Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Aboriginal Peoples
Issue 7 - Evidence - November 23, 2011
OTTAWA, Wednesday, November 23, 2011
The Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples met this day at 6:50 p.m. to examine and report on the federal government's constitutional, treaty, political and legal responsibilities to First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples, and on other matters generally relating to the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada.
Senator Lillian Eva Dyck (Deputy Chair) in the chair.
[English]
The Deputy Chair: Good evening. I would like to welcome all honourable senators and members of the public who are watching this meeting of the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples on CPAC or on the web. My name is Lillian Dyck, from Saskatchewan, and I am deputy chair of the committee. I am filling in for the chair, Senator St. Germain, who is unable to be present with us this evening.
The mandate of this committee is to examine legislation and matters relating to the Aboriginal peoples of Canada generally. In order to understand the concerns of our constituency, we regularly invite representatives from national Aboriginal organizations to testify before us. Rather than assigning a topic for discussion, we leave the floor open to them to educate us as to their membership's most pressing issues. These sessions are invaluable in helping the committee decide what future studies it should undertake in order to best serve the Aboriginal community.
This evening, we will hear from six witnesses divided into two panels. The first panel will consist of representatives from the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the Métis National Council. The second panel is comprised of witnesses who will focus on the issues most concerning youth. They come to us from the National Inuit Youth Council, the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council and the Métis National Council. It is very nice to see all the young people in this room this evening. We are looking forward to hearing what you have to say to us this evening, not to diminish the elders in the room at the end of the table.
[Translation]
Before giving the floor to our witnesses, I would like to introduce the members of this committee who are here today.
[English]
Senator Nick Sibbeston is from the Northwest Territories. Senator Sandra Lovelace Nicholas is from New Brunswick and Senator Larry Campbell is from British Columbia. Senator Nancy Raine is also from British Columbia. Senator Dennis Patterson is from Nunavut. Senator Don Meredith is from Ontario, and our coach, Senator Jacques Demers, is from Quebec.
I welcome the first panel of witnesses. From the Assembly of First Nations, we have Richard Jock, Chief Executive Officer; from Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Elizabeth Ford, Director of Health and Social Development; and from the Métis National Council, Clément Chartier, President. We look forward to your overviews of your constituency's most important concerns, which will be followed by questions from the senators. Please proceed.
Richard Jock, Chief Executive Director, Assembly of First Nations: I wanted to query time limits, Madam Chair?
The Deputy Chair: Five minutes is usually the standard time, and that will allow the honourable senators ample time for questions.
Mr. Jock: I just want to thank you for the opportunity to present today and give you the regards of National Chief Shawn Atleo. He is currently occupied with the current legislation that has been introduced today with respect to accountability. He is pretty occupied with that particular issue.
I will say a little bit about the core issues facing First Nations. Our population is very young and growing but, compared to the general population, and we have testified to this committee recently about the state of education, comparatively, First Nations are disadvantaged in terms of education. First Nations also face a shortage of paid work, with unemployment rates as high as 80 per cent in many communities.
Chronic health conditions face First Nations persons. These rates are not seen anywhere else in the country, except perhaps our relatives the Inuit, where tuberculosis is eight to ten times that of the rest of Canadian population. For diabetes, our rates are escalating and are three times the rate of diabetes for the general population.
We also have deep fiscal and structural challenges facing First Nations communities, and these relate to the Indian Act, which, of course, is over 100 years old. These constraints affect social interests, housing infrastructure and our needs to address health matters.
First Nations increasingly desire to create new structures, authorities and ways of doing business with each other and with other levels of government and not the least industry. Our current relationship is one that has been characterized by a long history of mistrust. This is also based on the fact that there are perceptions of interference in that relationship, interference in the conduct of our daily business.
However, the 2008 Prime Minister's apology for Indian residential schools signalled a new approach and a new set of interests. Canada's endorsement of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is again a significant step, which also sets some key guidance for establishing a relationship based on mutual respect and partnership. Finally, the national chief and the Government of Canada have announced the joint action plan, which also has potential to address some of these issues based on collaboration and mutual priorities.
There is a consensus that we do better. Of course, you have looked at some of these studies and reports that have been done that go back to 1981 with Penner and to the 1996 Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. In 2011, a status report of the Auditor General, reflecting on her 10 years of recommendations on First Nations, found that conditions had not significantly improved in the areas examined and, in some cases, have gotten worse, which all signals the existence of structural impediments that limit the ability to make progress.
