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Lifeguard training saves lives, provides jobs NWT News/North - Monday, Aug 13, 2012
Water safety is an essential skill in the NWT, where every community is near a major lake or river. Having trained lifeguards in the community is also an excellent opportunity for employment for NWT youth. Often communities have to hire lifeguards and aquatic instructors from down south and this training provides an excellent opportunity to put local people in those jobs and an ability for them to help train their successors in the community. Geoff Solomon, organizer of the training session - scheduled for this past weekend - was hoping the training would attract 15 people. A similar course Solomon led back in June taught six people lifeguard skills for shallow pools. More programs like this should be held in every region of the NWT and efforts should be made to educate at least one person from every community in lifeguarding, how to teach swimming lessons and both deep and shallow water rescues. The result will be safer communities and the ability to create a sustainable lifeguarding workforce comprised of Northerners.
Pay our community firefighters NWT News/North - Monday, Aug 13, 2012 The NWT fire marshal says recruiting volunteer firefighters in the territory's smaller communities has been a challenge in recent years. Small populations aside, being a volunteer firefighter demands a lot of commitment. It's not merely responding to fire calls. Volunteers are expected to attend training sessions and perform other public duties for the fire department. Although it is an excellent community service to be involved in and comes with its own personal sense of satisfaction, it can be difficult to attract people without some level of compensation. Departments in cities such as Yellowknife have a system that combines full-time paid, paid on-call and volunteer positions. This combination might serve as an example for the rest of the territory. Although, it doesn't make sense to have full-time paid firefighters working in communities with populations of a few hundred, perhaps paid on-call positions would help bolster the ranks. A reasonable honorarium for attending training sessions and public appearances at schools, and a decent hourly wage for fighting fires, would probably be enough. Funding such an endeavour is the tricky part. As fire services are in the best interest of the community and save lives and money, it should be looked at as investment. Between 2003 and 2007 the NWT Fire Marshal's Office reported to the Council of Canadian Fire Marshals and Commissioners that fire departments in the territory respond to nearly 100 fires each year, on average. The loss over that five-year period was $8.8 million and 22 lives. In that vein, the GNWT, federal government and large businesses should set aside money to help communities cover the cost. In many cases, these buildings make up a good portion of community infrastructure and having a well-trained and well-staffed fire department at the ready would pay for itself if it saved one or two buildings a year.
Businesses must be heard Nunavut News/North - Monday, Aug 13, 2012 In Inuktitut, Nunavummi Nagminiqaqtunik Ikajuuti means assistance for Nunavut businesses. The NNI policy, initiated in 2000, was intended to give an advantage to businesses owned by Nunavummiut and Inuit firms bidding on government contracts. But the system isn't working and businesses around the territory are voicing their frustrations through roundtable discussions headed by the territorial government and Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. The policy has been plagued with concerns for years, and its body of registered businesses has fallen to less than 200 from 350. Earlier this year, the auditor general's report criticized the practice of bypassing the public service contract system when awarding sole-source contracts. The report further revealed documentation to support awarded contracts was often missing and flagged instances of work beginning on the contract before it was actually awarded. The policy, which was created to enact the Government of Nunavut's obligations under Article 24 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement, is also meant to increase access by Inuit to on-the-job training, apprenticeships and upgrading. Of major concern is the potential for the policy's rules being used to award bidders from only partially Inuit-owned instead of wholly Inuit-owned businesses - to the benefit of large companies in the south with minimal connections to the territory's communities. Used improperly, this system can hurt employment opportunities in Nunavut and hamper the success of Inuit-owned and Nunavut-based businesses, so the contract process must be transparent, constantly reviewed and monitored. Its stated mandate recognizes that achieving its objectives will require "consistent and persistent effort." To that end, a review committee is to analyze the policy at least on an annual basis to ensure progress is being made "in a demonstrable and balanced way." Ideally, the jobs and contracts go to businesses from the area where the contract is being carried out, particularly those businesses majority-owned by Inuit. Bringing business people to the table who are most affected by the awarding of contracts and deal with the application process on a daily basis is a sound idea. Now the GN and NTI must make changes so contracting out works in the interest of Nunavummiut and Inuit.
The city's runaway budget train Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, Aug 10, 2012
Yellowknifer spoke to a number of residents for last week's feature stories identifying the issues facing the city, and the state of our roads was the number one concern for some of them, particularly among residents living in Yellowknife's largest neighbourhood - Frame Lake South.
Ken Pearman, who lives on Banke Crescent, offered to take council candidates running in this October's municipal election for a motorcycle ride to show them just how bad the streets are around nearby Johnson Crescent and Finlayson and Dagenais drives. None of those streets are identified for road reconstruction in the city's capital plan over the next three years.
In fact, the city only budgeted $700,000 for road rehabilitation this year - down $2.1 million from last year. And of that $700,000, only $100,000 is being spent in Yellowknife proper. The rest of the money is going toward helping the Yellowknives Dene pave the roads in Ndilo, half of which is being funded by the Yellowknives band itself. It's a worthwhile and overdue project, but it's not going to address the bumpy ride on many roads in town.
