“From the very beginning, map out and identify what people, programs, organizations, or potential partners can help you to build an effective program and reach your goals. It's all about relationships.”

“A Guardian program may seem overwhelming but remember, it might be linked to other initiatives that you’re already involved in. You may not have to start from scratch. You likely have relationships established with key players or partners on other topics and now you could be broadening that to include monitoring and Indigenous Guardians work. Build on these existing initiatives and relationships."

“We have a clearly articulated vision and strategic plan. This has been our saving grace. We are always going back to it. It gives us the mandate and provides direction on an ongoing basis. Even if it takes a year or two to get to this, it’s worth it. People need to buy in and believe it.“

“Our program is guided by a number of plans including our Vision and Management Direction document, our Land Use Plan, and our department’s Strategic Plan. It is also shaped by the big issues we are looking at right now, such as hunting and mining, and strategic initiatives we are pursuing in coordination with neighbouring Nations.”

"Develop clear workplans and break them down to a week by week schedule. Budgeting for hours, fuel, etc. It’s the little details and pieces that are important. It is helpful if you work on a detailed plan and budget before field season starts. Clarify the details of work scheduling at the beginning."  

“We now have a single stewardship authority – the Kitasoo/Xai’xais Integrated Resource Authority. Before, there were different groups doing different work. There was Treaty, marine use planning, food/fish committee, etc. We wanted all this under one umbrella with an integrated board, aligned committees and better information flow between them.”  

"An important question to ask is ‘What governance processes and structures exist within your community and how does the Guardian program best fit in them?’ The program structure and governance needs to come from the community – it can’t be a best practice… it has to be grounded in the kinds of structures and processes that the community has. It can’t be imposed from outside."

"We pursue funds from anywhere and everywhere including Band Council, Coast Funds, community fundraising, non-profit partners, and university partners. We are always looking for more secure funding for core positions.”

“Guardian programs are not going to be 100% grant funded. There is going to have to be contributions from the Nation, from own source revenues, and possibly from fee-for-service activities. We are trying to position the work of the guardians as contracts or deliverables to prepare for a more diverse and deliverables-based funding environment.”

“Politically, it can be difficult to get groups to work together but technically, it’s amazing how similar the issues are as well as the training needs. The Guardians themselves echo how much they value the peer and technical support through our network. We coordinate training that wouldn’t be possible without a network. We also purchase equipment such as drones and make it available for Nations to use.” .

“When providing support to the network, it’s important to do what you say you are going to do, respond quickly, and engage at the different levels – political, managerial, technical. We established trust by communicating regularly with everyone so that we’re all on the same page. We constantly check in on what our members need and what their priorities are. Our most important lesson is to emphasize the autonomy of each Nation.”

 “It’s about asserting our presence on the land. The general public sees us out there in our uniforms. I can’t overstate the value of that. Now Indigenous and non-Indigenous people come to us to report issues. So does the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.”

“The Wild Horse Ranger Program played a significant part in strengthening Xeni Gwet’in’s role in asserting control over the territory…The Rangers’ primary strategy was diplomacy.”

"We found that when our Guardian Watchmen started wearing uniforms and carrying our CoastTrackers, everyone took us a lot more seriously. We get more respect and responsiveness from the people we approach in the field."

“Our goal is to educate people before confrontation happens in the field. We post signs with traditional territory boundaries and contact numbers. Our first goal is to ensure people understand our expectations around being in the territory.”

“Kaska Dena Guardians will be out monitoring high use areas, collecting information and handing out brochures with information on Kaska Dena, checking for signs of wildlife, and talking with hunters about culturally sensitive areas. They will be informing hunters about Kaska Dena Traditional Territory and encouraging respect of the environment in the hopes of alleviating potential land use conflicts with hunters. As well, the Guardians will report on any activities of wrong doing."

“We have a position, regardless of what the provincial and federal laws are up there. We have our own position in terms of hunting on the coast. So if we see hunters, we ask them to leave.”