CAGC

By: Gwyn Morgan, Globe and Mail Gwyn Morgan is a retired Canadian business leader who has been a director of five global corporations.  On June 26, the Supreme Court of Canada awarded title to a piece of the B.C. Interior roughly the size of Prince Edward Island to the 3,000-member T'silhqot'in First Nation. Initial government and business reaction characterized the decision as merely a clarification of previous lower-court judgements. That was before it came clear that the land-claim entitlement criteria set out in the 37-page decision, written by Chief Justice Beverley McLauchlin, exceeded the worst-case scenario of both governments and industry. Under previous legal rulings, the "basis of occupation" to be used in establishing aboriginal title was limited to the immediate environs around settlements. The Supreme Court has vastly expanded that, saying "[A]boriginal title ... extends to tracts of land that were regularly used for hunting, fishing or othe...

It is no coincidence that U.S. foundations are funding a multimillion-dollar campaign against Canadian energy. By: Vivian Krause Albertan oil has the potential to contribute  more than $2 trillion to the national economy over the next 25 years, about $84 billion per year, according to the Canadian Energy Research Institute. Realizing this unparalleled opportunity requires broad-based, public support for pipeline and infrastructure projects that are essential for getting landlocked crude to global markets. For Canada, there is no single economic issue that is more important. The greatest obstacle to energy infrastructure projects isn’t technical expertise or financial capital; it’s gridlock due to opposition from strong alliances between environmental organizations and First Nations and their ability to attract media attention and stop or stall development. This gridlock has been fomented by the Tar Sands Campaign, a heavily-funded international initiative launched by the R...