Facilitating the consultation

process – Internally

developed applicationHugo Mailhot Couture

Ndakinna Office – Grand Conseil de la Nation Waban-Aki

Presentation outline

1. Background information on our process

2. Application of the GCNWA – Filemaker interface, server and database

1. Initial application (functions and benefits)

2. Ongoing development (adaptation to new needs)

3. To come

3. Management of consultations and computerized solutions – What do we stand to gain?

4. When and why develop?

1. Benefits

2. Challenges

5. Discussion and questions

2

1. Data management: from a

necessary evil to a structuring elementBackground information on our process

3

Initial project and framework

Mandate: Evaluate the impacts of the Energy East Pipeline on the Nation

Conduct a study on land use and occupation

Consult with the members to get to know their concerns

Available tools and data

Guide to biographical mapping – Living proof (Terry Tobias)

Recording of a TransCanada open door session

Funding

Vision of the organization; the data must also (especially) be used to:

Develop the Nation

Support territorial affirmation

Etc.

4

Methodology

Online/telephone/paper survey

Biographical mapping

Group interviews

5

Data collection - example

Course of the interview

Directed interview lasting

approximately two hours

Marking (by interviewer) coded

on paper map

Digitization and georeferencing

6

How to manage the data?

Recommendations

Tobias: Complex tools exist but a spreadsheet is sufficient

What is being done elsewhere: use of spreadsheets

Decision

Acquire FileMaker and develop a database

7

Why?

Database Pros

Nearly infinite connections between data

Management of large amounts of data facilitated

Easy to use (if properly set up)

Helps to standardize the data

Cons

Complex to set up

Requires expertise for maintenance

Can be costly (acquisition)

Spreadsheet

Pros

Easy to set up

Simple to use

Allows for certain analyses (dynamic

crossing-referencing table)

Affordable (Excel)

Cons

Limited connections between data

Tedious analysis (amount of

important data)

8

Database – structuring element

Confidentiality and security:

Protecting data confidentiality

Personalized access according to the needs of each member of the team

Institutional memory:

Effectiveness of new team members

Limits the loss of "knowledge" in the event of staff departures

Work efficiency:

Quickly finding any information about a sector / interview / participant

Linking of information

Automation of operations

9

2. Application of the GCNWA –

Filemaker interface, service and

databaseInitial application (functions and benefits)

10

User interface

Simple

navigation

11

Respondent’s formImportation of

data (survey

results)

12

Return from the field – data entry

Standardization of the

data

Institutional memory

13

List of respondentsRegion / province /

country automatic14

Why is this of interest?

Too much useless data?

A resident from Wôlinak is obviously in the Centre-du-Québec region!

Each field is "searchable" and can be sorted

15

Example: Sorting by region16

Example: Search by hunting area or

hunted species

17

Viewing data and links (personalized

forms)E.g.: All participants who

spoke about a resource

• Planning of interviews

• Understanding of the

activities and dynamics

• Response to the

consultations

18

2. Application of the GCNWA –

Filemaker interface, service and

databaseOngoing development (adaptation to new needs)

19

Telephone interviews for a

consultation?

Rendering automatic (decreasing

entry errors):

• Creation of the forms

• Member identifiers (#)

• Identification of the interviewer

• Links

20

Telephone interview form (cont’d)

Who participated in a

consultation?

What consultations did a person

participate in their life?

Who from our team spoke to which

member of the Nation for a given

consultation?

21

How does it work?

Table: Participant

Participant number

Last name/First name

Address

Etc.

Table: Interview

Interview number

Place

Date

Time

Subject

Etc.

Table: Use of the land

Point number

Resource used

Season

Etc.

Table: Region (importation)

Table: Province (importation)

Table: Cities (importation)

Table: Type of resource

Table: Participation in a consultation

Table: GCNWA employee

22

2. Application of the GCNWA –

Filemaker interface, service and

databaseFunctions to come / Needs

23

Assessment

Current use

Research data

Interview data

Information on the members

Telephone interview forms

Access/security management

Consultations: interactions with

the members (development)

Needs/To come

Consultations: interactions with

developers/governments

Environmental and commitment

monitoring

Archiving of documents

(limitation)

Complex statistics and analyses

(limitation)

Map interface (limitation)

24

Current main limitation: GeomaticsConnections and updates between

FileMaker and GIS are done manually

(limitation = internal expertise)

25

3. Management of consultations and

computerized solutions – What do we

stand to gain?26

What do we stand to gain?

1. Environmental communication and analysis for consultations

2. Monitoring of the consultations and commitments of developers

3. Credibility during negotiations/consultations

27

Environmental communication and

analysis for consultations

Integration and analysis of data on:

Land use and occupation

Aboriginal ecological knowledge

External sources (western science)

The components/impacts of a project

Facilitated and credible presentations and communication:

Environmental and cultural sensitivities

Stakes of the Nation

Implications for rights and interests

28

Example 1: Energy East consultation

(First Nations issues are not limited to

fishing sites)29

Example 2: Data analysis for a

developer – Asking the right questions

Has the fish habitat

changed?

30

Monitoring of the consultations and

commitments of developers

Centralize the information on:

Important steps and dates of each consultation

Environmental commitments to the Nation

Expected dates for accountability

E.g.: Developer’s report following a development project (5 years after construction)

Making information available for the team:

Flexible access according to tasks

Institutional memory in the event of staff changes

31

Credibility during negotiations/

consultations

Communication history (have we been adequately consulted?)

Crown

Developer

Etc.

Easier to evaluate/prove compliance (or lack of compliance) with

commitments

32

4. When and why develop?33

Developing?

Pros

Flexibility/adaptability

Limiting recurring costs

Sustainability

Adoption by the team

Will exactly meet your need.

Cons Higher initial cost

Internal expertise required (creation and maintenance)

Minimized by FileMaker

Required IT infrastructure

Depends on the chosen scalability

Development dependent on your "free time“

Requires the ideal conditions (expertise + initial funding)

34

Purchasing?

Advantages

Development independent of:

Internal expertise

Available time

Initial cost minimized (depending

on the provider)

Advanced features available

Concerns Sustainability vs. Intellectual

property?

Dependence on an outside provider

Recurring costs (vs. "variable" financing)

Confidentiality and control

Physical location of DB vs. legal context

Features/development adapted to other clienteles

35

5. Discussion and questions36

“

”

The first question you should

answer is: Can an existing

product meet your need?

Conseil reçu récemment – Traduction libre

37

Discussion/reflection

What is your need?

Can a current product meet that need? (acceptable costs/terms?)

Could we have a product developed by and for First Nations?

Who should/could do this?

Open-source?

38