Tag: Cree

Members of Sweden’s Sami Nation visit Eeyou Istchee

For the Indigenous Sami peoples of northern Scandinavia, the lowly lichen is an essential element to their well-being. As the main winter food staple for the reindeer population of this region, the starchy fungus thrives in healthy forests. As go the lichen, so go the reindeer, the central protein in ... read more ››

Waswanipi’s Vocational Training Centre celebrates 10 years of graduates

Responding to the needs of the rapidly developing employment market within Eeyou Istchee, it has been a full decade since the Cree School Board opened the Sabtuan Regional Vocational Training Centre in Waswanipi to give Crees the skills they needed to realize their dreams. “After many years of negotiations and representations ... read more ››

New campaign launched to show support for Broadback conservation

While the Cree have been hard at work to see the Broadback River and the area surrounding it declared a protected area, a new campaign has been launched by the Quebec chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS). According to Pier-Olivier Boudreault, a biologist and project manager for conservation ... read more ››

Oujé-Bougoumou signs agreements with Chibougamau and Chapais

Chief Reggie Neeposh and the Nation of Oujé-Bougoumou took another step forward in affirming the role of Eeyou Istchee as stewards of the land and protectors of the environment on June 15. Neeposh signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with Mayors Manon Cyr of Chibougamau and Steve Gamache from Chapais, marking ... read more ››

Ten Thousand Steps

It is well known that First Nation people all across this country suffer from diabetes and heart disease. The Cree of James Bay started to develop these health problems decades ago when so-called progress came to our remote First Nations. Some of us ended up with jobs working for the ... read more ››

The Nation's best finds at the 2015 hunting and fishing show

Will Nicholls at the 2015 show To help you trick out your outdoors experience, The Nation visited the Hunting, Fishing & Camping Show at Place Bonaventure February 19-22, where we checked out what’s new in gear, guns and gizmos. The event featured 250 exhibitors, sprawled out over 225,000 square feet of showroom, showcasing the ... read more ››

Reflections on the life of Matthew Iserhoff, Sr.

On the morning of February 6, 2015, my wife Danielle and I received the news that Matthew Iserhoff, Sr. had passed away that morning. He was the father of our son-in-law, Matthew A. Iserhoff. Our hearts were broken. I first met Mr. Iserhoff in Montreal in 1970. He was enrolled at ... read more ››

One shovel at a time

Long ago, one of my favourite escapes during cold February days was to the outdoor ice rink next to our old school in Attawapiskat. After winter blizzards, the ice surface would be covered in drifting snow three to four feet deep. As a teenager the challenge of clearing all that snow ... read more ››

Sub-zero ecstasy

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s winter in the land of the wandering polar bear, with the biting and burning winds in this sub-zero climate we like to call home. Taking note of this, the wind chill hovering around minus-50 and my thermometer actually not registering anything, I venture out ... read more ››

Programs and ideas for improving your health during the cold months

With the light and warmth of summer months away, the natural inclination is to bundle up in front of the TV as much as possible. However, this is the worst plan for your health as human beings need to be physically active. According to Dr. David Dannenbaum, of the Cree Board ... read more ››

Voices of the Land

Voices of the Land is an unusual compilation. It is neither music, nor poetry, nor spoken word and teaching. It is the combination of all these that takes you on a journey. It is the journey of the people of Chisasibi and it is a beautiful one. It contains anger, ... read more ››

High-level health meeting in Montreal

Grand Chief Ted Moses and Cree Board of Health and Social Services Chairman Bertie Wapachee met with Quebec Health Minister François Legault in Montreal Aug. 26 to address several outstanding health issues. The meeting was short on specifics, but Legault promised announcements would soon be made regarding the Cree diabetes epidemic ... read more ››

Will on the Grill: Quick Baking Powder Biscuits, Navy Beans for writers, and more

In this issue of Will on the Grill I’m only going to give you a few tasty recipes but I’m going to give you some of the hard learnt secrets of the kitchen at the end. Doesn’t it just burn your butt when you want to make something but you’re ... read more ››

