B.C.’s Forests Ministry told to protect cultural sites, First Nation’s water source
-CP-The Forest Practices Board says the British Columbia government “did not follow the law” when it approved range use plans that near the Halfway River First Nation’s watershed and at its culturally significant sites. The nation complained to the board in 2023 about grazing livestock being allowed to damage the sites, while displacing wildlife in its territory in northeastern B.C. The board says in a statement that it also found problems with the government investigation of the nation’s complaint about its drinking water being safe, and it urged B.C.’s Natural Resource Officer Service to review its probe into cattle being allowed to gather near the Halfway River. Keith Atkinson, chair of the Forest Practices Board, which also oversees range use, says the Forest Ministry had two range agreement holders in...
Register
Delight in Arviat as Inuit Child First initiative extended
By Darrell Greer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Kivalliq News Good news is always certain to put a smile on people’s faces. Arviat Mayor Joe Savikataaq Jr. said he was pleasantly surprised when news came down that the Inuit Child First Initiative had been extended for another year. He wasn’t too optimistic for awhile because no one knew what was going on and no information was being released about the program, he said. “Parliament was prorogued and still is prorogued (as of last week) but now, among many announcements made, we find out the program will be continued for another year,” said Savikataaq. “That’s definitely very good news for Arviat. Any money that you get for the community, no matter where it’s coming from or what purpose it’s for: it’s always...
Register
CBS’ ’60 Minutes’ is unflinching in its White House coverage in the shadow of Trump’s $20B lawsuit
By David Bauder NEW YORK (AP) — As CBS corporate leaders ponder settling President Donald Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit against the network’s “60 Minutes,” America’s storied newsmagazine has produced some fast and hard-hitting stories critical of the new administration in every episode since Trump was inaugurated. The latest was Sunday, when CBS News helped pay for a performance featuring non-white middle and high school musicians who had won a contest and with it, the right to play with the U.S. Marine Corps Band. The original concert, however, was canceled because of Trump’s executive order ending diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Correspondent Scott Pelley narrated six of the show’s seven stories since Trump’s inauguration, including Sunday’s. He examined the administration’s policies toward Ukraine and tariffs, looked at changes in the Justice...
Register
Seven sacred teachings: NL Indigenous artist uses painting to pass down knowledge
By Anasophie Vallee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Telegram An Indigenous artist from NL is using her artwork to share her knowledge. “I was in my twenties before I learned about the Seven Sacred Teachings, and now I live by them faithfully,” explained Brittany Wiseman. Wiseman is the Mi’kmaq artist commissioned by the Miawpukek Mi’kamawey Mawi’omi to create a piece of artwork for the Confederation Building. The artwork, titled “Powwow Serenity,” illustrates the Seven Sacred Teachings with corresponding images on each wigwam in the background. It was unveiled at a ceremony on March 15. The Seven Sacred Teachings The Seven Sacred Teachings, or Teachings of the Seven Grandfathers, are a set of guiding principles on human conduct towards others, including love, respect, courage, honesty, wisdom, humility, and truth. “I decided...
Register
Carney hopes recovering remains from Winnipeg landfill bring families closure
-CP-Prime Minister Mark Carney says he hopes recovering the remains of two First Nations women murdered by a serial killer from a Manitoba landfill brings closure to their families. RCMP have confirmed two sets of remains discovered at the Prairie Green landfill in the past month belong to Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran. A search of the Winnipeg-area landfill began in December in the hopes of finding the two women killed in 2022 by Jeremy Skibicki. He was convicted last year of first-degree murder in the slayings of Harris, Myran and two other Indigenous women. A trial heard that he targeted them at homeless shelters in Winnipeg and disposed of their bodies in garbage bins. Carney says he wanted to recognize the gruesome discovery and pay tribute to the women’s...
Register
Land defenders appeal sentences, arguing judge erred during Trans Mountain pipeline trial
By Aaron Hemens, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews Three land defenders who were convicted for opposing the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion (TMX) in Secwépemcúl’ecw are appealing their sentences. During a hearing in “Vancouver” earlier this month, a lawyer representing the trio asked the B.C. Court of Appeal to re-examine their convictions, arguing their sentencing judge had made a series of unfair errors against them during their trial. Benjamin Isitt said the appellants — Secwépemc land defender April Thomas, Nlaka’pamux land defender Red Deer Billie Pierre, and settler-ally Romilly Cavanaugh, a former TMX worker — were upholding Indigenous law when they were arrested. “They believe they had legal duties in these circumstances,” Isitt told a three-judge appeal panel on March 3, “arising from Secwépemc and Nlakaʼpamux laws to protect the sacred...
