Full Title:

Assessing Yukon's Current Approach to Regional Land Use Planning: Perspectives from the North Yukon Planning Process

A masters thesis prepared by:

Amy J. Leach
Master of Arts in Environment and Management Candidate
School of Environment and Sustainability
Royal Roads University
April 2011

From the Abstract:

Regional land use planning in the Yukon has a long and unfortunate history of failed efforts. Under Chapter 11 of the Yukon First Nations Umbrella Final Agreement, a new process for planning has been in place since 1993. Through qualitative, interview-based research, I explore possible factors that either hinder or facilitate successful planning. I used the North Yukon regional land use planning effort as a case study example of the first plan to be successfully approved in Yukon history. A number of challenges resulting from poorly defined roles and responsibilities caused notable struggles and conflict throughout the process, but fortunately, strong political support and micro and meso – level organization, combined with a solid team of skilled and dedicated people, allowed the process to ultimately succeed. Lessons learned and recommendations for future regional planning initiatives are discussed.

A masters thesis prepared by:

Nick GrzybowskiMADR CandidateSchool of Public AdministrationUniversity of VictoriaJune 2014

From the Executive Summary:

The objectives of this report are to capture the knowledge and experience of those involved in the Peel Watershed planning process that took place between 2002 and 2014. Gathering this knowledge will contribute to improving the planning process in the Yukon, where past successes and challenges inform improved future applications or applications in other jurisdictions.

In the short term, this report is intended to contribute to the successful completion of regional land use plans in the Yukon, which in the long run may provide greater certainty for a multitude of users and reduce the prevalence of land use conflicts. The study has been designed to assist the Council in reviewing the Peel Watershed planning process and addresses the following research questions:How do participants of the Peel Watershed planning process describe their experiences during the planning process?

This is the executive summary to the document "A Review of the Peel Watershed Common Land Use Planning Process" found below. Written by the author of that thesis.

This report examined nine regional land use plans in Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Northern British Columbia to consider how traditional knowledge was used and how plans address broader Indigenous concepts about their relationship to land and their way of life rooted in the land.

The review showed that the Yukon plans do not reflect traditional knowledge to the same extent as the other seven northern plans. Even though requirements in the Final Agreements are clear and both Yukon Commissions worked closely with communities, the plans themselves do not portray to the extent of other plans Indigenous worldviews, values, and knowledge. This project provided some insights on why that may be and how the Yukon Final Agreements and the collective northern experience with planning provide opportunities to improve Yukon’s regional planning processes.

This report and its summary was written by planner Gillian McKee under contract to the Council in early 2021.

This is a 13 page summary of a report that examined nine regional land use plans in Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Northern British Columbia to consider how traditional knowledge was used and how plans address broader Indigenous concepts about their relationship to land and their way of life rooted in the land.

The review showed that the Yukon plans do not reflect traditional knowledge to the same extent as the other seven northern plans. Even though requirements in the Final Agreements are clear and both Yukon Commissions worked closely with communities, the plans themselves do not portray to the extent of other plans Indigenous worldviews, values, and knowledge. This project provided some insights on why that may be and how the Yukon Final Agreements and the collective northern experience with planning provide opportunities to improve Yukon’s regional planning processes.

This summary and the report itself was written by planner Gillian McKee under contract to the Council in early 2021.