Six Nations Stars preparing for second season
By Sam Laskaris Writer The Six Nations Stars have been making plans to build upon their successful inaugural season. The Stars, members of the South Western Ontario Women’s Hockey League (SWOWHL), went on a late-season run and qualified for the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association championships, held at various arenas throughout the GTA this past April. The Six Nations squad was one of 20 entrants in the Senior C category at the provincials. The Stars managed to win two out of their three round-robin matches but did not advance to playoff action. The Stars then held their tryouts for the 2026-27 campaign this past May. A total of 36 individuals attended the tryouts and 24, including nine new players, were selected for the club’s roster. “Unfortunately, we had we had to...
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Ironmen to commence second NPHL season in early October
By Sam Laskaris Writer As it is preparing for its second season of league competition, Six Nations Ironmen head coach Ryan Davis said his organization is doing its best to keep up with the Joneses. Or more specifically, the Killer Bees. That would be the Alvinston Killer Bees, the squad that defeated the Ironmen in the Northern Premier Hockey League (NPHL) Metropolitan Conference championship final this past spring. The Ironmen will kick off their 20-game 2026-27 regular season campaign on Oct. 4 with a home contest against the Akwesasne Wild, members of the NPHL’s Capital Conference. That match will be held at the Six Nations Sports & Cultural Memorial Centre. The Ironmen have made some key off-season acquisitions in an attempt to bolster their roster. “We’re still working on some...
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From investment buzz to building: Canada’s major projects face hurdles, experts say
By Brett Bundale Canada’s inaugural investment summit has created a buzz that the country is open for business, but experts say the real test will be whether that momentum can translate into major projects that overcome labour shortages, community concerns, environmental hurdles and lengthy approvals. The two-day summit in Toronto included a flurry of multi-billion dollar funding announcements that Ottawa says are part of its broader goal of attracting $1 trillion in total investment in Canada over five years. Patrick Leblond, University of Ottawa associate professor of public and international affairs, says the investor momentum sparked by the summit is critical to reducing the perceived risk of investing in large-scale projects in Canada. He says even if some of the investments would have happened anyway, the buzz attracts additional capital...
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Élections Québec asked government to change French-language laws in 2023
By Erika Morris Élections Québec knew it would not be allowed to send voter information in English over a year before the electoral campaign, The Canadian Press has learned. The provincial election authority had tried to pressure the government to amend its language laws – even providing proposed wording – but the government refused, according to correspondence sent between April 2023 and June 2025. The deadline for Élections Québec to finalize its voting reminder cards in English is rapidly approaching, with a court process underway to force the agency to mail information in English. The provincial elections authority had to comply with 2022 language legislation making French the sole language of communication for public institutions. Earlier this month, it sent out unilingual voter documents for the first time in its...
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Carney, Harper make the case for Canada at inaugural investment summit
By Craig Lord A Liberal and a Conservative prime minister book-ended the final day of Canada’s first-ever investment summit, each making their pitch to global investors for help fulfilling an ambitious capital agenda. Prime Minister Mark Carney spent much of Tuesday trying to sweeten the deal for prospective investors. He announced a package of measures that included offering preferential tax measures for businesses who invest in capital and unveiled a plan to open Canada’s four major airports to private investment. The two-day summit in Toronto — a gathering of hundreds of domestic and global executives with trillions of dollars collectively in assets under management — sought to address both historic and fresh concerns about Canada’s investment climate. Canadian officials and business leaders were trying to buck the country’s reputation as...
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Aklavik’s wellness centre offers support, friendship and healing
By Eshana Gohil, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cabin Radio An Aklavik, N.W.T. wellness building has been given a new name while offering a permanent space for residents to access healing, cultural and community programs. “The development of the wellness building was driven by the growing need for more space and a permanent home for programs that have been essential to the community members,” said Rita Arey, sub-chief of the Aklavik Indian Band, which operates the Dii K’anahtii Zheh Wellness Building. Dii K’anahtii Zheh means “caring house for everyone” in Gwich’in. The band already provided wellness services from the building, but the renaming and opening rededicates it to its focus on health, healing, family wellness and community support. The centre offers breakfast programs, cooking classes, workshops, family movie nights, Elders’ programming,...
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Public housing waitlist grew by one applicant per day in 2025, says Igluvut manager
By Daron Letts, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News By the time the four-day Nunavut Trade Show wraps up in Iqaluit on Thursday, four more applicants will have been added to the territory’s housing wait list. That’s because, last year, the housing waitlist grew by 365 applicants, says Aaron Pederson, project manager of housing and homelessness with Igluvut Corp., Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.’s housing non-profit. “That’s one more family every single day,” he said. That is one of several sobering statistics Pederson cited during Tuesday’s mid-morning panel discussion, “Building our territorial infrastructure”. The panel also featured Qikiqtaaluk Corp. President and CEO Harry Flaherty, Nukik Corp. senior project advisor Tom Garrett, and Kitikmeot Corp. President and CEO David Omilgoitok. “In a territory with fewer than 10,000 occupied homes, the line for a...
