Inuit need greater say in ship routing, preparedness: Panelists
By Jeff Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Inuit need a greater say in mapping, ship routing, development and emergency preparedness as the Arctic prepares for an increase in traffic in the coming years, conference attendees in Iqaluit heard Wednesday. At the Ingiulik Nunavut Shipping Symposium, a panel titled Shipping, Sovereignty and Security brought together officials from Nunavut and Greenland to share their concerns and discuss opportunities. “The ship groundings that we saw this summer were definitely impactful to Inuit and will continue to be without participation and oversight,” said Hilu Tagoona, vice-president of engagement and partnerships with Oceans North, a marine conservation organization. In September, the Thamesborg — a 172-metre Dutch cargo ship — ran aground while traversing the Northwest Passage. It resumed its trip in October following...
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First Nations hockey player seeks long playoff run and post-secondary offer
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Besides looking to finish his junior hockey career on a high note, Caleb Labelle is also spending time thinking about his academic and athletic futures. Labelle, a member of Biigtigong Nishnaabeg, a First Nation in northern Ontario, is a defenceman with the Kam River Fighting Walleye. The Junior A club based in Thunder Bay, Ont. is one of seven entrants in the Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL). This circuit features six franchises from northern Ontario and the Michigan-based Ironwood Lumberjacks. The Fighting Walleye are the defending SIJHL champions. And they participated this past May at the Centennial Cup, the national Junior A tournament. The Kam River squad managed to win one of its four round-robin matches at the Canadian tourney held...
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Manitoba First Nation urges province to address hotel space for evacuees
By Brittany Hobson The Canadian Red Cross says some evacuees from a northern Manitoba First Nation rocked by a severe water crisis won’t be displaced for a second time in as many weeks, as the community’s chief called on the province to do more to ensure they get priority in hotels. About 1,200 residents from Pimicikamak Cree Nation have been staying in Thompson, although it’s unclear how many are in the city’s hotels or have other accommodations. Chief David Monias had said he was concerned some would have to leave Thompson, due to a minor hockey tournament there this weekend. The Red Cross said Thursday that accommodations in Thompson have been secured for evacuees, although some may need to temporarily go to another location in the city depending on room...
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‘We need unity’: Bearspaw First Nation chief and council mark new term at inauguration ceremony
By Leah Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Rocky Mountain Outlook ÎYÂRHE NAKODA — With messages of unity and championing the younger generation ringing loud and clear, Bearspaw First Nation marked the start of a new term during the inauguration of the Îyârhe (Stoney) Nakoda First Nation band’s chief and council on Friday (Jan. 9). Serving the nation for his 25th accumulative term, Chief Darcy Dixon emphasized that working together alongside the two other Stoney Nakoda First Nations, Goodstoney and Chiniki, is key to moving forward. “We all share one piece of land, all our people, but as you can see, by working together over a number of years we were able to continue to support one another and make good things happen here in our communities of Big Horn, Morley,...
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YQK to YQT: 1st new Kenora-Thunder Bay flight completed
By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com THUNDER BAY — Passenger service between Kenora and Thunder Bay has returned. Kenora Airport CEO Shari Gentes was one of the six passengers on the first North Star Air flight between the two largest cities in Northwestern Ontario, which landed in Thunder Bay around 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The regional airline, which is partnered with 11 First Nations, announced the new service in December. “The flight was great,” Gentes said shortly after landing in Thunder Bay. “It’s roomy, it’s got lots of room for leg room, seatbelts — everything’s comfortable.” “Everybody gets their own window, everybody gets their own aisle — it was very nice.” North Star is using its Pilatus PC-12 aircraft for the service. Company president and chief operating officer Jeff...
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Future-facing projects given leg up in Northern Ontario
By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chronicle-Journal The minister of jobs and families and minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario (FedNor) announced total spending of up to $850,000 on 14 Indigenous economic development projects across the region. Patty Hajdu made the announcement in Thunder Bay and said the funding will support engagement, capacity-building and knowledge-sharing activities tied to critical minerals-related clean energy and transportation infrastructure projects. It is intended to create opportunities that respect traditional territories and strengthen local economies. She said the federal government, Indigenous peoples, local workers and businesses are building the infrastructure and partnerships required to secure a sustainable and sovereign Canada. “And it is a time where there’s a profound degree of anxiety. There are serious threats to our...
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Assault charge stayed against Inuit organization president Jeremy Tunraluk
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Crown prosecutor Stephanie Boydell told a justice of the peace on Jan. 15 that she was directing a stay of proceedings for an assault charge against Jeremy Tunraluk, who is on leave as president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., the territory’s largest Inuit organization. That means the criminal case will not proceed against Tunraluk at this time, and he is a free man. Tunraluk was absent from the justice of the peace courtroom in Iqaluit on Thursday morning. Some initial confusion between his lawyer, Victoria Perrie, and Crown prosecutors was cleared up within the morning session of the court. Crown prosecutor Emma Baasch initially said the prosecution had not elected a lawyer to pursue the charge against Tunraluk and asked to...
