The First Nations Bank of Canada will cut its strings with The Toronto-Dominion Bank two years ahead of schedule. By early fall, FNBC will be independent.

“Every time you expect to do something before you plan to and especially when it’s a positive change, it feels good,” said Keith Martell, chair and CEO of FNBC.

First Nation chiefs met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and 12 Cabinet ministers on Jan. 24 in Ottawa in the first ever Crown-First Nations gathering. The meeting was over a year in the planning and had been called for by Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo.

“(The chiefs are all) kind of optimistic, too. You want to believe something positive is going to happen,” said Tammy Cook-Searson, chief of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, one of 400 chiefs in attendance.

The George Gordon First Nation is accusing the federal and provincial governments of not negotiating in good faith during the recent Treaty Land Entitlement Settlement Agreement process.

Photo caption: Youth singers come from Saskatchewan, Northern Alberta, T’suu Tina, Siksika and Morley to learn and continue age old traditions as older singers shared with the younger ones.

Pathways Community Services hosts annual round dance

Photo Caption: A cold New Year’s Day drew a large number of homeless and less fortunate to the Alex Taylor School/E4C Gymnasium for a free meal.

Fifty medical students from the University of Alberta and University of Calgary met in December with Alberta Health and Wellness Minister Fred Horne and MLAs from across the province to emphasize the need to attract more Aboriginal students to medical school. The students hold that a disproportionately high number of medical students come from high-income families. Students hope to change this by advocating for prospective medical students from rural and Aboriginal communities, and low socio-economic backgrounds.

A report by the Parkland Institute says if Alberta considers expanding water markets it will disadvantage First Nations communities. Jeremy Schmidt, author of Alternative Water Futures in Alberta, said expansion of water markets will also harm the environment and restrict the public’s access to water. Schmidt said the province needs a more flexible plan that can respond to future uncertainties.

The Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation and Mikisew Cree First Nation joined environmental groups in submitting comments to the Joint Review Panel considering the adequacy of Shell’s proposed Jackpine mine expansion application and Environmental Impact Assessment. Closing date for submissions was mid-December 2011. Once the panel is satisfied information is adequate it will announce details of the public hearing, including dates, location, and any pre-hearing process. Those hearings are expected to begin in 2012.

Led by NorQuest College, the Collaborative Delivery of Foundational Learning for Rural Learners project will identify the learning needs of adult learners within NorQuest’s stewardship region to better prepare them for post-secondary education or employment opportunities in their communities. The project will offer four content streams targeted to rural learning needs. Pre-high school mathematics and language/essential skills targets adults who are looking to complete their high school education.

Stoney, Siksika, Kehewin and Frog Lake First Nations are moving from paper-based immunization records to a digital database. The Community Health and Immunization Program is a centralized, easy-to-track system for recording vaccinations electronically. It aims to become the first program in Alberta to seamlessly communicate with the provincial health registry, creating a complete record of a First Nation patient’s immunizations that is viewable in any clinic that also uses CHIP.