Heritage Matters
NOMINATE, Preserve, Protect, Save
Because Heritage Matters
Kootenay Plains in 1924: Photo Courtesy Mountain Legacy Project & Library and Archives Canada
Campaign Symbol and Logo:
Trumpeter Swan symbolizes hope, perseverance, wilderness, the power of conservation efforts and international cooperation.
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Hope:
Represents the possibility of bringing sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person that have historic resources potential, back from the brink of extinction or memory, through science, partnerships research, and perseverance.
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Conservation:
Symbolizes the success of conservation efforts. The Trumpeter Swan's story is a reminder of the fragility of nature and the capacity of humans to both destroy and restore.
Trumpeting Call:
Symbolize wilderness and call for people who care about Heritage to support this campaign.
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Introduction
In Alberta, there are sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/persons that have historic resources potential and can’t be nominated to the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada because they can't not meet the administrative requirements criteria and require written consent from the lease owners of occupied federal land and/or Alberta Crown lands. Lack of Legislative and Policies, prevent Canadian publics to exercise their rights to challenge established nomination administrative processes.
Some of the sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person hold a special place in architecture, the landscape and history of Alberta. The value of caring for them may be an intangible asset for many Albertans and business owners, but may have tangible impacts and be an important aspect of the Canadian Heritage.
This Public Awareness Campaign calls for changes and is looking for transformation and be a vector of peace as it is the duty and rights of every Canadian to Nominate, Preserve, Protect and Save sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person that have historic resources potential within the Province of Alberta.
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Background
Province of Alberta, commemorates the diversity of human experience and the legacy of thousands of years of human history that marked the tangible cultural remains of the lives, stories and building structures of the people who arrived and settled in this part of Western Canada. Offered today, the inclusive history of Alberta, often does not allow to contact and share many of the hidden and untold stories because often limited access to federal, provincial, private and treaty land.
Having had an opportunity to emigrate to Canada, live and work in Alberta for the last 38 years, I frequently visited many historic sites located in the Province of Alberta and noticed the destruction of many sites and buildings of historic interest. Alberta has many interesting stories to share, and these should be of interest not only to residents, but to visitors and tourists from all parts of the world. The First Nation People, the French and British Fur Traders, the Bisons, the Whiskey Traders, the North-West Mounted Police and the Settlers, all left their imprint on this landscape in various forms. Today many historical sites and buildings of historic interest continue to remain as an important essential element and legacy of Alberta. Some of the sites have been marked by cairns of the Historical Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, others by the Provincial Government, some disappeared because lack of fundings has caused the destruction of sites of historic interest and some of the site’s existence is threatened because of the local municipalities government decisions, forest, mining, oil and gas industry and hospitality tourism development and overall overuse of landscape.
Legislative and Policy Framework
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“National Park” defines an area set aside as a public heritage or trust, to preserve forever outstanding examples of a nation's scenery, wilderness, geology, natural phenomena or native flora and fauna. Instead of forming private preserves, these parks are dedicated to public use and enjoyment by the citizens of the country to which they belong.
1. The main laws and policies applicable to national historic sites are administered by Parks Canada, an agency of the Government of Canada.
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2. Canada National Parks Act establishes the responsibility of the Minister for the administration, management and control of parks.
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3. The Historic Sites and Monuments Act authorizes the Minister of the Environment to designate historic places of national significance as national historic sites. The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, composed of representatives from all provinces and territories, advises the Minister on this type of commemoration.
4. Any aspect of Canada's human history may be considered for designation of national historic significance under the National Program of Historical Commemoration. Members of the public may submit a nomination of a subject (a site, building, and/or person) to the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada and the nomination process requires written consent from property owner and the Lesse.
5. Framework for History and Commemoration Program identifies the history of Aboriginal peoples, ethnocultural communities and women as insufficiently represented. The Historic Sites Policy sets out the Government of Canada’s objectives for national historic sites:
​6. Parks Canada Agency Act requires that a management plan be tabled in Parliament for every national historic site and that each plan be reviewed every five years. The Act also states that it is in the national interest to ensure the commemorative integrity of national historic sites.
7. Strategic Environmental Assessment assess the impact of project proposals in national parks and historic sites. The framework ensures that ecological integrity, ecological sustainability and commemorative integrity are protected in accordance with the Cabinet Directive for The Environmental Assessment of Policy, Plan and Program Proposals. Individual undertakings within the plans may require further assessment prior to implementation, under the provisions of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. Parks Canada provides a public statement that summarizes the strategic environmental assessment when a proposal is approved.
8. Federal Heritage Review Office requirements for the management of federal properties. The Treasury Board Directive defines a federal heritage property as a property on federal lands that has at least one of the following designations: UNESCO World Heritage site, national historic site, federal heritage building, Heritage Lighthouse, heritage railway station
9. Public Consultation is required to ensure the commemorative integrity of national historic sites, public cooperation is essential in safeguarding and celebrating Canada’s cultural legacy.
History | Chronology
1887 | Rocky Mountains Park was established and defined the Park boundaries, authority
and administration
1888 | Yoho and Glacier Reserves was established
1895 | Waterton Lakes Forest Park was established
1902 | Lake Louise incorporated in Rocky Mountains Park
1907 | Waterton Lakes Forest Park was established
1911 | Rocky Mountains Park Act replaced by the Dominion Forest Reserves and Parks Act
1913 | The Dominion Rocky Mountains Forest Reserve expanded eastwards from Bow Pass and named Clearwater Forest Reserve. Kootenay Plains became part of the Rocky Mountains Forest.
1919 | Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada was created
1920 | Kootenay Dominion Park was established
1927 | Government of Canada proceed with Acts of Parliament and the natural resources are vested in the hand of the provincial governments.
