What policy areas does the Assembly of First Nations advocate on?

Updated

The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) advocates across four broad policy areas: Rights & Justice, Community Services, Environment & Lands, and Economy & Infrastructure. According to afn.ca, the AFN is a national advocacy organization that works to advance the collective aspirations of First Nations individuals and communities across Canada on matters of national or international nature and concern. Its advocacy is not self-directed: the organization takes direction and fulfills mandates as directed by First-Nations-in-Assembly through resolutions.

The four advocacy areas

Policy area What the AFN says it does
Rights & Justice Pursues positive changes to legislative, policy and common law principles in support of First Nations rights.
Community Services Advocates for comprehensive social development services for over 600 First Nations communities.
Environment & Lands Helps First Nations exercise their rights to self-determination and jurisdiction with respect to the environment.
Economy & Infrastructure Advocates for improved economic policy, programs, services, incentives, economic relations, and increased revenue development.

Each area is presented on afn.ca as a distinct section of "Our Work," with its own page for readers who want more detail than the summary above.

How these areas connect to the AFN's mandate

The four areas are the outward-facing work; the mandate behind them comes from First Nations themselves. The AFN hosts two Assemblies a year where mandates and directives for the organization are established through resolutions directed and supported by the First Nations in Assembly (elected Chiefs or proxies from member First Nations).

Alongside that direction from member First Nations, the AFN is guided by an Executive Committee consisting of an elected National Chief and Regional Chiefs from each province and territory. Representatives from five national councils — Knowledge Keepers, Youth, Veterans, 2SLGBTQQIA+ and Women — support and guide the decisions of the Executive Committee.

So if you want to understand why the AFN is advocating on a particular file, the resolution process and the Executive Committee are the places to look; the four policy areas are where that direction shows up as public work.

Where advocacy shows up in practice

Beyond the four section pages, afn.ca surfaces current activity through news and events. Recent examples include:

  • A press release dated September 17, 2026, in which National Chief Woodhouse Nepinak speaks on First Nations priorities as the fall session of Parliament is set to begin.
  • A statement in which National Chief Cindy Woodhouse congratulates BC Regional Chief Terry Teegee on his 2026 acclamation.
  • Upcoming events such as the First Nations-First Ministers' Meeting 2026 (October 26, 2026, Ottawa), the Special Chiefs Assembly 2026 (December 8–10, 2026, Rogers Centre Ottawa), the 3rd Annual National Natural Resources Forum (February 1–4, 2027, Montreal), and the 4th National Climate Gathering (October 5–8, 2026, Hamilton Convention Centre).

These items are useful if you want to see which files are active right now rather than only the standing policy categories.

Choosing where to start

  • If your interest is legal or constitutional, start with Rights & Justice.
  • If your interest is social programs and services in communities, start with Community Services.
  • If your interest is land, water, or environmental jurisdiction, start with Environment & Lands.
  • If your interest is economic development, revenue, or infrastructure, start with Economy & Infrastructure.

For the mandate behind any of these — who directed the work and how — look to the resolutions process and the Executive Committee structure described above.