In short, resetting the relationship is a key priority of the Assembly of First Nations. Establishing a balanced and practical approach to make real progress is really the basis for progress in the future. Advancing First Nations/Crown relationships is important in terms of making demonstrative progress through critical steps such as the anticipated First Nations/Crown gathering to be held later this year.
New fiscal relationships are essential if they are to guarantee and deliver sustainable, equitable services, and services that are based on agreed-upon standards. Structural change is an important way that some of these fiscal relationships can be better carried out in the future, but the key element really is implementing First Nations governments in developing our own institutions and in developing the planning and accountability mechanisms that are essential to any government.
Therefore, moving forward is really based on enabling, moving from a pattern of constraint and imposed control to respect, recognition and support that is based on partnership and mutual accountability. There is more than a one-way street in terms of accountability.
It is important that we move from models of dependence and policy-based allocations to sustainability for basic services such as health and education, those things enjoyed by all people across Canada; and further, that we move from unilateral delegation through departmental controls and the Indian Act to shared accountability amongst jurisdictions based upon those standards I referred to earlier.
Of concern also is the fact that many communities face conditions that affect their individual stability and safety, that too often we see communities affected by flood and other events, and the response is slow and does not protect those most in need in a timely fashion.
Lastly, we are looking at how to establish new financial mechanisms that will enable us to develop some of those basic infrastructure elements such as safe water, housing and the core services for children and families.
How do we work together? I have a couple of thoughts on that. Many legislative approaches in the past have not reflected First Nations priorities and aspirations, and these then seem to result in conflicts due to the fact that there is no early engagement on those matters, rather that the legislation focuses on particular areas of content.
AFN has long advanced the need for principal partnership on any legislation to achieve change for First Nations, which would include elements such as advanced discussion on the scope and intent of such legislation and joint drafting and development. Then, once those are in progress, there would be agreed-upon processes for decision making and conflict resolution.
I think we have had a very good conversation on education, and we know the Senate committee is filing a report in a matter of days, perhaps weeks. We think it is a key priority, and we look forward to implementing this with your help. Obviously, any effective new approach would require new machinery, new systems and new fiscal arrangements. It is a microcosm of the kind I described earlier. It is important to get this one right. I think the future of the individuals, the youth you see here, is based in part on our ability to get this right.
We must not forget there are matters such as post-secondary education, beyond K to 12, which is as important as early childhood development interests. There is a whole continuum that needs to be addressed. Of course, it would not be complete without saying that First Nations culture, language, programming and sports are key in terms of an effective system.
We would be very interested in working on reciprocal accountability with you and what that would mean, looking at potential new institutions such as a First Nations ombudsman or a First Nations Auditor General; that we look at how to proactively address barriers to unlock our economies, some of those being policy-based and some being system- based. We would look to addressing those with you, as well as other interests such as comprehensive claims and other policy bases that have not been updated in over 10 years. These policies really need to be refreshed, with a view to accelerating the rate and pace of change.
With those preliminary remarks, I look forward to further discussion and questions.
The Deputy Chair: Thank you, Mr. Jock.
Mr. Chartier, please proceed.
Clément Chartier, President, Métis National Council: Thank you.
First, I want to provide a brief overview of the Métis National Council for those who are new to the committee. We are the national government of the Metis people in our historic homeland, encompassing the Prairie Provinces and extending into Ontario and British Columbia. Our homeland also extends into the Northwest Territories and the Northwestern part of the United States, collectively and historically known as the ``Old Northwest.''
Our five provincial affiliated organizations are governing members. They all use province-wide ballot box elections for determining their leadership and adhere to the same Métis Nation citizenship code in registering their citizens. They administer and deliver a variety of federal and provincial government programs and services, mostly through arm's length affiliated institutions in areas of labour market development, business financing and economic development, housing, child and family services, education and culture. Our priorities fit squarely within the scope of your broad study mandate, which is to examine and report on the federal government's constitutional, treaty, political and legal responsibilities to First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples.
In itself, the title of that study speaks to the challenge we face in dealing with the Government of Canada. Despite the recognition of the Metis in the Constitution as one of three Aboriginal peoples in Canada and the 2003 Powley decision, which comes from the Supreme Court of Canada and recognizes Metis people as full-fledged, rights-bearing Aboriginal people, successive federal governments have maintained that our land rights have been extinguished by law.