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Improve internet, mobile service alongside new power lines: chief
By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com BINGWI NEYAASHI — The chief of a First Nation on Lake Nipigon says he wants to see telecommunications upgrades done alongside a proposed power line. Bingwi Neyaashi Chief Paul Gladu raised the issue at a Jan. 14 press conference in Thunder Bay where Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu was announcing over $850,000 for 14 First Nations-led projects in B.C., Saskatchewan and Ontario. Seven of those are in Northwestern Ontario, including money for Bingwi Neyaashi, which received $50,000 towards community engagement work related to the proposed Greenstone transmission line upgrade. Gladu asked Hajdu if more reliable internet and cell service could come along with it. “We want to get away from Starlink, we want people to have good … network connections,” he...
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Stage four of Tewatohnhi’saktha’s Indigenous Initiatives Fund enters its final year
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase Stage four of Tewatohnhi’saktha’s Indigenous Initiatives Fund (IIF IV) has entered its final year, but funding still available for interested applicants. Tammy Delaronde, Executive Director of Tewatohnhi’saktha, said the initiative aims to address systemic inequities in the financial sector by providing local entrepreneurs with access to start-up capital. “Each year, funds are allocated for economic development initiatives, and what we oversee is the entrepreneurship envelope,” Delaronde said. “So, it’s designated for for-profit businesses.” IIF IV has been funded through the provincial government’s Indigenous Initiatives Fund, formerly known as the Aboriginal Initiatives Fund, since 2008. According to Delaronde, two major projects in the community have received funding in this phase, which began in 2022. “It typically goes in five-year increments, and they make...
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Quebec premier stepping down ahead of provincial election
By Dominique Gené, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Quebec Premier François Legault is stepping down, just months ahead of the provincial election. Legault — who co-founded the Coalition Avenir Québec party in 2011 before leading it to power with election wins in 2018 and again in 2022 — made the surprise announcement Wednesday morning during a news conference in Quebec City. “I see that currently many Quebecers want change first and foremost, and then a change of premier,” he said in French in his resignation speech. Currently, Legault’s Coalition Avenir Québec has a majority government with 79 of the 125 seats in Quebec’s national assembly, including Denis Lamothe, who represents the Ungava riding which includes Nunavik. A former police officer in Nunavik, Lamothe was first elected in 2018 then...
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‘Staggering’ disparity as Indigenous adults overrepresented in prisons by 10 times
By Brieanna Charlebois A new report by Statistics Canada says Indigenous adults were incarcerated at a rate 10 times higher than non-Indigenous adults in six provinces, a disparity that justice advocates called staggering, and a roadblock to reconciliation. The agency’s new measure, called the overrepresentation index, was used to make the finding for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people in British Columbia, P.E.I., Nova Scotia, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta in 2023/2024. Indigenous legal experts and advocates were not shocked by the findings, but say it shines a light on systemic issues that persist after centuries of colonization. “The numbers in this report are staggering, but not surprising,” Kory Wilson, chair of the BC First Nations Justice Council, said in a statement Wednesday. “Indigenous people are not inherently more criminal —...
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7 First Nations receive minerals infrastructure money
By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com THUNDER BAY — The chief of Bingwi Neyaashi says an upgraded power transmission line can’t come soon enough. Paul Gladu’s community, also known as Sand Point First Nation, was one of seven First Nations in Northwestern Ontario to receive a total of $350,000 from the federal critical minerals infrastructure fund. Six of the communities, including Bingwi Neyaashi, Animbiigoo Zaagi’igan, Aroland, Biinjitiwaabik Zaaging, Ginoogaming and Red Rock Indian Band each received $50,000 for engagement studies to inform ongoing work to upgrade hydro lines that would run from existing 230 kV infrastructure near Nipigon though Greenstone to points north. “We have a line … coming from Rocky Bay and we’d have a power outage at times, two or three times every couple of months,”...
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Indigenous adults overrepresented in prisons by 10 times, Statistics Canada says
A newly released report by Statistics Canada says Indigenous adults were incarcerated at a rate 10 times higher than non-Indigenous adults in six provinces. It says its new measure, called the overrepresentation index, was used to make the finding for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people in British Columbia, P.E.I., Nova Scotia, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta in 2023/2024. The report says Indigenous people made up 33.2 per cent of the custodial population in those provinces despite only making up 4.3 per cent of the overall adult population of those regions. Indigenous adults were incarcerated at a rate of 89 per 10,000 population on an average day, compared with eight per 10,000 among non-Indigenous adults. It also notes 2.6 per cent of the Indigenous adult population was incarcerated at some point...
