Local focus, thinking abroadYellowknifer - Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Yellowknife has become a preferred destination for Japanese tourists either visiting short-term holidays, or on longer-term working holidays.
Many businesses have been welcoming them for years, as both visitors and employees. Other businesses and the city could be following this trend by marketing popular attractions to other groups.
Businesses like Aurora Village, Explorer Hotel, Sushi North, Sushi Cafe, aurora tourism companies and a few others have been going out of their way for some time to accommodate Japanese and Chinese tourists by offering services tailored to their cultural and language needs. They offer group tours, which is a preferred method of touring, bilingual guides and brochures. This has helped make Yellowknife a very desirable destination for Asian travellers.
We heard from two long-term visitors on their reasons for choosing the North. Yuichi Sakamoto said he came to Yellowknife as part of a bucket-list tour of North America. He said he has felt very welcome since arriving, even finding work at a local coffee shop. Never once has he felt lonely, either, he said.
Kei Horinouchi found work at Sushi Cafe and said he liked it here, citing the northern lights. This is the latest stop in a five-year journey to tour the world before going back to Japan. Both have met many fellow Japanese travellers who are also travelling the continent and learning English. The chance to make money and see the wild landscapes, as well as our famed auroras, is a big draw for them. While these visitors may only be here temporarily, we can be doing more to attract them. Other tourist-centric communities like Banff and Jasper have responded to these demographics by having signage in multiple languages, including Japanese and Mandarin, as well as hiring staff fluent in languages besides English.
Whitehorse, while also attracting large numbers of Asian tourists, has a marketing strategy that caters specifically to German tourists. Yellowknife businesses could do the same by tailoring their advertising to the international tourists. Recognizing the success of our Northern entrepreneurs, the city and GNWT can be tailoring their own tourism efforts by designing co-operative advertising packages and partnering with them on international tours, having them as part of information junkets.
The North has a reputation for being a friendly, welcoming region, embracing all regardless of their background. Word-of-mouth and private business advertising has broken the trail. Now municipal and territorial governments can follow suit and start focusing their tourism plans on more international market.
Turn parking lot into parking lotYellowknifer - Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Surveyors in search of gold wouldn't disregard other potential metals in their efforts. Iron may not carry the same allure, but without it you can't have cars or bridges. In the same way, the city should consider modest ideas when assessing the potential for the 50/50 lot.
In a debate that has seen suggested uses include a library, a drug treatment centre and a park, a business owner pitched an idea that should not be overlooked.
Bijou Boutique owner Jill Groenewegen suggested it remain a parking lot.
Why?
"Because it is a parking lot right now, it wouldn't cost a lot to have that happen," said Groenewegen.
Consider the benefits: put some meters up there or get a toll booth at the entrance and then the city has another revenue stream. That's an idea that could see action in weeks instead of years.
If that's not as exciting as some of the other ideas on the table, consider that this could be used in tandem some of the other pitches. Coun. Cory Vanthuyne suggested it be used to host festivals. It's been done before, the Yellowknife Artist Run Community Centre hosted such an event in 2013 to have Yellowknifers suggest ideas for the lot. The event brought art installations and musicians to the downtown core and similar events could easily draw business as well. Food trucks could also assemble there. Block off the lot to cars for the day and Bob's your uncle.
Of course, that's not to say the other ideas should be taken off the table, but some of them could take years to come to fruition. In the meantime, the city should make the best use of its asset with the least risk to taxpayers.
The risk of handling moneyEditorial Comment by Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, April 1, 2015
It's a thankless task, and one carrying a certain amount of risk to one's reputation no matter how careful the execution.
Perception is often more dangerous than reality in today's social media-driven world, where news, rumour and innuendo are instantaneous.
That makes volunteering more precarious than ever, especially for those who handle a group, league, or organization's money.
You don't earn brownie points for doing a great job, and someone's always ready to pounce should the day arrive when suspicion is cast upon the bottom line.
I was greatly dismayed over a recent situation that played out in Arviat on a number of levels.
The Rankin team leaving without the $10,000 promised to the winner of the Jon Lindell Memorial (JLM) Calm Air Cup cast a pallor over the Kivalliq hockey community.
Bad news travels fast in hockey, and it wasn't long before fingers were pointed and repercussions felt.
The First Air Avataq Cup executive were right to deny Arviat entry to the event until the money is paid.
And it was a relief to learn $7,000 was delivered to Rankin during Avataq week.
It's no great shakes to cover $3,000, with Rankin getting free admission to future JLMs for one example.
The same cannot be said for $10,000.
What was not right, however, was the handful of folks who suggested Arviat event and team organizer Gleason Uppahuak may have been up to some funny business with the money.
