EVERYONE is invited to participate in this online workshop by joining the webcast of the event and sharing your thoughts and questions through the chat feature on the webstreaming server. Click here for more information about participating in this day long workshop web site.

The Faculty of Information Studies (FIS) at the University of Toronto is partnering with Keewaytinook Okimakanak (KO) to organize a day-long workshop on "Digital Libraries for and with Aboriginal communities". The workshop is being held on Friday November 25th, 2005, from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm (EST). The workshop is devoted to discussing the best possible models for providing information resources and services to the communities in the remote areas of Northern Ontario. The aim is to devise a strategy to create a digital library for elementary and secondary school students. Such a digital library would serve all remote and isolated communities in Ontario's far north and even those outside of the membership of KO....

The workshop will be a hybrid of physical and virtual (via video conference) meetings with two main nodes: one at the Faculty of Information Studies at the University of Toronto, and the other in the Keewaytinook Okimakanak (KO) offices . There will be meeting sites in Sudbury, Ottawa and other northern communities. The participants at the various nodes will interact through IP videoconferencing. Everyone else interested in participating in this workshop can watch, listen and share your thoughts, questions and suggestions through the online chat service available on webstreaming server.

Click here for a copy of the agenda.

Click here to test your connections for participating online.

FedNor Funds Chapleau-Area Broadband Initiatives

CHAPLEAU, Ontario, November 9, 2005 — Brent St. Denis, Member of Parliament for Algoma–Manitoulin–Kapuskasing, today announced FedNor support of $513,600 for two Chapleau-area connectedness projects. Of the total, $27,600 will be provided to the Township of Chapleau to hire an Information Technology (IT) Coordinator/Trainer to work on Project Chapleau, a wireless broadband initiative. An additional $486,000 will go to the North Eastern Ontario Communication Network (NEOnet) to provide three area First Nations with high-speed Internet service.

Both projects are designed to complement and bolster Project Chapleau which involves Bell Canada Enterprises, Nortel and the Township of Chapleau, collaborating on assessing the sustainability of wireless networks for serving small, rural communities.

“These initiatives bring us one step closer to the Government of Canada’s goal to make this the most connected nation in the world,” said Mr. St. Denis. “By capitalizing on the advantages of technology to increase access to education, health, government and business services, we are giving Northerners the opportunity to enhance their economic and social positions and to participate more fully in the knowledge-based economy.”

On July 15, 2005, Bell Canada and Nortel announced a joint commitment to deliver a pilot project enabling delivery of high-speed broadband to the Township of Chapleau. Project Chapleau will be the first Wireless Mesh Broadband Network pilot in Canada.

The role of the Coordinator/Trainer will be to work with the Bell/Nortel Project Manager to oversee training activities as they relate to the pilot project, conducting pilot sessions for new curricula, and “train-the-trainer” sessions as necessary.

The “Chapleau Area First Nations Broadband Project” will connect three area First Nations (Chapleau Cree First Nation, Brunswick House First Nation and Chapleau Ojibwe First Nation) via a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Internet solution. This will provide much needed high-speed access to area residents and businesses, as well as government, health and education facilities.

FedNor funds will support engineering costs associated with integrating DSL service for the three First Nations with the Project Chapleau initiative, as well as the purchase and installation of the necessary telecommunications equipment.

NEOnet’s role in this project will be to coordinate the efforts of the project team to ensure the initiative stays on track, on budget and on time. It will also provide Information and Communications Technology (ICT) workshops to make residents aware of the benefits and potential of broadband service while helping area stakeholders develop ICT applications.

“We are pleased to be part of this exciting venture, working with FedNor and building on the tremendous work being done by the Township of Chapleau and its partners,” said NEOnet Chair, Christy Marinig. “This project gives local First Nations the ability to increase their selfreliance while improving the technological infrastructure within the region.”

“This is a momentous day for the residents of Chapleau and the surrounding region,” added Chapleau Mayor, Earle Freeborn. “This community now stands at the forefront when it comes to connectivity and we will be a model for other smaller Northern and rural communities across the country.”

This investment builds on the Government of Canada’s recent $10 million commitment, through FedNor, to bring broadband access to every community in Northern Ontario and an additional $10 million over the next three years to support applications that make effective use of the broadband network. Since 1999, FedNor has contributed $47 million toward connectedness projects, including $22.8 million for telecommunications infrastructure and networking projects, and $24.2 million toward information and communications technology (ICT) applications, promotion and development. As well as working closely with First Nations SchoolNet, FedNor itself in the last eight years has established more than 100 Points of Presence (main Internet access points) serving Northern Ontario communities.

