Healing the land, supporting connections, renewal and reciprocity in Síksikaítsítápi o’tao’ohsowa
In southern Alberta, three rivers converge on Blood Tribe (Kainai First Nation) lands, one of the four Nations of the Blackfoot Confederacy. Approximately 13,000 Blood Tribe members live in reciprocity with the Omahkotaan watershed, which they have stewarded for generations. However, the Nation is losing between 30 to 180 centimeters of streambank annually due to erosion caused by damming, reservoirs and irrigation. With this landscape fundamentally changing, the natural regrowth of native species, including root-stabilizing cottonwood trees, has been severely impacted.
Alvin First Rider, Environmental Protection Manager with the Blood Tribe, explains, “Our culturally significant species are becoming harder to find. This is forcing the community to pivot and figure out alternative solutions for how to continue practicing our Blackfoot ways. However, we shouldn’t have to face these challenges, as Treaty 7 was intended to ensure Blackfoot ways of life in perpetuity – through rights to hunt, fish, gather, and meet ceremonial needs – but that’s just not occurring.”
TELUS Environmental Solutions has partnered with Blood Tribe Lands Management on essential restoration within the Omahkotaan watershed. Restoring the native Cottonwood forest is one crucial element of the program. However, this collaboration goes beyond ecological repair; it’s deeply rooted in supporting the cultural vitality and Treaty Rights of the Blood Tribe people. The restoration integrates Indigenous ecological knowledge, including planting willow trees specifically intended for harvesting for use in sweat lodges, as well as berry-producing species with the long-term vision to enhance food sovereignty for Nation members.
Additionally, the partnership seeks to provide meaningful work that reconnects Nation members with their land and culture while creating economic opportunities. As First Rider explained, the project is “creating employment and generating some money for our population that doesn’t have those opportunities,” while also providing “healing and that connection to the land that people need.” The community has embraced the initiative, with thirteen Blood Tribe members participating in the inaugural planting season. The project has also seen participation from Nation members in an addictions recovery program who are viewing the restoration work as part of their healing journey. A total of 56,000 trees were planted in the lower Standoff area in 2025, with plans to expand the project substantially in 2026.
TELUS Environmental Solutions supports this work by securing funding and managing project development and implementation, making it an accessible opportunity for the Nation. This partnership has been equally transformative for TELUS. Team members have learned Indigenous-led methodologies that prioritize long-term ecosystem health and witnessed first-hand how restoration work serves as both ecological and cultural healing, deepening TELUS’ understanding of reconciliation as an ongoing practice rooted in supporting Indigenous sovereignty.
As First Rider reflected, “This project with TELUS, it’s building capacity, it’s healing people, it’s healing the landscape and it’s creating connection.” For TELUS, this reciprocal relationship has reinforced that meaningful climate action must be grounded in Indigenous knowledge systems and community-led solutions.
