No attempt to assess, modernize or reimagine the Canadian federation today is complete without including the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples, and addressing issues relating to the prosperity and well-being of Indigenous Peoples and communities. This is the focus of this report, the third in the series presenting the results of the Confederation of Tomorrow 2019 survey of Canadians.
The report finds that most Canadians believe that individuals like themselves have a role to play in moving reconciliation forward. There is also a recognition within Canadian society of the gaps in the standards of living between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, and of the need to address them. Most Canadians support a number of specific policies that could improve Indigenous well-being and advance reconciliation, such as increases in government funding for Indigenous schools, as well as the transfer of the powers of self-government to Indigenous communities. And majorities of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people are confident in the ability of Canadians to resolve their internal differences.
At the same time, only a minority of non-Indigenous Canadians view Indigenous Peoples as possessing unique rights that differentiate them from other ethnic or cultural groups in Canada, or are certain that resource development on Indigenous lands should not proceed in the absence of consent from the Indigenous Peoples concerned. It thus appears that the support within Canadian society of specific steps to advance reconciliation is not always underpinned by an awareness of the different constitutional and legal realities that affect the status of the country’s First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples.
Survey Details
The 2019 Confederation of Tomorrow survey of Canadians was conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research, in partnership with five leading public policy organizations across the country: the Canada West Foundation, the Mowat Centre, the Centre D’Analyse Politique – Constitution et Fédéralisme, the Institute for Research on Public Policy, and the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government at Saint Francis Xavier University. The research consisted of a national public opinion survey conducted online (in the provinces) and by telephone (in the territories) with a representative sample of 5,732 Canadians (ages 18 and over) between December 14, 2018 and January 16, 2019.
The Confederation of Tomorrow surveys give voice to Canadians about the major issues shaping the future of the federation and their political communities. They are conducted annually by an association of the country’s leading public policy and socio-economic research organizations: the Environics Institute for Survey Research, the Centre of Excellence on the Canadian Federation, the Canada West Foundation, the Centre D’Analyse Politique – Constitution et Fédéralisme, the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government and the First Nations Financial Management Board.
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Indigenous – non-Indigenous Relations
This report focuses on the perspectives of both Indigenous Peoples and non-Indigenous Canadians with respect to current relations between their communities, reconciliation, Indigenous representation in federal institutions, and Indigenous control over development on their traditional territories.
Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation
In the early months of 2020, prior to the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, news headlines in the country were focused on the protests taking place over issues relating to Indigenous Peoples’ rights and control over national resource development.
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The Confederation of Tomorrow surveys have covered relations with Indigenous Peoples from the beginning in 2019, documenting a gradual shift in Canadian public opinion toward greater support for the rights of Indigenous Peoples and the process of reconciliation.