December 16, 2020
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has reconvened for the first time in five years in order to renew the sense of urgency, purpose, and unity in fulfilling the 94 calls to action. The commissioners said that Canadians from all walks of life embraced the calls to action, but expressed concern about the slow and uneven pace of implementation. They additionally pointed to recently leaked documents from the Government of Alberta, which argued that information about residential schools should not be taught to children in Grade 3, as an example of a step back. “This is not just an Indigenous story. This is about us all as Canadians,” said Murray Sinclair, who chaired the TRC. “This is about how we have been educated. This is about how our ancestors acted and interacted and therefore, we need to figure out how our participation will move this conversation forward.”
Globe and Mail (National)
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has reconvened for the first time in five years in order to renew the sense of urgency, purpose, and unity in fulfilling the 94 calls to action. The commissioners said that Canadians from all walks of life embraced the calls to action, but expressed concern about the slow and uneven pace of implementation. They additionally pointed to recently leaked documents from the Government of Alberta, which argued that information about residential schools should not be taught to children in Grade 3, as an example of a step back. “This is not just an Indigenous story. This is about us all as Canadians,” said Murray Sinclair, who chaired the TRC. “This is about how we have been educated. This is about how our ancestors acted and interacted and therefore, we need to figure out how our participation will move this conversation forward.”
Globe and Mail (National)
Thanks to support from the Canadian Medical Association and the Saskatchewan Medical Association, fourth-year medical students at the University of Saskatchewan will be able to take part in a national Indigenous wellness course for free.
The Role of Practitioners in Indigenous Wellness was developed by USask’s College of Medicine with assistance from both the Canadian Medical Protective Association and the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations. "Conceptually, this course is designed to move mainstream health practitioners into a 'middle ground' space through increased cultural awareness and understanding,” explained FSIN Vice Chief David Pratt, “and from this place of understanding, have individuals and work units commit to meaningful, culturally responsive changes that will make their workplace more culturally respectful and safe for Indigenous people.” The CMA and SMA will provide $25K per year over the next three years to ensure that all members of the USask medical doctor classes of 2021, 2022, and 2023 will be able to participate in the training.
Newswire (SK)
The Government of British Columbia has announced that it will be spending $2.3M to expand mental health supports and suicide-prevention programming for First Nations and Métis youth and postsecondary students. The funding is in response to new research from the Canadian Mental Health Association and the University of British Columbia that found that citizens in the province are struggling with stress, anxiety, hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts during the second wave of the pandemic. “It is often said our youth are our future,” said First Nations Health Authority Acting Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nel Wieman, “but they are also our present and their mental health needs are urgent.” $800K of the funding will be provided to the FNHA to support Indigenous youth through expanded suicide-prevention and life-promotion activities, $200K will support Métis Nation BC in developing online mental health support courses and awareness campaigns, and $1.3M will go towards the CMHA to support expanded suicide-prevention programs and the distribution of grants to postsecondary institutions.
Times Colonist (BC)
Algonquin College will be leading a program to help up to 275 Indigenous youth gain hands-on training and employment skills related to the pandemic. Supported by $2.5M in COVID-19-related funding from the Government of Canada’s Youth Employment and Skills Strategy, Algonquin will fund a number of organizations that will support Indigenous youth across Canada through training and development programs and work placement on projects that generally reflect community response to the pandemic. “This is a welcome opportunity at a very difficult time for everyone,” said Ron (Deganadus) McLester, Algonquin Vice President of Truth, Reconciliation & Indigenization. “It is quite interesting and very telling that half of the partner communities are focusing on sustainability and food security, reflecting a very real need on First Nations.”
