Seaweed farming offers climate benefits, but regulatory gaps pose risks
By John Driscoll, Adjunct Professor, University of British Columbia and Edward Gregr, Adjunct Professor, Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, University of British Columbia From sea lettuce adorning tidal pools and bull kelp left in windrows at the high tide line to towering underwater forests of giant kelp providing refuge and food for countless species, British Columbia’s seaweeds are both ubiquitously prominent along shorelines as well as hidden from sight in the deep. With iconic species like salmon, whales and bears dominating popular attention and imagination, B.C.’s seaweeds are often easy to overlook. Now, however, the province’s suitability for growing seaweed is attracting attention at a time when seaweed aquaculture is becoming recognized for its potential to yield many benefits. Our team recently reviewed how well-suited the province’s existing regulations...
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Court hears Alberta separatist group’s plea for stay of referendum petition ruling
By Jack Farrell An Alberta Court of Appeal hearing is underway for a separatist group’s attempt to have a ruling that quashed its referendum petition set aside. A judge ruled last month that the Stay Free Alberta petition shouldn’t have been issued and that Premier Danielle Smith’s government neglected its duty to consult First Nations. The petition called for a direct referendum question on the province quitting Canada. Jeff Rath, a lawyer for Stay Free Alberta, has applied for a stay of the ruling so that Elections Alberta can verify the petition’s signatures. The group submitted its petition in May claiming to have collected nearly 302,000 names. Both Rath and the provincial government are also appealing the judge’s decision. Smith has cited the ruling, the separatist petition and a pro-Canada...
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MPs pass spending bill, opt to head home for summer break
By Nick Murray and Sarah Ritchie The House of Commons will rise for the summer Thursday afternoon, after unanimously voting to push through some final pieces of legislation, including the government’s controversial lawful access bill. MPs will return Sept. 21. At a press conference outside the House of Commons on Thursday, Government House leader Steven MacKinnon faced many questions about the Liberals’ fast-tracking of C-22. “Every day matters in this place and a legislative achievement matters,” MacKinnon told reporters. “The Senate can now take this up as soon as they return.” Along with passing C-22 on division, the motion to adjourn for the summer also agreed to pass bill C-27 — the government’s formal recognition of Sahtu Dene and Métis self-governance in the N.W.T. MPs also agreed to adopt, on...
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MCK opposes Quebec’s proposed Bill 8
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) has publicly opposed Quebec’s proposed Bill 8, raising concerns about its potential impact on Indigenous peoples. MCK Grand Chief Cody Diabo stated that the proposed changes reflect broader legislative efforts to prioritize Quebec’s collective identity over minority rights and treaty obligations. “First Nations are distinct rights holders, not subject to unilateral provincial legislation affecting their language, education, or governance,” Diabo said. “While we’re not surprised, we remind the government that attempts to impose legislative barriers that restrict or disregard our right to self-determination… are not acceptable.” Bill 8 was tabled in the National Assembly last week. The proposed legislation would expand Quebec’s Charter of the French Language to include adult and vocational education programs, restricting English...
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Ottawa introduces Indigenous clean water legislation
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Iori:wase The federal government has introduced Bill C-37 in the House of Commons to address the national Indigenous clean drinking water crisis. Minister of Indigenous Services Canada Mandy Gull-Masty introduced the legislation, describing it as an important step toward resolving the clean drinking water crisis. “This is a time for action, with First Nations guiding the way,” Gull-Masty said. “For too long, many First Nations communities have gone without the protections that help keep drinking water safe. That needs to change. The proposed First Nations Clean Water Act would establish, for the first time, a legislative framework to support safe drinking water in First Nations communities, while recognizing First Nations jurisdiction over water on their lands and holding governments to account.” The proposed...
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‘We believe it’s possible to reach a compromise that keeps Bekanon Road accessible’: Henvey Inlet business launches petition on proposed interchange
By Shania Tabobondung , Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Parry Sound North Star After the Ministry of Transportation unveiled three additional redesigns of the Bekanon Road interchange as part of the four-lane expansion plans for Highway 69, the management of S.N. Gas & Convenience started a petition to keep the interchange in its earlier planned location. The proposal is to extend Highway 400 to the east of the current Highway 69 corridor. Plans dating back to 2016 were to extend Bekanon Road east to the Highway 400 interchange. The province is now proposing three new interchange options further north that would include a roadway to Bekanon Road. Currently, drivers come to a complete stop to exit Bekanon Road to enter Highway 69, at S.N. Gas & Convenience. Bekanon Road is the...
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Smith tells First Nations chiefs to ‘check themselves’ over treason accusation
By Jack Farrell Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says a group of Indigenous chiefs need to “check themselves,” after they accused her of potential treasonous activity for calling a separation vote. The Assembly of Treaty Chiefs, representing First Nations across Alberta, unanimously voted to ask the RCMP to look into whether the referendum amounts to criminal treason by Smith and her United Conservative Party. The chiefs say the fall referendum is an intentional violation of the treaty relationship and ignores risks to Canada’s sovereignty. Smith says the accusation is disgraceful. She says her government and the assembly have a collaborative relationship and she wants it to continue but that the chiefs’ language has no place in democracy. Albertans are to vote Oct. 19 on whether they want to remain in Canada...