In practice, this means that, with the exception of the Metis north of 60, the federal government excludes us from its land claims resolution processes. This federal position has a particularly adverse impact on Metis communities when it relates to the duty to consult and accommodate. Because of this, industry routinely ignores or heavily discounts our interest in the planning of major projects throughout our homeland.
The first of our priorities for your consideration could be the outstanding land rights of the Metis people resulting from the unfulfilled provisions of the two federal statutes that had recognized these rights — the Manitoba Act, 1870, and the Dominion Lands Act of 1879.
Section 31 of the Manitoba Act provided for a land base of 1.4 million acres to the children of Metis heads of family toward the extinguishment of the Aboriginal title. This provision was critical to the deal negotiated by the first Metis provisional government under Louis Riel and the Macdonald government in 1807. It resulted in the Manitoba Act and the creation of the province of Manitoba which, at that time, had close to a 90 per cent Metis majority. A 10-year delay in the distribution of these lands amidst a rapid influx of settlers from Ontario and led the exodus of the majority of Metis from that original postage stamp province.
The Dominion Lands Act of 1879, a result of continuing Metis demands for title to their lands, provided for land grants for those Metis outside Manitoba. It must be noted that in the implementation of both the Manitoba Act and the Dominion Lands Act, we were dealt with as individuals and not on a collective basis, as should have been the case.
Only after the Metis in the Saskatchewan Valley formed a second provisional government under Riel's leadership and waged a war of resistance against an invading Canadian army in 1885 did the federal government begin to act on its legislation. The process it chose to fulfill its obligations, a series of half-breed commissions to issue scrip in lieu of land to the Metis in the rest of the Prairies, Northeastern B.C. and the Mackenzie District was so replete with fraud, that the Supreme Court of Canada in 2003 depicted it as ``a sorry chapter in our nation's history.''
A 30-year battle in the courts over the unfulfilled Metis land grants promised by the Manitoba Act, which has been driven by the Manitoba Metis Federation, will reach the Supreme Court of Canada on December 13. The Métis National Council is an intervener in this case.
This case will likely alter the way in which the federal government views the Metis, as the Manitoba Court of Appeal has already upheld certain principles that should have significant implications going forward.
It should also be noted that the Métis National Council and our governing member in Saskatchewan, Métis Nation — Saskatchewan, have filed a statement of claim in Northwest Saskatchewan regarding the unfulfilled land grants promised under the Dominion Lands Act. The Manitoba case will open the door to similar claims and litigation across our historic homeland in Western Canada where scrip was issued.
The continued exclusion of the Metis from the federal lands claims processes and test case funding to brings these claims forward surely deserves the scrutiny of this committee. Your recommendation for expanding the existing land claims process or establishing a new Metis claims commission to settle our claims would offer a useful alternative to costly litigation.
The federal abrogation of responsibility to deal with our land claims is part of a broader denial of constitutional responsibility for Metis. This federal position results in the exclusion of Metis from federal Aboriginal education and health care benefits. It underlies the federal government's refusal to date to take responsibility for compensating Metis victims of the residential school system, other than the small numbers who attended Indian residential schools recognized by the settlement agreement. On numerous occasions I have brought this to the attention of the committee and the Senate as a whole. Having attending a residential school in Saskatchewan I can attest to the horrors of that system and the anguish of hundreds of survivors — some of whom have already passed away and those still living in poor health — who have not received redress despite high hopes raised in the Prime Minister's apology.
Another priority issue for the Metis nation can be advanced through the scrutiny of this committee. It is our current initiative with the federal government to break the jurisdictional impasse and expand the relationship between Canada and the Metis nation in a practical way. The background to this is the Metis Nation Protocol between the Metis nation and the Government of Canada that was concluded in 2008. To date it has focused on economic development. Our work on economic development under Minister Strahl and now Minister Duncan has produced meaningful results and builds on the success of our Metis labour market and financial institutions over the past few decades.
The federal ministers and I have also been able to bring ministers from the five western-most provinces and senior officials into a process to develop a strategy for promoting greater and more effective Metis participation in economic development. This collaborative work has resulted in a series of federal and provincial investments in Metis nation financial institutions, providing loan and equity capital to Metis entrepreneurs. We have benefited from the Prime Minister's strong interest in our issues — economic development in particular — during the three meetings he has had with me and other national Aboriginal leaders during the past three years. Shortly after the recent federal election, I proposed to the Prime Minister that we utilize the Metis Nation Protocol process to conclude accords on governance and economic development in order to accelerate the progress we have made to date.
