Participants in the Protocol Signing in Windsor on March 8 (left to
right) President Stephen Quensnelle (Niagara Region Métis Council),
President Robert Leboeuf (Windsor-Essex Métis Council), President
Joanne Young (Hamilton-Wentworth Métis Council), MNO President
Gary Lipinski, President Cora Bunn (Grand River Métis Council),
Region Nine PCMNO Councillor Peter Rivers.March 8, 2011 – Windsor, ON – The Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) signed the eighth of its Regional Consultation Protocols in Windsor Tuesday. The Protocol was signed between the MNO and the four Métis community councils in Region Nine. These councils are the Grand River Community Métis Council, the Hamilton-Wentworth Métis Council, the Niagara Region Métis Council and the Windsor-Essex Métis Council. Regional Consultation Protocols help ensure Métis in the region are effectively engaged and consulted.
MNO President Gary Lipinski and Peter Rivers, the Region Nine Councillor on the Provisional Council of the MNO (PCMNO), joined local community council presidents, Cora Bunn (Grand River), Joanne Young, (Hamilton-Wentworth), Stephen Quensnelle (Niagara) and Robert Leboeuf (Windsor-Essex) at the signing ceremony in Windsor. The agreement formalized the traditional working relationship that exists among the Métis in the region.
“The signing of this Protocol is an important part of the MNO’s Consultation Framework, which was developed based on province-wide consultations on the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate back in 2008,” said President Lipinski. “It demonstrates the commitment of Ontario Métis to work together to ensure all citizens have input when projects related to land use planning, energy, mining and forestry on Métis traditional lands are proposed,” he added.
The Métis are a distinct Aboriginal people with a unique culture, language and heritage who played an instrumental role in shaping Canada, and who work tirelessly with their fellow Canadians to share their culture, traditions and knowledge of the environment.