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The chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations heard that the number of houses required in First Nation communities as quoted by the national chief in his Getting Results Strategy paint too rosy a picture and the situation is bleaker than Phil Fontaine has stated.

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Just days before he was called on to perform a cleansing ceremony for Prime Minister Paul Martin during his swearing in ceremony at Rideau Hall Dec. 12, Elder Elmer Courchene slammed the federal government's treatment of residential school survivors.

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Like many other people, Leonard Matthews has a dream. Unlike many others, however, he's actually doing something about it.

Matthews is the founder of the Gathering of Nations Cup Aboriginal Memorial Festival, an inaugural event scheduled for April 15 to 18 in Rouyn-Noranda, Que.

Matthews is hoping to have 80 adult Native hockey teams participate in the tournament.

But what would make this tourney special is the fact that it has a Nations category, featuring tribe versus tribe.

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About 50 youngsters participated in an amateur lacrosse skills competition held on Nov. 29 at SkyDome in Toronto as part of the Canadian Aboriginal Festival roster of activities.

This marked the fourth straight year a lacrosse competition has been held in conjunction with North America's largest multi-disciplined arts event.

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Joseph Patchakes Cardinal, known as "Joe P" to his relatives and friends, passed away Dec. 12 at the age of 82. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Jennie Cardinal, as well as seven children, a sister Catherine Cardinal, and a large extended family.

Born to Patchakes and Honoreen Cardinal at Birch Mountain in northern Alberta on Nov. 19, 1921, Joe's early life was spent on the trapline along with five sisters and one brother. When the family wasn't trapping, they farmed. They never went hungry while Joe's father was alive.

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International environmental organization Ecotrust has chosen a British Columbia educator for the Buffett Award for Indigenous Leadership.

Jeannette Armstrong, executive director of the En'owkin Centre in Penticton, received the award for her work in environmental education. Four finalists were also honored at the Dec. 2 award ceremony at Ecotrust's headquarter in Portland, Oregon, including North Thompson Indian Band Chief Nathan Matthew.

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The list of Aboriginal business education programs offered by the University of Saskatchewan's College of Commerce has expanded, with a new masters of business administration (MBA) in Indigenous management program.

Indigenous management is one of five areas of specialization available to students in the college's revamped MBA program. The other areas of study are agribusiness, biotechnology management, health services management, and international business.

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EDMONTON-The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), and particularly its Aboriginal population, celebrated the grand opening of a new Aboriginal student centre at the school's main campus in Edmonton on Dec. 2.

The centre is just one part of a larger initiative called the Aboriginal Educational Success Initiative, chaired by Mel Benson, a recent winner of the National Aboriginal Achievement Award in the Business and Commerce category.

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MUSIC BIZ 101

The excitement of last year's Juno Awards (www.juno-awards.ca) ceremonies in Hull/Ottawa will surely spill over to this year's Junos to be held in Edmonton on April 4.

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THE URBANE INDIAN