2024

Featured, Health, News, Politics December 15, 2024

NWT Health Leadership Council discharged, angering Dene leadership

'It is time for Dene to determine our own ways of caring for our people,' says National Chief George Mackenzie


The Dene Nation has grave concerns over the dissolution dismissal of the NWT’s Health and Social Services (NTHSSA) Leadership Council, in favour of a single public administrator, as it could hurt overall effectiveness of health service delivery. “We are in a crisis state regarding medical travel, child/family services and the…

Community, Featured, History, News December 13, 2024

Gwichyà Gwich’in scholar’s book amplifies voices of 75 Indigenous northerners

The book, By Strength We Are Still Here, is available today


“What would Indigenous societies look like today if the legacy of residential schools – all of the violence, death and trauma – never happened?” asks Crystal Gail Fraser, a Gwichyà Gwich’in historian and scholar at the University of Alberta. This is a question that lingers on Fraser’s mind. It prompted…

Featured, News, Politics, Reconciliation December 13, 2024

Kátł’odeeche First Nation chooses financial specialist Elaine Auger for chief

Disaster recovery, economic development on the table as community settles lucrative modern Treaty Day payments


The people of Kátł’odeeche First Nation have spoken, electing Elaine Auger as chief on Thursday. And Auger promises to let the people speak out on issues to drive decisions by a transparent and accountable leadership group. The final tally in Thursday’s election, pending any appeals, was 129 votes cast for…

Featured, News, Police December 12, 2024

Behchokǫ̀ RCMP seize $76,000 in cash, charge Edmonton man

Arrest follows discovery of cash, drugs, and phones in Alberta-licensed vehicle


Behchoko RCMP seized $76,000 in cash from an Alberta-licensed vehicle exhibiting “suspicious driving behavior” on November 25, according to a Thursday news release. Officers stopped the vehicle and conducted a cursory search, where they found a hidden compartment containing a large amount of cash, several cell-phones and a small quantity…

Environment, Featured, News December 11, 2024

Tin Can Hill site assessment reveals contamination risks for proposed campus

Remediation options proposed as GNWT evaluates risks for new North Slave campus


An environmental site assessment at Tin Can Hill has revealed concentrations of arsenic and other metals in the soil, according to a GNWT news release. The site is the proposed location for Aurora College’s new North Slave campus. The assessment was to identify potential contamination on-site, evaluate risks to the…

Featured, Health, News, Reconciliation December 8, 2024

Reflecting on tragic events, recommitting to action against gender-based violence  

‘Most Indigenous children around my age were not raised on love. Most were raised on survival,' says Behchokǫ̀'s Kate Wedzin


Like so many Indigenous children whose parents went to residential school, Kate Wedzin grew up in an unhealthy environment that led to foster homes in her teens and abusive relationships as an adult. Wedzin told a vigil marking the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women she…

Education, Featured, Health, News, Reconciliation December 5, 2024

Northern nursing students check vital signs of health research

Fourth-year Aurora College nursing students show off the work they put into three-month projects


Holly Hodder recalls while growing up, hearing stories about the mistrust Elders had towards the European settler class’s health-care system. Stereotyping, indifference and systemic racism have for decades been reported by Indigenous people as they access publicly funded health-care across Canada and the NWT. This as Indigenous patients have described…

Community, Featured, News December 4, 2024

‘We are a community and we heal together,’ says sober advocate

Sobriety celebration event wraps up National Addictions Awareness Week in Yellowknife


Ildiko Etthizine drove nearly eight hours from High Level, northern Alberta, for an event in Yellowknife celebrating the resilience of Indigenous people on their sobriety journeys. Etthizine shared her 16-year journey battling alcohol addiction to a room full of residents on Sunday. The event, held as part of National Addictions…

Featured, News December 4, 2024

Indigenous rights champion and Order of Canada member Gail Cyr remembered

Founder of the NWT Native Court Workers Association, former Yellowknife city councillor and member of the NWT Human Rights Commission passed away this week at the age of 71.


Gail Cyr was known for her unwavering bravery fighting for Indigenous people in the North, and her life’s work was recognized nationally in 2022, when she was invested into the Order of Canada. Cyr passed away on Tuesday, her son Jesse Wheeler posted to social media. She was 71. “Thank…