Inter‐national affairs: Indigeneity, Globality and the Canadian state

Since the early‐1990s, Indigenous voices in global politics have been growing in strength, in numbers, and in their demonstrated ability to affect outcomes on a range of important issues. The latter, in particular, marks something of a triumph, following as it does on a long history of often‐outright refusal by states to take seriously and engage Indigenous diplomacies. It is argued here that the change attends a palpable shift from what can be described as “Indigenous Globalism” to “Global Indigenism”. All of this is of great interest to Canada, where a number of important treaty‐related issues have been before the courts in recent years, and where the long‐awaited 1997 Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples called for a restructured relationship between Canada and its First Nations, to be founded upon recognition of Aboriginal nationhood. This article explores foreign policy implications of these developments in light of Canada's recent decision to vote against adoption of the United Nations Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.