By supporting the Township of Chapleau, area First Nations and NEOnet through its programs and services, FedNor is opening doors and building futures for a prosperous Northern Ontario.

Funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2005 federal budget and is therefore built into the existing fiscal framework.

To find out more about FedNor, visit us at: http://fednor.ic.gc.ca

- 30 -

For more information, please contact:

Graeme Wilkes
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Andy Mitchell
Minister of State (FedNor)
(613) 947-5850

Mario Paluzzi
Communications Officer
FedNor
(705) 941-2064 or 1 877 333-6673

From the Globe and Mail Update

Bell, Nortel deliver broadband to Northern Ontario
Wednesday, November 9, 2005 Posted at 1:47 PM EST

Project Chapleau, a technology showcase developed by Bell Canada, Nortel and the Township of Chapleau, has started operations in high-speed networking and applications. Project Chapleau is designed to evaluate the economic and social benefits of communications technologies on rural communities.

As part of this technology showcase, Chapleau will benefit from wireless mesh, optical, multimedia communications and enterprise systems using an upgraded optical network. Bell Canada and Nortel have also opened the Chapleau Innovation Centre, where residents can learn about new technologies. Through the Centre they can also connect virtually with the Bell-Nortel Innovation Centre in Ottawa and the technologies and expertise being developed there.

The Chapleau Community Portal — www.chapleau.ca — now provides a virtual meeting place for the community and access to the global marketplace.

From the Canadian Press

Chapleau is now unwired
Thursday, November 10, 2005 Posted at 5:25 PM EST

CHAPLEAU, Ont. — After years of grumbling about the lack of Internet service available to them, residents of this northeastern Ontario community have become unwired.
Bell Canada and Nortel, along with the municipality of Chapleau, officially launched Project Chapleau on Wednesday, marking the beginning of wireless Internet in the remote community about 410 kilometres northwest of Sudbury, Ont.

"We began discussions 15 months ago," Bell Canada CEO Michael Sabia said. "This is the first city in the North using this kind of technology."

A wireless mesh network, made up of a series of radio transmitters, has been positioned around the city of 3,000 people and subscribers were to be activated on Thursday.

"It allows people to walk around the city with their PCs and always be connected," Sabia said.

"This is a very quantum leap forward for Chapleau," said Mayor Earle Freeborn.

"It gives local companies an advantage. They can now compete on an international level."

Chapleau is home to Tembec and Domtar paper mills and is in a region known for its hunting, fishing and eco-tourism.

The project will also give students and teachers more access to educational resources on the internet.

Health services should also be enhanced.

The project will also connect three First Nations in the area to DSL in the next year, Mr. Sabia said.

While it won't be the same wireless internet Chapleau will have access to, the First Nations will nonetheless be connected to services they didn't have before, said Lawson Hunter, Bell Canada's executive vice-president.

Project Chapleau could be a blueprint for other communities.

"There are 2,000 rural and isolated communities in Canada that don't have access to broadband," Mr. Sabia said. "This is not acceptable. Many people will be watching this."

Mr. Hunter said the residents will be provided with free Internet for several months.

"We want people to use it, and we want to encourage people to sign up," he said.

From FedNor Press Releases

FedNor Invests in First Nations Technology Initiative

KENORA, Ontario, November 8, 2005 — Roger Valley, Member of Parliament for Kenora, today announced a FedNor contribution of $310,000 to the Lake of the Woods Business Investment Corp. (LOWBIC), the Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC) for implementation of broadband Internet services at two area First Nations.

This initiative will enable quality videoconferencing and other advanced information and communications technology (ICT) applications to be introduced and supported for at least five years at Windigo Island First Nation and Angle Inlet First Nation. These Aboriginal communities are accessible only by water. FedNor funding will trigger a Bell Canada investment in the fibre optic cable and telecommunications equipment needed to establish broadband points of presence.

“This project contributes to the Government of Canada’s plan to employ electronic connectivity to enhance social and economic development throughout all regions,” said Mr. Valley. “We are committed to investing in projects such as this that take advantage of the benefits of technology to improve residents’ ability to access health care, interact, transact, learn and improve their social position and prosperity.”