Indian Act changes

The Canadian Press reports that Native bands across Canada will have to abide by minimum standards when they elect officials or spend money under proposed legislation to revamp the 126-year-old Indian Act. The bill would require Native bands to develop codes to spell out how they choose their leaders, run their ... read more ››

B.C treaty referendum a shoddy procedure that is unworthy of Canadian politics

Years ago when I was living in England a satirical television show conducted a poll of public opinion that exploded the myth of the objectivity of polls. By cunningly phrasing the questions to obtain the results they wanted, they managed to get a huge majority of people to agree with ... read more ››

Feds defend slow pace of residential school settlements

The Canadian press reports that government officials will move faster to compensate those abused in Indian residential schools. But critics warn victims caught in a sluggish process are dying off. “We’re making a lot of progress out there,” said Shawn Tupper, director general for Indian Residential Schools Resolution Canada. Since the ... read more ››

Sun Peaks Protesters Face Criminal Charges

Two Elders, Irene Billy & Charlie Willard, a spiritual leader, Henry Saul and a young warrior, George Manuel Jr. are appeared in court March 12 on charges of criminal contempt for refusing to leave their home and the Skwelkwek’welt Protection Centre located at Skwelkwek’welt and on unceded Secwepemc Traditional Territory. The ... read more ››

Coffee to go

Some days, it seems that there is just not enough time to get everything done. The other day, I went up North to go hunting and the damn machine broke down, leaving us little to do but repair and hope for the best. This took a good six hours waiting for ... read more ››

A strong case against bio-piracy: Traditional remedies should not be patentable

A recent wire story reveals what may become the next hot global trade issue. Some 600 Indian tribes in Brazil have asked their government to protect them from “bio-piracy,” that is, attempts by corporations to patent or copyright traditional aboriginal knowledge, from potions and herbal remedies to exotic plant extracts. “We ... read more ››

Healing and Protecting our Sacred Mother Earth

The traditional Hopi spiritual elders say that we have not learned our lessons in the past from our use of technology. Technology is now having a world of its own. We are using technology to accumulate wealth and power. We are now using technology for the wrong reasons. Technology is ... read more ››

Happy Birthday Ouje-Bougoumou

Ouje-Bougoumou has just celebrated its tenth anniversary. The model community on the shores of Lac Opemisca marked the occasion with a week-long series of events and festivities that ran from Jan. 20-27. Though not even a teenager yet, Ouje-Bougoumou has already established an impressive list of achievements during its brief lifetime. ... read more ››

Post-it Post Haste

One has to admire the total lack of knowledge retention and disregard for historical facts as well as the predictable rhetoric that the National Post seems to Post-it Post Haste require in their overtly Caucasian editorial staff writers. Ifs more than obvious, it’s downright in your face, with the extended ... read more ››

Crees Might Intervene in Trade Brawl

The Grand Council of the Crees is considering intervening in the high-stakes Canada-U.S. trade war over softwood lumber. Crees are considering filing an application for intervenor status in support of the U.S. Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports. The coalition, which represents major U.S. timber companies, is accusing Canada of wiping out its ... read more ››

Native Leaders Set Stage for Disaster

I left last week’s Assembly of First Nations National Fisheries Strategy Conference in Halifax in the same mood I left Esgenoopetitj (Burnt Church) last September – tired, frustrated and discouraged. It’s not that I don’t care about aboriginal and treaty rights. My frustration stems from watching the AFN try to micromanage ... read more ››

Health Board Issues Cold Medicine Warning

Crees are being advised to stay away from dozens of cold medicines that contain something called PPA – short for phenylpropanolamine. This PPA is used for stuffy noses and is present in many cough, cold, sinus and allergy medications. The warning comes from the Cree Health Board and Health Canada after a ... read more ››

Indian Humour Belies the Stoic Stereotype

The following piece by Mark Trahant, a Shoshone-Bannock writer from Fort Hall, Idaho, is reprinted from the Native_News listserv (ishgooda@voyager.net). Flip through any 19th-century collection of American Indian portraits and you’ll see many images of stereotypical Native Americans: the serious expression of Sitting Bull; a warrior whose eyes avoid the camera, ... read more ››