Sorted by date Results 401 - 425 of 1044
SASKATOON, Sask.-In late May, 64 teams of gamers from Indigenous communities across Canada squared off against each other on Playstation's NHL 20 series for a chance at a cash prize and being announced as the country's best Indigenous online hockey team. "It's the neechi Stanley Cup of online gaming," Cameron Edwards, one of six players from the Lake Manitoba Eagles team, told CBC News about the Fred Sasakamoose "Chief Thunderstick"National Hockey Championship online. The annu...
STITTSVILLE, Ont.-COVID-19 may be keeping people home this year, but you can still enjoy the Summer Solstice Indigenous Festival online until June 21. The festival will feature a long lineup of local emerging and established artists. Live streamed performances will include: local Inuit throat singers and Juno finalists Silla & Rise with DJ Trio, award-winning Métis and Inuit duo Twin Flames, Amanda Rheaume, Cody Coyote and many more. You can also participate in interactive...
CHEYENNE RIVER, S.D.-With the recent arrival of Covid-19 on South Dakota's remote Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, the Cheyenne River Youth Project has continued to adapt its programming and facilities to meet the challenges of the ongoing public health crisis. Not only is the nonprofit youth organization pursuing remote learning opportunities for its teens, it also has transformed its gymnasium into a massive learning space. According to Julie Garreau, executive director,...
ADA, Okla.-Art lovers and buyers can maintain responsible distancing while browsing Chickasaw and Southeastern artists' works online at ArtesianArtsFestival.com. Chickasaw and Southeastern Indian art buying has found a home virtually with sales available now through July 31. "The Chickasaw Nation will host the site," said James Wallace, director of visual arts media and design for the Chickasaw Nation Department of Arts & Humanities. Each artist will have the opportunity to...
Even though they couldn't make the mortgage, Edgar Villanueva's church gave. They took on significant risks, supporting missionaries, responding to natural disasters, helping hungry families. They felt called to make major investments in the community, so they did. Even though it was scary, God always just provided, Villanueva said. It was biblical, he said, to continue toward their calling and trust that things were going to be OK. "Helping generate wealth in diverse...
WASHINGTON, D.C.-In late May, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released the much-anticipated Final Rule modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), a regulatory framework that features landmark provisions designed to incentivize increased access to capital and credit for tribal governments, communities, and citizens. Leading up to the release of the Final Rule, NCAI, the Native American Finance Officers Association (NAFOA), and our partners had...
PHOENIX-Arizona tribal leaders told House lawmakers Tuesday that moves to reopen national parks are being made without needed health safety measures to protect tribal members or park visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic. The comments by Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Havasupai Council Member Carletta Tilousi come as the Interior Department is moving to reopen parks. That includes Grand Canyon National Park, which began allowing visitors on a limited basis last...
HULBERT, Okla.-Construction on the Cherokee Nation's eight new efficiency homes in Hulbert was recently completed, and the Housing Authority of the Cherokee Nation continues to take applications for future tenants. Construction began in November 2019 on the one-bedroom, 720 square-foot efficiency homes that will be used as income-based rental units for Cherokee Nation elders. "In times like these, it is important that our Cherokee Nation elders have a place they can call...
NASHVILLE, Tenn.-While most people in the United States have focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, a decision to revoke the reservation status of a Native American tribe's more than 300 acres in Massachusetts has gone relatively unnoticed, according to the Native American International Caucus of The United Methodist Church. In a recent statement, NAIC leaders raised concerns about the Secretary of the Interior's decision to disestablish tribal lands of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe...
LAC LA BICHE, Alb.-The Resource One Aboriginal Business Association (ROABA) recently hosted a local fundraiser and supplies drive for evacuees of the Fort McMurray flooding last Saturday in Lac La Biche, Alberta. The flood damaged more than 1,200 structures, forcing more than 13,000 people from their homes after an ice jam on the Athabasca River caused flooding. The ROABA collected a full trailer of supplies outside of their offices within two-hours. The items included...
ITHACA, N.Y.-For the first time in Cornell University's 154-year history, students have been able to take a class to learn the language of the Cayuga Nation, whose traditional territory is now home to Cornell's Ithaca campus. The launch of the class in Fall 2019 coincided with the United Nations' declaration that 2019 was the Year of Indigenous Languages. Stephen Henhawk, a Cayuga speaker and historian, teaches the hands-on class, which focuses on the relationship of language...
ADA, Okla.-Chickasaw and Choctaw artist Sue Fish has honed her craft of basketmaking for nearly three decades and has displayed her art in galleries across the Chickasaw Nation. An avid member of the First American art scene, Fish is enthusiastic about sharing her passion for preserving Southeastern basketry and reviving river cane basketry. She eagerly demonstrates her techniques while teaching at various community schools and universities, libraries, museums and events. The...