The project will improve the efficiency of services of the First Nations and other agencies who can connect to the wide area networks of their central offices for file sharing, videoconferencing and other ICT applications. They will also be able to access online services and readily interchange data with government and residents.

LOWBIC is the CFDC servicing Kenora and an area around Lake of the Woods, including Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls and Minaki as well as nine First Nations communities. It provides loans, business counselling and advisory services to small and medium-sized enterprises within its catchment area, in addition to community planning and economic development services.

“This project will enable these remote communities to utilize technology to overcome challenges created by distance and geography,” said Judy Bechard, Chair of LOWBIC. “As the regional CFDC, we’re pleased to assist area First Nations to participate more fully in the knowledge-based economy.”

By supporting the LOWBIC through its programs and services, FedNor is opening doors and building futures for a prosperous Northern Ontario.

Funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2005 federal budget and is therefore built into the existing fiscal framework.

To find out more about FedNor, visit us at: http://fednor.ic.gc.ca

- 30 -

For more information, please contact:

Graeme Wilkes
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Andy Mitchell
Minister of State (FedNor)
(613) 947-5850

David Frood
Communications Officer
FedNor
(807) 766-1820 or 1 877 333-6673

The Satellite Internet for Remote Areas Program (SIRA) is a new service being delivered by NEOnet out of their Timmins office. The program was created to support Northern Ontario's business and not-for-profit community secure cost-effective high-speed internet access. With the advent of the new 2-way, Ka-band satellite service, remote or rural businesses and organizations now have a viable option to dial-up internet. Click here for more information about this new NEOnet program.

SIRA includes First Nation businesses and band offices that aren’t able to access broadband connectivity services and that won’t be served in the short term, ie. over the next six months.

High-speed internet access is a critical tool for the business sector, as it facilitates marketing and communications efforts. Research shows that when properly implemented, it can also introduce significant operational efficiencies and cost savings. NEOnet recognizes the importance of connectivity, and acknowledges that many businesses are located beyond the reach of traditional high-speed internet service.

Eligible applicants may receive up to 75% of the supported costs of equipment and installation of 2-way high-speed internet service (Ka-band), to a maximum of $1000. Supported costs include the satellite dish and associated connectivity equipment, and installation fees. The service provider chosen must be an authorized Telesat reseller. Travel costs incurred by the vendor to install the equipment may also be considered eligible if the business is located more than 50 km from the nearest satellite equipment provider. This program is available for a limited time and you may apply for assistance while the available funds last ($75,000).

Click here to learn more about ka-band satellite internet.

NEOnet Inc.
124 Third Avenue
Timmins ON, P4N 1C5
P (705) 360-1353 x2
F (705) 360-8537
sgallant@neonet.on.ca
http://www.neonet.on.ca

- NEOnet -
Enabling Opportunities through Information and Communications Technology

Six First Nation schools across Quebec are featured in a new "SchoolNet Success Stories" publication being distributed by the First Nations Education Council (FNEC). Click here to read this 19 page report (PDF, 870Kb)

Everyone is invited to download and share this publication with others. The stories show how these schools are working with FNEC and Industry Canada's First Nations SchoolNet program to deliver effective education programs and services using ICTs in the First Nations across Quebec.

The FNEC is Industry Canada's First Nation SchoolNet's Quebec Regional Management Organization.They are located in Wendake First Nation, near Quebec City.

Similar stories exist in the five other Regional Management Organizations (RMO) serving all the First Nation schools across Canada. Visit the RMO web sites for the latest information about how First Nation schools and their communities are getting connected to broadband services and applications. Click on the regions listed below to visit the RMO web site and learn about this important work that is happening in the First Nation schools.

• Atlantic Region
• Quebec Region
• Ontario Region
• Manitoba Region
• Saskatchewan / Albert Region
• British Columbia Region

There are INAC announcements of new schools and crisis management but the students in Fort Severn continue to work out of temporary spaces being provided by the band. Temporary portable classroom units are now being shipped and constructed in the hope of having them ready for January 2006 while the band and INAC continue to meet about getting a new school built ....

Toronto Star - Nov. 5, 2005. 08:47 AM

      School's out too often on native reserves Kashechewan pupils latest to lose classes - Mould, bad water common in North

      LOUISE BROWN, EDUCATION REPORTER

      On the northern edge of Ontario where the treeline meets Hudson Bay, the entire Grade 8 class of Fort Severn is repeating the year after a mould infestation shut down their school last year.

      Junior high is now taught in the restaurant.

