Media.Knet.Ca

Brought to you by the Union of Ontario Indians.
Funded in part by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada

This is a Niijii (“friends”) Circle event.

GOAL:  To demonstrate the importance of building communications capacity in Aboriginal organizations and communities

AGENDA . . . associated with Anishinabe teachings

Monday November 21, 2005
Faculty Lounge, Lakehead University
Thunder Bay, Ontario

6:00 – 9:00 pm Networking Social
   Welcoming reception and drumming

Tuesday November 22, 2005
Bora Laskin Theatre, Lakehead University
Thunder Bay, Ontario

9:00 am Welcoming/Opening Remarks

• Elder
• Maurice Switzer, Director of Communications – Union of Ontario Indians
• Chief Pete Collins, Fort William First Nation
• Fred Gilbert, President, Lakehead University

9:15 am Overview – Conference moderator

9:30 – 10:30 am RESPECT: Panel “misconceptions and stereotypes” - This panel will discuss misconceptions and stereotypes perpetuated by mass media coverage of Aboriginal peoples and issues.  SUGGESTIONS: Good News and Bad News – Fort William FN sawmill project and Pikangikum suicides.

• Chief Pete Collins, Fort William First Nation

10:30 am  Break

10:45 am – 12:00 HONESTY:  Plenary “best practices”
This session will consist of sharing of best practices in public education about Aboriginal issues; SUGGESTIONS: Niijii Circle Pages in North Bay Nugget

Workshop A: Challenges in covering Aboriginal issues: discussion involving journalists, First Nations leaders

• John Size, The North Bay Nugget, North Bay, ON
• Joyce Hunter, Wawatay News, Sioux Lookout, ON

12:00 – 1:30  LUNCH – Faculty Lounge, Lakehead University
Guest Keynote speaker Grand Council Chief John Beaucage, Anishinabek Nation will …

1:30 – 2:45 pm SHARING:  Plenary session panel: In this session there will be sharing of experiences by Aboriginal communications professionals.

• Ron Desmoulins, CBC Radio, Thunder Bay

1:30 – 2:45 pm  Media Relations Session
Workshop B: Media Relations 101: hands-on session involving First Nations leaders, staff working for Aboriginal organizations.

• M. Switzer, director of communications, Union of Ontario Indians

3:00 – 4:15 pm STRENGTH:  Plenary session panel: Building communications capacity - As party of the self-government process this session will consist of brief presentations on building aboriginal capacities.

• Marlene Brant-Castellano, RCAP research co-chair
• Lakehead/Confederation faculty
• John Beaucage, Grand Council Chief, Anishinabek Nation

4:15 pm  DEBWEWIN CITATIONS
Fourth annual presentation of Turtle Island’s only awards recognizing excellence in Aboriginal-issues journalism

4:30 pm Closing by Elder

Governor General Michaëlle Jean dined with Kashechewan members at Odawa Native Friendship Centre in Ottawa this Wednesday night.

Pizza, salad, and fruit were dished out to many in attendance at the Odawa Native Friendship Centre in Ottawa last night - all donated to support the Kashechewan people evacuated to Ottawa and now in their second week here.

Governor General Michaëlle Jean graced us with her presence as she dined, chatted, and discussed the situation surrounding the evacuees.  She held a newborn baby in her arms while chatting to the young mother and was advised that the birth occurred here in Ottawa.

Extending offers of further discussions on First Nation and Aboriginal community issues, she suggested that she may visit Kashechewan personally in the future.  Until then, an invitation to visit Rideau Hall may be extended by her.

The Odawa Native Friendship Centre has undertaken to provide suppers to Kashechewan residents during the weekdays as a means to offer them a break from their hotels and by offering homecooked meals.  Donations of clothing, food, and meat are still pouring in from surrounding communities, including deer and moose from the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan (Golden Lake).  Local Ottawa-based organizations and individual residents drop off their donations on a daily basis as well.

Many volunteers show up daily to help cook, serve, clean, and look after the young children.  The Odawa Native Friendship Centre is pleased to be able to help out our Northern brothers, sisters, and elders.

Students from Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School’s newspaper club have launched their new webpage. The site can be accessed at http://dfcscoop.piczo.com

Parents, guardians and friends of those attending at DFC are encouraged to come and check out this page that is still currently under construction.

Events and happenings that occur at DFC will be posted to the site.

If you have any questions, comments or would like to share your feedback, the student news department would greatly appreciate hearing from you. You can email the site's moderator at JamesBen@dfc.nnec.on.ca

Keewaytinook Okimakanak is once again sponsoring a First Nations Youth employment project as one component of Industry Canada's First Nations SchoolNet program. A training workshop is being held in Thunder Bay this week at the Fort William First Nation Learning Centre (site of the Fort William KiHS classroom).

Twenty-eight youth from different First Nations across Ontario are hired to work with their local school and community supporting and developing ICT applications and new opportunities.

The YICT workshop in Thunder Bay is happening this week. Due to weather and other circumstances, several members of this project had to remain in their home communities. They are still able to participate in the workshop because all the training is being conducted online. It is also being archived and video taped to be put together into a series that will be used in future training initiatives.

Angie Fiddler and Tabatha Jourdain are coordinating this workshop. Jesse Fiddler, Cal Kenny and Aaron Hardy are working together to support the youth workers and deliver the training. Angus Miles, the lead instructor in the Cisco Academy ITE 1 course that everyone is taking, was unavailable to attend the session as planned but the rest of the team has been able to complete the planned agenda and successful deliver the workshop objectives.

Day One, Tuesday November 8, of the Youth IT training moved to the KO Research Institute for due to circumstances beyond anyone's control. KORI's offices are located at 135 Syndicate north, Suite 405. The last two days of the workshop  continued, as scheduled, on Wednesday and Thursday, at Fort William First Nation.

Click here to see pictures from Day 1 of the workshop.

Click here to see pictures from Day 2 of the workshop.

Other pictures of Day 1 can be seen by clicking here.

Revival Meetings in Cat Lake

November 11 - 13, 2005

Guest speaker

Roy  Moskotayenene

from Bloodvein, Manitoba

Musicians from Bloodvein and Northwest bay

FOR MORE INFO

PLEASE CALL.

Elsie Gray @ (807) 347-2461       WORK      (807) 347-2100

Alex Bighead @ (807)-582-3176