LANGLEY, B.C.-Aboriginal Award-winning Artist Treneta Bowden has received nominations for two categories with the 2020 Canadian Gospel Music Awards. Bowden's new song and album, Hold On, has been nominated for Indigenous Album of the Year. "Hold On" was written as a song of hope and healing to inspire First Nations and othr people to rise up in their purpose and to never quit. "I pray that this song and the others will be songs of rescue and healing to those who feel...
LONGMONT, Colorado-First Nations Development Institute (First Nations) has received a $220,000 grant from the Broad Reach Fund of the Maine Community Foundation. The funds will be used to support Native American-led efforts to combat abusive extractive industries that are impacting Native communities, resources and land. "Native communities have long-held, traditional knowledge that should be part of every conversation involving our land and environment," said Michael...
WHITEHORSE, Yukon Territory-In early March, the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) hosted a successful National Climate Gathering in Whitehorse, YT, that brought together over 380 First Nations leaders, elders, women and youth to discuss First Nations-led solutions to address the Climate Crisis. "First Nations from across the country are showing their commitment to action on the greatest challenge of our time-climate destruction. The scope of this meeting in the range of...
ADA, Okla.-The Chikasha Pehlichi Ikbi "Creating Chickasaw Leaders" Youth Leadership Program (CPI) recently attended the Close Up Foundation's annual American Indian Youth Summit in Washington, D.C. During the summit, CPI youth leaders had the opportunity to engage in workshops with others from different tribal communities. They discussed the most pressing issues facing their areas, discovered the historic relationship between tribes and the U.S. government, and explored...
TORONTO, Ont.-According to a report several months ago, Indigenous-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are showing that they are highly adept at breaking into foreign markets, according to a new report jointly released by the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) and the Office of the Chief Economist of Global Affairs Canada (OCE-GAC). The report, Indigenous-owned Exporting SMEs in Canada, finds that, based on CCAB survey data, nearly a quarter (24...
JAMES SMITH CREE NATION, Saskatchewan-Sometimes it just takes one person with a caring heart and a clever idea-and determination to act on it-to make a difference. And thanks to Tanya Sanderson, hunters are joining the team to make a difference for the James Smith Cree Nation. When Sanderson heard that COVID-19 had hit Saskatchewan, she was concerned about the 3412 fellow members in the nation near the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. Even though Sanderson and her husban...
WASHINGTON-In mid-March, United States Senators Senate Committee on Indian Affairs (SCIA) Vice Chairman Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) unveiled the Tribal Medical Supplies Stockpile Access Act, legislation that would guarantee that the Indian Health Service (IHS), tribal health authorities, and urban Indian organizations have access to the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), a federal repository of drugs and medical supplies that can be tapped if a public...
TULSA, Okla.-The Cherokee Nation contributed more than $6 million to 108 school districts during the tribe's annual Public School Appreciation Day Thursday. This year's disbursement is the largest since the tribe began its annual contributions in 2002. Aside from the millions of dollars the Cherokee Nation and other tribes provide to the state of Oklahoma for education funding each year through the tribal-state gaming compact, the Cherokee Nation also allocates 38 percent of...
WASHINGTON-Dean Seneca didn't mince words after the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention's "damaging news" in early March about the spread of the novel coronavirus that has killed thousands of people worldwide. "I want to make sure that I stated that tribes are not prepared for the coronavirus," he texted Indian Country Today a day after an interview in which he was more cautious. "I don't think that we are as prepared as we should be," Seneca-who has worked more than 18...
OTTAWA, Ont.-Following the Federal Court of Appeal's decision on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project, Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief Perry Bellegarde says the federal government must ensure that First Nations' rights, title and jurisdiction are respected. "First Nations' rights and title holders must be respected in all proposed development, and this, of course, includes the Trans Mountain pipeline. Government and industry must do a better job of...
LOS ANGELES-In a city renowned for its green policies, Prius drivers and biodegradable straws, it was only a matter of time before officials would vote to move away from coal-powered electricity. To transition to clean energy, the city sold its shares of a coal-powered generating station on the Navajo Nation in 2016, ending a decades-long relationship. What seemed like a bright new sustainable future for Los Angeles presented a harsh reality for the tribe, whose members...
Ottawa, Ont.-The Trudeau government has promised $305 million to help Indigenous communities deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the $305 million Indigenous community support fund as part of a broader $82 billion aid package to help Canadians and businesses deal with the fallout from COVID-19. Trudeau announced last week that Indigenous communities could draw from a $100 million envelope that was part of a $1 billion investment to boost...
WASHINGTON-In the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic, tribal nations -comprised of some of the most vulnerable communities in the United States-have been left out of the conversation. As the COVID-19 pandemic has now reached all 50 states, tribal governments also face heightened challenges to protect their citizens, and have inadequate federal funding and resources to do so. "We cannot ignore the elevated risks faced by Indian Country from this virus," said...
