The OTC and Its Role in Treaty
By Carol Baldwin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter “The OTC works to provide information about treaty relationships and is working on a Vision of Reconciliation for Saskatchewan” (otc.ca) Dr. Kathy Walker, Treaty Commissioner of Saskatchewan, met with the PRRC on February 26thto discuss the creation and role of the Office of the Treaty Commissioner (OTC). The OTC was established in 1989 through the collaborative efforts of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) and the Government of Canada, recognizing a significant lack of understanding regarding treaties. FSIN represents 74 First Nations in Saskatchewan and is dedicated to protecting the spirit and intent of the Treaty promises. Treaties are recognized at three different levels of law. First, they are acknowledged in First Nationslaw. Second, they are considered constitutional law in Canada, as...
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San Carlos Apache teenager’s death reverberates throughout Indian Country
By Sejal Govindarao PHOENIX (AP) — From heartbreak and devastation to outrage, Emily Pike’s tragic death is stirring heavy emotions and spotlighting a crisis that has long plagued Native American communities, where a disproportionate number of people have been killed or have gone missing. In the case of the San Carlos Apache teenager, she disappeared from her group home in a Phoenix suburb in late January. Authorities posted her picture on social media, saying she was missing and had possibly run away. It was nearly a month later that sheriff’s deputies in a neighboring county reported finding and identifying Pike’s remains more than 80 miles (129 kilometers) from where she was last seen. Since then, news of her brutal death has reverberated through Indian Country and beyond. A crowd gathered...
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Indigenous leaders voice concern and anger over Trump tariffs
By John Woodside, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Threats of tariffs and economically coerced annexation are being rebuffed by Indigenous leaders, who are calling for special consideration for the rights and needs of Indigenous Peoples as Canada feels its way through the trade war. Cindy Woodhouse, the Assembly of First Nations National Chief, said the tariffs and threats from Trump are “unacceptable,” but added that Canada “will not defeat Trump’s colonialism with more colonialism in our country.” She gave her remarks while celebrating a dedicated building for Indigenous leaders and governments in the parliamentary precinct. At a press conference on Tuesday, Indigenous leaders signed the agreement that would hand over 100 Wellington Street in Ottawa. That building was at one time the American embassy, a coincidence not lost...
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New book interprets Piikani and Secwepemc rock paintings
By Shari Narine, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Piikani Nation Elder Harley Bastien calls technology “a double-edged sword,” but he’s quick to say that the DStretch software enhancement program is a positive thing. The program allowed Bastien and other Elders to interpret paintings on rocks in southwestern Alberta and southeastern British Columbia. Bastien is one of about 30 Elders who collaborated with former Parks Canada archeologist Brad Himour on the book Forgotten Dreams: A New Look at Ancient Rock Art Sites. Himour took photographs of the rock art and used NASA-developed DStretch technology to enhance even the faded parts of the pictographs. Elders were able to view the photographs and provide interpretations. Recording events on stone is one of many traditions impacted when Europeans arrived on Indigenous lands, said Bastien....
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Most Greenlanders are Lutheran, 300 years after a missionary brought the faith to the remote island
By Luis Andres Henao NUUK, Greenland (AP) — Most Greenlanders are proudly Inuit, having survived and thrived in one of most remote and climatically inhospitable places on Earth. And they’re Lutheran. About 90% of the 57,000 Greenlanders identify as Inuit and the vast majority of them belong to the Lutheran Church today, more than 300 years after a Danish missionary brought that branch of Christianity to the world’s largest island. For many, their devotion to ritual and tradition is as much a part of what it means to be a Greenlander as is their fierce deference to the homeland. The one so many want U.S. President Donald Trump to understand is not for sale despite his threats to seize it. Greenland is huge — about three times the size of...
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Indigenous leaders take a historic step toward a permanent seat at the table in Canada’s governance
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer A new era in Canadian governance unfolded today as the federal government announced the creation of a permanent national space for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples, furthering its commitment to reconciliation and inclusive governance. The building at 100 Wellington Street and 119 Sparks Street, in the centre of Canada’s Parliamentary Precinct in Ottawa, will serve as a hub for Indigenous leaders, governments, institutions, and organizations to hold intergovernmental discussions and organize events. “This space is more than just a physical structure. It represents the place we as First Nations are reclaiming as our rightful seat at the table,” Cindy Woodhouse of the Assembly of First Nations said at the event. The national space was formalized with the signing of...
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‘We lost our way’: Manitoba Tories sorry after rejecting landfill search for women
By Brittany Hobson The interim leader of Manitoba’s Progressive Conservatives apologized Wednesday to the families of two slain First Nations women after refusing to search a landfill for their remains and touting the decision in a provincial election campaign ad. Wayne Ewasko offered an “unconditional” apology in the house to the families of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran. “We lost our way in regards to empathy and also lost our way in regards to closure being brought forward to the families of the victims,” he said. “We will … be better as a party moving forward, and you have my word on that.” Potential human remains were discovered last week at the Winnipeg-area landfill. It’s believed the remains of Harris and Myran ended up at the Prairie Green landfill in...
