Indigenous Water Governance in the Arctic Ocean Drainage Basin

Our Relationship with Water

"Water was never surrendered — it was not something we agreed to give away, because water is life itself."

Before contact, Indigenous Nations across Turtle Island governed water through relationships, not ownership. Water was not a resource to be divided or controlled; it was a relative, a sacred being with its own spirit, deserving respect, ceremony, and protection.

We continue to honour this understanding today. Our governance systems, our ceremonies, and our laws were and still are rooted in this sacred relationship.

Treaties 6, 7, and 8 — Water Was Not Mentioned

When Treaties 6, 7, and 8 were negotiated, water was not explicitly discussed or written into the text. This omission is critical today, as it highlights the clash between Indigenous and colonial worldviews.

To Indigenous Nations, water was inseparable from the land and life itself, so to our ancestors, it would have been unthinkable to "give up" water. To the Crown negotiators, land was a commodity, and water was simply there, assumed to be abundant forever.

Indigenous Understanding of Water Governance

• Water is not a resource; water is a relation.

• We are of the earth, and water flows through all life — to harm water is to harm ourselves.

• Dominion over water — a concept rooted in the English Bible — does not align with our laws and teachings. Water cannot be "owned" in our worldview. See Worldviews in conflict below.

• Ceremonies and cultural laws guide how we care for water — from offering tobacco to teaching youth that water holds memory.

True Standard for Clean Drinking Water

Keepers of the Water upholds that the true standard for clean drinking water is simple: it means being able to bring a cup to the lake, river, or stream, and drink directly from the source with a peaceful heart and mind, knowing spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically that the water is safe, clean, and alive.

This understanding stands in contrast to the colonial worldview, where water is considered "clean" only after it has been heavily processed, treated with chemicals, and run through industrial systems. This normalization of chemical treatment reflects a disconnect—a belief that water is something to be controlled and corrected rather than something to be respected and protected from the start.

For Indigenous Peoples, water is not just a resource; it is a relative. When our waters are healthy, they do not need purification—they carry their own medicine. True water governance means honouring that relationship, rather than treating water as something broken that needs fixing.

Our Work in Water Governance

Keepers of the Water was born out of the urgent need for Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) holders to be heard, understood, respected, and embraced as a critical solution to overcoming the dirty water crisis. Western science is and will remain incomplete without the inclusion and centring of Indigenous Sciences in ongoing environmental data collection and studies.

Before colonization, Indigenous Peoples lived balanced lives with the lands and waters of their territories. The colonization of our traditional territories has led to a steady decline in the quantity and quality of water everywhere. Accessibility to clean water continues to have drastically negative impacts on Indigenous Peoples and everyone living nearby or downstream from the toxic tar sands and equally toxic tailings “ponds.”

Keepers of the Water (KOW) looks to Indigenous communities in our work to instill Indigenous water governance and management with policy, legislation, natural law, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK). These solutions ensure water is kept safe now and for future generations.

Acknowledgements & Leadership

The former Chair of Keepers of the Water, Sam Gargan, stated:

“As one who comes from this land, we have a collective right to use the land through Bush philosophy rooted in the culture—the importance of using land-based philosophy and passing laws down from the Elders. In Fort Providence, we have eight tribal groups. You are there on the land to survive and be responsible for making sure everything is there to survive. Pass on the knowledge that is not being taught in schools.”

Key Quotes

• "We are of the earth. Water is not outside of us; it is within us, around us, it sustains us. To dishonour water is to dishonour ourselves." (Indigenous Knowledge Holders, Keepers of the Water Gatherings)

• "Water governance cannot be separated from cultural governance; they are one and the same." (Elder Teachings from Keepers of the Water events)

• "The treaties never mentioned water because water was not something you could sell or give away. It belongs to itself, and we belong to it." (Oral History from Treaty Elders)

• "We carry the memory of water through our ceremonies, our songs, and our stories." (Indigenous Water Protectors and Knowledge Keepers)