Unit 2 Distribution of Wealth / Economic Empowerment ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT RESULTS IN ECONOMIC SECURITY Economic Security Definition: Having enough money to meet your needs and a little extra for the special things you want. NEEDS Things necessary for survival AIR WATER FOOD SHELTER CLOTHING WANTS WANTS: Things youd like to have but can live without. COMPUTER TELEVISION SNOWMOBILE CELL PHONE Chapter 2 Economies in History Every Society has some form of an Economic System ECONOMIC SYSTEMS answer these questions: What goods / services do people need and want? How can they produce goods and services? How can they distribute them? Over time economies change Types of economies (How economies have evolved): Pre Industrial (no manufacturing technologies) Industrial (use manufacturing technologies) Post Industrial (informational technologies) First Nations and Inuit Economies We accept that First Nations political structures, economies and cultures have existed since Time Immemorial As far back as anyone can remember in stories passed on by elders. Aboriginal Peoples of Canada today 1.Inuit First people of the region north of the tree line (a place too cold for trees to grow). i.e. Labrador Inuit 2.First Nations First people of the rest of the land that is Canada today. i.e. Innu (Not to be confused with Inuit Others are MiKmaq, Maliseet, and Passamaquoddy. 3.Metis Children of either Inuit or First Nations women and European traders Needs and Wants (First Nations/ Inuit Economies) Depended on the land and natural resources for survival. Economy was based on the natural resources of the region they lived in. Needed food, shelter, and clothing. Had basic needs and used what was in their environment to meet these needs. Production (First Nations/ Inuit Economies) Mostly made using stone / bone tools or by hand. Used trees for shelter, animal skins or snow depending on what was available. Animals used for food, clothing, and shelter. Production (continued) People travelled / moved to follow the food source (close to coast in summer, inland in winter) Believed that the land was an important resource to be respected by the people. They did not believe in land ownership. EXAMPLE: Mukushan Innu tradition where the community had a special feast to honour the spirit of the caribou. Distribution (First Nations / Inuit) Read The Creator Visits (page 29) Every one helped with making goods. People shared with each other equal distribution. Some nations traded with each other (Corn for beaver hides for example) There was no land ownership some groups defended their hunting territory; others allowed people to go where they wished. Newcomers Starting about 1500 AD Came from a variety of cultures (English / French) Had a more advanced economic system. Needs and Wants (Newcomers) To own more land To spread their culture (e.g. Religion) To find economic opportunities Natural resources timber, furs, fish, seal oil / pelts and minerals to sell back in Europe. Note: Land ownership was important to Europeans because only the wealthy (monarchy / nobility) owned land. Those who came to North America hoped to be able to own their own land. This would mean being able to make money from the resources on that land. THREE KEY RESOURCES (Sought after by Europeans) Fish Furs Timber Fish: First resource to attract Europeans. Very valuable. Because of religious beliefs they could only eat fish many days of the year as meat was not permitted. Furs: Beaver pelts were in demand in Europe (hats). Many first nations already traded furs. Fur trade was the beginning of trade between Europeans and Natives. Timber: Europe had fewer, smaller trees and needed more. Needed for building ships (ship building) The territories of the Maliseet, Passamaquoddy, and MiKmaq The fur trade moved settlements further North and West to the Pacific Coast. Production (Europeans) Until the 1700s they used basic tools or made things by hand (Pre-industrial). Some goods were made by people who specialized in one area (blacksmith, shoemaker, coopers {Men who made barrels}, weavers, dressmakers, etc.) In the city people could go to a speciality store to get products. In the rural / farm areas many often produced their own goods. Early settlers had to do most things themselves; it took time to develop cities where you could get products as you could in European towns / cities. Distributions (Europeans) Based on profit ($) if you owned land / resources, you could make money from it. Goods and services were found in markets. People could buy and sell their products in the market. Trading was still part of this system in rural areas and for the early settlers. Complete Assignment 1 Comparison Chart of Needs and Wants of First Nations/Inuit and European settlers. The Impact of Contact Contact is the term historians associate with the time Europeans first came to North America Contact between the Natives and the Europeans caused serious problems for the First Nations and the Inuit. Early Contact: (Maritimes) Natives were interested in the things Europeans had (metal tools, weapons, clothing) Europeans needed Natives for survival (Clothing, food, shelter) Europeans and Native groups both saw economic opportunities. Fur trade began Europeans wanted furs and Natives wanted metal objects (knives, pots, etc.) Treaties: Conflict existed between First Nations and Europeans and between the French and English. Conflict over land and resources. Great Britain and Fist Nations felt that treaties would help settle their conflicts. Between 1717 and 1779 The Covenant Chain of Treaties (Treaties of Peace and Friendship) were signed These treaties are still in place today. Each treaty was different. First Nations (FNs) would act peacefully toward British; British agreed to respect FNs rights. FNs did NOT agree to give up land or natural resources. Included MiKmaq, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet The Effects of the Fur Trade First Nations economies changed forever. BEFORE Fur Trade Part of year spent hunting animals; part of year fishing along coast Hunted /fished for their own basic needs/wants Used resources ONLY as they needed them AFTER Fur Trade Spent more time on Fur- bearing animals (fox, beaver) for trade Relied on the Europeans for their needs (flour, cloth,etc) Used resources for trade RESULT The animal population in areas became low due to overhunting Natives could not find enough animals to supply for the trade. The Europeans moved further west. Natives were left struggling to meet their basic needs because of European settlement. The Effects of European Settlement The idea of Land Ownership cause many problems for FNs who were used to sharing the land. Europeans fenced the land for farms and cattle which kept FNs from hunting grounds. Europeans built roads and towns close to waterways and ocean fronts keeping FNs away from their food sources. Most European settlers believed that their ways were better than the FNs and they expected them to change their ways to become more like the Europeans, or else, move away from them. Example : the Beothuk (see page 39) Complete Assignment 2 Map of Canada