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From e-scooters to Indigenous rights law, B.C.’s local leaders discuss top concerns
By Brenna Owen British Columbia’s deputy premier and attorney general, Niki Sharma, said she doesn’t want strides made with the province’s Indigenous rights legislation to get lost amid criticism of the law and questions about its future. Sharma said B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act has led to legislation recognizing Indigenous self-governance over children and families as well as recognizing First Nations as full partners in emergency management. “I don’t want us to forget about that. It’s also been a tool that has unlocked prosperity for people across this province,” she said, noting seven of the 20 projects under consideration for fast-tracking by Ottawa’s major projects office are located in B.C., including three phases of the North Coast Transmission Line. “We are punching above our weight as...
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Staffing problems stall federal investigations of missing and killed Native people
By Sarah Raza And Savannah Peters SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Peter Martin went missing two years ago from the Fond Du Lac reservation in Minnesota. His family hasn’t stopped looking, but they say the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs investigation into Martin’s disappearance has stalled since the agent assigned to the case left the role in early 2025. “They’ve never had a person take his space for this region and yeah, we haven’t heard from them since,” said family friend Kayla Jackson. The bureau’s Missing and Murdered Unit was created in 2021 to address the crisis of violence against Native Americans and put new resources toward solving cold cases. But a recent federal audit by the Interior Department’s internal watchdog found staffing issues have plagued the unit since its...
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Six Nations Chiefs capture fourth straight Mann Cup championship!
The Six Nations Chiefs defeated the Coquitlam Adanacs 10-2 on Tuesday to sweep their best-of-seven series and win their fourth straight Mann Cup championship. (Photo by Sam Laskaris) By Sam Laskaris Writer A bit of history was made on Tuesday night at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena (ILA) as the Six Nations Chiefs won their fourth consecutive Mann Cup title. The Chiefs thumped the British Columbia-based Coquitlam Adanacs 10-2 in Game 4 of the national series. With that triumph, the Six Nations side swept its best-of-seven series versus the Adanacs. For the Chiefs this marked their 10th Mann Cup in franchise history. But it was the first time they had won four Canadian titles in a row. “Winning never gets old,” Chiefs’ goaltender Warren Hill said moments after he backstopped the...
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Grand chief demands apology, says Innu can’t back Churchill Falls deal with Quebec
The Grand chief of the Innu Nation says the Indigenous group will not support a new energy deal with Hydro-Québec unless the Newfoundland and Labrador government changes its stance on Innu history in Labrador. Jodie Ashini says Premier Tony Wakeham must apologize to the Innu people and acknowledge the harm his government has caused them. She has said that Wakeham’s government believes a “fringe” theory that suggests the Innu arrived in Labrador about 300 years ago, after the Europeans. She says Wakeham insulted the Innu people when he announced his government would audit all the research at the provincial archeology office related to Innu history. Ashini says Innu history spans thousands of years, and it did not begin when the government of Newfoundland and Labrador began documenting it. Newfoundland and...
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From scooters to Indigenous rights law, B.C.’s local leaders discuss top concerns
British Columbia’s Indigenous law, affordability and crime are all on the agenda at an annual municipalities conference in Vancouver, but the mayor of New Westminster, B.C., says the top concern among seniors in his community is fear of scooters on sidewalks. He says the scooters are a relatively “novel threat” compared with cars, but the provincial government began testing their use in certain communities seven years ago and still hasn’t introduced consistent regulations to improve safety. Johnston told reporters outside the Union of British Columbia Municipalities convention the province needs to issue regulations across communities while investing in education and active transportation infrastructure. Crashes involving e-scooters have prompted warnings from police in Metro Vancouver, while several school districts have clamped down on their use. The e-mobility devices are among a...
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Lowering hiring standards for Inuit would create ‘2 classes’ of officers: Police chief
By Dominique Gené, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Nunavik’s public security committee has rejected two recommendations aimed at increasing Inuit representation in the region’s police force, saying they would create unequal hiring standards. Police Chief Jean-François (Jeff) Bernier gave an update to regional councillors Tuesday on the committee’s response to recommendations for reforming the police service and rebuilding public trust. They stem from an audit launched in July 2025 on policing in Nunavik after three fatal police shootings occurred in the region within eight months. A fourth person — a six-year-old girl — died during a police operation while the audit was being prepared. Released in May, the audit includes 35 recommendations. Twenty-one were supported by the committee, eight were conditionally supported, five were not supported and one received...
