WENDAKE, Quebec – A consultation meeting is scheduled this morning between First Nations and the Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts (MRNF) as part of the Round Tables on the Future of the Forest. This process was announced in November 2023 by Minister Maïté Blanchette Vézina. This new initiative by the Quebec government must translate into concrete actions and measures that respect the rights and interests of First Nations. …”It’s clear that the Quebec government is not doing enough to respect the rights of First Nations on the territory, especially when it comes to logging. The consultations carried out by the MRNF are superficial. Decisions are made unilaterally. Things have to change,” says Lance Haymond, Chief of the Kebaowek First Nation. …”It’s time the government stopped seeing the forest only as an economic engine for the forest industry,” declares Martin Dufour, Chief of the Essipit Innu First Nation.