How a federal monument’s new welcome center in Maine honors Native Americans
By David Sharp ATOP LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN, Maine (AP) — The founder of Burt’s Bees envisioned a tribute to Henry David Thoreau when she began buying thousands of acres of logging company land to donate for what would become the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. But there was a major pivot: The monument’s new welcome center tells its story not from the perspective of the famed naturalist but through the eyes of the Wabanaki tribes who were the land’s original inhabitants. Roxanne Quimby’s family collaborated with four tribal nations, private entities and federal officials to create the $35 million center that the National Park Service opened to the public on June 21, providing a focal point for the 87,500-acre (354 square kilometer) monument. Dubbed “Tekαkαpimək” (pronounced duh gah-gah bee mook),...
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‘Truly amazing and really emotional’: Historic mortuary poles returned to Tla’amin Nation after decades-long search
By Abby Francis, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews In late 2022, Drew Blaney was at the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) viewing some paddles and masks from his nation that were being held in the institution’s basement. While he was walking around, the culture and heritage manager for Tla’amin Nation stumbled across two striking carved wooden figures — one depicting a man and the other depicting a woman holding her arms out, as if she was carrying a child. They looked familiar, so he immediately sent a text to his brother, Tiy’ap thote (Erik Blaney), who had been searching for two mortuary poles belonging to their community for nearly three decades. Blaney asked Tiy’ap thote — who was at a hockey game at the time — if he could send photos...
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Trade top of mind as Canada’s premiers are set to hold three-day meeting in Ontario
By Allison Jones Tariffs and trade are top of the agenda as the country’s premiers arrive in Ontario’s cottage country for a three-day meeting that comes at a pivotal time for both Canada-U.S. and domestic relations. The premiers’ summer gathering in Muskoka will also feature a Tuesday meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney, as trade talks with the United States are expected to intensify. Most of what the premiers are likely to discuss stems from U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs: trade negotiations, the direct impact on industries such as steel and aluminum, the increased pushes to remove interprovincial trade barriers and speed up major infrastructure and natural resource projects to counteract the effects of tariffs, as well as Indigenous communities’ concerns about them. Day 1 of the premiers’ meeting Monday...
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Smoke hampers firefighting in Manitoba, but rain in forecast for early this week
Precipitation that’s in the forecast early this week could help crews fighting wildfires that have been threatening a northern Manitoba city after smoke that’s blanketed much of the Prairies over the weekend kept some firefighting aircraft grounded and forced the cancellation of a number of weekend events. In an update posted to social media on Sunday, the City of Thompson said rain was forecast for the area on Monday as the community continues to advise residents to be ready to flee at short notice due to several fires. But the battle against the flames was hampered on Saturday, the post said, because intense smoke meant that aerial crews were unable to do suppression work with helicopters and water bombers. The smoke also meant crews weren’t able to be deployed by...
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Expert group says the next six months are ‘crucial’ for major projects bill success
By David Baxter Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government should prioritize Indigenous engagement and declare “low-risk, high-impact” projects as being in the national interest within the next six months to validate the major projects bill, an Ottawa-based group of experts says in a new paper. The Expert Group on Canada-U.S. Relations at Carleton University released a white paper on the future of Canada’s energy sector Monday morning, the before Carney was set to meet with Canada’s premiers in Huntsville, Ont. Carney asked to join the premiers during their annual summer premiers gathering after President Donald Trump threatened Canada with 35 per cent tariffs starting Aug. 1. The Building Canada Act, also known as Bill C-5, is a central piece of the Carney government’s response to Trump’s tariffs. The legislation gives the...
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Commemorating 1990 in solidarity
By Marcus Bankuti, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Eastern Door During the Siege of Kanehsatake in 1990, Ellen Katsi’tsakwas Gabriel would speak at night with the men on the front lines after wrapping up the day’s negotiations. One of the men, Richard Two-Axe – “Boltpin” – had a saying. You can break one arrow very easily, but if you take a bunch of arrows, you cannot break them. “That’s what solidarity is,” said Gabriel, speaking to more than 200 people assembled at Place du Canada in Tiohtià:ke on July 11 to mark the 35th anniversary of the Siege. The commemoration was not merely a remembrance, but a call to action that highlighted the pivotal importance of solidarity. “I really think that if we understand one another and have a relationship...
