Hybrid vision of ecosystems’ services in Indigenous Northern Quebec

International audienceNorthern Quebec is a particular region within the Canadian province perceived as full of resources – which are presented as vital for the economy – but also as a symbol for the empowerment of the Aboriginal Nations.In this communication, we endeavor to examine the changes in identity underpinning the involvement of the Aboriginals of Northern Quebec in the management of the natural heritage. We will focus on showing that the current situation, in the political and social context of Quebec, contributes to create special management patterns of the heritage. They are creating a hybrid vision of ecosystem services which combines Aboriginal and Western cultural dimensions.We explore this new relationship by looking at two northern examples: the setting up of mines in the Inuit region (Nunavik) and the creation of national parks in Cree territories (Eeyou Istchee). The agreements made between the Quebec government and the Indigenous people of Northern Quebec promote the involvement of the Inuit nation of Nunavik in the organization of mining development. Simultaneously, they advance the empowerment of the Cree in creating and managing two protected areas located in the south of Eeyou Istchee.Through this new attitude, a reconfiguration of the use of ecosystem services is arising in these areas, taking place between ancestral practices and the integration into the market economy society. It follows that there is the emergence of a hybrid relationship between humans and environment which combines Aboriginal and Western visions of spatial practices of the natural heritage in the North of Quebec