The Gwichʼin Tribal Council is a First Nations organization representing the

Gwichʼin The Gwichʼin (or Kutchin) are an Athabaskan-speaking First Nations people of Canada and an Alaska Native people. They live in the northwestern part of North America, mostly above the Arctic Circle. Gwichʼin are well-known for their crafting ...

people of northern Canada, owning approximately 23,884 square kilometres of land in Yukon and the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

. It was created in 1992 with the final ratification of the Gwichʼin Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement with the Government of Canada. Negotiations to achieve a Final Agreement, and thus, Gwichʼin self-government, are ongoing.

History

The Gwichʼin people have been present in Alaska, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories since time immemorial. In 1921, chiefs and headmen representing the Gwichʼin (then known as the Loucheux) population in Canada signed Treaty 11, but unresolved differences arose between the interpretation of aboriginal and treaty rights by the Gwichʼin and by Canada, and many obligations were never fulfilled. To provide certainty and clarity of rights to land ownership, and to ensure various rights and benefits to the Gwichʼin people, the Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement was signed as a modern treaty on April 22, 1992.

Members

* Carcross/Tagish First Nation * Champagne and Aishihik First Nation * Ehdiitat Gwich'in Council * First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun * Gwichya Gwich'in Council * Kluane First Nation * Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation * Nihtat Gwich'in Council * Selkirk First Nation * Ta'an Kwach'an Council * Teslin Tlingit Council * Tetlin Gwich'in Council * Tr'ondek Hwech'in

Powers and responsibilities

Although not a full self-government, the Gwichʼin Tribal Council has authority over planning and conservation within its jurisdiction, and exercises full ownership of various lands and organizations. These holdings include subsurface rights to certain parcels in the NWT, as well as the Gwichʼin Development Corporation and Gwichʼin Settlement Corporation. An additional Yukon Transboundary Agreement extends some of these rights into a part of neighbouring Yukon, provided that other First Nations in that jurisdiction are co-operated with.

Footnotes

{{authority control Politics of the Northwest Territories First Nations in the Northwest Territories Inuvik Region First Nations governments First Nations tribal councils