Thunder Bay 36 largest wildfire in Ontario history — by far
By Mike Stimpson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, SNnewswatch.com THUNDER BAY — There’s no end in sight to Whitesand First Nation’s evacuation, Chief Lawrence Wanakamik said Thursday. “But we’ll see next week,” Wanakamik told Newswatch as First Nation members continued to shelter in a south-side Thunder Bay hotel. The chief said he heard earlier this week from band members who are still on the reserve next to Armstrong, and they said all buildings there are still standing. Whitesand and Armstrong, about 220 kilometres north of the city, evacuated last week as a raging forest fire neared the communities. The blaze, which has merged with other wildfires and is now labelled Thunder Bay 36, remains out of control and spans nearly 320,000 hectares — making it not just the largest wildfire of...
Register
Parents in pain as Manitoba lake search continues for boy after brother’s body found
The parents of two boys swept into fast-moving rapids in a Manitoba lake say they’re in unimaginable pain as the search for one son enters its sixth day. Aaron Au Ramirez, 13, and his brother Maximo Au Ramirez, 10, disappeared into Nutimik Lake in Whiteshell Provincial Park on Saturday. Maximo’s body was recovered Wednesday evening after a boat on the water discovered it near Sturgeon Falls Trail. Haidee Ramirez and Roger Au thanked the countless volunteers and search organizations that have combed the water and shorelines or have provided the two with “hugs, prayers and hope.” “What we’ve gone through is not humanly possible to understand. We’re surviving only because of the help of those around us,” the parents said in a statement that was read to media on Thursday...
Register
OPP shuts down “Project Time” 63 people arrested in major Ontario Child Exploitation ring
By Alex Murray Writer A province-wide multi-agency probe into child exploitation in Ontario resulted in charges being laid against 63 people and the identification of 51 victims. The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) announced the charges on Wednesday (July 22). The joint initiative, called “Project Time,” includes 25 other police services and was executed through the Provincial Internet Child Exploitation Strategy (PICES). Project Time is a coordinated provincial effort to target individuals making, possessing, and distributing child sexual abuse material. OPP said identified victims were safeguarded and given the appropriate support. All told, Project Time resulted in 213 charges and the seizure of 814 electronic devices. 264 criminal investigations were conducted, with 154 still ongoing. The investigation found that two of the accused were people that were in a position of...
Register
Sussex well project part of $7.27M federal, N.B. infrastructure spend
By Andrew Bates, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Telegraph-Journal Drilling work has begun on a proposed new well for Ward 2 in Sussex as the provincial and federal governments announced they are contributing to the $1.68-million project. The new well is a replacement for two deteriorated wells in Ward 2, the former Village of Sussex Corner. On Wednesday, July 15, the province announced that four projects, including Sussex’s well proposal, were receiving a total of in $7.27 million in federal and provincial housing infrastructure cash. Sussex CAO Jason Thorne told Brunswick News the next day that the funding was confirmed in December for phases two and three of the project. It amounts to about $840,000 in federal funding through the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund and about $559,000 in provincial funding through...
Register
Indigenous riders try out free transit, EV use in Vancouver project
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer Lana Putnam was already doing something that made her feel small: climbing onto a Vancouver bus without fare money and hoping to get where she was going before anyone noticed. Then she tripped. Putnam, a 70-year-old Cree Elder, was carrying her belongings when she fell in front of the other passengers. She wasn’t helped up; she was scolded. “Some of the people were saying, ‘Everybody pays,’” she said. “Instead of being worried about my fall.” Putnam’s experience is what a new clean-mobility pilot program in Vancouver is trying to address: how to make everyday travel more affordable and usable for lower-income urban Indigenous residents in one of Canada’s most expensive cities while also cutting transportation emissions. In Metro Vancouver, a...
Register
AFN rejects Newfoundland’s claims on Innu presence in Labrador
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) has rejected the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s position on Innu history, standing in solidarity with the Innu Nation. Francis Verreault-Paul, AFN regional chief for Quebec and Labrador, stressed the personal impacts this resolution has on him in a press release. “As a proud Innu, I understood from the beginning that this fight was never about one Nation alone; it was about all First Nations,” Verreault-Paul said. “The powerful and inspiring words of Elder Elizabeth Penashue showed that our history belongs to us. The resolution, titled “Reject Efforts to Control First Nations Histories and Undermine Rights Recognition,” was unanimously passed during the AFN’s Annual General Assembly in Ottawa last week. The resolution was drafted in response...
Register
MCK looking for decision-maker for Administrative Tribunal
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) Justice Services Division has opened a call for applications for a new decision-maker to join its Administrative Tribunal. According to MCK’s Justice Commissioner Kevin Fleischer, this recruitment is part of a new initiative to review government decisions more effectively. “Our administrative tribunal, I believe, is the first comprehensive administrative tribunal in a First Nations community in the country,” Fleischer said. The decision-maker will oversee the regulation and application of Kahnawake’s laws, policies and procedures. “The administrative tribunal could best be thought of as an administrative court… what sets an administrative tribunal aside is that it’s meant to be more efficient, more economical and more user friendly,” Fleischer said. The Administrative Tribunal began operating last spring following...