1930 | The National Parks Act established the name of the park as Banff National Park. The Kootenay Plains and Kananaskis are withdrawn from Banff National Park boundary
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“Alberta Provincial Parks” defines areas of land and water that are protected and managed to support outdoor recreation, natural heritage, and tourism.
1.Provincial Parks Act, aims is to preserve Alberta's natural heritage for current and future generations.
2.The policies applicable to national historic sites in Alberta are administered by Parks Canada. The Alberta government does have Acts and programs and activities related to heritage conservation.
3.Trails Act establishes a system for motorized and non-motorized trail management on public land by introducing trail planning to identify trails for designation.
4. Alberta Historical Resources Act provides for the use, designation and protection of historic resources, including palaeontological, archaeological, historic or natural sites, structures or objects. Provides mechanisms for designating provincial or municipal historic resources, establishing provincial or municipal historic areas, and naming geographical features.
5. The Heritage Preservation Partnership Program provides matching grants and scholarship funds to support initiatives that preserve and interpret Alberta’s heritage.
​Historic Resource Conservation Grants Historic Resources are places formally recognized and legally protected through the process of designation. Indigenous Historic Places located on reserve land cannot be designated as Provincial or Municipal Historic Resources but can be recognized by Band Council Resolution.
Heritage Awareness Grants provides grants to support delivery of interpretive and public engagement projects that preserve, interpret and promote Alberta’s history.
Heritage Publication Grants provides grants to support the production of print or digital publications that preserve, interpret and promote Alberta’s history.
Heritage Research Grants provides grants to support the production of print or digital publications that preserve, interpret and promote Alberta’s history.
Alberta Heritage Markers program supports the production of heritage markers.
Heritage Awards recognizes the contributions of individuals and organizations to the preservation of Alberta's heritage.
Alberta Geographical Names program makes decisions on naming geographical features in Alberta.
History | Chronology
1905 | Alberta officially became a Province
1930 | Rocky Mountains Forest Reserve transferred to the province of Alberta.
1930 | The Provincial Parks and Protected Areas Act was established.
1930 | Provincial Board of Management for parks is established
1932 | Establishment of Aspen Beach Provincial Park and official beginning of Alberta's provincial park system.
1987 | The Government of Alberta declared the Kootenay Plains Ecological Reserve.
Campaign Vision
To: Nominate, Protect, Preserve and Save, Sites or and/character-defining Historical Building Structures or and/Persons that have historic resources potential and lie unmarked within the Canadian Rockies and their Eastern Slopes Foothills.
Strategic Goal
Commemorative Intent
Heritage refers to cultural, natural, and historical assets inherited from past generations.
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Some people would be called “obsessed” when they are dedicating their time and passion to care for the history and heritage of the land as they understand the value of it. Offered today, the Province of Alberta inclusive history does not allow the hidden and untold stories to be presented because it may carry confronting uncomfortable truths about Alberta's Colonial Legacy.
The trails that were made by the First Nations people over the thousand years, let help find the location to build log cabins, barns and houses, often with bare hands by Germans Jews, Russian Doukhobors, peasants from Poland, Ukrainian, China, Japan, Norway, Denmark, The Boer War soldiers, American Wolfers, Mennonites, Mormons .... and many more. Maybe these are the small fragments of Alberta's culture but these structures and people who built these, can help us to understand who we are and how we came to be Canadians. It matters that we respect the past, try to understand it, conserve and work with it to develop responses to now and the future. Especially in a time when we are coming to understand we need to be less wasteful and heedless of the planet's limited resources.
Alberta's cultural heritage is a treasure trove of priceless artifacts, monuments, and natural sites where use and non-use values are associated with cultural heritage. This campaign is not just a call to nominate, preserve, protect and save Alberta's Cultural Heritage; it's also about feelings of pride, feeling of belonging to this land, paying respect and spirituality.
The Use Values of cultural heritage refer to tangible benefits that can be directly derived from the character-defining historical building structures or and/persons encircled in ecosystems or landscapes; the Use Values ca serve as an educational resource for visitors. Non-Use Values are much more intangible in nature because they refer to the psychological benefits associated with cultural heritage — things like pride in one's culture and identity or belonging to something greater than oneself. Non-use values also encompass spiritual beliefs and symbolic meanings related to a particular place or object.
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Preservation involves protecting and conserving assets to maintain their significance, value, and authenticity for future generations. It includes practices such as restoration, maintenance, and sustainable management to safeguard heritage sites and traditions. To Protect character-defining unmarked historical building structures and non-designated historical sites is important to raise awareness about their significance and the importance these sites can contribute to their long-term preservation.
Creating new Policies and Regulations that will enable to nominate sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person that have historic resources potential could lead to Save unmarked historical building structures.
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Sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/persons that have historic resources potential
Identified sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/persons that have historic resources potential will require in this campaign a multifaceted approach:
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Identification: Identifying sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person is a must in order to protect, preserve and save. Once identified, heritage value may be decided and further steps may be taken accordingly.
Documentation: Documenting heritage is very important. Documentation also helps put things in context. It creates a record of their history and significance. It also provides the document for starting technical preservation/reconstruction etc.
Legislation: Advocate for changes to Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada nomination and administrative requirements.
Public Awareness: Raise awareness about the importance of cultural heritage through education and public outreach. Use the literature, art exhibitions and non-fiction media as a tool to raise awareness about sites or and/character-defining historical building structures or and/person.
International Cooperation: Collaborate with other countries, individuals and organizations to share resources, expertise, and best practices.
Funding: Initiate fundraising to support compaign efforts.
Community Involvement: Engage with First Nation communities learn and respect their cultural values and traditions in preservation efforts.
Tour itineraries Management: Implement responsible tourism practices to minimize the impact on sites or and/character-defining historical building structures.
call for nomination