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Candice St-Aubin named interim commissioner of Indigenous languages
By Alessia Passafiume A senior federal bureaucrat has been named the interim commissioner of Indigenous languages. Candice St-Aubin, a senior assistant deputy minister of strategic policy with Indigenous Services Canada, will serve in the role for 90 days or until a new commissioner is named. The federal order announcing the appointment says it will be effective as of July 13 — the day the current commissioner’s term is set to expire. The Canadian Press has asked the Canadian Heritage department, which oversees the arm’s-length office, when a permanent commissioner and directors will be appointed. The Canadian Press reported last month an audit is being conducted on the office tasked with helping to preserve at-risk Indigenous languages. Half a dozen sources, including former employees, told The Canadian Press that over the...
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New Arctic Waste Management Network Launches Under UCN Leadership
By Steven Sukkau, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Sun University College of the North has been selected to lead a new international network focused on improving solid waste management across Arctic communities. The institution announced it will serve as the lead organization for the newly established Thematic Network on Solid Waste Management in the Arctic under the umbrella of the University of the Arctic. The network was officially approved by the UArctic General Assembly on May 29 during meetings in Tórshavn, following a proposal review process and presentation by Dr. Anderson Assuah, an associate professor in UCN’s Aboriginal and Northern Studies department. Assuah will lead the international initiative, which aims to strengthen collaboration, research and knowledge-sharing around solid waste management challenges facing Arctic communities. “Communities in the Arctic face enormous...
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Manitoba Disability Services Failing Many, New Report Finds
By Steven Sukkau, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Sun A decade-long human rights battle led by two Manitobans has culminated in a sweeping call to rebuild the province’s disability services system from the ground up. The report, Equality, Dignity, and Belonging: Building a Better System for People with Disabilities in Manitoba, was released Tuesday and concludes that Manitoba’s current adult disability services framework is fragmented, inequitable and incompatible with basic human rights principles. The report is the final outcome of the Integrated Adult Services (IAS) Pilot Project, a provincewide initiative created as part of a 2021 settlement stemming from human rights complaints filed by Tyson Sylvester and Amelia Hampton against the Manitoba government and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. “This report shows that simply changing or tinkering with existing policies...
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Artist aspires to continue Squamish’s ‘cultural crossings’ with Scotland, in Indigenous-inspired exhibit
By Ina Pace, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Squamish Chief A local artist, heavily inspired by a Squamish Nation master carver’s work in the U.K., has opened a summer exhibit in Brackendale. Squamish and Scotland (in the U.K.) are more culturally interconnected than you might think. Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) master carver Xwalacktun (Rick Harry) helped carve 34 landmark totem poles across Scotland, visiting twice a year over the course of a 12- year cultural exchange project. The Scottish Pole Project began in the early 2000s when a Scottish woodworker (Kenny Grieve) visited the west coast of B.C. Grieve recruited a group of local carvers to support his workshop Brotus (in Fife) in creating traditional story telling through art. The group also included fellow Nation member Tawx’sin Yexwulla ( Aaron...
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Planned N.W.T. trauma healing lodge seeks steady operational funding
By Aastha Sethi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cabin Radio A group trying to create the Northwest Territories’ first trauma healing lodge says its work is advancing but stable operational funding is a barrier. At a briefing for MLAs this week, Endacho Healing Society founders Roy and Jean Erasmus said their project has moved beyond the conceptual stage and is now supported by pilot programming, a developed curriculum, and ongoing discussions with federal and territorial governments. Plans for the lodge have been years in the making. The proposed facility would operate as an eight-week trauma healing program that combines Indigenous land-based healing with clinical therapeutic approaches. Under the model outlined to MLAs, participants would first enter a 35-day stabilization period intended to support safe withdrawal management and early recovery. Roy Erasmus...
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Red, white and blue: A strategy for survival as Native Americans navigate 250 years of history
By Susan Montoya Bryan SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Swiftly marching toward westward expansion, the United States in the 1800s brought with it a tidal wave of displacement and cultural suppression for Native Americans. A century of broken treaties already had spawned distrust of the federal government, and widespread forced assimilation was accelerating. With shifting cultural and social circumstances came declining populations. Survival was hanging in the balance. Renowned for their masterful beadwork, Lakota women had a strategy. Incorporating symbols of American patriotism into their work was more than a simple embrace of the stars and stripes. It was an act of quiet resistance that provided an avenue for conserving their values as U.S. policies unraveled their communities. So with America’s 250th birthday come mixed emotions rooted in pain, pride...