Register
Connecting to Indigenous roots takes more than just showing up with a status card and DNA, author says
By Shari Narine, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Jenn Ashton is clear: Growing My Way Home: Stories of Resilience and Care may be classified as an autobiographical fiction, but it is her true story. The abuse, the time as a runaway and in juvie, the broken marriages, the miscarriages, the drugs and alcohol abuse are all what she lived. The fiction part comes in how she connects the pieces of her life. “There’s a lot of people out there who don’t like the term autofiction because it seems like a lie and they don’t know which parts are real and which parts aren’t. So, I always want to start off by saying the book is real,” said Ashton, who is a “status Indian” with Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Nation in British Columbia....
Register
FGCA fills in the gap training seed collectors
By Meg Deak, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Woolwich Observer Do you know where the trees growing at greenhouses come from? The obvious answer is seeds; the less obvious part is where those seeds are sourced. “People just think of seeds as magic that shows up. You can go to the nursery and buy an ornamental tree and put it in your lawn, but they have no idea where that tree came from,” said Darren Derbowka, coordinator at the National Tree Seed Centre. The backbone of the tree seed industry has always been seed collectors, who search an area to track, identify, and harvest seed. In Ontario, reforestation projects and greenhouses depend on seed collectors; however, according to the Forest Gene Conservation Association (FGCA), there is currently a shortage of these...
Register
First Nations chief leading charge to reverse Etsy ban
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Chief Jenny Brake of Qalipu First Nation in Newfoundland and Labrador is hoping there is still time for the globally popular marketplace Etsy to reverse an upcoming ban. Brake is spearheading a call for the suspension of an Etsy decision that would ban the sale of natural fur products from its site effective Aug. 11. Brake was hoping to introduce a resolution at the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) Annual General Assembly to advocate for the reversal or suspension of the ban. But the resolution, among others, did not make it to the floor due to time constraints at the three-day assembly, which concluded July 16 in Ottawa. Brake is now hoping the AFN passes the resolution at an upcoming meeting of...
Register
Canada’s aerial firefighting system is too slow, and front-line communities are paying the cost
By John Gradek Recently, as hundreds of fires burned across Northern Ontario and smoke pushed Toronto’s air quality to among the worst on the planet, Canada’s minister of emergency management defended Ottawa’s response and said, in effect, that nothing went wrong. In the same news cycle, Ontario’s minister of emergency preparedness sent a letter asking the federal government to guarantee that aircraft and crews could be deployed on less than 24 hours’ notice. However, a request for pre-agreed 24-hour readiness is, by definition, evidence that such readiness does not currently exist. You don’t ask for something you already have. In early June, I wrote in The Conversation Canada that Canada’s decision to lease a fleet of 10 firefighting aircraft for the 2026 wildfire season was a useful beginning but not...
Register
Indigenous veterans fought for country, but were mistreated after service new book recounts
By Shari Narine, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Lynn Gehl was in her thirties when she finally started to learn the story of her great-grandfather Joseph Gagnon from Golden Lake Reserve (now known as Pikwakanagan First Nation) in Ontario. In Joseph Gagnon: An Algonquin World War 1 Veteran, Gehl outlines the way her great-grandfather suffered from discrimination when it came to Canada’s implementation of policies for Indigenous veterans. “I reconnected with my grandmother and her brother Gordon, and they told me where (Joseph) was buried and they told me that he didn’t have a gravestone,” said Gehl. In accordance with the Last Post Fund, which has been in place since 1909, no veteran is to be denied a “dignified funeral and burial, as well as a military gravestone, due to insufficient...
Register
Aerial photos show devastation of Ontario First Nation as wildfires burn across north
By Kathryn Mannie Aerial photographs taken above Namaygoosisagagun First Nation show the devastation wrought by a fast-moving wildfire that forced residents to flee last week as flames closed in on their northern Ontario community. The photos show scorched earth and debris where buildings once stood, and the charred remnants of trees. Anishinabek Nation Grand Council Chief Linda Debassige said last week that more than 30 homes, a school and community centres were reduced to ashes as Namaygoosisagagun, also known as Collins First Nation, was swallowed by fire. The residents fled without help from the province. Dramatic photos and videos of their evacuation showed people escaping on boats as a huge wall of smoke and flames rose behind them. “My members barely escaped with the clothes on their backs. My community...