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Carney to hold talks with Inuit leaders on major projects bill in N.W.T. next week
Prime Minister Mark Carney will be in Inuvik, N.W.T. on July 24 to continue talks with Indigenous groups on the government’s major projects bill. Carney will co-host the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee with Natan Obed, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president. The meeting will cover a range of issues according to the Prime Minister’s Office, including how the Building Canada Act can be implemented consistent with Inuit land claims agreements and in partnership with Inuit. The Building Canada Act gives the government the ability to fast track projects that are deemed to be in the national interest by sidestepping some review requirements under a host of federal laws. Carney hosted a meeting with hundreds of First Nations chiefs in Gatineau, Que. Thursday in the for the first of three meetings with Indigenous groups....
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Carney’s meeting with First Nations on major projects leaves some chiefs frustrated
By Alessia Passafiume Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was optimistic about finding consensus on the Liberals’ major projects law as he met with hundreds of First Nations chiefs on Thursday, but by mid-afternoon some leaders had walked out of the summit, decrying what they saw as an insufficient response to the concerns they’ve been raising for weeks. By the end of the meeting, some chiefs said they’re “cautiously optimistic,” while others remain worried about potential cuts to federal funding for Indigenous-facing departments they say will leave their communities worse off and in a weakened position to move projects forward. Mohawk Council of Kahnawake Grand Chief Cody Diabo told The Canadian Press he took the microphone to express his frustration before leaving the meeting prior to its scheduled end, saying...
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No grounds to charge officer in death of woman found in Thunder Bay home: SIU
By Paola Loriggio Ontario’s police watchdog says it found no grounds to lay a criminal charge against a Thunder Bay officer who approved the cancellation of a domestic disturbance call hours before a woman was found dead in a home. The Special Investigations Unit has released a report on its investigation into the death of 21-year-old Jenna Ostberg, who the agency said was found without vital signs in a closet in her boyfriend’s bedroom on Dec. 30, 2023. Ostberg and her boyfriend were arguing in his room around 2 a.m. that morning, prompting his mother to send him to another room and call 911 to report an “unwanted visitor,” the watchdog said. The woman wanted Ostberg removed from the home because there was a court condition preventing the couple from...
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Major projects: How Bill C-5 works and why Indigenous leaders are so concerned
By Dylan Robertson Prime Minister Mark Carney held a meeting with hundreds of First Nations chiefs Thursday, amid widespread skepticism and frustration over his controversial major-projects legislation. Bill C-5 gives the federal government sweeping new powers to speed up permitting for what the Liberals call “nation-building projects.” Carney says Bill C-5 is needed to shore up the economy in the face of a trade war with the United States, while opponents call it a massive power grab. Here’s what’s C-5 does and what people are saying about it. What problem is this trying to solve? Canada has built few large projects over the past decade. That has led Conservatives, some provinces and some industry groups to argue that Ottawa’s regulatory burdens are holding back growth. The Liberals tried to streamline...
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Search of Manitoba landfill for women’s remains ends, dig at second site to start
By Brittany Hobson The search of a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two slain First Nations women has concluded with a new search soon set to begin at a different site for another victim. The Manitoba government announced Thursday that crews finished looking last week through the Prairie Green landfill, just north of Winnipeg, for remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran. They were among four First Nations women murdered by serial killer Jeremy Skibicki in 2022. “Together, we brought Morgan and Marcedes home,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said in a social media post. Some of the remains of Harris and Myran were first found at the landfill in February. At the time, the province said it would continue searching the area to recover as much of their remains...
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Timeline of 4 women slain in Winnipeg, searching landfills for their remains
The Manitoba government said Thursday that the search of a landfill for the remains of two slain First Nations women has concluded and that there would soon be a new search at a different site for another victim. Serial killer Jeremy Skibicki was convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of four women. Here is a timeline of the case: March 15, 2022 — Police say an unidentified woman is killed on or around this date. May 1, 2022 — Morgan Harris, a member of Long Plain First Nation living in Winnipeg, is last seen in the area of Main Street and Henry Avenue north of the city’s downtown. Police say the 39-year-old was killed on or around this date. May 4, 2022 — Police say Marcedes Myran, 26, also...
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Canada to target steel originating from China with new tariffs
By David Baxter Canada is moving to shore up its domestic steel industry amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s ongoing global trade war, with new tariffs targeting China and other countries around the world. During a visit to a steel manufacturing company in Hamilton on Wednesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney said all steel originating in China will be subjected to higher tariffs and there will be tariffs of 50 per cent on non-U.S. steel imports above newly established quotas. The visit comes more than a month after Trump hiked tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50 per cent from 25, but for now Canada is still not adjusting its retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. steel and aluminum products that have been in place since the spring. Carney said the new Canadian...
