Media.Knet.Ca

The latest issue of the @ Guelph university newsletter has an article entitled "Hooking up for better health". Click here to read the article

The article describes the research and production work that George Ferreira, PhD candidate and Andres Ibanez, master degree candidate,in the School of Environmental Design and Rural Development (SEDRD). They're both graduate students of rural extension studies professor Ricardo Ramirez who completed his doctoral thesis about some of the early community ICT work being done by Keewaytinook Okimakanak.

          Keewaywin Youth Rally 2005

June 17, 18 & 19, 2005

Guest Speaker:   Marty McLean & Rose McLean (Thunder) of Winnipeg, MB

Guest Musicians:  Ivan & Vanessa Sawan of Alberta

For more info, Contact Pastor David Fiddler 807  771 1328

or

Pauline Kakegamic 807  771 1014

Matawa First Nations will be hosting a benefit dinner on May 26th, 2005 in support of the Shelter House Thunder Bay. Celebrity, Tom Jackson will be the guest of honour.

Thunder Bay , 9th May, 2005: Matawa First Nations Management is proud to announce a fundraising dinner in support of Shelter House Thunder Bay, featuring First Nation celebrity, Tom Jackson as guest of honor. This event will take place on Thursday May 26th, 2005 at the Victoria Inn, and will include guest speakers, presentations, a silent auction and live entertainment. Hosted by Matawa First Nations Management, this event will raise funds for the Shelter House Thunder Bay Capital Fundraising Campaign.

Matawa First Nations Management will be organizing the dinner, arranging for sponsorship opportunities and collecting donations on behalf of Shelter House Thunder Bay in an effort to raise community awareness about the Shelter House, and raise much needed funds for the design and development of a new Shelter House Facility.

Says Director of Operations for Matawa First Nations Management, Bruce Visitor: "As an organization, our Chiefs feel it is very important to give back to those who support our First Nations in the region. The Shelter House continues to provide vital services for our members and we want to show our support for this campaign. Our staff likes to get involved in the community and gives much of their free time to volunteer activities. This particular event really touches us on a personal level, as a housing shortage is a major issue that we deal with every day. "

Executive Director Cal Rankin agrees with Visitor, saying; "We serve hundreds of people each year, providing them with the basic necessities of life: shelter, food, clothing and advocacy. With a service area that covers all of Northwestern Ontario, approximately 85% of Shelter House Thunder Bay’s client base is comprised of First Nations peoples. To see another non-profit organization reach out in this way is really heart-warming; it shows that there is a really strong basis of community support for the goals we are trying to achieve; goals that can only be met by a successful Capital Fundraising Campaign."

Information on sponsorship opportunities and tickets are available by calling Vivian Ledger at Matawa First Nations Management at: 807 344 4575. Tickets cost $120 per person.

We will be holding a 3rd Annual Youth Rally on May 19-22 at  the Emmanuel Pentecostal Church starting at 7:00 pm.

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine is hosting their board and staff retreat in Sioux Lookout this week. As part of their visit to Sioux Lookout, they are touring Keewaytinook Okimakanak's K-Net office, the Sioux Lookout First Nations Health Authority and Menoyawin.

On Thursday, Dan Pellerin, K-Net Network Manager and Terence Burnard, K-Net Systems Analyst travelled with Windigo First Nations Council (Debbie Korobanik), Blair Electronics (Bill Blair) and four Industry Canada officials lead by Rick Hansen and Christine Cosgrove (regional BRAND project managers) to see the results of the broadband infrastructure that is now operating in Slate Falls and Muskrat Dam First Nations.

On Monday, May 2, Cal Kenny and Brian Beaton travelled with the Blair Electronics team (Bill and Roy) and Carl Seibel from FedNor to Attawapiskat. On Tuesday, they continued over to Peawanuck before returning to Sioux Lookout and Thunder Bay respectively.

Meetings were held with the community leaders, school and health administrators in each community to discuss the installation and operation of the new C-Band earth station that is being installed by Blair Electronics over this coming summer. FedNor is providing the funding for Keewaytinook Okimakanak to do the project management for the purchase and installation of earthstations in both of these communities as well as in Marten Falls (Ogoki). The communities are planning their local connections and applications for the use of this resource.

Click here to see the pictures of the Attawapiskat trip.

Click here to see the pictures of the Peawanuck leg of the trip.

The upcoming "Waawiisokodatidaa-Keeping the Circle Strong" Residential School gathering is being planned to take place at Wauzhushk Onigum (Rat Portage) First Nation on May 17, 18, 19, 2005.

The gathering will be held at the conference centre of the Golden Eagle Entertainment Centre near Kenora, Ontario. Everyone is welcomed.

For more information or to register (no charge) e-mail: risnana@kahac.org or call (807) 543-1065 or Toll Free 1-877-224-2281.

This event is very timely with the recent press coverage concerning the settlement package being negotiated by the Assembly of First Nations with the federal government. Click here to see today's Canadian Press article, "Lump-sum payouts possible in Liberal residential schools plan" by Sue Bailey

Canada Council for the Arts launches new program for emerging Aboriginal writers

From the website: This website has been developed to provide Canadians with information and documentation resulting from the Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable and related follow-up activities to this historic event. The Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable held in Ottawa on April 19th, 2004 represented an unprecedented opportunity for members of the Federal Cabinet, Senate and House of Commons to engage with Aboriginal leaders from across the country. At the April 19th Roundtable, the Prime Minister made four key commitments: A Report on the Roundtable: Strengthening the Relationship, Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable which was released on May 20th , 2004. Sectoral discussions in six priority areas with Aboriginal groups, Provincial and Territorial governments, sectoral experts and practitioners; A Policy Retreat with members of the Cabinet Committee on Aboriginal Affairs (CCAA) Aboriginal leaders and; The development of an Aboriginal Report Card to track progress. As follow-up to the second commitment, a series of sectoral follow-up sessions has been held; these sessions included Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal experts from across the country. Sectoral session themes were: Health, Life Long Learning, Housing, Economic Opportunities, Negotiations and Accountability for Results. These sectoral follow-up sessions have been guided by a Planning Committee consisting of representatives from lead federal departments (Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Health Canada, Industry Canada, Canada Mortgage and Housing, Treasury Board Secretariat); National Aboriginal Organizations:(Assembly of First Nations (AFN), Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK), Métis National Council (MNC), Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) and the Native Women`s Association of Canada (NWAC)); and a number of provincial and territorial governments which worked in a collaborative partnership to develop and implement each session. Important background papers developed by members of the Planning Committee in advance of the sessions, as well as independent facilitators reports on each session as well as a final report prepared by a team of session facilitators are all available electronically on this site. Members of the Planning Committee may have also drafted outcome statements and reports stemming from this process, these additional materials along with outcomes of related forums and discussions that were not designated as sectoral follow-up themes (e.g. the Environment) can be easily found by linking through the What’s New section. Documentation from these sectoral follow-up sessions may be used to help inform the future development of Aboriginal policy in Canada and will be important documents for consideration at upcoming meetings between governments and Aboriginal leaders including a Policy Retreat in the Spring of 2005 and a First Ministers Meeting with Aboriginal leaders on Aboriginal issues planned for the Fall, 2005. The documentation contained on this website does not necessarily represent the views of any government or National Aboriginal Organization. The purpose of this website is to share information related to the Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable: background papers, Facilitator's sectoral and final reports, agendas and media announcements.