It is somewhat galling to witness city council approve a $70.7-million budget but set aside only $100,000 of that enormous sum for fixing streets in Yellowknife outside of Ndilo. Last fall, some city councillors barely blinked at administration's $200,000 request for a report on the renovation needs at city hall.
Mayor Gord Van Tighem argues that there is additional money available for roadwork this year through the city's program for replacing corrugated pipes, the sale of lots at Phase VII of Niven Lake, and the $20 million the city borrowed this year to pay for its water treatment plant, but this a bit of shell game. The 2012 budget clearly states that funding for fixing roads this year is "historically low."
While the city has a minor role to play in affordable housing and social issues - other prominent concerns voiced by residents - at the end of the day, ensuring clean water keeps flowing through our taps, our sewage lines function, and traffic lights and signs are present and are directing traffic efficiently around the city on well-maintained roads should be job number one for city council.
There is a growing sense that after eight straight years of property tax hikes and a city budget that has more than doubled over 10 years, council is losing sight of its priorities.
The city has been ratcheting up spending by hiring more and more staff, pursuing seemingly endless matching government grants to fund "streetscaping" and a harbour plan and buying up downtown property with the hazy idea of supplying "eco-housing." It has also borrowed against our future by taking out a $20-million loan to pay for infrastructure needs that should have been taken into account long ago.
This has put our city on unsure footing as we stare into a future that promises little beside the closure of the NWT's two largest diamond mines.
We hope as summer gives way to this fall's election season, both candidates and voters will give some thought to the city's pedal-to-the-metal spending habits over these last few years. It will be up to them to put on the brakes.
Sometimes people forget just how easy they have it. The services and goods we have available to us today in the Deh Cho would have been unimaginable in the North 100 years ago. The life of Catherine Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux is a wonderful example of the strength and tenacity many people in the region have descended from.
Today, as long as people have the necessary money, people have easy access to a wide array of food and have the ability to travel with ease in little time between destinations, among other things. In Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux's lifetime, 1836 to 1918, things weren't anywhere close to this easy.
She was, by all accounts, a tough woman and she had to be to help provide for her family. She had her own farm and raised cattle for milk and meat.
She was also skilled in bush craft. According to Bob Norwegian, one of her descendents, Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux would snare bears during berry season.
Not liking the taste of bears that had died from being left in a snare, and culturally not allowed to use a gun as a woman, Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux would approach the dying bears and kill them with an axe. It must have been a nerve-wracking and dangerous venture because you never knew if the snare might break and let the bear loose, said Norwegian.
She also knew how to travel. She was skilled with a dog team and would make trips in the dead of winter between Fort Providence and Fort Rae, approximately 150 miles away.
Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux cut trail during those trips, camped along the way and carried mail between the communities, along with other supplies.
Stories of perseverance and survival such as hers are not unique in the North. The conditions in the region could be harsh and people had to learn and use the necessary skills to survive.
A unique thing about Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux is the degree to which her story has been preserved and the way she is still remembered in Fort Providence and by her more widely-spread descendents. The celebration of her life and legacy and her designation as a National Historic Person, which will take place in Fort Providence from Aug. 17 to 19, is a fitting time to reflect not only on her, but also on all of the other people who contributed to the region's history.
There is an incredibly strong history behind the people of the Deh Cho, and that history should be celebrated and not forgotten.
There are ball tournaments, fishing, hiking, biking, relaxing in the sun while swatting mosquitoes and apparently breaking into the Inuvik Youth Centre and stealing from the facility.
The Inuvik Youth Centre officially opened June 29. Since then, the centre has had video games, pool balls, PlayStation controllers, food and laptops stolen.
A lot of the expensive items have been returned and the youth centre did receive an apology.
It's a place to go and play some music, watch a movie, play sports or just hang out.
In an ideal world, the Inuvik Youth Centre could be open 24 hours a day. It wouldn't matter if you wanted to hang out at 2 a.m. or 2 p.m.
But we don't live in an ideal world and everybody needs to sleep sometime.
There are youth who depend on the centre and go there whenever it's open.
Every single time there's a break-in, the individuals who use the centre lose a little trust in their community.
There's no money for additional security and even if there was, installing a video camera isn't necessarily the answer.
Having a safe space to hang out with friends loses some of the appeal when you know you're being filmed.
It's sad that a video camera even has to be brought up as a solution to this situation.
That money could go to programs and supplies. Instead, it has to be spent on chains to secure the now-broken door.
Since the beginning of July, there has been a new Inuvik Youth Centre co-ordinator. The centre now has extended drop-in hours and continues to plan activities and programs for youth all over the community.
It's frustrating that there are a few individuals who don't seem to think twice about the impact they have on others.
It becomes easy to lay all the blame on one, two or maybe a few people. It's a lot easier to put the blame on them than it is to find a permanent solution.
Yes, $100 worth of food was stolen and now the fridge is locked at night to prevent it from happening again. But someone was desperate enough to steal food. Hopefully it was actually eaten instead of just stolen for the fun of it.
The centre can't be supervised every minute of every day, but for all it offers youth in the community, it would sure mean a lot if those who are causing these headaches to take a step back and see what they are ruining: a safe haven for Inuvik's youth.