The proposal is built on the mutual interests of the federal government and the Métis National Council in reducing the federal bureaucracy as it relates to Metis affairs, and strengthening the governance capacity of the Metis nation to administer and deliver important services such as economic development. It also builds on the efforts of the Metis nation to strengthen our governance at the national level with a new Metis nation constitution; a process supported by the federal government. It is our hope that the discussions on these accords that recently began with Minister Duncan will lead to new authorities and firmer fiscal arrangements.
We hope the new authorities — together with our existing democratic accountability and citizenship institutions — will shape a new Metis nation constitution that could be recognized under federal legislation as the source of self- government for the Metis nation.
This committee may be able to furnish valuable insight into how this legislation — or a Canada-Metis relations act as we propose — could be crafted. On that note I will await the opportunity to respond to questions.
Elizabeth Ford, Director of Health and Social Development, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami: Thank you for the invitation to appear before you today.
I would like to congratulate the committee for taking the initiative to invite Canada's Aboriginal organizations to suggest issues that warrant your attention. I would also like to welcome the students from Nunavut. It is great to see you here.
I will start with a little history. As those of you who are able to attend our fortieth anniversary conference know, ITK was founded in 1971 by Inuit seeking to take political control of their land and resources. Our four regions — Nunavut, Nunavik in Northern Quebec, Nunatsiavut in Northern Labrador and the Inuvialuit settlement region of the Northwest Territories — have settled comprehensive, modern day land claims agreements that provide us with a set of tools for developing our lands and deriving benefits from the development of resources.
Today our work centres on ensuring Inuit interests are reflected on policies affecting the Arctic and to spearhead initiatives that unite our four regions. One recent example is our National Strategy on Inuit Education. A number of you were able to attend the launch of this document last spring.
That brings us to the topic of today's discussion. There is any number of research priorities involving Inuit and the Arctic this committee could usefully pursue in the coming months. They range from climate change to devolution of additional jurisdictional powers and revenues to Arctic regions. In these circumstances, choices are not obvious. However, my advice to you is to squarely address the core social problems confronting Inuit today. These social problems are not new. We have known for many years that Inuit lag far behind Canadians in a series of indicators of basic well being, educational achievement, life expectancy, access to adequate housing and employment levels; the list is long. Inuit lead the nation with respect to many disturbing indicators of social distrust, including suicide, infectious and chronic disease and violent crime. That list is also long. These problems do not exist because those in positions of responsibility want them to. They cannot be attributed to a single cause or some level of personal blame, yet in recent years it is possible to see some progress.
It is especially welcome for Inuit leaders of my generation to see so many young Inuit realizing impressive new educational achievements and acquiring breakthrough professional credentials. Canadians have taken note of imagination and creativity shown by Inuit over the past 40 years, enforcing the base of new governance structures and power-sharing in the four regions that make up the Inuit homeland.
Even as your committee deliberates, Inuit representatives are engaged in complex negotiations and undertakings surrounding participation in natural resource projects. These are all important things that give rise to optimism, but optimism should not cloud judgment. There is precious little reason to believe that a wait and see approach will work. Passivity will carry great risks for Inuit who will bear the firsthand consequences of social problems in our society, not just at some statistical level, but in our communities, families and homes.
What can this committee do? I urge you to commit yourselves to research three major areas. These are the same topics ITK has flagged in public presentations and correspondence with federal ministers regarding budget priorities. They are: Inuit education, health and housing. All three of these are important. We have a wealth of studies indicating the high degree of overlap in terms of causes and effects, and how progress in one can reinforce progress in the others. We need to create a positive cycle of change. Without exception, every provincial and territorial premier and national Aboriginal leader is calling on Prime Minister Harper to hold a first ministers' meeting on Aboriginal education. This committee can usefully deliberate on why such a meeting is needed to turn around the low rates of high school graduation among Aboriginal students.
I know we Inuit have many ideas on this, for example, how the new National Strategy on Inuit Education can make best use of available resources and careful targeted use of new investment, and the central importance of the Inuit language in our education and skills development systems.
