Feds investing $1 billion for road to Ring of Fire in Ontario: Carney
By Liam Casey The federal government will put down $1 billion to help build a controversial road to the Ring of Fire region in northern Ontario, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday. The region is said to be rich in nickel, chromite, copper and gold and Carney said its development will secure Canada’s critical mineral supply chain. “Canada is matching Ontario’s $1-billion investment to build road infrastructure to reach the Ring of Fire,” Carney said as he and Premier Doug Ford announced in Ottawa an $8.7-billion joint plan to help Ontario’s tariff-affected industries, including steel and automotive sectors. The Ring of Fire sits partially in the James Bay lowlands, part of North America’s largest wetland, and is home to a number of remote, fly-in First Nations. Its mineral development has...
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Ha’wiih hold the line on commercial herring catch until abundance is clear
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Port Alberni, BC – The Council of Ha’wiih (hereditary chiefs) and their representatives from 14 Nuu-chah-nulth Nations gathered at the Italian Hall in Port Alberni Oct. 7 and Oct. 8 to discuss several priority fisheries issues. The two-day Ha’wiih fisheries forum was hosted by Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation and chaired by Wickaninnish (Cliff Atleo Sr.) of Ahousaht First Nation. Once again, the Council of Ha’wiih responded to industry pressure to reopen the west coast herring fishery. “We have been the ones that have watched that slow progression to improvement. Yes, it’s starting to come back, but it needs to be like that every season. We are the ones that have been keeping the department to tow the line in terms of resource management. We...
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First Nations say Elections Alberta unprepared for referendum turnout
By Alessia Passafiume First Nations in Alberta are celebrating the win for the pro-Canada side in Monday’s referendum — but they’re also raising concerns about a shortage of ballots in their communities despite large, public efforts to increase voter turnout. About three in four Albertans said yes to Confederation on Monday, while about one in four said they wanted the province to hold a second, binding referendum on leaving. Siksika Nation, located about an hour east of Calgary, said that while it’s pleased with the outcome, the polling station in their community was understaffed and didn’t receive enough ballots from Elections Alberta. That led to long wait times and “unnecessary obstacles,” the First Nation said in a media statement. “It is unacceptable that First Nations communities continue to encounter barriers...
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Feds investing $1 billion for road to Ring of Fire in Ontario: Carney
By Liam Casey The federal government will put down $1 billion to help build a controversial road to the Ring of Fire region in northern Ontario, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday. The region is said to be rich in nickel, chromite, copper and gold and Carney said its development will secure Canada’s critical mineral supply chain. “Canada is matching Ontario’s $1-billion investment to build road infrastructure to reach the Ring of Fire,” Carney said as he and Premier Doug Ford announced an $8.7-billion joint plan to help Ontario’s tariff-affected industries, including steel and automotive sectors. The Ring of Fire sits partially in the James Bay lowlands, part of North America’s largest wetland, and is home to a number of remote, fly-in First Nations. Its mineral development has been a...
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Regional Nunavut Inuit association awards $461,000 in scholarships to 151 students
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News The Qikiqtani Inuit Association (QIA) has given 150 scholarships of $3,000 and one $10,000 award to some of the Qikiqtaaluk region’s Inuit post-secondary students. QIA’s $3,000 scholarships are awarded to Qikiqtani Inuit on a first-come, first-served basis. This year, the QIA distributed a total of $461,000 in scholarships, up by $205,000 from last year. Iqaluit’s Jamie Comeau received the $10,000 John Amagoalik scholarship, which honours the late namesake for advancing Inuit rights. Comeau, 18, is in her second year of the Advanced Inuit Studies program at Nunavut Sivuniksavut in Ottawa. She found out she won on Oct. 2. “I was in the room with my best friend, and we were just really super excited. I texted my family that I...
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Canadian food bank use hits 2.3 million monthly visits due to grocery costs: report
By Sadeen Mohsen Kerry Holt never expected she’d become a food bank client. After losing her job nearly a year ago following major surgery, Holt said it became increasingly difficult to balance her rent, extra bills and provide for her three children. She would have only one meal a day, suffering from fainting spells a few times, before being diagnosed with an iron deficiency because of her lack of eating. “I was doing everything I could to find work,” she said. “My groceries and bills were so high.” Now, Holt visits her local Indigenous food bank twice a month, always on the look out for eggs, milk, bread, granola and sometimes produce when it’s available. “With food prices, anyone could need the food bank at any point,” she said. A...
