Reconciling with the Earth and Peoples: The Role of the Peoplehood Model in Developing an Ethical Form of Indigenous Resurgence

Grace H. Fan (), Eli Enns (), Saya Masso () and Zoe A. Cunliffe ()
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Grace H. Fan: The University of British Columbia - Okanagan
Eli Enns: The IISAAK OLAM Foundation
Saya Masso: Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation
Zoe A. Cunliffe: Fellow of the Environmental Leadership Initiative

Journal of Business Ethics, 2025, vol. 202, issue 2, No 3, 283-303

Abstract: Abstract This study builds new theory on how historically marginalized actors reconstruct Indigenous ways of organizing to pursue community resurgence, based on a longitudinal study of Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation in British Columbia, Canada. We found that Tla-o-qui-aht (“people of the Tla-o-qui”) developed an ethical process of Indigenous resurgence through the establishment of Tribal Parks (vs. National Parks). Specifically, Tla-o-qui-aht enacted a peoplehood model (an Indigenous concept) to pursue Indigenous resurgence. Two processes were involved: reviving peoplehood and reclaiming a responsibility-based ethic. Reviving peoplehood (relearning sacred oral history and participating in ceremonies) motivated marginalized individual actors to reconnect with the land, rediscover their Indigenous identity, and seek alternatives. This process seeded community actions. Establishing ethical protocols, empowering through himwitsa (“storytelling”), and envisioning a land use plan empowered the community to reclaim a responsibility-based ethic. This responsibility-based ethic includes responsibility to the land (e.g., reconciling with the earth) and responsibility to peoples (e.g., reconciling with non-Indigenous peoples). The above two processes lay the foundation for ongoing enactment of resurgence practices within and across communities. Tla-o-qui-aht inspired other Indigenous communities to adopt similar processes in their own territories to pursue an ethical form of Indigenous resurgence. This study foregrounds the role of the peoplehood model as an ethical resource and an agentic mechanism for Indigenous resurgence. We discuss the implications of Indigenous scholarly frameworks for advancing the literature on Indigenous resurgence, for decolonizing management theory in general, and for policy and practices of resurgent reconciliation on the ground.

Keywords: Indigenous resurgence; Indigenous organizing; Peoplehood model; Decolonizing management research; Reconciliation; Indigenous worldviews and knowledges (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s10551-025-06014-9

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