Working together with First Nations
AbitibiBowater sustains partnerships with over 50 First Nations and Native American groups for the cooperative management of sustainable forest licenses, engineering, financing, forestation, forest road access, harvesting, silviculture and tree planting, transportation and wood remanufacturing. A few examples include:
- The Opitciwan own a 55% majority of the sawmill installation.
- The sawmill provides 213 jobs, 128 of which are held by Aboriginals.
- The sawmill won the Aboriginal Company of the Year Award in 2001.
Taykwa Tagamou Nation (TTN) and Wahgoshig First Nation (WFN)
(Ontario)
- These two groups receive funding from AbitibiBowater for activities such as education, community infrastructure and more.
- AbitibiBowater provides forestry-related training opportunities to community members.
Mashteuiatsh Innu Community
(Quebec)
- The community is actively and cooperatively involved in the forest certification process.
- Forest harvest operations contracts for the area are granted to an Innu corporation.
Common Ground Working Group
(Ontario)
- The group includes representatives from the City of Kenora, Grand Council Treaty #3 and three First Nations (Wauzhusk Onigum, Ochiichagwe'Babigo'Ining and Obashkaandagaang Bay).
- The group includes representatives from the City of Kenora, Grand Council Treaty #3 and Wauzhusk Onigum, Ochiichagwe'Babigo'Ining and Obashkaandagaang Bay.
- Our Tunnel Island property, a location near Kenora, was donated to the First Nation.