Animal Nation

The Ktunaxa highlight their deep spiritual connection to grizzly bears through research, conservation and efforts to protect their sacred habitat.

The Sts’ailes reveal their deep bond with bald eagles, which return each December to fish from the Harrison River in British Columbia. On the opposite coast, two nations in Prince Edward Island tag eaglets in a workshop that helps reinvigorate cultural ties.

Indigenous communities like the Kainai Blood Tribe revive their deep cultural and ecological ties to the bison with the help of Elk Island National Park, which reintroduces them to the prairies they roamed in vast herds before colonization.

Indigenous communities in British Columbia and Labrador restore salmon populations and revitalize cultural traditions by monitoring, rearing and releasing young salmon in the spring.

In the Northwest Territories, Tłı̨chǫ researchers brave the barren lands to study caribou, using traditional knowledge to seek solutions to their decline. In Quebec, Innu mentors teach youth about their sacred bond with the boreal caribou, a species in crisis.

A cross-Canada journey reveals how beavers shape ecosystems, restore wetlands and connect Indigenous communities to the land. From Algonquin Park, Ont., to Nicola Valley, B.C., the industrious beaver emerges as a vital symbol of renewal and resilience.