      Down the coast of James Bay in Attawapiskat, an oil spill closed the school building five years ago. The 600 children are so weary of being scattered across 19 portables, with no fire alarms and 50 per cent more students than they were built to hold, that 30 families have moved away to cities so their children can attend proper schools.

      Up here above the 50th parallel - where schools often shut down for weeks, even years, at a time because of mould under the floorboards, dirty water in the taps, contaminated soil and hazards rarely seen, let alone tolerated, in schools elsewhere in Canada - the students of Kashechewan are just the latest victims of educational upheaval.

      At Muskrat Dam First Nation about 600 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, there has been no running water this week because of a filtration breakdown. All 56 students have had their school day shortened by nearly two hours to reduce the disruption of having to use outside port-a-potties. "The children are getting stressed out," says education director Roy Fiddler. "I don't know how much longer we can keep the school open without water."

      At nearby North Caribou Lake First Nation, all 140 students missed three weeks of school this fall while mould was removed from under the floors.

      And the displaced children of Kashechewan, who have been out of school for three weeks in a tainted water crisis that has seized the national spotlight, will face an uphill battle catching up, warns Grand Chief Stan Beardy of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN), which represents 49 northern reserves, including Kashechewan.

      "When you're already behind, as our children are, it doesn't take many missed days of school to get completely lost. I'm worried some of our children might miss their school year," he said. 

      And with many native children already lagging three years behind in school, educators say school closings are the last thing these children need.

      "Our schools are in a crisis situation with health and safety, there's such a serious problem with mould, building structure, water quality and crowding," says former teacher Goyce Kakegamic, NAN's deputy chief of education.

      In Kashechewan, more than 700 people were airlifted last week to Sudbury, Cochrane, Timmins, Ottawa and Sault Ste Marie after the Cree reserve declared a state of emergency Oct. 14 after E. coli bacteria was found in its water.

      Some of the children hope to resume classes Monday in Cochrane, using an empty school donated by the local Catholic school board. But plans remain unclear for the other students.

      One Thunder Bay psychologist who has worked with northern children for 20 years found that by Grade 8, the average child on one remote Ontario reserve has missed the equivalent of almost two years of school because of school closings prompted by substandard conditions. Several northern educators say it is common for schools to be closed up to 30 days per year because of equipment breakdowns.

      "Even in the poorest neighbourhoods in Toronto, students don't have to deal with schools that routinely close down because there is no heat or clean water - and these factors absolutely have an impact on children's learning," said Mary-Beth Minthorn-Biggs.

      She measured Grade 8 pupils' reading levels in Fort Severn in June and found they had dropped by two grades since the school building closed in 2004.

      Why are northern schools in such disrepair?

      Many are old, the climate is harsh and the exploding birth rate among Canada's First Nations - twice the national average - leaves even new schools bursting at the seams, say educators.

      Too, an unlucky blend of conditions often leads to a "perfect storm" for mould that can cause respiratory problems and headaches, explains one engineer who tests northern schools for health hazards. Schools often are built on low-lying muskeg that floods heavily during spring thaw, causing humidity that gets trapped behind porous drywall and in damp crawl spaces beneath the floor, accelerated by poor air circulation and lack of maintenance.

      Often the community lacks the skills to maintain the school buildings and lacks the funds to fly in outside experts.

      Moreover, schools on reserves are federally funded at about half the level of provincially funded schools, leaving many scrambling to pay salaries with little left for upkeep, says Ontario NDP Leader Howard Hampton, whose northern riding of Rainy River includes about half Ontario's northern reserves.

      "There's an atrocious double standard in education funding on reserves that leads to Third World conditions in many schools," said Hampton.

      He cites Summer Beaver, a northern fly-in reserve that changed hands this summer from provincial to federal funding; its school budget was cut to about $1 million from $1.8 million.

      But Indian and Northern Affairs Canada official Katherine Knott says she is "absolutely concerned about the disruption to students in Kashechewan ... The sooner we get started delivering the program, the better."

      In the short run, First Nation communities in Ontario's north say their schools need emergency funding from Ottawa to remove mould, improve water and expand buildings that are crowded and run down. They also need more funding for teacher training, special education and parenting programs.

      But in the long run, government handouts are not the answer, says Grand Chief Stan Beardy.

      As long as many First Nation reserves remain virtual welfare ghettoes - ranked by the United Nations at 63rd for quality of life on the international Human Development Index - native children will lag further behind.

