A study on Indigenous Commons in North America and Canada for promoting the theory of commons environmental law

本研究探讨了北美和加拿大原住民及其公地之间发生的变化，并考察了原住民公地对解决环境问题的贡献。除了书籍、研究论文和未发表的文件外，还使用实地调查的原始资料来检查具体和真实的案例和争议。案例包括与克里族的综合主张有关的问题和在卢比肯湖印第安人建立保护区的问题。这两个案例都描述了对土著人民公地的破坏，并说明了随后的土地争端和诉讼如何导致了他们的经济发展和土著权利的恢复。本研究主要讨论不列颠哥伦比亚省Secwepemc民族的Neskonlith部落及其森林开发案，其中联邦法院于1973年下令恢复他们的土地权。在这种情况下，土著公地的主张不仅与土著自治有关，而且由于它将土著知识与环境联系起来，而发展成为一种国际意识。这些关于加拿大太平洋印第安人和因纽特人的森林、海洋和河流保护的案例也可用于解决环太平洋地区土著权利现代化的决策过程。澳大利亚的土著居民、新西兰的毛利人和南太平洋岛屿的其他土著人民将受到影响，公地（公地权）是他们决策过程中的基本要素。

This study addresses the changes occurred among indigenous people and their commons in north America and Canada, and examines the contribution of the indigenous commons to solute the environmental issues. In addition to books, research papers, and unpublished documents, raw materials by field surveys have been used to examine concrete and real cases and disputes. Cases include issues related to Cree of the comprehensive claim and issues of reserve establishment in Lubicon Lake Indians. Both cases depict the destruction of the commons of indigenous people and illustrate how subsequent land disputes and sues had resulted in their economic development and recovery of indigenous rights. Neskonlith band of Secwepemc Nation in British Columbia and their forest development case, in which the federal court ordered the recovery of their land rights in 1973, is mainly addressed in this study. In this case, the claims of indigenous commons were not only related to the indigenous autonomy but also developed to obtain an international consciousness as it related the indigenous knowledge to environment. These cases about the forest, sea, and river conservation of Canadian Pacific Indians and Inuit could also be applied to address the decision making process in the modernization of indigenous rights in the circum-Pacific areas. Aborigines in Australia, Maori in New Zealand, and other indigenous peoples in South Pacific islands would be affected and the commons (right of common) are elemental in their decision making process.