Thank you for the invitation to join you today. It's a pleasure to join the members to discuss Parks Canada's national marine conservation areas.
I'd also like to begin by acknowledging that we're meeting on the unceded traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people.
Parks Canada was pleased to participate in the marine protected areas audit. The commissioner’s findings will help guide us as we establish new protected areas and strengthen the management of existing ones. We agree with the recommendations and will be working with our colleagues to implement them.
National marine conservation areas play a vital role in conserving biodiversity, protecting culturally significant places and supporting the long-term sustainability of the ecosystems that coastal communities, industries and future generations rely on. They can also create opportunities for tourism and recreation and bring new investment and economic activity to coastal communities.
As impacts from climate change grow, the need for well-designed, effective marine protected areas has never been greater. These areas host natural features that help sustain resilient ecosystems.
Creating these areas is not something government can or should do alone. Success depends on meaningful collaboration. Working hand in hand with indigenous peoples, provinces and territories, industry partners, local communities and other stakeholders is essential to ensuring these national marine conservation areas, NMCAs, are both ecologically strong and socially viable.
By bringing these perspectives together early and consistently, we can design national marine conservation areas that achieve both conservation and socio-economic benefits for Canadians.
We acknowledge that working in this way takes time, but it is the right way to proceed. The commissioner noted in their report on federal-indigenous management of protected areas that if we are to achieve our goal of building a resilient network of protected areas that covers 30% of Canada by 2030, we will need to continue to prioritize the co-operative management of protected areas in keeping with the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Parks Canada is committed to doing so.
Ultimately, national marine conservation areas are about creating a future where healthy oceans create the conditions for both thriving ecosystems and vibrant indigenous and local communities. That future is only possible when all partners sit at the table, shape the vision and help to turn it into reality.
Thank you. I look forward to your questions.