On September 30, people across Canada observed the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, reflecting on the ongoing harms to Indigenous communities resulting from the residential school system.
Employees of Resolute’s Ontario woodlands operations had the honor of taking part in a tree planting ceremony in Vickers Park in Thunder Bay (Ontario). Wearing orange shirts as a gesture of solidarity, several hundred attendees witnessed the planting of a cedar tree, representing purification and healing. The section of the park in which the tree was planted will become a memorial grove dedicated to the victims and survivors of residential schools.
Ontario is the province with the largest Indigenous population in Canada. In northwestern Ontario, as in other areas in which Resolute operates, Indigenous peoples form a large segment of the population. Resolute maintains close ties with 18 Indigenous Nations in Ontario – and close to 40 Indigenous communities and organizations company-wide – collaborating on forest management planning and pursuing opportunities for shared prosperity. For example, our Thunder Bay sawmill, recently celebrated twenty years of mutually beneficial partnership with Fort William First Nation.
Resolute recognizes and respects the cultural and social significance of the land, water and forests to Indigenous communities, and understand these resources are vital to these communities’ economic sustainability. We share a common interest in ensuring the forests we rely upon continue to provide for cultural, environmental and economic needs of future generations.
