Fiera Comox’s inaugural deal involved a joint venture with Ngāi Tahu Holdings (NTH), a major Indigenous tribe in New Zealand, where the tribe retained land ownership but sold 35-year cutting rights on their forestry estate. This arrangement provides NTH with financial flexibility while allowing Fiera Comox to access timberland sustainably. Jeff Zweig, from Fiera Comox, emphasizes the importance of understanding Indigenous connections to land and aligning values with economic interests. The firm targets sustainable forestry assets globally and recognizes that many opportunities involve Indigenous partnerships, highlighting the necessity of sensitivity to cultural ties in successful land management practices.

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