That complaint has continued to persist for years from business owners and residents alike. Yellowknifer has documented, on several occasions, store owners' frustrations that their driving customers have few adequate places to leave their vehicles. That sentiment has been expressed by representatives of Yellowknife Daycare, Sutherland's Drugs, The Book Cellar, Overlander Sports, Northern Images and Shoppers Drug Mart, representing different areas of downtown.
In addition, residents have come forward to complain about the lack of parking near city hall, at one point faulting city vehicles for using public parking spots.
It's clear there's a problem, and the situation could be made worse as the city moves forward with plans to zone downtown areas for more apartments to replace aging and dilapidated buildings. Even now, site preparation is underway for a new government office building on 49 Street.
City bus service, despite some minor alterations in service over the years, continues to cater to only one per cent of the population. It's not the answer. A proposal to create a park-and-ride - whereby motorists park at a central location and then walk or bus the rest of the way to work - and talk of encouraging car pooling gained little traction at a council meeting in February.
Friday marks the cutoff for responses to the downtown parking survey for business owners, available online through the City of Yellowknife. Mayor Gord Van Tighem has acknowledged there is a shortage of on-street parking but has stated there's a surplus of off-street parking. However, those parking stalls are privately owned.
Now is the time to speak up. Every moment put into the downtown parking survey will hopefully lead to fewer moments customers spend circling the block looking for a convenient parking spot.
The Olympics is the grandest stage in all of sports, and Yellowknife cyclist Denise Ramsden was there to share the spotlight.
In the road race on July 29, Ramsden came across the finish line ahead of renowned teammate Clara Hughes, a two-time bronze medallist in cycling in past Olympics, as well as a four-time medallist in speed skating. Ramsden wound up in 27th place to Hughes' 32nd as rain fell in London.
Then Ramsden, 21, managed to finish 19th during the women's time trials on Aug. 1. Of all the active competitive female cyclists in the world, she made the top 20. That's truly remarkable. There were no age brackets, no divisions. She was up against the best of the best in the world, including Hughes, who finished fifth.
"It was awesome," was how Ramsden described her first Olympic experience.
While Ramsden is the first Yellowknifer to compete in the Summer Olympics, this city is producing its share of world-class athletes.
Granted, they ultimately will be drawn south to hone their skills to an elite level, but that's true of competitors from smaller centres around the world.
Ramsden trains with a team based in Indiana. Michael Gilday, a multiple medal winner in World Cup speedskating events, has done his training in Calgary and, more recently, Montreal.
Steven Hodges, an 18-year-old centre, was chosen in the third round by the Florida Panthers in June's NHL entry draft.
Hodges had moved on from Yellowknife's minor hockey league to the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League, where he had 46 points in 72 games last season.
There are avenues for athletes in Yellowknife to reach great heights in sport. It may come through high-performance programs or a university scholarship, but guaranteed it will only come through plenty of hard work.
When you grow up in a small, isolated community, there's nothing better than getting out of it once and a while.
There is much to be said about remaining in your home community, and those who choose to live at home for life make up the very spirit of a community. But I encourage every youth reading this to try and get on with Canada World Youth, or an organization like it, and have some adventures like those that are featured in this week's edition of Kivalliq News.
If that doesn't appeal to you, although actually doing it might change your mind, then at least go south for school, or to work or just to travel - not only will you see how other people live, but you will pick up knowledge to bring back home with you.
I grew up in Yellowknife, which is small and isolated in its own right, but I'm sure most Kivalliq News readers would laugh and tell me that I know nothing about small, isolated communities, and rightly so. However, I'm no stranger to not having access to technology and luxuries that are at the tip of many southerners' fingers, and I'm no stranger to seeing the same faces every day and living among people set in their ways of doing things.
I've had the opportunity to travel out of country a bit, to Kenya and Uganda, and to live in Vancouver for a year, and my time outside the North was instrumental in helping me shape my world view.
When going to places like Peru and Africa, one of the first things to happen is one realizes their preconception of the place is entirely wrong. There might be poverty, as one may expect, and there might be social problems, but there are also people trying to come up with solutions, and people who have dedicated their lives to such work - and no matter their troubles, most people keep their heads up and find enjoyment in life.
The same could be said for the program Canada World Youth is offering for the first time in Nunavut. Here's an opportunity for southern Canadians in particular to see a part of the country that stays out of national news unless it's hit by tragedy or an expose is written on its troubles, and to see that the territory is so much more than the sum of its issues. It's a friendly, often exciting place with rich tradition and serious potential to contribute in big ways to both the country's culture and economy.
Travelling somewhere new and diving into a new situation is also the best way to get to know oneself. There might be sketchy, even dangerous, situations, but what better way to see what you're capable of? More often than not, you'll surprise yourself.
Canada World Youth is offering an opportunity that's perfect for a young person from the North. Take advantage of it. Not only will you benefit, but you'll be bringing your new perspective and boosted self-confidence back home to a community you can help grow.
- Tim Edwards is the acting editor of Kivalliq News. Editor Darrell Greer will return in September.
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