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Carney says Canada is ‘ahead on incentives’ in race with U.S. to attract investment
By The Canadian Press staff Prime Minister Mark Carney says that while Canada is “ahead on incentives” in the race with the United States for investment, it still has a lot of ground to make up. At a news conference in Toronto at Canada’s first-ever national investment summit today, Carney announced plans to court private investors to run major Canadian airports and to bring in tax reforms to spur foreign investment. Carney’s government is lowering the marginal effective tax rate from roughly 13 per cent to 6.4 per cent, which could make the country a more attractive place to invest but will also lower the government’s revenue in the near term. The prime minister said the new tax measure makes the incentive for companies to invest in Canada twice as...
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Date set for coroner’s inquest into 2020 death of Toronto woman that led to protests
The date has been set for a coroner’s inquest into the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a Toronto woman who fell from a highrise balcony while police were in her home more than six years ago. The inquest will begin on Oct. 13, with Dr. David Cameron as the presiding officer, and is expected to last 14 days. Korchinski-Paquet, a 29-year-old woman of Ukrainian, Black and Indigenous ancestry, died on May 27, 2020 after police responded to calls about a family dispute at the apartment. Her death came days after the police killing of George Floyd, a Black man from Minneapolis, and further fuelled protests and calls to defund the police. The case also brought greater scrutiny to how police deal with people experiencing mental health crises. Ontario’s police watchdog cleared...
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Membertou receives national award from Fulbright Canada
By Rosemary Godin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cape Breton Post Membertou First Nation in Unama’ki has received another award based on its economic development and governance. Executive director of Membertou administration Trevor Bernard travelled to the 2026 Victoria Forum of Fulbright Canada late last month on behalf of the community to accept an Honouring Nations Canada award given to Membertou for its “four decades of Indigenous-led nation building, economic development and strong governance.” The First Nation has had the same leader in Chief Terry Paul for over four decades. “This is an incredible honour for our community to be recognized on this national stage,” reads a statement released by Membertou. “We look forward to continuing on this path of community development, sovereignty, and self-determination for generations to come.” Bernard was...
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Has Ottawa’s Ring of Fire road decision set the stage for a Highway of Tears 2.0?
By Anushka Yadav, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Pointer Content warning: This story discusses missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, systemic violence, and the ongoing grief experienced by their families and communities. Some details may be distressing or difficult to read. “the bread far from the hunger the apology the confusion the broken road these things we gather in this blanket bone and sand and sage we wash the world, between us hold this blanket, fill it with our tears and when we have cried from one dawn to the next then we will rise, and we will dance until they’re home, until they all are home” In Anna Marie Sewell’s ‘ Washing the World ’, grief is not left to be carried alone. Fragments of...
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B.C. wildfires hit Indigenous communities harder, human rights report says
A new report from British Columbia’s Human Rights Commissioner says Indigenous reserves are four times more likely to face wildfires than non-reserve communities in the province. The report from the office of Kasari Govender looking into the impact of wildfires on vulnerable communities finds Indigenous groups as well as children and those experiencing poverty are disproportionately impacted by the blazes. Govender’s report says that between 2000 and 2024, Indigenous reserves comprised all but one of the 37 B.C. communities where at least half of their total land area was burned by wildfires. Lytton, B.C., which was largely destroyed by the 2021 heat dome wildfire, was the exception, but Govender notes that more than 30 per cent of the community’s population was Indigenous. In a statement, Govender says the report shows...
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Small changes in the classroom can create supportive environments for individual student success
By Shari Narine, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com By implementing new assessment practices that emphasize Indigenous knowledge systems and perspectives, educators “can reclaim humanity…for all learners,” write co-editors Jo Chrona and Brooke Moore in their new bookSag̱aytg̱awdi: Grounding Assessment in Indigenous Knowledges for Equity and Well-Being. Assessment is the process of gathering information in order to understand a student’s learning. That information can either stifle learning or further that student’s learning, the book posits. “In schools and classrooms…many folks have used assessment practices as gatekeeping practices…If we want education systems that are vibrant and exciting and places that… nurture and support us to continue to grow and to learn, then we have to understand assessment in a different way,” said Chrona, an educator, philosopher and member of the Kitsumkalum First...
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Striking new Indigenous welcome posts stand proud at Delta City Hall
By Radha Agarwal, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Delta Optimist Two new welcome posts made by artists from the Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN) and the Musqueam Indian Band (MIB) were unveiled on Sept. 9 at the entrance of Delta’s City Hall. Mayor, city councillors, police department members, public service representatives, and Indigenous neighbours gathered to celebrate the milestone. “Today is about more than the installation of two welcome posts. It’s about recognizing the history, the culture and the endearing presence of the Coast Salish peoples on these lands,” said Taylor Baker, TFN’S executive councillor on behalf of chief and council. “It is about acknowledging that our stories, our teachings and connections to this territory did not begin with the creation of these municipal boundaries and will continue into the future.” For...
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