Six Nations Police hold Back-To-School Traffic Blitz
OHSWEKEN, SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND RIVER- – With hundreds of Six Nations students heading back to school this week the Six Nations Police Service (SNPS) says it will be conducting a back-to-school traffic safety blitz throughout the week. Police will be increasing patrols in high-traffic areas and school zones aiming to “promote safe driving and help ensure students, families and school staff can travel safely.” SNPS are reminding motorists to reduce their speed in school zones, obey all posted traffic signs, stop for school buses when required, and remain alert for children and other pedestrians crossing or walking near roadways. SNPS is also reminding drivers to allow for “additional travel time and expect increased vehicle and pedestrian traffic during morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up periods.” For those walking to...
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Critical thinking goes viral with online media literacy program
By Daron Letts, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Truth could be a money-maker for young people across Nunavut and Nunavik who join the third annual Teen Fact-Checking Network, an online educational initiative by Ottawa-based MediaSmarts. Under the paid program, participants aged 13 to 19 receive training in verifying information that circulates on the internet. “We think this would be a valuable opportunity for Inuit youth to build digital literacy and fact-checking skills while also exploring and challenging misinformation related to Inuit culture, communities and issues,” said MediaSmarts spokesperson Tricia Grant, in an email. Teens stand to earn $150 for analyzing one viral claim bouncing around social media. After that, MediaSmarts pays $100 per fact-check. The nonprofit charitable organization, founded in 1996, introduces youth to critical thinking skills, reverse image...
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Researchers study oil-eating microbes off Hudson Bay coast
By Daron Letts, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News A team of Inuit and southern researchers is using the water off Chesterfield Inlet as a living laboratory as they study naturally occurring microbes that feed on oil residue in the ocean. Run out of the Centre for Observation Science at the University of Manitoba, in Winnipeg, since 2022, the Genice II project blends scientific method with Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, or traditional Inuit knowledge. It builds on data from previous studies in Winnipeg and at the University of Calgary in 2015 and 2020. The researchers are looking for microbial communities beneath the ice. These samples form baseline data with which subsequent samples may be compared, to identify any population changes, Collins said. Microbes are the foundation of the marine food chain, ultimately...
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Among Friends – Quakers’ social-justice group inspired by visit to Eeyou Istchee
By Patrick Quinn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Nation A group of five women from the Canadian Friends Service Committee (CFSC), the social justice arm of the Quakers, returned to Ottawa from a memorable visit to Eeyou Istchee full of gratitude for Cree hospitality and inspiration for their work in advancing Indigenous rights. The trip was organized by CFSC general secretary Jennifer Preston, who spent part of her childhood in Waskaganish and has long known Donald Nicholls, the Cree Nation Government’s director of justice and correctional services, through their mutual work at the United Nations. “My team was thrilled to go up to Eeyou Istchee,” said Preston. “Since the 1970s, the Quakers have been doing a lot of work on Indigenous rights and the Crees were always one of our...
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Lake Sturgeon Program Connects Students to Great Lakes Conservation
By Kenneth Pastushyn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tilbury Times With the guidance of Professor Dr. Trevor Pitcher, a Walpole Island First Nations immersion school will raise juvenile Lake Sturgeon as part of their curriculum in a new fish hatchery. The opening ceremony occurred in mid-April, providing children the chance to learn about marine biology and the importance of safeguarding local waterways. “Students will start the school year with eggs provided and at the end of the year release young fish into the wild,” said Pitcher, director of the University of Windsor’s Freshwater Restoration Ecology Centre (FREC), which is located along the Detroit River in LaSalle. For nearly a decade, children from Walpole Island have been visiting FREC on field trips and have begun asking whether their school could have its...
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Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods are now in effect
By The Canadian Press staff Ottawa’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods took effect just after midnight EDT on Tuesday, responding to the 50 per cent tariffs Washington hit Canada with last month. On Aug. 22, U.S. President Donald Trump launched tariffs on nearly $28 billion of Canadian goods, from hockey sticks and cement to honey, after trade talks broke down between the two nations. Canada’s reciprocal tariffs target the same value of U.S. goods, all drawn from the list of products being tariffed by the United States. That includes dairy products, plywood and sunscreen. The latest tariff war was spurred after negotiations to solve some outstanding trade irritants on both sides of the border fell apart, and each side blamed the other for last-minute demands. “We couldn’t accept what they...
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Here’s what to watch for as Nova Scotia politicians head back to the legislature
By Lyndsay Armstrong Nova Scotia’s legislature resumes Tuesday after a rocky spring sitting and a minister’s resignation over rap music lyrics from 2013. Here’s what to watch for. Fallout from budget cuts Nova Scotia’s 2026-27 deficit budget came with cuts to arts, culture, tourism, Mi’kmaq and African Nova Scotian programming, disability supports and other community programs, which sparked protests in and outside of the legislature earlier this year. The province’s budget forecast a $1.2 billion deficit and included $304 million in cuts to grants, government jobs and operational expenses. Six days after releasing the budget, Premier Tim Houston said his government had made some mistakes. He restored about $54 million in spending for people with disabilities and seniors, and for African Nova Scotian and Indigenous students. Despite the partial reversal,...