      "We'll continue to be a burden to society as long as we're denied economic opportunity," said Beardy, who says private companies draw about $20 billion a year from NAN territory through mining and logging and tourism, yet First Nations receive less than 2 per cent back in transfer payments.

      He said Ottawa must enforce Section 35 of the Constitution and enable First Nations to share in the economic prosperity of the lands on which they live.

      "We're looking for economic participation," he said. "We're looking to share in resources, not more handouts."

      Meanwhile, Kashechewan father Gary Wesley has shipped his two sons to Timmins for school.

      Attawapiskat principal Vince Dumond braces for another winter of absenteeism from students getting sick walking between portables in wind and temperatures that plunge to -45C.

      Fort Severn father George Kakekaspan will continue to commute from Fort Severn, where he works as band manager, to Thunder Bay, where his wife now lives with their children.

"A lot of families up here have been torn apart because they move so their kids can go to school," he said. "We should be entitled to the same right as any other Canadians to have our children go to school in a safe, healthy environment."

A diesel generator, capable of ensuring the Kuhkenah Network (K-Net) is able to continue operating in case of local power outages, is being installed at the Keewaytinook Okimakanak building in Sioux Lookout. The building that will house this generator is now under construction.

Click here to watch the construction and installation of this new resource.

From INAC press releases - http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/nr/prs/s-d2005/2-02737_e.html

NEW SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION COMPLETE AT LAC LA CROIX FIRST NATION

LAC LA CROIX FIRST NATION, ONTARIO (November 16, 2005) - Ken Boshcoff, Member of Parliament for Thunder Bay-Rainy River, announced today on behalf of the Honourable Andy Scott, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians, the opening of a new $8.5 million school at Lac La Croix First Nation

“This new school provides the children of the Lac La Croix First Nation with the atmosphere they need to help achieve their academic goals,” MP. Boshcoff. “The Government of Canada believes that we all have a role to play in helping to foster success and will continue to invest in First Nation education, culturally appropriate learning, and social and recreational development.”

The project was completed through a partnership between the Government of Canada and the First Nation. The Government of Canada, through Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, provided $8.5 million for the project, while the First Nation managed planning, design and construction of the facility.

The new Kindergarten-Grade 12 facility is 1,545 square metres, and includes one Kindergarten room, six classrooms, a computer room, a multi-purpose room and a gymnasium. There is also a storage area and a staff and administration area. The space will accommodate up to 105 students.

“Our community is eager to implement its unique educational programming in a new facility where everyone can feel comfortable,” said Chief Larry Jourdain. “This new school is an investment in the future of our children, and our community.”

The Lac La Croix First Nation is located 220 kilometres west of Thunder Bay and has 1,000 members, 170 of whom live on reserve.

For further information, please contact:

Tony Prudori
Acting Senior Information Officer
INAC Communications
(807) 624-1531

Chief Larry Jourdain
Lac La Croix First Nation
(807) 485-2557

Various groups are working hard to share and capture the WSIS experience online. As the United Nation's World Summit on the Information Society concludes today, it is important that highlights and current developments that are taking place in Tunis are made available to everyone.

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC - Internet and ICTs for Social Justice and Development) is an international network of civil society organisations that is supporting an ongoing blog of testimonials from WSIS participants. Check out how different people from around the world are feeling about this WSIS gathering at http://www.apc.org/english/wsis/blog/index.shtml

The UNESCO team is hosting a series of live webcasts that are also archived for later reference. The webcast agenda of UNESCO events at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and the corresponding links follows:

16.11.2005 / 13.15 – 17.15 - On-demand - Workshop on ICT and persons with disabilities

16.11.2005 / 14.25 – 18.00 - On-demand - Case presentations: ICT and people with disabilities

17.11.05 / 10.25 – 12.30 - On-demand - Community Multimedia Centres

17.11.05 / 14.55 – 18.00 - On-demand - UNESCO High-Level Round Table on the occasion of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)

18.11.05 / 9.45 – 10.15 - Round Table on the Role of UNESCO in the Construction of Knowledge Societies through the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme

 18.11.05 / 11.25 – 13.30 - Technologies for Communication

The current UNESCO event can be followed at: Live Webcast

As well, Angie Fiddler from Sandy Lake First Nation who is attending this event with a delegation of Aboriginal youth from Industry Canada's First Nations SchoolNet program is sharing her experiences on her personal web site at http://angiefiddler.myknet.org