| Summary: | The colonization of British Columbia by European immigrants beginning in the
mid-1800s greatly restricted First Nations access to productive resources. Having lost
control of their traditional territories and being able to secure only limited access to
financial and agricultural extension services, many First Nations peoples living on reserves
in south-central B.C. have had to endure living conditions similar to those usually
associated with poor rural populations in less industrialized countries.
The focus of this study is First Nations agricultural extension practice. The
purpose is to understand why agricultural development has been slow on B.C. reserves
despite the many efforts undertaken by governments in the form of financial and extension
programs, especially from 1950 to the present. Two worldviews of "development" are
discussed: western modernization and holism. These views encompass various streams of
thought that helped to characterize - through a structurist historical research approach - the
conceptions about development prevalent among First Nations leaders and key government
policy-makers. They also assisted in understanding the nature of the relationships between
development programs and agricultural extension practice.
The study shows that although federal government development programs have
enhanced, to a limited extent, the quality of material life on reserves, they have had little
impact on non-material aspects of human existence. Development programs often ignored
First Nations peoples' worldviews, having relied chiefly on the transfer of advanced
modern technologies from the industrialized sectors of the economy. Furthermore, Euro-
Canadian society, through the exercise of its social, political and cultural hegemony, has
seriously limited First Nations' capacity to maintain their way of life, their economic
systems and their cultural traditions. The historical analysis shows that First Nations
agricultural development lacked strong support from Indian Affairs prior to 1979. Although the creation of First Nations institutions does not necessarily guarantee
the implementation of development programs inspired by indigenous perspectives, the
study indicates the need to train First Nations people as field extension personnel.
Furthermore, development of agriculture on reserves involves settling the land question
and recognizing First Nations' right to self-government so that they can design their own
development and extension programs. === Education, Faculty of === Graduate
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