Similarly, in studying Inuit health, a number of sub-topics should have special prominence: the utter lack of appropriate mental health programs and services, including the lack of residential and non-residential treatment for those who are alcohol or drug dependent, and the sad, shameful reality that, as shown by recent studies in the Canadian Medical Association Journal and elsewhere, a very high proportion of Inuit families go hungry or are poorly nourished in any given year.
It takes no great insight to see the damage caused by these kinds of problems. A hungry child cannot easily succeed at school. An unsuccessful student cannot easily succeed in later life. A hungry adult cannot give children or aging parents the attention that they deserve.
With respect to housing, the trend lines are not moving in the right direction. As recently as October 21, a report on housing was tabled in the Nunavut Legislative Assembly identifying a housing shortage of 3,580 units. That is not a small number. For a jurisdiction with a small population, it is an extraordinary number.
The scale of the problem is not the only difficulty. Nunavut's housing minister reported to the legislative assembly that there will be no new money for housing from the federal government for the foreseeable future and that the current Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation operating and maintenance funds for Nunavut will be cut steadily from $23.9 million this year to zero in 2037.
Nunavut is but one example. The magnitude of the housing problems in Nunavut is replicated in every other Inuit region.
There is another topic that the committee might wish to consider in relation to Inuit and the Arctic. The ITK is now 40 years old. This anniversary was celebrated in public events held just a few weeks ago. It is good to look back and to learn from looking back, but in learning from the past, we must have the courage to apply those lessons to the future. In the spirit of ITK's fortieth anniversary, this committee might wish to examine the question of what kind of relationship the Parliament and Government of Canada, indeed the people of Canada, would like to build with the Inuit of Canada and of the circumpolar world over the next 40 years. Equally important, how would you propose to build that relationship?
Parliament and parliamentary committees have a role in the generation of new ideas, new ways of looking at things, and new projects that respect our common values and appeal to our shared hopes. You are in the hope business as well as the reality check business, and rightly so. Considering where Inuit and other Canadians should be in 40 years and how to get there would be a worthy project for you and for us.
In all of these research proposals you would have the full support and assistance of ITK. Thank you for your attention.
The Deputy Chair: Thank you very much, panellists, for your presentations.
I feel like it is kind of an historic moment to have leaders from our three national organizations in the room. At the same time, we have the youth, who are emerging leaders. They are getting to hear your ideas from the three different organizations and you will be getting to hear what they have to say when it is their turn.
With that remark, we will turn to questions or comments from the senators.
Senator Campbell: Welcome, witnesses. Welcome to the young men and women who are here. You have achieved something that I have not seen in almost six years. You have lowered the median age of this committee to somewhere into the 30 range, which is not an easy thing to do in the Senate. It is truly great to see this room packed and to see the young people here participating.
I have three questions, one for each witness.
Mr. Jock, you were talking about reacting to emergencies. Within the last week or two — and I wish I could remember the name of the community, but it is in Northern Ontario — a community declared an emergency, and it was a widespread emergency. It was lack of housing, no schooling, and no sewage. It was ongoing.
First, why would your community experience a delay in someone responding to that emergency? Second, is it a delay or is it neglect on the part of those people who are responsible within government to ensure that communities are healthy?
Mr. Jock: That is an excellent question and observation.
The community is Attawapiskat. Part of the issue is multiple jurisdictions that affect First Nations. This was also alluded to by President Chartier.
The province is actually the one that would trigger and carry out the evacuation. The federal government would be responsible, then, for reimbursing and paying for it. What happens at times is that there is a delay on behalf of the parties in terms of coming and addressing those issues. Part of it is that jurisdictional lack of clarity.
We think that something like Jordan's Principle, legislation that was enacted for child welfare, should be enacted for emergencies, and that action should be taken quickly and the funding element looked at later.
There really is no reason for delay where people's individual and collective health and safety are an issue. We need to cut through those issues, find a way to trigger action quickly, and to do so in a way that makes sense for individual people and for communities such as this.
Senator Campbell: When I talk about neglect, what I am talking about is that we allow communities to reach a point where you have to call an emergency. It would seem that the very reasons for these emergencies — no school, terrible housing — no one woke up one morning and this community was in that kind of shape. I am talking about the ongoing neglect that leads to that emergency. When it comes to an emergency, the Mayor of Toronto can call out the army for a snowstorm. This is the difficulty that I have.
