Minister of Northern Development and Mines gets briefing on KO broadband applications
On Friday, May 2, the Honourable Michael Gravelle, Ontario Minister of Northern Development and Mines, presented Geordi Kakepetum, KO’s Executive Director, with a $75,000 grant from the Trillium Foundation to develop and deliver outdoor education to youth from
Following the cheque presentation, Minister Gravelle was briefed on the many e-education and e-health activities facilitated by Keewaytinook Okimakanak.
Minister Gravelle listened to some of the challenges encountered by KO as it migrates broadband and applications such as the
Geordi Kakepetum invited Minister Gravelle to Balmertown to continue the dialogue.
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For more details about the announcement, here is the NMDM press release: April 24, 2008
GRAVELLE ANNOUNCES TRILLIUM GRANT FOR THUNDER BAY – SUPERIOR NORTH ORGANIZATION
Michael Gravelle, MPP for Thunder Bay – Superior North, was pleased to announce today that the Trillium Foundation is awarding $75,000 to the Keewaytinook Okimakanak (KO), a tribal council serving First Nations in
KO will administer the grant by creating an outdoor education program for First Nations youth living in Deer Lake, Fort Severn, Keewaywin, MacDowell, North Spirit and Poplar Hill.
Youth will learn practical skills in canoeing, camping and wilderness first aid as well as leadership skills.
The goal of this programme is to create a team of First Nations youth who will develop personal and leadership skills to become role models and counselors for other youth living, studying and working in Northern Ontario.
Geordi Kakepetum, Executive Director of Keewaytinook Okimakanak, is pleased with the announcement. “KO is the leader in First Nations connectivity, telecommunications and community-based applications. Our youth are invited to gatherings from Indonesia to Geneva to share their stories about how they use broadband applications to get their high school diplomas though KiHS, our digital high school, access health care through KO Tele-Medicine and earn money during the summer working for K-Net Services as computer and network trainees. Our youth are leaders who are blazing a trail in cyberspace but we want to make sure that they are also just as knowledgeable about living on the land as their ancestors did. We welcome the opportunity to work with the Trillium Foundation to promote outdoor education for First Nations youth at the community level. It will build their self-esteem.”
Funding was provided as part of the Trillium Foundation Grant program which is made available to not-for-profit organizations, First Nations and Aboriginal organizations.