Beyond the Blue and Green: The Need to Consider Aboriginal Peoples’ Relationships to Resource Development in Labor-Environment Campaigns

Abstract

In this article, I argue that labor researchers in North America need to engage more thoroughly with Indigenous studies if they hope to advance social and environmental justice. First, I suggest that researchers approach Aboriginal peoples’ relationships to the environment by supporting Aboriginal rights to lands and resources. Second, and related to this point, I raise the issue of the need for Aboriginal-controlled development in northern Aboriginal communities. Finally, I draw on a case study on Inuit and union participation in the creation of the Vale Inco, Voisey’s Bay nickel mine in Labrador to discuss how the increasing prevalence of corporate-Aboriginal alliances is creating important challenges to union engagement that need to be addressed.