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Publisher cuts ties with Quebec author after saying it found evidence of AI use
By Marieke Glorieux-Stryckman A Quebec publishing house is cutting ties with author Thélyson Orélien after saying it found evidence he used artificial intelligence to write his debut novel. Les Éditions du Boréal said in a press release that analysis of some documents’ metadata indicated AI was used while writing the book. The publisher said it will not reprint the book or publish more books by Orélien. Orélien did not respond to The Canadian Press’ request for comment. The allegations of AI use in his book, “C’était ça ou mourir” (“It was either that or dying”), emerged on social media in September. An account using the name “Balance ton Claude” alleged that, according to the Pangram software, excerpts of Orélien’s novel had been written “almost entirely by artificial intelligence.” The novel...
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Carney, Ford unveil $9B plan to support industries hit by tariff war
By Sarah Ritchie The federal and Ontario governments are putting billions of dollars on the line to help bolster the province’s key sectors — steel, critical minerals and auto manufacturing — as they continue to manage the fallout of tariffs from the United States. Prime Minister Mark Carney said the $8.7-billion plan goes hand-in-hand with changes the Liberal government is making to speed up project reviews and push forward major projects, which will create massive demand for critical minerals and manufacturing capability. “More jobs, more opportunity, more prosperity, more sovereignty, so we can live our lives as we choose,” he said. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, standing alongside Carney during the announcement in Ottawa on Wednesday, called the plan transformative. Ford said it’s clear the Canada-U.S. relationship has changed permanently. “No...
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Squamish Nation expects ‘meaningful outcomes’ with provincial election winner
By Ina Pace, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Squamish Chief The Nation remains committed to ensuring the province upholds its commitments to reconciliation, says Sxwíxwtn Wilson Williams. Election season isn’t over yet. Hot on the heels of the general local (or municipal) election is the provincial election. The latter follows the earlier-than-anticipated dissolution of the legislative assembly by B.C. Premier David Eby on Sept. 22. Squamish’s riding is West Vancouver-Sea to Sky, and residents have until Oct. 24, the final day of voting, to decide on their MLA. Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) Chairperson Sxwíxwtn Wilson Williams has made it clear that the Nation will retain a “genuine role” in decision-making with the province, no matter the outcome. “Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw remains committed to working with the province to deliver meaningful outcomes...
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Bead artistry on display in new exhibit at Bata Shoe Museum
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com An exhibit at the Toronto’s Bata Shoe Museum titled Brilliant: The Art of Beaded Footwear Around the World includes about 85 pieces and about 25 of them are Indigenous items. “A good percentage of the exhibition is showing and highlighting beadwork from within an Indigenous context,” said Justine Woods, a co-creator of the exhibit. The exhibit opens to the public on Oct. 22 at 327 Bloor St W. It will have an 18-month run and continue until April 2028. Woods, who is Métis, worked alongside two other co-curators—Elizabeth Semmelhack, the museum’s director and senior curator, and Nishi Bassi, the venue’s curator and manager of exhibitions. “I’m grateful to have played a large role in the integration and incorporation of a series of...
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Ghost hunters visit Haliburton’s Reid House for national TV show
By Adam Frisk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Highlander For more than a century, the historic Reid House at the Haliburton Highlands Museum has offered a glimpse of what life was like during the 19th-century pioneering days. But for museum staff, locals, and curious visitors, the 1882 structure has long been known to house more than just artifacts. Next month, the local lore of the Reid House will reach a national audience when the museum is featured on an episode of the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) series Ghost Hunters of the Grand River. “The Reids would be so shocked to find out that their house, in 2026, was part of a museum and that thousands of people every year were coming to look at their house and find out...
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Six Nations mother rescues her children as fire breaks out in car
A car burst out in flames just moments after a Six Nations mother and her two children escaped the vehicle after spotting a fire erupting in the back of the car Wednesday Oct., 21, 2026, as they drove to school. (TIN Photo) By Lynda Powless Editor SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND RIVER-A mother’s casual treat in taking her children for lunch turned into a nightmare when a fire suddenly broke out in the car they were riding in as they headed back to school along Seneca Road and Fourth Line shortly after 12:20 p.m. today (Wednesday, Oct., 21, 2026) Turtle Island News has learned the mother was driving when both of the two back seats, the children were seated in, suddenly slammed forward squashing down on the children in...
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First Nations say Elections Alberta unprepared for referendum turnout
By Alessia Passafiume First Nations in Alberta are celebrating the win for the pro-Canada side in Monday’s referendum — but they’re also raising concerns about a shortage of ballots in their communities despite large, public efforts to increase voter turnout. About three in four Albertans said yes to Confederation on Monday, while about one in four said they wanted the province to hold a second, binding referendum on leaving. Siksika Nation, located about an hour east of Calgary, said that while it’s pleased with the outcome, the polling station in their community was understaffed and didn’t receive enough ballots from Elections Alberta. That led to long wait times and “unnecessary obstacles,” the First Nation said in a media statement. “It is unacceptable that First Nations communities continue to encounter barriers...
