OPPI and Shared Path Consultation Initiative Announce New Partnership

The Collaborative Hub Pilot Project would facilitate ongoing engagement through regular meetings between First Nations, municipal staff and leadership in service of shared well-being and collective impact. The preliminary goals of the Hub were co-designed to move beyond the duty to consult and accommodate to include:

• Honouring Indigenous Knowledge Systems in environmental planning and policy
• Incorporating First Nations perspectives for sustainable regional growth
• Increasing understanding and awareness of major regional pressures and opportunities e.g. shared stewardship, investment in climate-resilient infrastructure, and joint economic development plans

This partnership highlights the ongoing commitment by the Greenbelt Foundation, OPPI, and Shared Path to promote meaningful First Nations, Métis, and Inuit engagement and consultation within planning processes. By leveraging Shared Path’s expertise and OPPI’s reach, this collaboration will strengthen the capacity of professional planners to advance reconciliation by honouring First Nations, Métis and Inuit perspectives and rights in their work.

Through this collaboration, OPPI will provide financial support for Shared Path’s  Collaborative Hub Pilot Project. In turn, Shared Path will support OPPI in the development of a First Nations, Métis, Inuit Practice Guide on Engagement and Consultation to equip professional planners with critical tools and insights to apply to their practice. This partnership builds upon Shared Path’s design and delivery of a professional education workshop on the duty to consult, tailored specifically for planners in Ontario.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for our organizations to support one another’s efforts toward meaningful progress on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit rights and perspectives in land use planning,” says Susan Wiggins, Executive Director of OPPI. “Together, we can ensure planners have the knowledge and resources to foster respectful and informed engagement with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities.”

Carolyn King, Founder and Chair of the Board at Shared Path, emphasized the importance of the partnership, stating: “A new path is needed to honour the duty to consult and accommodate – collaboration between First Nations and municipalities can have a multiplier effect for growth. For the past eight years at Shared Path we have worked to facilitate training and relationship building between First Nations and municipal governments. Now, it is time for many minds to come together in imagining possibilities beyond current limitations towards the potentials of joint tourism, economic development, and natural asset management initiatives. Shared dreaming encourages innovation, inclusion, and creativity in addressing societal and environmental challenges.”

“The Greenbelt Foundation is pleased to support the formation of a Collaborative Hub and the partnership between Shared Path and OPPI,” says Ed McDonnell, Greenbelt Foundation CEO. “Centring First Nations knowledge and leadership, this project represents a critical investment in building the capacity of municipalities to effectively and meaningfully collaborate with First Nations, Métis, Inuit and rights holders. We are eager to see this Hub develop into a model that can be adapted across the Greenbelt region and beyond.”

Sound development and city building depends on fostering respectful relationships to address complex challenges such as housing, transportation, and environmental stewardship. In Ontario, 46 treaties have been signed with the Crown and the 133 First Nations who are your hosts and neighbours. Beyond the legal duty to consult and accommodate — under Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution —  treaties inform relationships. Reconciliation follows from building trusting relationships where First Nations and municipalities can partner to answer questions like, “How will proposed projects contribute to the health, cultural integrity, and well-being of communities and all our living relations?” This marks the next step towards fostering collaborative prosperity in order to strengthen, protect, and grow Ontario.
 

---

About Shared Path Consultation Initiative
The Shared Path Consultation Initiative is dedicated to advancing Indigenous and settler relationships through education, research, and collaboration on land use planning. Shared Path supports meaningful engagement with Indigenous communities and promotes a greater understanding of Indigenous rights, histories, and perspectives.

About the Greenbelt Foundation
The Greenbelt Foundation is a charitable organization solely dedicated to ensuring the Greenbelt remains permanent, protected and prosperous. We make the right investments in its interconnected natural, agricultural and economic systems to ensure a working, thriving Greenbelt for all. Ontario’s Greenbelt is one of the world’s largest with over two million acres of farmland, forests, wetlands and rivers working together to provide clean air, fresh water and a reliable local food source.