Hanamuxw: Gwelx Ye’enst Project
Wilp Hanamuxw
Photo: Skeena Watershed by Wild Salmon Centre
The Hanamuxw Gwelx Ye'enst Project envisions revitalizing Wilp Hanamuxw culture in Gitsegukla watershed territories—Xsuwii Luu Negwit, Tax Gwa Ansx. The project combines Gwelx Ye'enst, Gitxsan laws, and traditional knowledge with technical support, including geodatabases, field data, mapping, and reporting. This aims to document watershed conditions, weaving traditional knowledge with Western science for inventorying, analyzing, and establishing baseline ecosystem data. Focus areas include food and cultural health assets, traditional boundaries, landmarks, and high-value fish habitats. The project supports ongoing watershed health and territorial stewardship, tracking conditions in relation to climate change, forestry impacts, and future planning. The Gitxsan approach, guided by Gwelx Ye’enst, ensures the protection of lands, waters, and resources for future generations. This legal obligation forms the foundation of an integrated social, ecological, economic, and cultural system binding people, Wilp, clan, and the land. The Wilp, a matrilineal-based extended family, is the fundamental entity in Gitxsan society, owning, governing, and managing delineated ancestral territories as confirmed in the 1997 Delgamuukw litigation.
CATEGORY
Indigenous Knowledges and
Land-based Learning
WATERSHED(S)
Skeena
GRANT AMOUNT
$238,600
RELATED ARTICLES