Register
B.C. murder suspect acquitted, confession tossed for ‘degrading’ police treatment
By Darryl Greer A British Columbia man accused of murdering his common-law wife has been acquitted after a judge threw out a confession she says was tainted by the suspect’s “degrading and humiliating” treatment by police. The judge found homicide investigators forced Frederick Charlie, an Indigenous man, to change clothes in front of officers who knew he wasn’t wearing underwear and placed him in a cell with an undercover officer who deliberately urinated on himself in front of Charlie. Charlie’s subsequent statements to police about the April 2024 killing of Vanessa Terry near Agassiz, B.C., were ruled inadmissible by the judge earlier this month, and the ruling was released on Wednesday. The B.C. Prosecution Service said Charlie was found not guilty on Monday in his...
Register
Grey Highlands narrowly approves creation of Indigenous land acknowledgement
By Chris Fell, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, CollingwoodToday.ca By the narrowest of margins, Grey Highlands council has approved starting the process to create an Indigenous land acknowledgement for the municipality. At its meeting on July 22, council approved a resolution brought forward by Coun. Nadia Dubyk that directed staff to consult with local Indigenous community groups to develop a formal land acknowledgement to be read at meetings and events. The resolution turned out to be a controversial topic that generated a 30-minute discussion and was barely approved in a 4-3 vote with Dubyk, Deputy Mayor Dane Nielsen and Councillors Joel Loughead and Tom Allwood in favour. Mayor Paul McQueen and Councillors Paul Allen and Dan Wickens voted against. Land acknowledgements are a formal statement...
Register
Siksika Nation expresses concerns over lack of consultation regarding potential data centre
By John Watson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Strathmore Times Chief Sam Crowfoot of Siksika Nation is expressing concern and dissent over the handling of Diode Venture’s proposed data centre for construction in Wheatland County. He explained that despite promises to do so, Siksika Nation has not been formally engaged in the discussion yet, and though the proposed data centre is off reserve, it is still within traditional territory, and their realm of concern. “I know they (Wheatland County) are following their own processes on their own schedule and own timeline, but we need to make sure that we are not left behind in these discussions … we want to make sure that any type of development in the area is sustainable,” he said. Crowfoot emphasized the realities and challenges of...
Register
Manitoba Premier Kinew ‘willing to entertain’ Alberta to Ontario pipeline
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said Wednesday he’s open to a west-east pipeline being pitched by his counterparts in Alberta and Ontario. Kinew, speaking to reporters at a meeting of premiers in Charlottetown, said the pipeline could make Canada stronger and that there are workers in his province who would be eager to help build it. “I love Alberta, I love Albertans, so (I’m) willing to entertain the idea,” he said. The pipeline proposal was announced earlier this month by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford. The line would stretch 3,300 kilometres from Hardisty, Alta., to refineries in Sarnia, Ont., going through Saskatchewan and Manitoba and not crossing into the U.S. Smith and Ford have said it would move 500,000 barrels of crude per day and reduce Canada’s...
Register
How Kelsey Olsen Built Michif Makers Into a Home for Métis Artists
By Chevi Rabbit, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News What began as a practical way to pay off a car loan has grown into a thriving collective where Métis artists support one another, share their culture, and create opportunities for future generations. For Métis artist Kelsey Olsen, the beginnings of Michif Makers were surprisingly ordinary. “I started it because I have a really high loan on my car and I wanted to pay my car off early,” Olsen said. “That’s what started it.” At the time, she was working in a position where she didn’t feel her experience and knowledge were being fairly valued. “I also was working a job where I wasn’t necessarily being paid in the way that I felt was fair for the amount of knowledge...
Register
Herb Nakimayak elected Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada president
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Herb Nakimayak, from Paulatuk, was elected president of Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) Canada by its 13 leadership members on July 21 in Iqaluit. Nakimayak, who has served as interim president since September 2025, received 11 votes to defeat challenger Kilikvak Kabloona, who garnered two votes. Nakimayak is expected to serve as president until the next scheduled election in 2030. ICC Canada is the Canadian chapter of the international organization representing Inuit, which includes peoples in Russia (Chukotka), Alaska, the Northwest Territories (Inuvialuit), Nunavut, Northern Quebec (Nunavik), Labrador (Nunatsiavut) and Greenland. Nakimayak said he won the election by managing the organization through a turbulent period when the Arctic was becoming a global flashpoint. “The way the geopolitics are in this world,...
Register
Officials say 180 fires continue to burn in northern Ontario
Officials with Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources put the active number of wildfires burning in the north at 180, with seven new blazes sparked yesterday. Aerial photographs have shown the devastation in one northern Ontario First Nation as a wildfire tore through the region last week. The photos show scorched earth and debris where buildings once stood in Namaygoosisagagun First Nation, also known as Collins First Nation, whose residents fled without help from the province. First Nations leaders have said the Ontario government left communities to fend for themselves without timely support for evacuations, and are calling for a public inquiry into the provincial response to the wildfires that continue to devastate swaths of forest. Earlier this week, Premier Doug Ford said his government did everything it could to respond...
Register
