Critical minerals

From upcoming investment opportunities for First Nations, to the launch of new resources developed specifically to support capacity for Indigenous nations — The OCA Findings and Report delves into expert knowledge, experiences, and insights collected from the 7th Annual FNMPC Conference. the overall conference narrative of Indigenous consent bringing a competitive advantage demonstrated that Indigenous nations are poised to be at the helm of Canada’s current and future major projects.

The world is undergoing a massive economic and environmental shift, and the consent of Indigenous nations is pivotal to making sure Indigenous nations benefit and to advancing North America’s global economic market share.

Explore the OCA Conference Primer as it offers a window into what the contributions from experts at the conference will focus on. It spotlights groundbreaking projects and initiatives throughout Canada, the United States, and New Zealand, covering vital topics such as project governance, critical minerals, the energy transition, and empowering Indigenous ownership in major projects. With summaries of the conference’s highly anticipated keynote speeches, panel discussions, and featured models, providing readers with an in-depth understanding of the key themes leading up to the event.

The First Nations Major Project Coalition held two Critical Mineral Roundtables, the first in Vancouver (October 25, 2022) and the second in Toronto (February 7, 2023). For these two roundtables, the (FNMPC) convened experts from First Nations, the private sector, and the public sector to discuss and demonstrate how inclusion of First Nations partnerships and values in critical battery mineral supply will be the key to Canada’s participation in the net zero transition.

The main emergent concepts and insights provided by attendees outlined in this document are:

• Part 1: Critical Mineral Supply in Canada
• Part 2: First Nations at the Centre of Building Canada’s Critical Mineral Supply
• Part 3: Meeting both First Nations’ Goals and Canada’s Goals

These two roundtables and this resulting report are a part of addressing the issues and challenges identified in the build out of critical mineral supply in Canada, and to support First Nations, industry, and governments creating a constructive path toward successful critical mineral supply and value chains and getting at the main question of: how do all parties identify, define, and respectfully centre Indigenous values in a critical mineral project?

Florence Drummond, Executive Director, Development Partner Institute, is a dynamic leader with a distinguished career in the global mining sector. As a member of Dauareb Wuthathi, Australia, Drummond has focused her work around fostering collaborative initiatives that honor Indigenous perspectives and promote sustainable development.

The global demand for critical minerals has surged as a result of global commitments to net zero because of their indispensable role in modern technologies and renewable energy solutions. During the recent COP 28, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres highlighted a forecasted 4x increase in the required mineral extraction by 2030, underscoring the urgency to secure robust supply chains. However, to avoid the re-occurrence of resource exploitation, Guterres noted “the extraction of critical minerals for the clean energy revolution – from wind farms to solar panels and battery manufacturing – must be done in a sustainable, fair and just way.”