I have known Mr. Uppahuak for his entire adult life, and would bet a year's salary on the man's integrity.
The only mistake he made was taking on too much and doing everything himself.
Needing help with an event, but continuing on alone for fear it will end if you don't, is a conundrum shared by more than a few in our region.
Many hands make light work and almost always produce a successful event.
Going it alone is a lonely path fraught with peril, despite one's best intentions.
In the Kivalliq, we rely on bingo, raffles and other fundraisers to host events.
The raffle approach has worked well for the Avataq in Rankin, but I dare say it wouldn't raise nearly as much if the tickets were printed a mere day before the event, which is what happened in Arviat for this year's JLM.
It's baffling how some -- who are never involved with a group's finances because they never help -- always seem to think there should be more money in the kitty when a shortfall occurs.
To my understanding, Mr. Uppahuak gave the hamlet all the paperwork associated with the finances of senior men's hockey in Arviat shortly after word of the shortfall began to make the rounds.
It was the right move to exonerate his name from any monkey business, and it may have saved his family a bit of pain had the hamlet publicly announced all was in order after reviewing the paperwork.
Running a tournament in the Kivalliq is expensive and time-consuming business.
Those who take on that responsibility should be given the chance -- with respect -- to present the facts during the rare times when things don't go as planned.
And folks who never lift a finger to help should be the last to point when people doing all the work fall short of the mark.
North has come a long wayNorthwest Territories/News North - Monday, March 30, 2015
The Northwest Territories holds a dubious distinction in Canadian history.
In August 1965 a mine mechanic working in the territory would become the last Canadian to be tried and convicted for his homosexuality.
RCMP had charged Everett George Klippert, a former Calgarian who was working at the now-defunct Pine Point lead-zinc mine outside Hay River, with gross indecency for his admitted sexual involvement with four different men. He appealed his conviction all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, lost, and spent five years of a life sentence in jail.
Nevertheless, his case spurred a national discussion about the criminality of homosexuality and inspired then-Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau to so famously say, "There is no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation."
He followed that statement up with legislation that would decriminalize the lifestyle in Canada.
Forty years later, in 2005, NWT Senator Nick Sibbeston waded into the public discourse over homosexuality when he told Northern News Services he didn't support a bill to legalize same-sex marriage because he felt homosexuality is "unnatural," and proclaimed that "for the most part people agree with (him) that marriage should be between a man and a woman."
The thing about public discussions like these is, although not everybody is going to end up on the right side of history, it is these conversations that expose people to new ideas and new perspectives, leading to more tolerance.
It's 2015 now, homosexuality has been legal for almost 50 years, gay marriage has been legal for a decade and Mackenzie Valley Mountain School in Norman Wells students have formed their first gay/straight alliance group.
If big cities are a barometer for progress, Canada's isolated communities are the last frontier. And looking back on 50 years of change from the vantage point of Norman Wells, an oil town nestled in NWT's Sahtu 750 km from the site of Canada's last homosexuality conviction, it's safe to say the North has come a long way, baby.
It's not the position, it's who takes the positionNorthwest Territories/News North - Monday, March 30, 2015
According to reports coming from Fort Providence, there are residents in the Deh Cho community who wield sticks when they leave the house.
They say they do it to defend themselves from wild dogs roaming outside. With no place to go and little food to eat, people say these aggressive dogs have sparked a need for a dog bylaw officer.
With this call to action in mind, Norman Wells public works supervisor Brian Gillis told NWT News/North he advises any community who considers hiring a dog bylaw officer to make sure whoever ends up with the position has experience working with animals. This is advice coming from a guy credited with significantly reducing his community's two-decade dog problem in only one year. He's a living, breathing example of how a position is only as valuable as the person who occupies it.
Working under a no-kill policy, Gillis co-ordinates with the Yellowknife SPCA to educate people in the community about animal health and safety. He also doesn't give tickets to people whose dogs have strayed. Instead, he hooks up dogs that need it with veterinary services and if he knows the person the animal belongs to he will call him or her to pick it up.
"I don't write fines to people, basically they just get sick of seeing me," he told News/North. "If I find that dogs are being neglected or dogs are not being cared for, I take them and stop the problem before it gets greater."
It takes dedicated people to educate, co-ordinate and work with people to decrease the number of stray dogs in communities. So hopefully, if Fort Providence does decide to eventually hire a dog bylaw officer, the community will hire somebody as innovative, patient and effective as Gillis.
Hard to overlook fact Ottawa failed NunavutNunavut/News North - Monday, March 30, 2015
There was some celebration last week when representatives of the Harper government and dignitaries in Nunavut jointly announced an agreement on funding level increases to Nunavut's institutions of public governance.