Register
Carney announces plans to boost Canada’s military footprint in the Arctic
By Kyle Duggan Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that Ottawa will expand the Canadian Armed Forces’ presence in the Arctic and turn to Australia’s over-the-horizon radar tech to monitor threats from adversaries such as China and Russia. Carney also pledged $253 million in new funding for Indigenous reconciliation initiatives in the North. They include $94 million to upgrade power plants in Nunavut and $20 million for a hydroelectricity project to help move northerners off diesel. Carney made the announcements during a short stopover in Iqaluit on the return leg of his first official trip abroad, during which the prime minister met with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Carney is widely expected to trigger an early election in the coming weeks or days. The Liberal...
Register
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government terminates consumer carbon price
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, whose rallying cry of “axe the tax” had him riding high in the polls says Carneyneeds to recall Parliament to repeal law By Sarah Ritchie Prime Minister Mark Carney’s first move after taking office on Friday was to eliminate the consumer carbon price, undoing Justin Trudeau’s signature climate policy. Carney addressed members of the media after the Friday afternoon cabinet meeting, saying the government is “focused on action.” “We will be eliminating the Canada fuel charge, the consumer fuel charge, immediately, immediately,” he said. The decision note Carney signed in front of cabinet ministers and the press actually stipulates that the “the fuel charge be removed as of April 1, 2025.” That’s when the price was scheduled to rise again. Instead, it will be eliminated for...
Register
NDP addresses hopes for new session during Prince Albert visit
By Michael Oleksyn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Prince Albert Daily Herald The next session of the Saskatchewan Legislature is set to begin soon and the Official Opposition NDP was in Prince Albert on Saturday to plan for it. NDP MLAs met at the Ches Leach Lounge in the Art Hauser Centre on Saturday ahead of the next session of the Legislature, which begins on Wednesday. Leader Carla Beck told reporters the party has been anxious to return to the Legislature. Beck said they discussed several matters they hope to address in the new session. “The tariffs and the impact to people here, folks locally in in Prince Albert, but right across the province, that’s incredibly important,” Beck said. “It’s top of mind, I think, for most people right now.” In...
Register
NASA’s stuck astronauts are finally on their way back to Earth after 9 months in space
By Marcia Dunn CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s two stuck astronauts headed back to Earth with SpaceX on Tuesday to close out a dramatic marathon mission that began with a bungled Boeing test flight more than nine months ago. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams bid farewell to the International Space Station — their home since last spring — departing aboard a SpaceX capsule alongside two other astronauts. The capsule undocked in the wee hours and aimed for a splashdown off the Florida coast by early evening, weather permitting. The two expected to be gone just a week or so after launching on Boeing’s new Starliner crew capsule on June 5. So many problems cropped up on the way to the space station that NASA eventually sent Starliner back empty...
Register
Turning medical travel costs program over to Ottawa an ‘option’: Health minister
With federal funding for a program covering Nunavut Inuit’s medical travel costs set to end at the end of this month, Health Minister John Main says turning administration of it back to Ottawa remains an “option.” “Time’s running out,” Main said March 11 of the Non-Insured Health Benefits program during an interview. “We really want to have an agreement in place [with Indigenous Services Canada] so we can plan properly, so we don’t have this huge gap or a huge hole in our budget.” The NIHB is funded by Indigenous Services Canada and administered by the Government of Nunavut. For Inuit in Nunavut, the program covers costs for medical travel and services including vision and dental care. Main also suggested the possibility of turning administration of the program over to...
Register
Report highlights how communities hardest hit by climate change can build resilient water systems
By Dorany Pineda -AP-Malynndra Tome was helping to map livestock ponds in the Navajo Nation when she saw something that inspired her to act. An elderly woman was filling milk jugs with water at the back of a gas station in the Native American reservation, where about 30% of people live without running water. “How can we be living in the United States of America … one of the most powerful countries in the world, and people are living like this here?” asked Tome, a citizen who grew up in the community of Ganado, Arizona, in the nation’s largest Native American reservation at 27,000 square miles (69,930 square kilometers) in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. A report published Tuesday identifies ways historically neglected communities most vulnerable to climate change, like...
Register
First Nation gets village site back from pulp company on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast
-CP-The Tla’amin First Nation and forestry giant Domtar have reached an agreement for the nation to reacquire a large portion of a historic village site along the B.C. Sunshine Coast. The nation and Domtar issued a joint statement saying the two sides took part in a ceremony to sign the agreement that was the result of years of work. The nation says the village, called tiskwat, holds both historical and current significance to its people. The agreement involves a large section of Domtar’s former paper mill site in Powell River, B.C., and the nation says it plans to manage part of the land for cultural and environmental values, but will also develop some of it for industry. The Tla’amin says it wants to ensure the lands will also continue to...