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Security stepped up at satellite courts after fatal shooting
By Carrie Ivardi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, NWOnewswatch.com DRYDEN — Significant steps have been taken throughout the province to address courthouse security concerns in rural and remote communities. These steps followed an incident at a satellite court last summer when an OPP officer shot and killed 23-year-old Tyresse Roundsky in a Wapekeka courtroom. Dryden lawyer Karen Seeley said the new measures, which include “wanding” with handheld metal detectors, are very much related to the shooting. “Courthouse security has been an issue, not just as a result of Wapekeka but elsewhere as well,” Seeley said. “The province is taking steps across the province to address this and looking at single points of entries to courthouses, security, bringing in bag scanners, so those aren’t in all courthouses yet.” Seeley said she sometimes...
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Lawyers say language change in First Nations water bill looks to shield government
By Alessia Passafiume Two lawyers say the blurring of language on the right of First Nations to clean drinking water in a new bill serves as a shield for the federal government as it argues against that right in court. Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty introduced the legislation on Tuesday. The bill seeks to ensure First Nations have access to clean drinking water on-reserve and the ability to protect source water on their territories if they enter into tripartite agreements with the federal and provincial governments. Bill C-37 states that the federal government will “further the progressive realization, for individuals on First Nation lands, of the human right to safe drinking water, as protected by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.” A previous bill introduced by the...
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Northwestern ports look to deliver
By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chronicle-Journal Ontario Premier Doug Ford visited Thunder Bay on Tuesday and announced $2,804,955 in funding from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) for upgrades at the Port of Thunder Bay and the Peninsula Harbour Port Authority in Marathon. Ford called both terminals key gateways in Northwestern Ontario for expanding east-west trade in Canada, strengthening domestic supply chains and creating jobs in the North, while reducing reliance on the U.S. Ford outlined the billions of dollars that have streamed into the North from the province as part of a plan to protect Ontario by building a more competitive, resilient and self-reliant economy. “As part of that plan, . . . this funding will be used to expand Thunder Bay’s port storage and...
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Ottawa announces ‘largest funding commitment ever made for First Nations’
By Maya Ekman, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, NWOnewswatch.com OTTAWA — Canada Minister of Indigenous Services put forward the First Nations Clean Water Act, Bill C-37, on Tuesday morning, along with the “single largest funding commitment ever made for First Nations,” $4.6 billion over five years. “Across Canada there are laws and regulations that set minimum standards for drinking water, but in First Nation communities, there are not. This legislative gap that impacts only First Nation people is unacceptable and must be addressed,” said Minister Mandy Gull-Masty. “Today there are 36 remaining First Nations with long-term drinking water advisories. We know that is 36 too many,” she said. Most long-term drinking advisories, 24, are in Northwestern Ontario, including in Neskantaga First Nation which has been under a boil water advisory for...
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Canmore’s ‘Resurgence’ gallery honours Indigenous voices, strength
By Leah Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Rocky Mountain Outlook CANMORE – Tara Beaver watches cattle graze in the field near her home in Mînî Thnî. The mothers care and lead their young, and from afar, the Îyârhe Nakoda artist and poet takes note, turning her observations into her latest sculpture and poetry project. “Cows are matriarchal,” said Beaver. “All the bulls don’t stay in the pen with all the mothers, and the mothers help each other to rest and they take turns.” With a cow skull as her canvas, Beaver uses paint, flowers and a dreamcatcher to create a sculpture that reflects on matriarchal roles and the deep connection she has to the land and the animals sustained by it. “I didn’t understand a lot of things until I...
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Increasing visitation, development in Kananaskis prompt creation of tourism reserve fund
By Leah Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Rocky Mountain Outlook KANANASKIS – With increased development and visitation on the horizon, Kananaskis Improvement District is looking to get a jump on the growth through the creation of a tourism reserve fund. Approved by council in May, the tourism planning and development reserve fund gives the district financial breathing room to manage the impacts of growth anticipated to create pressure on infrastructure, resources and services throughout the region. “If we’re getting bombarded by development permits from every stakeholder in the valley, we’re not a large municipality, we’re an Improvement District, and it needs to be supplemented,” said Cody English, chair of KID council. A final policy creating guardrails around the use of the tourism planning and development reserve fund was unanimously approved...
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New Police Accountability Unit established in B.C. for Indigenous people
By Nora O’Malley, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Ha-Shilth-Sa Indigenous people in British Columbia who have been affected by police violence, misconduct or negligence can now access free legal supports through the B.C. First Nations Justice Council (Justice Council). First launched as a pilot program in 2024, the Police Accountability Unit (PAU) was created in effort to give Indigenous communities a more meaningful role in police oversight and accountability in the province. “It’s great that they are trying to do something now. It only took so many Indigenous people to die in the hands of law enforcement and people custody. It’s sad that it’s taken this long for it to come,” said Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation Martha Martin. Martin is the mother of Chantel Moore, the 26-year-old Tla-o-qui-aht woman who was shot...
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