stéphane
Dion.
A Minister’s Round Table is held every two years, as directed
under Section 6 of the Parks Canada Agency Act, in order to
convene a meeting of persons able to advise the Minister on the performance
of Parks Canada. The Minister is required to respond publicly to any
recommendations within 180 days of the meeting.
This summary provides an overview of discussions that led to the 15
recommendations that follow on the two main themes of the 2005 Minister’s
Round Table – Towards a Culture of Conservation and Facilitating
More Memorable Visitor Experiences.
A Culture of Conservation
In discussion on building a culture of conservation, participants urged
Parks Canada to move forward on initiatives to educate and engage Canadians,
exhibit extra leadership in selected areas and continue to build meaningful
partnerships with indigenous peoples. There was broad consensus among
participants that a conservation culture will only emerge through engaging
Canadians and pursuing education initiatives that successfully speak
to audiences, particularly youth.
An important theme throughout the three-day meeting was that of furthering
the engagement of Canada’s Aboriginal people as partners to tell
their stories and teachings about Canada’s special places. Woven
through many recommendations are calls for Parks Canada to work closely
with indigenous people in the promotion of the relevance of parks through
a holistic approach and to highlight traditional knowledge and language.
François Paulette, a member of the Smith’s Landing First
Nation, spoke to the participants on the importance of language to his
people “[In]our language, our spirituality, our environment, our
political structures – our way of life – language is at
the centre and foundation of our people.” Parks Canada CEO Alan
Latourelle recommitted the Agency to work closely with Canada’s
Aboriginal community as it tells the story of the land, and the persons,
places and events that have contributed to Canada’s rich cultural
fabric.
Discussions at the meeting suggested that Parks Canada is on the right
track with its effort to preserve and restore ecological integrity,
and to ensure that future generations can also benefit from the beauty
and richness of our national historic sites, national parks and national
marine conservation areas – goals that are consistent with traditional
Aboriginal approaches to the land and the importance of protecting it
for the future.
Discussion as well as recommendations revolved around the importance
of engaging Canadians as the most effective means of protecting Canada’s
special places and building a culture of conservation. Whether it is
youth – the next generation of stewards – or new Canadians
living in urban settings, participants urged Parks Canada at every opportunity
to pursue all efforts to reach these and other key audiences.
And finally, another current of discussion and recommendations directed
attention at building research capacity and mechanisms to capture research
with partners. Whether it is in conducting market research, understanding
visitor needs and expectations, science or traditional ecological knowledge,
participants urged Parks Canada to strengthen its capacity and understanding
in order to be successful in carrying out its mandate.
Facilitating More Memorable Visitor Experiences
Participants to the 2005 Minister’s Round Table discussed how
Parks Canada can facilitate more experiences that will be memorable
for visitors in national parks, national historic sites and national
marine conservation areas. In order for Parks Canada to truly fulfill
its mandate to protect and present Canada’s natural and cultural
heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment,
it needs to be relevant to Canadians. How better for Parks Canada to
be relevant than to connect with visitors by facilitating memorable
visitor experiences – ones that educate and inspire, as well as
experiences that are emotive and spiritual.
Recognition was given to the issues presented by changing demographics,
including the urbanization of Canada as well as the diversity of these
urban audiences. Reaching these audiences was deemed critical for Parks
Canada to remain relevant in the future and continue to have the support
of Canadians to protect and present Canada’s natural and cultural
heritage places.
Discussions led to a number of recommendations on how Parks Canada
carries out operations in support of visitor experiences: issues concerning
the Agency organizational structure, how funding is directed, and how
links can be made to other Parks Canada facilities on a thematic or
geographic basis. Participants were very supportive of the direction
toward having people actively take part and share in the visitor experience.
Discussion also confirmed that interaction with Parks Canada staff contributes
greatly toward having a memorable visitor experience.
Recognition was also made that connecting to the spirituality of the
land, people and places leads to a greater depth of understanding and
profoundness. By meeting and exceeding the expectations of visitors
– and by taking an ordinary experience and making it extraordinary
– participants believe Parks Canada will make the necessary connection
between visitors and the natural and cultural treasures Canada has to
offer.
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