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Yukon First Nations investigate orange rivers and wildlife impacts
By Patrick Quinn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com Facing devastating climate-fuelled impacts to their rivers and wildlife, Yukon First Nations are increasingly mobilizing to intensify monitoring research. The territory’s water chemistry has been changing over the last 20 years, with drastic shifts in the past few years that have been causing greater alarm. Growing evidence indicates that thawing permafrost is turning rivers and streams to a milky or bright orange colour with an acidic slime that appears to significantly alter the aquatic habitat. “Streams we were monitoring north of Dawson City totally turned on us as we were sampling them,” said Elliott Skierszkan, lead author of a recently published study on the phenomenon. “It’s been a rapid unwinding in the last two or three years that local people have also...
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N.S. authorities investigating after report of fentanyl in cannabis
By Eli Ridder Nova Scotia officials say they are investigating after a report that fentanyl was detected in cannabis on a First Nation community. Membertou First Nation’s health centre says it has issued a drug alert after receiving a report from a community member. The Nova Scotia government said late Saturday its health department and Cape Breton Regional Police have launched an investigation into the alert. The province, in its statement, notes that cannabis can only be purchased legally through Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. outlets. However, the health centre did not say where the cannabis was purchased in its notice posted Saturday afternoon. It did not respond to a request for comment Sunday. The probe comes amid heightened tensions between Nova Scotia’s Progressive Conservative government and Mi’kmaq communities over the...
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Community mourns Joan Phillip, Amshen, who fought for justice and ‘loved very hard’
By Aaron Hemens, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, IndigiNews Fearless. Fierce. Wise. Courageous. Cherished. Those were just a few of the words that colleagues and loved ones used to describe the late Joan Phillip, Amshen, at her funeral service in snpink’tn (Penticton, B.C.) on Wednesday. Before Amshen was laid to rest in the community cemetery in syilx Okanagan homelands, leaders, dignitaries, and people from near and far packed the Outma Sqilx’W Cultural School’s gym — with hundreds more watching a livestream online — to remember the beloved leader. “It was one of the dreams and hopes of our people for years to have our own school in our community to teach our children. Joan helped get this here,” said caxasket Joseph Pierre of the Penticton Indian Band (PIB), who moderated the...
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Resurrecting the Port of Churchill
By Carol Baldwin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Wakaw Recorder A ship left the Port of Churchill this week loaded with about 30,000 tonnes of Canadian wheat, the northern Manitoba town’s first grain shipment in over half a decade. In what government officials say is a significant milestone that was years in the making, this week’s grain shipment bound for Antwerp, Belgium, is one of three leaving the port this season in partnership with Saskatchewan-based pulse producer AGT Foods. Two more ships are being readied to leave the port: one with durum wheat bound for Italy, and another with zinc. The port is also loading a northern resupply vessel bound for Nunavut, says the Arctic Gateway Group. Arctic Gateway Group is owned by a partnership of 41 Indigenous and Bayside communities,...
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Innu Nation grand chief calls for Indigenous police force after violent N.L. arrest
The grand chief of the Innu Nation says the violent arrest of an Indigenous man in Labrador caught on camera highlights the need for a First Nation-led police force in the region. Jodie Ashini said a video posted on social media on Wednesday of three RCMP officers arresting the man in the Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation, a community of 1,300 about 30 kilometres north of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, was difficult to watch. It appears to show one officer repeatedly punching the man in the head before triggering a stun gun several times. She said the video shows officers using excessive force. “He had three people on him,” Ashini said in an interview Thursday. “He was getting punched repeatedly.” The video, which has been shared online thousands of times, appears to...
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Construction begins on major B.C. transmission line aimed at powering northwest
By Lauren Krugel Construction is underway on a major electricity transmission project in northern British Columbia that the federal and provincial governments say will inject billions into the provincial economy, drive new industrial development and assert Canada’s sovereignty in the face of U.S. threats. The North Coast Transmission Line expansion will link Prince George to Terrace near the North Coast, and is expected to more than double electricity supply to that region. The transmission line, which was referred to the federal major projects office in November 2025 for possible fast-tracking, is expected to power big initiatives in the works such as the Ksi Lisims liquefied natural gas facility and mines in B.C.’s Golden Triangle near the Alaskan border. “This has gone from a concept to shovels in the ground in...
