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December 4, 2008 PROVINCE BOOSTS FUNDING FOR UNESCO BID– – –Funding Doubles to Designate Boreal Forest World Heritage Site Manitoba’s annual funding support for the bid to designate part of the Manitoba-Ontario boreal forest as a UNESCO World Heritage Site has been doubled, Conservation Minister Stan Struthers announced today.
“With increased funding, the Pimachiowin Aki Corporation will be able make a stronger case for Manitoba’s boreal forest to stand alongside the pyramids of Egypt and the Amazon among UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites,” said Struthers. “The boreal forest plays a vital role in reducing the impact of climate change and is also home to wolves, bears and some of the world’s largest remaining herds of woodland caribou. We are pleased to support the work of Pimachiowin Aki and help it to as part of our commitment to communities on the east side of Lake Winnipeg.”
The minister also noted that this week Pimachiowin Aki released a progress report on the preparation of the nomination document for a world heritage site. The report shows that preparations are on track and that significant progress is being made.
The Manitoba non-profit corporation is made up of four First Nations with Manitoba and Ontario government partners. The total provincial funding of $260,000 announced at Pimachiowin Aki’s annual general meeting at Brokenhead First Nation allows the corporation to further develop a variety of activities such as research, management planning, community relations, and an image collection - all requirements to prepare an in-depth nomination proposal to submit to UNESCO.
“The Manitoba government’s support is a cornerstone to ensuring the success of the nomination,” said Pimachiowin Aki spokesperson Sophia Rabliauskas. “This commitment confirms that we’re on the right track to preserve the land that the Creator has given us and that we can do it together.”
The Pimachiowin Aki Corporation, which is led by the Poplar River, Little Grand Rapids, Pauingassi and Pikagikum, Ont., First Nations, has a number of projects underway that will contribute to the final nomination document. Extensive community consultations, research, mapping and comprehensive community-based, land-use planning are required to complete the nomination. It will include the final boundaries of the site and will also describe the innovative ways the area will be managed using both traditional Anishinabe and western scientific knowledge.
Creating a world heritage site in the area will not change the ownership of the land. Each jurisdiction will be responsible for planning and management in its area and all Aboriginal and treaty rights will remain fully protected.
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For more information on Pimachiowin Aki Corporation, contact Gord Jones, project manager at whp@shaw.ca or 204-275-1564 or visit www.pimachiowinaki.org.
For more information on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), visit whc.unesco.org/.
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