Register
Second set of remains found at Manitoba landfill confirmed as Marcedes Myran
By Brittany Hobson A second set of remains found in a Winnipeg-area landfill have been identified as Marcedes Myran, who died at the hands of a serial killer in 2022, RCMP said Monday. The news came after one set of remains found during a search of the Prairie Green landfill was confirmed earlier this month to belong to another victim, Morgan Harris. Myran’s family has been notified, the government said in a news release announcing the findings. “Marcedes Myran we honour you,” Premier Wab Kinew said on social media after the announcement. A search of the landfill began in December for Harris and Myran, and the government announced in late February that possible remains had been discovered. Jeremy Skibicki was convicted last year of first-degree murder in the killing of...
Register
MLA wants to help bring 5-year-old girl’s remains back to Fort Smith
By Tom Taylor, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, NWT News/North MLA Richard Edjericon shared a heartbreaking story about a young Indigenous girl named Alma during the Feb. 25 session of the legislative assembly. Alma, he explained, was born in Fort Smith, but was moved to St. Joseph’s residential school in Fort Resolution, where she died at just five years old. “Alma’s mother went to meet the boat from Fort Resolution at the dock in Fort Smith,” Edjericon said. “When Alma didn’t get off the boat, Alma’s mother asked the other children why Alma wasn’t there, and she was told that the nuns said that she has gone to heaven.” Alma’s death was attributed to tuberculosis, according to Edjericon, though it is not certain that was actually the cause. Whatever the case,...
Register
AMC accuses Ottawa of child neglect
By Connor McDowell, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Brandon Sun The leaders of First Nations across the province accused Ottawa this week of neglecting children, following recent changes the federal government made to a children’s aid program. The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs put out a statement on Friday saying there is ongoing failure toward First Nations children through Jordan’s Principle. The assembly asserted that children’s lives and rights are being jeopardized as requests through the program face delays and a lack of clarity about the future. “There is so much that’s changing right now, and we have no correspondence that speaks to what Canada is doing,” AMC Grand Chief Kyra Wilson told the Sun Friday. “Right now, we’re not getting any answers from Canada … about the future of Jordan’s Principle.” The...
Register
MLA wants to help bring 5-year-old girl’s remains back to Fort Smith
By Tom Taylor, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, NWT News/North MLA Richard Edjericon shared a heartbreaking story about a young Indigenous girl named Alma during the Feb. 25 session of the legislative assembly. Alma, he explained, was born in Fort Smith, but was moved to St. Joseph’s residential school in Fort Resolution, where she died at just five years old. “Alma’s mother went to meet the boat from Fort Resolution at the dock in Fort Smith,” Edjericon said. “When Alma didn’t get off the boat, Alma’s mother asked the other children why Alma wasn’t there, and she was told that the nuns said that she has gone to heaven.” Alma’s death was attributed to tuberculosis, according to Edjericon, though it is not certain that was actually the cause. Whatever the case,...
Register
Carney, Macron vow to strengthen ties to tackle geopolitical, economic crises
By Kyle Duggan -CP-Canada must strengthen ties with France and other allies in the face of geopolitical and economic crises, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday in France. Making opening remarks in Paris before a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Carney stressed both countries’ shared values of sovereignty, solidarity and sustainability. “Those are values that we hold dear, and unite us,” he said, noting that the French language defines the identity and culture in each country. He said France and Canada have been reliable partners for centuries, and are now committed to “unwavering support” for Ukraine. Carney also said Canada and France know that economic co-operation, not confrontation, will help build strong economies. This is Carney’s first in-person meeting with an international leader as prime minister. Macron called Canada...
Register
“The height of arrogance:” professor calls out Bill 6, Houston’s dismissal of provincewide movement to ban fracking, uranium exploration
By Lauren Phillips, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Coast “Let’s not mince words,” Jonathan Langdon tells The Coast. “Anybody who tells you that the evidence around fracking has changed–that it’s more healthy, that it’s safer–this goes against all the studies up-to-date which show the health risks are the same or more acute than they were 10 years ago when we put this ban in place.” Langdon is a development studies professor at St. Francis Xavier University and a Canada Research Chair in Sustainability and Social Change Leadership. He’s concerned about a new provincial bill–Bill 6, or An Act Respecting Agriculture, Energy and Natural Resources–that would overturn longstanding bans on fracking and uranium exploration and mining if passed. Langdon was part of the groundswell movement leading to the provincial ban on...
Register
New curriculum coming to Nunavut schools this fall
By Jeff Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Some Nunavut students will be learning from a new academic curriculum starting this fall. Education Minister Pamela Gross announced the rollout of the territory’s new kindergarten to Grade 6 curriculum on March 11 at the legislative assembly. “This is an important milestone in supporting the vision of our elementary education system,” Gross said. “The content developed in the made-in-Nunavut curriculum will help ensure that what students learn in schools is reflective of and applicable to the lived experiences and realities of Nunavummiut and responsive to students, families and communities.” The new curriculum has been in the works since 2018. Its development included consultations with Inuit elders, educators, language specialists and knowledge keepers, Gross said, without going into detail about what’s in...
Register
