The more you learn the more you earnNorthwest Territories/News North - Monday, June 26, 2017
The last two editions of News/North have featured inspiring stories about perseverance and hope.
It's graduation season in the NWT - a time to celebrate the accomplishments of youth who now hold the key to a better life with their high school diploma. You can see the pride in the faces of grads in our annual "Congratulations Graduates" special section that is included with this week's News/North.
As reported in News/North ("'We are strong aboriginal people'," June 12), graduation in a community such as Inuvik comes with a special level of recognition for student achievement.
"The majority of us are aboriginal graduates," said Jackson Christie, valedictorian for East Three Secondary School's 2017 class, said on June 3. "The aboriginal rate of people graduating in Canada is just over 40 per cent. We beat those odds."
He called his class the indigenous future of Canada.
"We are strong aboriginal people," said Christie. "We have challenged each other to succeed."
Christie correctly stated that those graduates who stay in Inuvik will become the backbone of the community in the future. Twenty-three students graduated this year from East Three. There were 17 last year.
In Behchoko, Jamie Wetrade-Stevenson and Noelene Nitsiza had one message for fellow graduates and students at Chief Jimmy Bruneau School during their valedictory speeches - never give up.
Wetrade-Stevenson, 18, moved to Yellowknife from Behchoko last year to complete her final year of high school ('Two valedictorians have one message'," News/North June 19). Struggling there she decided to return to study in Behchoko.
"I wanted other people to know that you can fail a whole semester and still be able to graduate on time," Wetrade-Stevenson said in late May. "You could go through one of the toughest moments of your life and still come out to where you want to be."
She said she hopes overcoming her difficulties will inspire others to do the same.
Statistics paint a bleak picture of high-school graduation rates for indigenous students compared to non-aboriginal pupils.
GNWT figures from November 2016 show the overall average graduation rate in the territory at 67 per cent. But that's bolstered by Yellowknife, where graduation rates are more than 80 per cent, and the regional centres, just under 80 per cent. In the smaller mainly indigenous communities the graduation rate is around 43 per cent.
Graduation rates in the NWT are consistently lower than the rest of Canada. The Conference Board of Canada has noted the situation needs to be placed in context, as people in smaller, more remote communities face hurdles such as: language, family and community support, traditional economic roles, infrastructure and governance.
The board has noted deficits in infrastructure such as all-season roads, energy distribution, and a lack of good Internet connectivity combine to "impede the delivery of education services to remote Northern communities."
Many people are still needed to engage in traditional hunting, trapping and fishing at home to help their families. Moreover, the conference board stated almost a third of indigenous children and youth in the North do not count English as their first language.
Despite all of the roadblocks some youth face, every year you will read stories in News/North about those who manage to make it.
They deserve to be heralded as modern-day trailbreakers for their families and communities. They have avoided the many pitfalls that have sidetracked many of their friends. They have seen what kind of bright future comes with even a high-school diploma.
And if they pursue a college diploma or a university degree and stay in, or return to, the North, statistics show they will earn more than their non-aboriginal counterparts with the same education.
If that means indigenous youth in the North are getting their just rewards after overcoming struggles not imaginable to non-aboriginal students in the south, then it's about time.
Gun crime stats a wake-up callNunavut/News North - Monday, June 26, 2017
Nunavut has a problem with firearms. Since 2012, the RCMP and the territory has been involved in a firearm safety blitz, which included town hall meetings, a gun safety video, distribution of military-issued storage lockers to Canadian Rangers, and a give-away of an estimated 11,000 trigger locks, one for every firearm in Nunavut.
RCMP went door-to-door in 10 communities to talk about gun safety and hand out the locks. And in the legislative assembly earlier this month, Health Minister George Hickes stated the government of Nunavut has contributed $180,000 towards the trigger locks initiative.
When the program started in 2012, the RCMP dealt with gun-related calls about once every four days. In 2016, the RCMP responded to more than 200 calls for service where a firearm was a factor -- about one call every 1.7 days.
Those figures are alarming, and gun owners in Nunavut should be alarmed. Rifles are necessary tools in the North for hunting and predator defence-- something most southerners will never understand.
