A warm welcome to everyone visiting our website and sincerely hope that we were able to provide the information you were looking for and invite you to make suggestions or express any concerns you may have on the content and design.
This website is one means of consultation and inclusion of our members, although we are bound to confidentiality in some of our agreements with Manitoba Hydro, there are community forums where such information can be discussed in some detail, please watch for announcements indicating time and location, otherwise, members are encouraged to contact any of the offices in Gillam, Winnipeg and the home office. Keeyask and Conowapa are two potential hydro electric generating stations being considered for development within the Fox Lake Cree Nation territory.
The immediate impact will be felt by those members living within the townsite of Gillam formerly the home of FLCN. The FLCN signed an Impact Settlement Agreement (ISA) for past impacts of three hydro electric generating stations and an Agreement in Principle for the two Hydro electric generating stations being planned for future development.
All facets of the development must be assessed to determine best use and advantage by FLCN including but not limited to Fox Lake Employment and Training (FLET).
Ekosi,
George Neepin (Chief)
Conway Arthurson (Councilor)
Shirley Neepin (Councilor)
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| YOUTH WILDERNESS TRADITIONS PILOT PROJECT (YWTPP) UPDATE - July 2, 2009Thursday 02 July 2009 - 15:09:15 |
Fox Lake Cree Nation (FLCN) Members.
The YWTPP is pleased to announce the Traditional Teachings Week. It is four days of fun filled traditional activities that will be passed down to the youth by hands on and verbal teachings conducted by FLCN Elders, mentors, and young adults.
Listed are a few activities and teachings that the youth will receive.
1. Making fishnets.
2. Use of animal & animal bones.
3. Men & women teachings.
4. Building a structure for Smoking fish.
5. Identifying plants for medicinal purposes.
The program will commence daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 pm unless scheduled otherwise. The program will take place at the old ball diamond across the tracks from the Fox Lake School in Bird from July 6-9, 2009. A daily pickup of the youth will be everyday at 8:00 a.m. from the Gillam Negotiations office.
A small Feast has been set for the last day at 2 PM, however, the YWTPP requires wild food donations such as geese to fulfill that task. If you have geese that you can donate, please drop off your donation at Lockhart’s in Gillam, and in Bird please deliver to the School. If you cannot bring your donation to either location, please call 652-2478 or 486-2307 for pick-up.
Huge thanks in advance from the YWTPP for your donation.
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| History Project Update June 18, 2009Wednesday 24 June 2009 - 13:33:46 |
The document version of the history project is near completion! Over eighty interviews were conducted with elders and community members, which formed the basis for the telling of Fox Lake’s history. The book highlights the individual stories and narratives of Fox Lake members about such topics as ancient legends, life at York Factory, life along the CN line, life ‘across the tracks’ and hydro development.
The project has undergone various draft versions of the text, and we are now working to complete the final draft, which will be distributed to key participants and knowledge holders for verification and input. We are currently working with Dr. Jennifer Brown of the University of Winnipeg (Canada Research Chair in Aboriginal Peoples in an Urban and Regional Context) to organize the materials and finalize the chapters. A draft has been submitted to our community committee, who is now reviewing and verifying the draft for accuracy. The final draft will then be submitted for publication, complete with historical and community photographs, maps and illustrations by artist, Louis Ogemah.
One of the goals of this project is to present the people’s history from their own perspective, since history has, until very recently, been written from a Euro-Canadian point of view, and typically omits the Aboriginal experience. One of the primary ways to accomplish this goal is to present the individual stories of Fox Lake members in their own words, and therefore capture their unique and personal experiences. In particular, the work attempts to pay homage to the Elders, whose word-for-word narratives comprise a large component of the book. In this way, we hope this work will be of interest not only to Fox Lake members but also to Innuwak throughout the territory, and, ultimately, to the greater public.
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| Fox Lake Environment Department Update June 18, 2009Wednesday 24 June 2009 - 13:28:19 |
-Submitted by Lorne Hanks
Environment and Resource Manager
The Environment Department of the Fox Lake Negotiations Office is working to protect Fox Lake’s environmental and natural resource interests in a number of ways.
Monitoring Environmental Field Work
Manitoba Hydro and its environmental consultants are continuing to conduct studies related to proposed future development, primarily in the Conawapa area.