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Coastal First Nations say they are open to cooperation, not pipelines
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Following a closed-door meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday, Coastal First Nations leaders said they are still firm in their opposition to a new oil pipeline. “Our interest isn’t about money in this situation, it’s about [the] responsibility of looking after our territories and again nurturing the sustainable economies that we currently have here,” said Gaagwiis Jason Alsop, President of the Council of the Haida Nation and vice president of CFN, speaking at a press conference. The group of coastal nations has been a primary voice against the proposed pipeline carrying bitumen from Alberta since an MOU was signed between Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in November. Their opposition goes back more than a decade to a...
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Fort St. John Friendship Society appoints new executive director
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Fort St. John Friendship Society has appointed a new executive director in charge. Energeticcity.ca has confirmed Todd Morrow has stepped away from the executive director position and he will be replaced by Jolene van Wieringen, who will begin her new post on Monday, January 19th. Wieringen has a background in social work and graduated from the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) with a bachelor’s degree, according to her LinkedIn profile. She has previously worked for the Métis Nation British Columbia (MNBC) as a suicide prevention workshop facilitator, with School District 60 as an Indigenous social, emotional, learning specialist and most recently as the community social worker in Doig River First Nation (DRFN). She also ran...
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Snuneymuxw First Nation buys Coquitlam casino
By Patrick Penner, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tri-Cities Dispatch Snuneymuxw First Nation has reached an agreement to acquire Great Canadian Casino Vancouver, one of the Lower Mainland’s largest gaming and entertainment venues. The purchase of the Coquitlam property just north of the Fraser River, announced on Dec. 19 by Petroglyph Development Group (PDG) – the economic development arm of the Nanaimo-based nation – marks a significant expansion of the its gaming portfolio. Chief Mike Wyse (Xum’silum) said the deal reflects Snuneymuxw’s disciplined approach to growth and long-term economic independence. “The proposed acquisition of Great Canadian Casino Vancouver marks another step toward economic self-determination for Snuneymuxw, strengthening our long-term prosperity, financial independence and restoring an economy that thrived for thousands of years,” he said. The agreement represents Snuneymuxw’s fifth major casino...
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Storybook ending for student warming hut winners
By Maggie Macintosh , Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press Manitoba’s newest student-designed warming hut doubles as a public awareness campaign for a child advocacy centre. Bison Run School has partnered with the Toba Centre for Children and Youth to create “Cozy Up With a Book.” The triangular structure, which mimics an upside-down novel, is being decorated with information about the local charity that supports young victims of abuse and their families. A QR code installed on the outside of the hut will take anyone who scans it to the centre’s website. “Toba Centre gives a kid a voice when they feel like they don’t have one,” said Arya Samim, one of the Grade 7 students who’s spent the better part of the 2025-26 school year working on the...
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International media flock to Greenland as Trump turns the Arctic island into a geopolitical hot spot
By Emma Burrows NUUK, Greenland (AP) — For several weeks, international journalists and camera crews have been scurrying up to people in Greenland’s capital to ask them for their thoughts on the twists and turns of a political crisis that has turned the Arctic island into a geopolitical hot spot. President Donald Trump insists he wants to control Greenland but Greenlanders say it is not for sale. The island is a semiautonomous territory of Denmark and the prime minister of that country has warned that if the U.S. tries to take Greenland by force, it could potentially spell the end of NATO. Greenlanders walking along the small central shopping street of the capital Nuuk have a hard time avoiding the signs that the island is near the top of the...
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Gitanyow wins court battle to restart forestry licence consultation
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer The BC Supreme Court has set aside the transfer of a major forest licence in northwestern BC after ruling the province failed to properly consult to arrange a fair deal. The province granted the license to the Kitsumkalum First Nation in 2024 after Skeena Sawmills went bankrupt. The province’s top court ruled the province breached its duty to consult the neighboring Gitanyow, because that First Nation also wanted to buy the sawmill in 2023. In a decision released on Jan. 7, Justice F. Matthew Kirchner ordered the province to restart the consultation. The proposed transfer would have granted Kitsumkalum, another First Nation based near Terrace, the timber rights in the Lax’yip — territory that the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs are already...
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Pimicikamak faces long road to repair after havoc-wreaking power outage
By Crystal Greene, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews Paige Paupanakis, a Pimicikamak Cree Nation member and community volunteer, has been working non-stop since a power outage happened in her community over the holidays. One of the 21-year-old’s first tasks was rounding up pizza donations to send to her Cree community — located about 530 kilometres north of “Winnipeg” — to feed people. It was during frigid -20 C temperatures on Dec. 28 that a Manitoba Hydro powerline broke, along a 300-metre crossing between two islands on the Nelson River. It caused a power outage that lasted four days, until electricity was restored. But the outage caused lasting infrastructure damage, such as frozen pipes, backed up sewers, and other problems. On Thursday, about 70 people gathered to drum and round-dance outside...
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