Asks the Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Nature to pause planned Parks Canada workforce adjustments until an independent review of its priorities and their effects on northern, remote, and rural communities is completed.

From April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026, visitors spent $6.5 billion in communities near national parks and historic sites with net contribution to Canada of $5.9 billion in GDP, $3.4 billion in labour income, $839 million in taxes for all levels of government, and 58,736 FTE jobs. These contributions and economic diversification are essential for northern, remote, and rural communities;

Parks Canada employees volunteer for firefighting, EMS, SAR, sport teams, cultural and indigenous activities, citizen science, and many other activities. “Workforce adjustments” will result in the relocation of individuals and families, and the loss of crucial volunteers and professionals, leading to potentially devastating losses to northern, remote, and rural communities;

Parks Canada's "workforce adjustments" will severely curtail or terminate many services, reducing the quality of visitor experiences and risking the safety of visitors and wildlife;

Parks Canada's "workforce adjustments" undermines Canada’s obligations to First Nations and Inuit under land claims and cooperative management agreements, and could result in legal challenges under Section 35 of the Constitution Act; and

The Government of Canada’s commitment to “protect biodiversity through the conservation of 30% of lands by 2030 and to contribute to this goal by establishing ten new national parks” will be undermined by Parks Canada's "workforce adjustments".

We, the undersigned,Citizens and residents of Canada, electors of the Yukon, NWT, Nunavut, and residents of northern, remote, and rural communities, call upon theMinister of the Environment, Climate Change and Natureto immediately suspend planned “workforce adjustments” at Parks Canada pending a comprehensive independent arm’s-length review of Parks Canada Mandated and Operational Priorities, and the consequential realistic impact to northern, remote, and rural communities across Canada, and by extension the impact to Arctic security and sovereignty.