Randy Naismith Jr., Fox Lake’s Environment Technical Advisor, will be monitoring these activities throughout the summer. Manitoba Hydro is also providing weekly updates to Randy on ongoing activities in which will be posted at the Gillam Negotiations Office and the Home Office in Bird. Fox Lake members who have questions or concerns about ongoing environmental studies can contact Randy at the Home Office in Bird at 486-2463.
Fox Lake representatives also meet regularly with Manitoba Hydro representatives at the Fox Lake Environmental Studies Working Group. These meetings are attended by N.A.C. Environment Rep Wesley Neepin and C.W.G. Environment Rep Ivan Moose, as well as Fox Lake members of the Fox Lake Resource Management Board. We also work with our external advisors: Dr. Terry Dick (Aquatic), Dr. Brian Kotak (Terrestrial) and Kevin Brownlee (Heritage).
Keeyask Environmental Assessment
Under the JKDA, Fox Lake and the other Keeyask Cree Nations are working with Manitoba Hydro to obtain Environmental Licenses to build the proposed Keeyask Generating Station.
Two Fox Lake representatives, including NAC rep Wesley Neepin, participate in the Keeyask Partners Regulatory and Licensing Committee (PRLC) to make decisions about regulatory licensing matters.
The larges component of the Keeyask licensing process will be development of an Environmental Impact Statement (E.I.S.), which will be a massive set of documents setting out how the proponents believe the project will impact the environment. Fox Lake Environment and Resource Manager Lorne Hanks represents Fox Lake on the Keeyask E.I.S. Coordinators Committee, which oversees the preparation of the EIS. The EIS will consist of a core document describing the anticipated impacts in general terms, and a number of supporting documents, describing impacts in specific areas, such as aquatic, terrestrial, or socio-economic. Fox Lake will participate in development of these documents. In addition there will be a Fox Lake volume which will set out how Fox Lake believes the Keeyask Project will impact Fox Lake Cree Nation, its members and their interests.
This Fox Lake volume will written by Fox Lake’s Environment team in consultation with our membership, and will draw extensively on the three major research projects Fox Lake is developing: the Fox Lake History Project (Ninan), the Fox Lake Social Cultural Health Impact Project (S.C.H.I.P), and Fox Lake’s Keeyask Traditional Knowledge (T.K.) Project.
For more information about Fox Lake’s participation in the Keeyask Regulatory Process, please contact Lorne Hanks at the Winnipeg Negotiations Office.
Fox Lake Preliminary Sturgeon Traditional Knowledge Program
This was a T.K. project carried out by Fox Lake in 2007/08 to document Fox Lake local knowledge related to lake sturgeon in the lower Nelson River. This Program was completed in 2008 and a report has been submitted to Manitoba Hydro. In addition to documenting knowledge on sturgeon, this report documented a n umber of key resource issues which have already been incorporated into our discussions with Manitoba Hydro.
Keeyask Mercury and Human Health Working Group
This is a Keeyask environment sub-committee looking into regulatory issues related to mercury in the proposed Keeyask Project. Fox Lake member Abraham Beardy and advisor Dr. Brian Kotak participated in this committee in 2007 through 2008, when a draft report on mercury issues was developed. This working group will resume meetings this fall.
Keeyask Aquatic Working Group
This is a Keeyask environment sub-committee looking into aquatic issues related to mercury in the proposed Keeyask Project, in particular sturgeon. Fox Lake Advisor Dr. Terry Dick sits on this committee, and Fox Lake member Jimmy Lockhart will be participating starting this summer.
Keeyask Mammal Working Group
This is a Keeyask environment sub-committee looking into regulatory issues related to terrestrial mammals in the proposed Keeyask Project, in particular caribou. This committee is now under development. We’ll be seeking at least one Fox Lake member with good knowledge of caribou and other mammals in the Keeyask area to participate in this committee. Please contact Randy Naismith Jr. if you are interested or would like to suggest someone.
Conawapa
In addition to monitoring ongoing Conawapa environmental studies as indicated above, the Environment Department is engaged in a number of activities in preparation for the proposed Conawapa Generating Station. We are submitting a proposal for a Conawapa Traditional Knowledge Program, which would follow the Keeyask T.K. Program and document Fox Lake local knowledge relevant to Conawapa. The Fox Lake Environment Department is also participating in the Conawapa Project Description Committee.
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