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Transcript

National Indigenous News September 2 · National Indigenous Newscasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: This is a look at your National Indigenous News.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Daryl Stranger.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: More than four weeks after Nishkandiga First Nations declared a state of emergency over a sewage spill at its nursing station, a fire at its temporary healthcare facility has left the community scrambling yet again.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: The sewage spill in the remote Ojibwe community, about 440 kilometers northeast of Thunder Bay, Ontario, happened five days after more than 140 community members had returned home from Toronto following an evacuation triggered by nearby wildfires.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: Fewer than 400 people live in the First Nation, with about 250 of the community's most vulnerable now staying in Toronto because of the sewage spill.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: Indigenous Services Canada officials, including the Department's Ontario Regional Director General, visited the First Nation last week to assess the situation.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: Nishkandaga's Child and Family Resources Center had been used as a temporary nursing station since the sewage spill.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: Shortly after ISC's visit, a space heater caused a small fire in the facility.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: While the building is still being used, the chief of the community said it's not rated for medical equipment.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: The First Nation is weighing its options for another temporary health clinic, which may mean either using its administrative office, connecting services to a few modular buildings in the community, or repurposing trailers at the school.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Nishkandiga is part of the Mattaw First Nations Management Tribal Council, which represents eight First Nations in Treaty 9 and one in the Robinson Superior area.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: The Mattawa Chiefs are calling on ISC to respond to Nishkandiga's request for a new nursing station and for both the provincial and federal governments to appoint a specifically mandated working group until the state of emergency is lifted by the First Nation.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: In British Columbia, the Comax and Wewakai First Nations on Mid-Vancouver Island say they have signed a historic protocol agreement as neighboring nations.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: In a written statement, the nations said the agreement creates a foundation for the nations to address matters of shared interest directly with one another and provides a framework for continued communication and cooperation.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: Comax Chief Nicole Rempel said the agreement was years in the making and goes into more depth than any other agreement the nation has established in the past.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: She said it could help with development projects, for example, with one nation taking the lead and the other having the opportunity to participate.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: In the nation statement, Wavakai Chief Rani Chickite said they are proud of the agreement and committed to working together.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: The agreement is meant to help with issues around territory overlap, a common challenge in BC that the Comox First Nation recently faced when signing a treaty with the province.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: That treaty drew opposition from Waywakum First Nation, which, like Wavakai, is located in and around Campbell, about 50 kilometers north of the Comox Valley.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: The Wayvakum Nation said the Comox Treaty overlaps with much of its own territory.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: A new Trade Center in Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories, is promising to create more local jobs while addressing the territory's housing shortage.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: A crew of about a dozen people at the Trade Center are building a duplex for Tulita, a community nearly 300 kilometers to the south along the Mackenzie River, early next year.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: The Trade Center is meant to support year-round indoor construction of modular houses across the Northwest Territories and help local community members gain skills in the trades.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: The territory is currently facing a housing shortage.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: According to an NWT government housing needs analysis released in March, the territory needs up to 2,700 homes to meet current demand, and it will need thousands more to replace aging homes.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_00: The new center will also allow crews to build throughout the winter, making it easier for them to rack up experience hours.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: It also has a classroom to help community members pass their pre trades entrance exam, and adding it will offer recent high school graduates easy access to a career in the trades.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: That's a look at your National Indigenous News.