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Iqaluit deputy mayor calls on police foot patrols to resume
By Daron Letts, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Iqaluit’s deputy mayor is calling for “very successful” joint patrols between Iqaluit bylaw and RCMP to be reinstated, after the project was halted in the spring due to a lack of available police officers. “I would like to call on the RCMP to get their staffing numbers to where we can work together again,” said Kim Smith during Tuesday’s governance and priorities meeting. “It was very successful and we definitely saw a difference in the city.” The pilot project ran from January through March. It ended due to a lack of available police officers, said Iqaluit’s chief municipal enforcement officer Steven Allen Tuesday during a presentation to the committee. “While the project was in motion, it was a success, but the...
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Looking at the Election Promises on Saving Forestry Jobs
By Isaac Phan Nay, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Tyee British Columbia’s forestry industry is struggling. Logging and mill companies have grappled with climate change, new U.S. tariffs, invasive pests and forest management practices. The result has been a decades-long wave of closing mills and thousands of lost jobs across British Columbia. In the weeks before Premier David Eby called a snap election, forestry stakeholders including the United Steelworkers, the BC Council of Forest Industries, the Truck Loggers Association and the BC First Nations Forestry Council told the provincial government the industry was at a breaking point. A month later, ahead of the provincial election on Saturday, B.C’s Conservative, Green and New Democratic parties have put forward their plans for the industry’s future. The United Steelworkers union, which represents 10,000...
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First Nations say Elections Alberta unprepared for referendum turnout
By Alessia Passafiume First Nations in Alberta are celebrating the win for the pro-Canada side in Monday’s referendum — but they’re also raising concerns about a shortage of ballots in their communities despite large, public efforts to increase voter turnout. About three in four Albertans said yes to Confederation on Monday, while about one in four said they wanted the province to hold a second, binding referendum on leaving. Siksika Nation, located about an hour east of Calgary, said that while it’s pleased with the outcome, the polling station in their community was understaffed and didn’t receive enough ballots from Elections Alberta. That led to long wait times and “unnecessary obstacles,” the First Nation said in a media statement. “It is unacceptable that First Nations communities continue to encounter barriers...
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Six Nations Elected Chief appears confused and uncomfortable during testimony at long awaited land claim trial
By Barbara Latkowski Writer TORONTO, ONT- A noticeably flustered and at times confused Six Nations Elected Chief Sherri-Lyn Hill took the stand in the community’s long awaited multi-billion-dollar land claim trial last week Six Nations on the Grand River (SNGR) has waited over 31 years for their day in court after launching a suit against Canada and Ontario over sold land and mismanaged trust funds spanning more than 150-years. Noticeably flustered, Elected Chief Hill opened with a comment about her community saying, “we’re strong, we’re resilient and we’re still here.” Under the 1784 Haldimand Proclamation, the Crown granted 950,000 acres of land in Ontario to SNGR that was known as the Haldimand Tract, in return for their alliance during the Revolutionary War. Elected Chief Hill told the court “our people...
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Six Nations Veterans hold Rememberance Day Ceremonies
Six Nations marked its annual Remembrance Day ceremonies Sunday, Oct. 18, at the Veterans Park Cenotaph (Photo Essay by Jim C. Powless)...
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Six Nations Elected Council to limit online meeting access to band members only
Worried about who is watching Six Nations Elected Council (SNEC) meetings has band councillors clamping down on who gets to watch them. SNEC unveiled a new, simplified website during its Oct 13th session that will soon include a secure portal that will allow only band members to view public council meetings. SNEC’s plan is to move access to its meeting recordings and livestreams into a secure online portal that would restrict viewing to verified community members, it introduces a redesigned website intended to improve access to information while strengthening privacy. Six Nations CEO Debra Jonathan outlined the plans during SNEC’s General Council meeting on Oct. 13, confirming that the new website, Sixnations.ca, is now live, while the community member portal is still under development. The proposed portal would require users...
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Six Nations may join national water/waste system costs study
Six Nations will consider participating in a national study examining whether federal funding adequately covers the cost of operating and maintaining First Nations water and wastewater systems. The proposed study, presented to Six Nations Elected Council during the Oct. 13 General Council meeting, aims to document the difference between actual operating costs, funding provided through Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), and the operation and maintenance costs associated with industry best practices. Craig Baker, Senior Engineer and General Manager at First Nations Engineering said the company doesn’t believe ISC is appropriately funding infrastructure on First Nations because they are seeing water treatment facilities with early rust and other ailments. “[ISC] keep[s] funding 100 per cent of infrastructure projects, but when it comes to brand new water treatment plants, brand new water main,...
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