The result of the agreement means that millions more dollars will flow from Ottawa to boards in Nunavut who are tasked with regulatory affairs, decision making and giving consideration for a wide range of economic activity to happen in the territory.
The joint announcement breaks down the funding increases only in percentages and states that the Nunavut Planning Commission will receive 25 per cent more, both the Nunavut Impact Review Board and the Nunavut Water Board will get 55 per cent more, the Nunavut Surface Rights Tribunal will see a 20 per cent increase and the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board will get 13 per cent more.
There is no question that these are significant increases. But let's keep it in perspective.
First, the funding increases come about as a result of a requirement to negotiate a renewed implementation contract, within the terms of the Nunavut Lands Claims Agreement, every 10 years and covers the period from 2013 until 2023. So it's two years late.
Second, the renewal of the implementation contract of the Nunavut Lands Claims Agreement does not result in the dismissal of a statement of claim by Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) against Ottawa, which contends that the federal government has not lived up to its obligations as set out in the land claims agreement.
At least 10 years after the lawsuit was launched, lawyers for NTI and Ottawa reached a tentative agreement on the courtroom stairs March 9, just before the $1-billion dispute was to go before a judge. NTI's statement of claim sets out line by line how the federal government failed to meet its obligations under the Nunavut Lands Claims Agreement. A news release announcing the increased funding makes no mention of the lawsuit but instead suggests that the "Government of Canada increases opportunity for business in the North."
What is going on with the tentative agreement of NTI's lawsuit against Ottawa?
It suggests that, since 2003, Ottawa has failed to provide proper and adequate funding to the Nunavut Planning Commission, the Nunavut Impact Review Board, the Nunavut Water Board, the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board and the Surface Rights Tribunal.
That is just one of 16 alleged breaches of the land claims agreement by Ottawa.
Regardless of the new funding levels announced for the next 10 years, the Inuit of Nunavut deserve to receive the full benefits set out in the original agreement, essentially a modern day treaty.
Ottawa cannot be allowed to weasel its way out of its commitments, not in the past, the present or the future.
Decision in a vacuum Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, March 27, 2015
If comments from the De Beers diamond company are to be taken at face value, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board's pending decision on the company's proposed water licence amendment will determine the fate of the Snap Lake diamond mine.
At stake are two things. The board has to balance water quality at Snap Lake, and downstream through the entire watershed, against the fiscal reality of the danger that a major Northern employer and driver of economic productivity may shut up shop if it is unable to gain the water licence amendment.
Since going into commercial production at Snap Lake in 2008, De Beers has discovered that managing groundwater seepage into mine works means the company must pump out more water than anticipated. That groundwater seepage is high in mineral salts which are then carried into Snap Lake.
To operate the mine, De Beers needs to essentially triple the amount of salty discharge it is permitted to put into the lake.
Living with the legacy of environmental mismanagement at Giant Mine and Colomac contributes to a knee-jerk skepticism when it comes to an application like this. On the surface, it sounds like De Beers is simply asking to pollute beyond regulated limits but it's not as simple as that.
There are no baseline environmental standards for acceptable levels of discharged salts into lake water. According to De Beers, the discharge would not harm fish or make the water unsafe to drink, although it would change the taste of the water during mine life and for several years afterward.
Setting revised standards for groundwater discharge into Snap Lake and monitoring the effect of that will likely be an ongoing effort between De Beers and the land and water board.
The days of Giant Mine are hopefully behind us. It is reasonable to predict the water board will make a decision that protects the environment from significant, irreversible harm. But why is the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board in a position where it must make a far-reaching environmental decision without well-established baseline references?
Underground mining is not a novel concept. The territorial government should have baseline data on hand regarding acceptable levels of discharged salts from mining operations, or any other easily anticipated concern.
Asking the water board and an industrial proponent to come up with operational standards while in the middle of an active mining operation puts all involved in an almost impossible position.
Don't go overboard with governance review Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, March 27, 2015
With the days getting longer and the snow beginning to melt Yellowknifers are preparing themselves for the inevitable shoveling of dog poop, car washes and trips to the dump to get rid of unwanted furniture that come with the arrival of spring.
Not wanting to be left out of the spirit of the season, last week Mayor Mark Heyck announced the city will be taking care of some housekeeping of its own by commissioning a $75,000 governance review of its operations.
The review will take a look at the territorial government legislation that forms the legal authority of the city, the city's procedures for meetings, election bylaws, the code of conduct and its acceptance-of-gifts policy.
Heyck, who has been pushing for the review since he was elected, said it is long overdue. He is right in that respect. There have been several instances during the current term where the city has reached out to the territorial government for assistance - whether it's requesting to rejig its mill rates after surprising Kam Lake residents with a massive tax increase or asking for land to develop - only to be met with resistance and malaise. Certainly, having council and administration being more aware of their responsibilities and limitations is a good thing, especially with regard to its relationship with the GNWT.