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Eby says NDP won’t be courting B.C. Conservative defectors
By Ashley Joannou British Columbia New Democrats won’t court B.C. Conservative defectors, after nine legislators left the official Opposition caucus in the past three weeks, Premier David Eby said. Eby told an unrelated news conference Thursday that there was a “fairly significant gap” between the positions of his party and the defectors from Conservative Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s caucus. He said these ranged from Canada’s relationship with the United States and the Trump administration to positions on First Nations and the importance of the Human Rights Act. In July, Independent MLA Amelia Boultbee joined the NDP more than eight months after she left the Conservative caucus, but Eby said her values aligned with the NDP and the party got to know her over time. Findlay’s caucus numbers have been in freefall...
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Jann Arden to appear at pro-Canada concert ahead of Alberta separation vote
Jann Arden is set to join a cohort of Alberta performers for a free concert promoting national unity ahead of the province’s fall referendum on quitting Canada. The Forever Canadian campaign says its “Calgary Concert for Unity” is to be held Sept. 20 at The Confluence Historic Site, also known as Fort Calgary. Folk musicians Celeigh Cardinal, Reuben Bullock and John Wort Hannam, and jazz singer Caity Gyorgy are also set to perform. A campaign news release says Alberta’s place is within Confederation and encourages people to gather as “loud and proud Canadians.” The referendum on Oct. 19 is to ask Albertans, among other things, whether they wish to remain part of Canada or hold a second, binding vote on separating. Those in favour of separation say Alberta doesn’t need...
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Climate groups launch ad blitz, warn of threat to whales from major projects push
By Nick Murray Some of Canada’s leading environmental groups are pushing the federal government to change aspects of proposed legislation to speed up development of major projects before it’s tabled this fall. Environmental Defence has launched an ad campaign to draw attention to the potential fate of the Southern Resident Orcas. The group says the whales are at risk if Ottawa moves ahead with a bill changing how major projects are reviewed. The group says it’s concerned about Ottawa’s plan to establish “economic zones” for transportation corridors, telecommunications networks, and energy production and transmission. Those zones would allow the federal cabinet to decide which activities would be allowed in them, and give ministers the power to pre-approve projects. “We’ve heard from MPs that changes are being considered from what was...
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Province seeks public input on creation of data centre policy
By Paige Morgan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, River Valley Sun The government is seeking public feedback from New Brunswickers on a developed policy framework to guide the responsible development of data centres in the province. The framework is meant to protect electricity ratepayers; support the responsible use of energy, water, land and other resources; generate measurable economic and community benefits; promote environmental sustainability; and support national data sovereignty and artificial intelligence objectives. “This policy will guide the responsible development of any proposed data centre in New Brunswick and support national efforts to build the foundations of sovereign Canadian artificial intelligence,” said Post-Secondary Education and Training Minister Jean-Claude D’Amours. The five focus areas: Protecting ratepayers: Any new data centre project must pay for the costs it creates and cannot lead to...
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Violent Labrador arrest caught on video, referred to police watchdog
Newfoundland and Labrador’s police watchdog is conducting a review after a violent RCMP arrest in a Labrador Indigenous community was caught on camera. A video of the incident in Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation has been shared on Facebook. The footage appears to show three RCMP officers in the process of arresting a man inside a home. When the man appears to pull his hand back from police, one of the officers punches him in the face. The video also appears to show the man being thrown against a wall, punched again, taken to the ground, and punched several more times before an officer appears to hit him multiple times with a stun gun. The RCMP said in a statement it has met with community leaders and have referred the matter...
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Climate groups launch ad blitz, warn of threat to whales from major projects push
By Nick Murray Some of Canada’s leading environmental groups are pushing the federal government to change aspects of proposed legislation to speed up development of major projects before it’s tabled this fall. Environmental Defence has launched an ad campaign to draw attention to the potential fate of the Southern Resident Orcas. The group says the whales are at risk if Ottawa moves ahead with a bill changing how major projects are reviewed. The group says it’s concerned about Ottawa’s plan to establish “economic zones” for transportation corridors, telecommunications networks, and energy production and transmission. Those zones would allow the federal cabinet to decide which activities would be allowed in them, and give ministers the power to pre-approve projects. “We’ve heard from MPs that changes are being considered from what was...
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Élections Québec says it’s too late to print voter documents in English
By Erika Morris Élections Québec says it is too late to make changes to the unilingual French documents it is mailing to voters ahead of the Oct. 5 election despite facing backlash from the anglophone community. The provincial elections authority was reacting to comments made by Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette, who said she is in discussions with Élections Québec to determine the next steps. “We will see what our obligations are,” Fréchette said. The unilingual documents have prompted an outcry from advocacy groups representing anglophones in Quebec, who say they are creating an unnecessary barrier for voters. Élections Québec said on Tuesday it could not print the documents in both French and English, as it has done in the past, to comply with language legislation that makes French...
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