Calgary Briefs - July 2012

Anita Crowshoe helped merge literary culture with rodeo in Wild Wordfest providing a lunch hour of entertainment.

Stories of the West

In celebration of Calgary’s 100th Stampede’s, Wordfest held a mini-festival June 18-20. As part of Wild Wordfest, Anita Crowshoe, coordinator of Campus Calgary’s Stampede School, entertained a lunch hour crowd at Eau Claire market’s community room on June 19. With Stampede support, Wild Wordfest merged literary culture with rodeo. Crowshoe, from the Piikani Nation, told how four generations of her family have participated in Indian Village on the Stampede grounds sharing traditions, culture and storytelling. Growing up in southern Alberta, Crowshoe said she has been storytelling since a young girl, having learned from her own grandparents and the grandparents of others. In Calgary for the past five years, she has been telling Aboriginal stories to the students who attend one week of Stampede School, which provides an out-of-classroom learning experience for CBE students. The tradition of storytelling continues on today at Indian Village with drumming and singing.  

Suncor withdraws sour gas plan in Kananaskis

Despite having received approval in 2010 from, Alberta’s Energy Resources Conservation Board to drill 11 sour gas wells and build 37 kilometres of pipelines through Kananaskis Country, Suncor pulled its application from the ERCB in late May. Legal action was filed against the project by the Stoney First Nation, ranchers and conservationists. The pipeline would have run adjacent to the Eden Valley reserve. Landowner Barbara Gardner told the Calgary Herald that she’s relieved for her Eden Valley neighbours on the reserve. Although Stoney Nakoda Nations did receive assurances of an emergency response in the event of a sour gas leak, they had continuing concerns.

Program aims to increase success in sciences

The Imperial Oil Foundation will invest $1 million over the next five years for the Aboriginal Science and Technology education program at Mount Royal University. The aim of the program is to increase the number of Aboriginal students achieving a degree from Mount Royal’s Faculty of Science and Technology. With the faculty and Mount Royal’s Iniskim Centre, the program will provide academic and financial support as well as mentorship. Imperial has supported the Iniskim Centre with $300,000 over the past six years. Dedicated to increasing enrolment and retention of First Nation, Inuit and Métis, the Iniskim Centre will expand services to support Aboriginal students seeking a degree in science and technology. Mount Royal’s Aboriginal students currently make up less than one per cent of Bachelor of Science students. Young Aboriginals entering the labour market are projected to grow by 40 per cent by 2017, representing four times the general population growth. “Science and technology are essential to progressing growth in our business and to Canada’s competitiveness,” said Bruce March, Imperial Oil chairman and CEO. “We believe ASTEP will empower Aboriginal students to achieve success in science and help to meet Canada’s needs for a skilled and diverse workforce.”

Workshops explore dealing with justice system

Livia Manywounds, a Southern Alberta outreach worker, has been travelling to First Nations communities, teaching people their rights and instructing them on what to do if arrested. “Especially if you’re Aboriginal because you don’t want that harsh treatment. You have to know your rights, nowadays,” she told CBC news. The aim is to keep Aboriginal people out of the prisons in which they are over-represented. Manywounds said she has heard stories about young Natives being improperly treated by police. Her niece, who attended a workshop at the Tsuu T’ina First Nation, said she believes racism is at work.  “I think racism has a lot to do with it, and feeling like you don’t have a voice,” said Raquel Manywounds. Nevertheless, it has been difficult to get people to attend. Although a session for Morley was cancelled, another was scheduled for Eden Valley.

Report reiterates cost of domestic violence

On June 5, the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy released a report titled Preventing Domestic Violence in Alberta: A Cost Savings Perspective. The report reinforces recent studies showing Alberta has the fifth-highest rate of police-reported violence and the second-highest rate of self-reported spousal violence in Canada. The report shows that social problems cost Albertans up to $600 million every five years. Many of the costs are incurred by victims of domestic violence who choose to flee, including basic supports, health care, legal and social assistance, counselling and treatment for addictions. New Democrat MLA Rachel Notley attributes the high costs of the effects of domestic violence to the scaling back of preventative services, pointing mainly to cutbacks of mental health supports that include the discontinuation of a suicide prevention program for First Nations and reduction of the number of nurses, counselors and psychologists in Alberta high schools.

Compiled by Darlene Chrapko