Algonquin (ON)
The Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec has released the latest version of the Professional Competency Framework for the Teaching Profession. The First Nations Education Council (FNEC) welcomed the progress made by the ministry in this latest version, but remarked that the scarcity of Indigenous-related content indicated the need for the fifteenth competency proposed by FNEC and its partners. “The FNEC welcomes every step in the right direction. The Ministry has recommended, somewhat timidly, that post-secondary institutions consider including First Nations and Inuit realities in their teacher training program. The fifteenth competency proposed by the FNEC and its partners is … becoming an essential element,” said FNEC Director General Denis Gros-Louis. The release defines competency 15 as “value and promote Indigenous knowledge, worldviews, cultures and history.” FNEC stated that it intends to continue working with universities to extend this competency and ensure that future teachers have the necessary understanding and awareness of Indigenous realities and histories.
Nation Talk (QC)
Westbank First Nation has honoured Okanagan College President Jim Hamilton with a blanket ceremony. The honour was given in recognition of Hamilton’s efforts to support Indigenous students’ access to higher learning, Indigenize the Okanagan postsecondary system, and strengthen ties between the college and Westbank. “The blanket ceremony is our highest honour,” said Westbank First Nation Chief Christopher Derickson. “It signifies our community’s tremendous respect for the recipient. It is seldom an honour accorded to someone outside the nation.” The blanket portrays a coyote howling at the sky, a grizzly bear fishing, an eagle pictograph, and a Kokanee skeleton pictograph. “I am… greatly humbled by this unexpected recognition,” said Hamilton. “I know how meaningful it is and could not be more grateful that Westbank First Nation considered me worthy.”
Kelowna Cap News (BC)
Fleming College and Kenjgewin Teg have partnered on the offering of a Practical Nursing program on Manitoulin Island (Mnidoo Mnising). The five-year agreement will allow Kenjgewin Teg to act as a service provider offering Fleming’s Practical Nursing program. Students will participate in virtually delivered theory curriculum and on-site clinical learning opportunities at partner locations. “Going forward, our local Mnidoo Mnising and surrounding communities will continue to see more opportunities in health and wellness programs at Kenjgewin Teg as we continue working together with valued partners like Fleming College and other Indigenous institutes who support culturally relevant training and education hosted closer to home,” said Stephanie Roy, President of Kenjgewin Teg. Local organizations also expressed their excitement about the new program, with Manitoulin Health Centre Chief Nursing Officer Paula Fields stating that they are “excited to support a locally grown Practical Nursing program.”
Fleming (ON)
Thompson Rivers University has received a $750K donation from the BMO Financial Group to fund awards for Indigenous students and support undergraduate research. The funds will be used to create awards that will support Indigenous students at TRU’s School of Nursing, and to support Knowledge Makers, a mentorship program that guides Indigenous researchers. “As a university, we have a responsibility in reconciliation,” said TRU President Brett Fairbairn. “That includes honouring our relationship with the Secwépemc people on whose lands we reside, reducing barriers to post-secondary education and ensuring our learning community is a place where everyone truly belongs. Today’s announcement creates more opportunities for Indigenous learners to succeed.”
TRU (BC)
The Cree School Board’s adult education sector, Sabtuan Adult Education Services, and the Cree Nation Government’s Apatisiiwin Skills Development have signed an official partnership agreement. The agreement sets out shared standards for confidentiality, consultation, community relations, and information sharing between the two parties. The partnership will pursue goals such as maximizing the use of existing training centres and building new training centres in Eeyou Istchee communities. “We are focused on employment for the Cree Nation at Apatisiiwin Skills Development. That is the core of our mission and where we have the expertise,” said Louisa Saganash, Director of ASD. “The Cree School Board’s Sabtuan Adult Education Services focus on education and have the expertise to develop and offer training programs that match the needs of the community.”
Eeyou Education (QC)
The Université du Québec à Montréal’s Laboratoire international de recherche sur l’imaginaire du Nord, de l’hiver et de l’Arctique (NORD) has launched a new website that is devoted to Inuit literatures from Nunavik, Nunavut, Nunatsiavut, and Greenland. The site aims to help others discover the works of Inuit writers who have written about culture, their territory, and their vision of the world; as well as understand those writers’ perceptions of history. The new website includes biographies of writers and a presentation of their works.
UQAM |
Website (QC)
rtraction