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CP NewsAlert: Search of Manitoba landfill for more remains of slain women concludes
The Manitoba government says a search of a Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of two First Nations women killed in 2022 has finished. The province began searching the Prairie Green Landfill, north of Winnipeg, in December for the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran. Some remains of the women were found at the site in February. The province said at the time it would continue searching the area to recover as much of their remains as possible. More coming. ...
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Manitoba says close to 13,000 out in renewed round of wildfire evacuations
By Brittany Hobson Close to 13,000 people in Manitoba were out of their homes Thursday due to wildfires, but hundreds were finding space in hotels rather than in congregate shelters, the province said. Since Monday, officials said they’ve found spots for 705 more people in hotels, while others are staying with family and friends or in one of four shelters in Winnipeg. As of Wednesday night, there were about 7,000 evacuees in hotel rooms and about 1,200 in shelters, a government spokesperson said. Ten hotels were added to a list of 58 across the province already offering rooms. “We continue to work on that piece diligently,” said Christine Stevens with the province’s emergency management organization. “Every single day, we’re working to bring more hotels online that are a good fit...
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Ground broken at new North Slave Metis Alliance economic facility
By Eric Bowling, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, NWT News/North Ground has been broken at the location of a new economic development facility in Yellowknife. A Metis fiddler and an traditional feast marked an ceremonial groundbreaking in Kam Lake in Yellowknife on Wednesday, which kicked off construction of the North Slave Metis Alliance’s (NSMA) new François Beaulieu II Economic Development Facility. The groundbreaking was ceremonial as the foundation for the building has already been laid. “The NSMA is setting itself up for success as it prepares for the reduction in contracts, employment and revenue that will come with the planned closure of the diamond mines,” said NSMA president Marc Whitford. “This multi-purpose facility will enable the NSMA to transition towards environmental and remediation work. “The facility will also enhance capacity for...
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‘Right time, right place’: Paddlers rescue foal stuck in Kananaskis River
By Leah Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Rocky Mountain Outlook KANANASKIS – An afternoon paddle on the Kananaskis River turned into a rescue mission for two rafters who had to put a life jacket on a foal to save it from drowning on Saturday (July 12). Canmore local Anna Gleig and her friend, Ava Haddad, were rafting when they came across a frantic herd of horses downriver. Pinned to a concrete bridge post, they noticed a young foal fighting to keep its head above the water. “[The horses] were all sort of panicked and the mom was essentially kind of in the middle of the river trying to get our attention,” said Gleig. With the water going as deep as 12 feet in that section, the pair knew they had...
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Manitoba says close to 13,000 out in renewed round of wildfire evacuations
By Brittany Hobson The Manitoba government says close to 13,000 people are out of their homes due to wildfires, but hundreds are finding space in hotels rather than in congregate shelters. Provincial officials say they’ve found space for 705 more people in hotels, while others are either with family or friends or in one of four shelters in Winnipeg. This is the second round of fire evacuations in what has been the province’s worst fire season in decades. Last week, fires forced thousands out of Garden Hill First Nation, north of Winnipeg, but officials say crews have so far managed to keep the flames away from any buildings. Some electricity infrastructure has been damaged near the evacuated community of Lynn Lake. Fires have also managed to keep flames at bay...
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Carney holds closed door meeting with First Nations on major projects legislation
By Alessia Passafiume Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was at a summit with First Nations leaders on Thursday to listen to their concerns about the government’s major projects legislation but almost all of the meeting is being held behind closed doors. The Assembly of First Nations advocated for the entire meeting to be made public, but the government organizers only permitted the Prime Minister’s opening remarks in the room at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., to be public. Carney and several of his cabinet ministers met Thursday with hundreds of First Nations leaders about the Building Canada Act, which allows the government to fast track major projects. “I will say a few words at the start and answer questions at the end but I’m here to...
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Carney says he’s ready to listen to First Nations on major projects legislation
By Alessia Passafiume Prime Minister Mark Carney said he’s “here to listen” to First Nations leaders about their concerns with the government’s major projects legislation. Carney and several of his cabinet ministers are meeting with hundreds of First Nations leaders in Gatineau on Thursday about the Building Canada Act. “I will say a few words at the start and answer questions at the end but I’m here to listen, engage and move forward from that,” Carney told reporters before the meeting began. He was greeted with cheers as he took the stage Thursday morning to give opening remarks. “The economic value of these projects will be shared with First Nations as partners who will help build the prosperity of your communities for generations to come,” Carney said as he began...
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