People down south never have to endure watching their money melt away like butter after just one grocery shopping trip in an Arctic community.
The need to hunt to put food on the table means Nunavummiut need guns but the rates of gun-related crime should be a wake-up call for gun owners. There might be no practical way in the North to manage gun ownership but Nunavummiut can manage gun culture.
Gun owners need to take personal responsibility to ensure their firearms are as safe as possible. Education is key, and needs to start young - in the classroom and at home, stressing that guns aren't toys, or a cool prop for taking selfies. They are tools but dangerous tools that need to be handled with respect.
All Nunavummiut need to actively engage in what creates gun tragedies: seven per cent of Nunavut's calls to police relate to mental health, according to RCMP statistics. The territory needs to do a better job at addressing people's mental health, before they reach for a firearm to hurt themselves or someone else. That means increasing services and working together to combat the stigma that keeps many people from accessing mental health resources.
Hopefully the latest statistics will sink home the reality that Nunavut has a gun problem that affects everybody, and everybody should do their part to correct it.
Homelessness help required Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, June 23, 2017
The cost of ending homelessness in the city was reduced by $34 million last week.
The 10-year plan presented to city council by consulting firm Turner Research & Strategy Inc. now calls for a price tag of only $113 million.
The sarcasm is intended, of course, because $113 million is still an enormous figure regardless of where it is being spent. More cynical minds might consider any number of major projects over the years - by any level of government - and be hard pressed to find one that didn't far exceed original cost estimates. Deh Cho Bridge anyone?
The $113 million estimate is expected to cover construction of 240 new affordable housing units, rent support for 127 other units, a rapid rehousing program, expansion of the case management system, construction and operation of 80 permanent supportive housing units inside a single facility, plus 80 additional units.
It's a massively ambitious program to take on what has become a massive problem in the city.
Stephen Gaetz, director of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and professor at York University, in 2015 described Yellowknife's homeless problem, on a per capita basis, as worse than Toronto's.
Everyone here knows how bad it is. The question becomes - as always - what to do about it once the cold reality of dollars and cents are factored in.
Alina Turner, lead consultant on the homeless plan, said most of the money will still need to come from the territorial and federal governments.
This is a given. In a city that struggles to pay the bills for replacing water and sewer lines, such a plan could not proceed without major help from the GNWT and the feds.
Coun. Julian Morse expressed optimism that spread, over 10 years, the cost is "actually very cheap."
We don't share his optimism. More than 10 million dollars a year is not cheap.
The unfair demand from the GNWT to build a $30-million water treatment plant without extra funding, the federal government's unwillingness to announce how it will ease the burden on the North once carbon pricing comes into effect, among many other tight-fisted examples that could be raised, ought to make council wary of jumping too far ahead without ensuring the higher levels of government are fully in their corner.
The case obviously should be made that the city's homelessness problem is really a territorial problem. Many of the people considered "homeless" are visitors and migrants from other NWT communities, who whether by misfortune or otherwise, have found themselves on city streets.
It's great that a price tag has been presented on what is needed to fully tackle the city's homelessness problem.
Hopefully the hardest part won't be finding the cash.
Best commissioners are ambassadors Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, June 23, 2017
Please extend a friendly hand to Fort Providence's Margaret Thom, the new commissioner of the Northwest Territories.
Officially announced on June 14, Thom takes over a largely ceremonial role that went without a heir apparent for 13 months. In the great scheme of things, having or not having a commissioner is of no major consequence. The government ran just fine under deputy commissioner Gerald Kisoun after Thom's predecessor George Tuccaro's term ended last year.
A good commissioner, however, such as Tuccaro and his predecessor Anthony Whitford, can play an important role in being an effective ambassador for the North.
A commissioner is essentially the federal government's representative in the NWT - similar to the role performed by a lieutenant-governor in the provinces. The primary job is to give assent to legislation passed by MLAs. The part that requires skill is public relations - with the public and visiting dignitaries alike.
Thom, 66, was deputy NWT commissioner for six years under Whitford (from 2005 to 2011) so she has plenty of experience and understands what the job entails.
More importantly, she's a life-long educator, facilitator and volunteer with decades of on-the-ground service to the NWT and its people.