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‘A passion project’: Tse’K’wa executive director on Lego contest win
By Ed Hitchins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Energeticcity.ca FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The recent winner of the City of Fort St. John’s Lego building contest says it was ‘a passion project’ to build the replica of a historical cave. Alyssa Currie, executive director of the Tse’K’wa Heritage Society, says she always had a fondness for the nearly century old building toy, created in the 1930s in Denmark. “I have two young nephews who have recently graduated from [toddler blocks] Duplo to Lego,” said Currie. “I’ve been using [them] as an excuse to buy Lego toys for myself. “It has reignited my love of Lego. [I am] really enjoying the creative and imaginative play that comes with this toy.” With this in mind, she knew just what she wanted...
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Accusations over trade dispute dominate first day of Manitoba legislature sitting
By Steve Lambert -CP-Politicians accused each other of failing to stand up against U.S. tariffs Wednesday as the Manitoba legislature reconvened after a winter break. Josh Guenter, a member of the Opposition Progressive Conservatives, pointed to a recent opinion poll by Ipsos-Reid that suggested 43 per cent of people aged 18 to 34 would consider annexation if offered U.S. citizenship and conversion of Canadian financial assets to U.S. dollars. “Today, Canadian household debt is 85 per cent higher than American household debt, and the average Canadian earns 30 per cent less than his American counterpart,” Guenter said. “No wonder then, that so many Canadians have lost hope and a recent poll showed that 43 per cent of Canadians of my generation see no issue with becoming American. I love Canada...
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Yukon says cyanide-contaminated water may have been released at mine cleanup
-CP-The Yukon government says it has been informed of an “unauthorized discharge of cyanide-impacted water” at the site of last summer’s mine disaster north of Mayo. An update from the government says the court-appointed receiver running the cleanup operation at the Eagle Gold mine says a pipe leak was identified on Feb. 17. The government says the receiver initiated repairs and originally believed the water hadn’t spilled from a lined containment area, so didn’t immediately report it. Officials now estimate that about 150,000 litres of the contaminated water may have been released into the environment. The government says water quality data collected at nearby Haggart Creek on Feb. 17 and 18 found elevated cyanide, cobalt, copper and nitrite close to the mine site, but that returned to previous levels within...
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Another earthquake felt on B.C.’s south coast, third in two weeks
-CP-Another earthquake has shaken Victoria, becoming at least the third felt in British Columbia’s capital in less than two weeks. Earthquakes Canada says the magnitude 3.9 earthquake occurred about 58 kilometres south of Victoria, at 4:18 p.m. on Wednesday. It says the quake was 42 kilometres deep and was centred near the end of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. The agency says the tremor was “lightly felt” in Victoria and there are no reports of damage. It’s the latest in a series of earthquakes for the south coast, including a 4.7 magnitude tremor on Feb. 21 that was widely felt in major population centres including Victoria and Vancouver. On Monday, a magnitude 4.1 earthquake woke up some residents of Victoria early in the morning. This report by The Canadian...
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Feds create Indigenous safe space on Parliament Hill
By Marc Lalonde, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter In the interest of creating a national space for Indigenous people on Canada’s Parliamentary district, the federal government signed a letter of intent and collaboration framework Tuesday that the government says will solidify the permanent First Nations, Inuit and Métis presence in the heart of the Parliamentary Precinct. The letter of intent was signed by Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami President Natan Obed, and Metis National Council President Victoria Pruden. The space, located at 100 Wellington Street and 119 Sparks Street, is in the heart of the Parliamentary Precinct in Ottawa and is expected to provide a place for Indigenous governments, institutions and organizations to conduct intergovernmental meetings and host events,...
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The Latest: Trump grants monthlong exemption for US automakers from new tariffs on imports
-CP-President Donald Trump is granting a one-month exemption on his stiff new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada for U.S. automakers, as worries persist that the newly launched trade war could crush domestic manufacturing. Mayors from four major cities testified Wednesday in Congress as Republicans take aim at “sanctuary cities,” arguing that they impede the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda and protect people who are in the United States illegally. And a federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from drastically cutting medical research funding that many scientists say will endanger patients and cost jobs. Here’s the latest: Justice Department opens investigation into antisemitism at the University of California The U.S. Department of Justice says it has opened a civil rights investigation into claims that the University of California...
