The hereditary chiefs of the Nuu-chah-nulth territories stood together on Jan. 19 and spoke with one voice to send a message to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DF0).

It said the Nuu-chah-nulth ha’wiih (hereditary leadership) will take care of their resources within their ha’houlthees (chiefly lands), and they will ensure that their people get the fish they need.

“There is no way we are going to let our people starve,” said Ahoushat Tyee Ha’wilth (head chief) Maquinna Lewis George.

Ode'min Giizis Festival 2011

The 4th annual week-long celebration of contemporary and traditional Indigenous art

Of the roughly 9,000 children in foster care in Alberta, 70 per cent are Aboriginal. As a former foster child, Bernadette Iahtail knows firsthand about the negative impacts that can result when Aboriginal children are placed in foster care. Now as the co-founder and executive director of the Creating Hope Society, she is focused on finding solutions.

Organizers are hoping to attract as many as 2,000 athletes for the inaugural Alberta Indigenous Games this summer.

But unless registrations come flooding in soon, the games, scheduled for July 17-22 at three locations in the province, could be considerably smaller.

These games were created primarily to fill a void for those Alberta athletes who would have been eligible to compete this summer in the North American Indigenous Games. NAIG, to be held in July in Milwaukee, were cancelled after organizers withdrew their bid.

Knowing that others see your commitment and are aware of your achievements is a heady feeling. And a recognition that Curtis Therrien wasn’t expecting to get.
“I was thrilled with the award. It was nice to be nominated, but I didn’t expect to win one of the larger awards,” said Therrien.

Therrien was the recipient of the Entrepreneurial Leadership Award handed out by the Métis Nation of Alberta Region 3 in mid-April.

Entrepreneurs within the Siksika First Nation are taking giant ‘business’ steps to reach high hopes and big dreams.

The southern community is experiencing an increasing rate of small business owners who wish to manage their own businesses that will guarantee a steady income for the future.

Ariel Waterchief is one of the 10 students who graduated in April from an intense two-month Small Business Management Certification program offered by SAIT Polytechnic, in Siksika. The program is geared to the development of a solid business plan to match individual ventures.

Leiha Crier finally has some hardware from the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships. After seven years as coach of the Alberta girls, the team captured bronze as they downed Manitoba 8-3 in the event, which concluded Apr. 30 in Saskatoon.

“What a relief,” Crier said. “It’s a monkey off our back for sure.”

This year’s NAHC featured six teams in the girls category. Saskatchewan captured the gold medal, downing Quebec-based Eastern Door and the North 7-3 in its championship contest.