A mother to four and grandmother to nine, Thom is a Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee medal winner, a member of the NWT Education Hall of Fame and was honoured with a NWT Wise Woman Award in 2000.
Thom is the third woman to hold the NWT Commissioner role, following Cambridge Bay's Helen Maksagak, the first woman and Inuk to hold the office, from 1995 to 1999; and Inuvialuit politician Glenna Hansen, from 2000 to 2005.
Thom should be a great asset to the North, a role model for women and men. We wish her well.
Lack of energy found at energy showInuvik Drum - Thursday, June 22, 2017
Inuvik should be hungry for investment and anything that could stimulate the regional economy, but you wouldn't have thought so listening to the opening statements at the Arctic Energy and Emerging Technologies (AEET) conference and tradeshow last week.
We can cut the usual hosts some slack. They live in a small town and might not be public speaking stars. All of these introductory gigs must blend together at some point and their introductions can become as generic as everyday pleasantries.
Duane Smith, president of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, shows the ability to ad lib and say more than the standard fare. I always look forward to his "Aariga!" introduction to see his reaction to the (lack of) reaction from the crowd. One day, we'll all shout aariga back, but not today.
People paid a lot of money to come to this conference and they only have two days to network and get things done. Introducing every cabinet member in the room with a clap inbetween takes way too long.
But past that, it was disappointing that Industry, Tourism and Investment minister Wally Schumann simply read off a long essay for his keynote address. I didn't fully comprehend what he was talking about until I read the speech later on the GNWT's website, because it was a little too dull to keep anyone's attention.
This guy should be absolutely buzzing about the energy industry in the Northwest Territories. He should barely need notes, let alone have to read verbatim from a prepared speech.
In addition to that, he started his speech by saying he had been on the road a long time and was looking forward to going home. That's like starting off a first date with, "Yeah, I can't wait to get out of here."
Some of the leadership in Inuvik and the NWT didn't give the impression they cared about the AEET that much. Sadly, the empty tradeshow in the arena reflected that lack of energy.
It's a dire time in Inuvik. There's so much that could be said. A number of non-profit group in town say they are on the brink of closure because of the poor economy.
Inuvik needs life. The AEET was supposed to be a huge opportunity for local leadership to do everything they could to encourage investment.
Hopefully the actual conference was more productive for attendees. The networking potential when you bring together that kind of crowd is still real, despite the dull air to the show.
Maybe our leaders don't get how bad it really is here. Guaranteed, government salaries can do that. They might know the words to the song, but it's not real to them.
Town council is similarly frustrating. Members seem to prefer sleepy, empty meetings when nothing important is discussed. They don't seem energized to action. Maybe summer will change that.
Or, perhaps everyone's just waiting for the bust to end and a new boom to start. But not everything about fate is out of our hands and subject to larger powers.
Litigating treaty rights is futileYellowknifer - Wednesday, June 21, 2017
There is an old adage that states a sure sign of insanity is to keep trying the same thing and expect different results.
In 2015, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada released a report revealing that in the previous five years, the federal government spent a whopping $100 million on litigation of indigenous issues.
The government has a terrible track record in these cases. A November 2013 Law Times article ("Feds pouring big money into aboriginal litigation") looked back at court cases from the 1980s and found indigenous people won about 90 per cent of them. This isn't, by any measure, a wise investment from the public purse.
Indeed, when former Ndilo chief Ted Tsetta was charged under the NWT Wildlife Act in February 2014 for hunting caribou northeast of Yellowknife without a valid tag, he maintained his treaty rights gave him every right to hunt. Tsetta and Dene First Nation Chief Bill Erasmus were gearing up to fight the charge by filing a constitutional challenge under section 35 of the Constitution Act, which recognizes and affirms indigenous rights.
Lawyers with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources must have spent some time with the constitution, because earlier this month Dene Nation announced the charge had been stayed - it was resolved using an alternative measures diversion agreement. This is an excellent resolution, because there is no doubt had this case proceeded to trial the GNWT would have spent millions only to lose.
In the future, bureaucrats can save themselves years of futile effort and millions of dollar in court fees if they start understanding and respecting treaty rights.
Caribou health is a major issue but it won't be solved dragging First Nations into court.