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CP NewsAlert: Manitoba Tories apologize to victims’ families in landfill search case
By Brittany Hobson -CP-The interim leader of Manitoba’s Progressive Conservatives has apologized to the families of two slain First Nations women for declining to search a landfill for their remains. Wayne Ewasko made the apology in the house to the families of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran, following last week’s discovery of potential human remains at the Winnipeg-area landfill. Ewasko says the party acted without empathy and lost its way in providing closure to the families. It’s believed the remains of Harris and Myran ended up at the landfill in May 2022. The Progressive Conservatives were in government at the time, and the families presented them with a feasibility study for a search after police refused due to safety concerns. The Tories later cited the same reasons for not moving...
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Chiefs of Ontario, Nishnawbe Aski Nation Defending First Nations Economic Rights Amid U.S Tariffs
By Lynda Powless Editor Some Indigenous organizations across Canada have begun cutting business trips to the U.S. other Indigenous business owners are sourcing out made in Canada suppliers while the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and two of Ontario’s largest First Nation organizations are defending First Nations Economic Rights in wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff hit. U.S. President Trump’s 25 per cent tariff on imports has hit on all imports from Canada and Mexico into the U.S.. Assembly of First Nations National (AFN) Chief Cindy Woodhouse is warning First Nations need to be at any table discussing American tariffs. She said Trump tariffs affecting natural resources need First Nations at the table. Trump’s announcement comes as provinces are looking to ramp up resource extraction, including oil, natural gas and...
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The Latest: The world reacts to Trump’s ‘swift and unrelenting action’ as president
-CP-President Donald Trump vowed more “swift and unrelenting action” reorienting the nation’s economy, immigration and foreign policy in an unyielding address before Congress as Democratic lawmakers showed their dissent with placards calling out “lies.” One elderly congressman faces possible censure after he was ejected for shaking his cane and shouting that Trump has no mandate to cut Medicaid. The fallout continues after Trump launched a trade war Tuesday against America’s three biggest trading partners, drawing immediate retaliation from Mexico, Canada and China and sending financial markets into a tailspin as the U.S. faced the threat of rekindled inflation and paralyzing uncertainty for business. And Greenland’s prime minister declared Wednesday that “Greenland is ours” and cannot be taken or bought in defiance of a message from Trump, who said that while...
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Haida Nation signs first-of-its-kind Aboriginal title agreement with Canada
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The Haida Nation and the Government of Canada signed a historical agreement on Feb. 17, affirming Haida Aboriginal title on Haida Gwaii, including the islands’ land, beds of freshwater bodies, and foreshores to the low-tide mark. President of the Haida Nation Gaagwiis Jason Alsop said the milestone Chiix̲uujin/Chaaw K̲aawgaa “Big Tide (Low Water)” Agreement, which was initiated in 1913 by past Haida leaders, ushers in a new era of peaceful co-existence. “The recognition of Haida title to Haida Gwaii by Canada acknowledges historic injustices and illustrates the transformative possibilities of working together for what is right. It takes leadership to recognize a wrong, begin the process of healing from a troubled history, and trust in the ability to forge a new relationship based...
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Minister eyes 2031 completion date for Nunavut fibre internet project
By Jeff Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Four Nunavut communities could get high-speed fibre optic internet in about six years, says Community and Government Services Minister David Joanasie. Once completed, the project would connect Iqaluit, Kimmirut, Kinngait and Coral Harbour to Nunavik’s Tamaani Internet network via an underwater cable near Salluit. “It’s going to take a couple of years to link up all the communities,” Joanasie said in an interview Monday. “Our current timeline to get everything done, according to our statement of work, we’re looking at up until 2031 to have it completed by.” The CRTC announced last year it conditionally approved $271.9 million for the project. One condition was that Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., which is responsible for ensuring obligations made to Nunavut Inuit under the Nunavut...
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Alberta Firefighting support boosted at community level
By George Lee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Macleod Gazette The government is throwing fuel on the firefighting in Alberta communities this year to bolster public safety. More support for training and response is being combined with enhanced collaboration to “help keep Albertans and their communities safe,” said Tany Yao, the UCP member for Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo. The government is providing $585,000 to support municipal fire services and the Alberta Fire Chiefs Association. The funding is earmarked for service improvements to training, governance, local supports and other areas. A one-time increase of $500,000 goes to the province’s program of fire services training, bringing the grant total to $1 million this year. The money is available to all municipalities, Métis settlements and First Nations. “Emergency situations bring an uncertainty that can...
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Canada is now in a trade war with the U.S. — here’s what you need to know to prepare for it
By Xiaodan Pan, Associate, Benny Mantin and Martin Dresner United States President Donald Trump has officially imposed 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, sending shockwaves through Canadian consumers and businesses. The decision escalates tensions in an increasingly fragile relationship between the countries, marking a significant shift in North American economic ties. The unfolding trade war between is expected to have far-reaching consequences for people and businesses on both sides of the border. How can Canadians navigate the trade war and minimize the financial strain of the tariffs? As experts in supply chain management, we aim to break down the impact of these tariffs and offer practical strategies for Canadians to help navigate the economic turbulence ahead. How consumers react to trade wars When the news of a...
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