Where the review risks over-stepping its bounds is with the mayor's proposal that the city should bolster its "outdated code of conduct" for city council. Heyck said the current code, which is is so old that it was drafted on a typewriter, is "wishy-washy" and that it could benefit from "stronger language" to ensure there is an environment of respect at city hall.
Although councillors should uphold a certain standard of decorum in their interactions with each other and administration, the expectation of mutual respect should not prevent them from speaking their minds.
Council should not have to fear from tightened "behaviour" rules that risk chilling debate. What should not go overlooked during this review is that city councillors are not city employees - they represent citizens, not city hall.
Boosting languagesDeh Cho Drum - Thursday, March 26, 2015
The role language plays in our world is incalculable. Without it we wouldn't be able to share history, express how we feel or share our feelings or opinions about any given issue effecting our community or the world around us.
Indeed, it would be a different world without it. And for many aboriginal people across Canada, there is a terrifying reality that the spoken languages which have shaped First Nations people for centuries, could someday, fall dormant.
Dahti Tsetso is hesitant to say South Slavey is dying or needs to be revitalized, despite the name of the program she's in to learn the language. The Aboriginal Language Revitalization Program, offered by the University of Victoria and in partnership with the Dehcho First Nation, the region's education council and Fort Providence, is giving the young mother of two the chance to wake a sleeping giant.
The language, she said, will never die. Despite her limited knowledge of South Slavey, when she began the program to become a fluent speaker, something awoke. The exposure to it she had while growing up planted the seed of the language in her. It lay dormant, and is now awake in her.
The reality is, however, fewer people are speaking the language than ever before. Government statistics on language show a 20 per cent drop in use over the last 20 years in the region. Having more than half the speakers older than 50 indicates younger generations, who may speak the language with limited ability, aren't taking it up as a regular form of communication.
The program has 17 students, the vast majority of students from the Dehcho, who are immersed in the language with the goal of becoming fluent speakers. Students are to speak it as much as possible and are told to refrain from using English at all when they're stuck, having been taught survival phrases to help them grasp the language better when they may not know what something is.
Preparing students to speak the language does more than just strengthen its presence in the communities. With a number of language instructors in the school system nearing retirement, the program is training the next wave of South Slavey speakers to carry on the work being done by current language instructors in the classroom.
Not only does it connect young people to the language, an integral and important part of having the strongest connect to tradition and heritage possible, it also bridges a growing gap between younger generations and elders. Having a number of elders who speak only South Slavey helps to build a stronger, more culturally-driven community.
Because of the program, Tsetso is hopeful she'll be able to carry on the language and pass it on to her children when they get older. This, in itself, speaks volumes to the importance of this program in the Dehcho.
Highway delays to be expectedInuvik Drum - Thursday, March 26, 2015
If the slow progress being made on the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway isn't enough to make you feel a twinge of sympathy for the companies constructing it, perhaps the reality of their task will.
There's an argument to be made that the GNWT and project consultants were overly ambitious with their estimates on how many kilometres of highway could be completed on a year-to-year basis.
Those estimates suggested that the highway, being constructed simultaneously from the north and south ends at Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk, should cover 20 km of ground from both ends. Sounds reasonable, doesn't it?
It becomes less reasonable when you stop and think that the Inuvik end likely rises some 200 feet or more above sea level, in topography that has never been built on anywhere else.
That's why the general public should, at least temporarily, stifle the urge to let out a roar of frustration that from the Inuvik side only two of the 20 km that were estimated for the second season have been completed.
That's on top of the fact that 12 of the 20 km expected last year were finished.
Yes, only 14 of the 40 km predicted for this point have been covered. That's disappointing at face value, but it's clear the predictions issued by the GNWT and its project managers were overly optimistic and didn't take into full account the logistical difficulties of constructing the south end of the highway.
It's difficult to say how much political spin was put into those estimates. Undoubtedly, the government and its staff were under considerable political pressure to put forward a schedule that seemed palatable to the public, where some serious questioning of the cost of the project was taking place.
If the government was aware the schedule was unlikely to be met but didn't amend it, it's almost like the construction companies were set up to fail and take the heat.
If the government didn't fully appreciate the enormous difficulties of building the road through the region north of Inuvik, after all of the preparation work and studies, that's a bit inexplicable too.
Nevertheless, the GNWT is putting on a brave face when it comes to the project, and painting an optimistic outlook that many taxpayers won't share.
Only time will tell if the highway opens on time and on budget.
At this point, concern and scepticism from the public is more than understandable.