The best government can hope for regarding First Nations autonomy over their lands is positive discussion and compromise.
Continuing to take these issues to court will only continue to create conflict, waste millions of taxpayer dollars and waste years of everybody's time. And that is insane.
Good on housing minister CochraneYellowknifer - Wednesday, June 21, 2017
Good on housing minister Caroline Cochrane.
She flew to Ottawa earlier this month to confront the federal government over the amount it allocated to NWT housing in this year's budget.
The GNWT will be receiving a paltry $36 million over 10 years, leaving just more than $100,000 annually for each community when the money is divided up between the 33 of them. Meanwhile, Nunavut will be getting $240 million over that same period of time.
Cochrane said the allocation confused her when the budget was announced and she continues to struggle to understand it. While Nunavut's housing needs are, according to Cochrane, double the NWT's, she points out this territory also deals with transportation issues, high costs and a harsh climate.
Cochrane didn't come back with any specific commitments but said the federal government would consider the NWT in its next allocation of housing funding. This is absolutely necessary.
NWT MP Michael McLeod isn't off the hook in this either - it's hard to fathom how the territory ended up so shortchanged if McLeod was doing his job to educate his peers about his constituents' needs.
Now that the public knows the feds will be considering the NWT for future housing funding, McLeod better get cracking to advocate for as much help as possible.
High stakes time in NHLEditorial Comment by Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, June 21, 2017
With the Stanley Cup playoffs in the rear-view mirror, excitement is mounting on which players could be selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the NHL's first expansion draft since the Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild joined the circuit in 2000.
The biggest difference with this expansion draft is that it, by far, has the best rules governing the protected lists of other teams than any expansion draft in history.
Teams had the option of protecting seven forwards, three defencemen and one goalie, or any eight skaters and one goalie. Players with no-trade or no-movement clauses (NMC), who refuse to waive them, must be protected or bought out before the expansion draft.
Both Colorado (Francois Beauchemin) and the New York Rangers (Dan Girardi) paid the price to buyout veteran players with a NMC so they could protect another player.
Nonetheless, it would be folly for Vegas to not take advantage of a more level playing field and actually ice a competitive team their first year in the league.
And, there are just enough teams with roster dilemmas, and just enough random situations in play, to make the Knights competitive in year one and still have the beginnings of a development plan in place.
The Knights get instant credibility in the crease by drafting M.A. Fleury from the Stanley Cup champion Pens.
The addition of another veteran with a couple of years left in the tank as a serviceable backup (think Cam Ward) would then give Vegas the ability to jump on two younger goalies in need of just a little seasoning.
And there is talent, such as Antti Raanta in New York and Malcolm Subban in Boston, on those unprotected lists.
Five teams with definite roster problems - taking for granted none pulled off a trade the morning after I wrote this - are the Anaheim Ducks, Chicago Black Hawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild. The Knights should quickly select Sami Vatanen, Trevor Van Riemsdyk, Josh Anderson, Colin Wilson (or do the Predators leave a still only 29-year-old James Neal exposed?) and Jason Zucker or Jonas Brodin, and make their deals elsewhere.
There are also a few boom-or-bust picks the Knights simply can't afford to pass on, and those include Ryan Strome from the New York Islanders and Mikkel Boedker in San Jose.
Lest we forget, the Knights also have to reach the salary-cap floor and there are, probably, some intriguing options being mulled over by the Vegas brass. David Perron really should be a no-brainer from the St. Louis Blues and, with only one year left on his contract, Tomas Plekanec of the Montreal Canadiens fits the bill nicely.
However, there are some "name" players out there whose production does not measure up to their salary. Their teams may be inclined to dangle them out there and see if Vegas bites.
Would the Knights pass on Bobby Ryan in Ottawa or Jordin Eberle in Edmonton? We'll know by tonight.
From what's being reported, the Knights already have four deals worked out. There's no doubt they've been offered enough incentives to pick this player, or ignore that player, that their management team will need a small wheel barrel to lug the draft picks safely back to Vegas.
Still, when all is said and done, Knights GM George McPhee is holding a lot more cards than any expansion GM before him. It's going to be a ton of fun to see how he plays them!
