Along with health care, education is the most important chunk of the territorial budget.

Education is where the public can determine the government's commitment to the future.

Compared to the national median, the population is booming in the North. A high proportion of that population is young people who are pushing through the educational system like a tidal wave through a drain pipe.

This bulge in the demographics coincides with a 33 per cent reduction in educational capital spending over the last few years.

While $22 million has been allotted to expand schools or renovate existing facilities, that figure is down from $33 million.

Something doesn't add up.

While the Ministry of Education radiates optimism that the situation is under control, not surprisingly, the NWT Teachers' Association is less chipper.

It is hard to know what to think. The only indicator that the public can go by is its own experience. That is why it is so important that parents get involved.

The kids in the crowded classrooms are too young to vote. It is the parents who are obligated to let the territorial government know how they feel about the quality of their children's education.

The territories' single most valuable asset is the children. They are the ones who can learn the skills to create a lasting, viable economy. The children will become the preservers of traditions.

The role of adults is to make that possible. That is why it is so important that parents take an active part in the education of their children.

Politicians have agendas. Educators have agendas. In the debate over education spending, each is going to make a case. If you are a parent, be familiar with what's going on at your child's school. And vote accordingly.

By the time the first diamonds are pulled from the ground at the Diavik mine in about three years, the partnership between the company and the people who control the land it's on should be a strong one.

A recently signed co-operation agreement between the Dogrib people and Diavik recognizes the need to involve the Dogrib in managing the land and gives the Dogrib a role in assessing the impact of diamond mining.

Diavik's main owner is Rio Tinto, one of the largest mining companies in the world but one with little knowledge of the North. The Dogrib know the North, but have no history dealing with transnational giants. The agreement is a hopeful sign the two will be able to learn and benefit from each other.

When Alphonse Apples raises the territorial flag every day at the Faber Lake Outpost correction camp, he's also raising the possibility that traditional justice may be starting to prove itself in more ways than one.

Apples' camp, a 20-minute snowmobile ride outside of Rae Lakes, is funded by the GNWT. And while there are only three inmates currently serving time at Faber Lake, Apples' example is one that shouldn't be ignored by the justice officials.

One only has to realize the staggering number of repeat offenders who are back inside the modern jail system to realize that Apples' and the eight other such camps now operating in the North may be on the right track. Time will tell.