My next question is to Mr. Chartier. Is there any cooperation going on between the First Nations, AFN, and the Inuit and the Metis when it comes to dealing with what would seem to be like issues with the federal government and government in general?
Mr. Chartier: Thank you for that question.
We do not work on a sustained basis on collaborative approaches, but we do meet occasionally as three leaders in a leaders' summit discussing critical issues. Currently we are dealing with the issue of health, collectively. We do that on occasion with areas that are pressing. The short answer is yes, we do collaborate and have leader summits on occasion. We have that kind of relationship.
Senator Campbell: Do you not think that a united front would be more helpful to all parties? I do not have any difficulty understanding the differences of the founding nations. I do not have any difficulty with that. However, in terms of the areas of health, education, and land, these would seem to be three issues that affect all three of the organizations.
Mr. Chartier: Again, we deal on a periodic basis with issues collectively, but we do have our own mandates that we concentrate on. When necessary, there is support.
Senator Campbell: Third, but certainly not last, to Ms. Ford, we will be coming out with an education statement relatively soon. We have done a fairly intensive study. I hope that some of the things that flow from that will address some of the issues that you had.
I missed one thing: CMHC, $23.9 million. What was that for?
Ms. Ford: That is for the operation and maintenance funds.
Senator Campbell: That is for the housing in Nunavut?
Ms. Ford: Yes.
Senator Campbell: It is going to zero?
Ms. Ford: Yes, in the year 2037.
Senator Campbell: Can you tell me the rationale behind it going to zero? Will it be the sun is going to shine in 2037? Everyone will be in a nice home; there will be no problem?
Ms. Ford: I am not sure what the reasoning is behind that. It would be nice if in 2037 we did not need it, but I do not see that happening.
Senator Campbell: Was there any kind of negotiation that went on between CMHC and the Government of Nunavut or the Inuit?
Ms. Ford: No, not that I am aware of.
Senator Meredith: I also want to echo the comments of my colleague with respect to the youth in this room. It is refreshing. I was telling the senator that we are encouraged when we see young people in these proceedings. Many times sessions are had and you are not here. Welcome again to this committee.
Mr. Jock, you mentioned economic development. As someone who was a business person for 20-odd years, I believe in entrepreneurship. I believe in opportunities being created, for our youth especially, and opportunities given to them to start their own businesses and to be able to sustain themselves rather than being dependent on the system.
What mechanisms are in place? What are you doing with respect to encouraging private sector investments and so forth? Can you elaborate on that for us?
Mr. Jock: Yes. I would offer two comments. First, the First Nations communities are situated next to billions of dollars of potential resource development activities. Part of what the Assembly of First Nations views as an important area of development is that First Nations communities should be much more an intrinsic part of any business development of any of those resources. Rather than being an afterthought or someone who then gets to review proposals about pipelines, projects or mines, First Nations are actually on the ground floor and are seen as viable partners in the process. I think you do see some companies moving in that direction. That model will start generating huge amounts of economic opportunity.
Once those ventures are done in a way that makes sense and are sustainable and respect the environment, I think that will then create all of the related services that are there, individual businesses, service agencies, service businesses such as supply, et cetera.
Part of the interest of AFN is ensuring that First Nations are really part of those discussions and that the discussion occurs early and often. The other parts of economic development really relate to ensuring that we have the skills, the training and the access to education so that our youth get the degrees in business and the experiences to support their interests and give them the tools to participate fully in economies.
We have several areas of interest that we do focus on. This underpins a lot of the discussion about certainty, moving forward and new ways of partnership and so on.
Senator Meredith: I have another question to you, Mr. Jock, in terms of the collaboration around the sharing of the revenues from natural resources. We talked about land claims and the fact that in British Columbia now there is a shift away from the settlements and agreements that are in place or should be negotiated, and seeing these resources and this attraction of investors to develop these lands and the resources. Ms. Ford made a point about the three pillars of education, health and housing, and Mr. Chartier said the same thing, with respect to those areas being developed when you have the resource in place. Again, it goes back to leadership and that collaboration of the leaders being willing to work together to ensure that this happens.
Has there been any resistance to that? What are your thoughts on moving forward in that direction in that there are no full agreements in place? They are still being negotiated but yet you want to see the economic development take place.
Mr. Jock: I have two comments. First, any government, and you see this in all the governments across Canada, needs a sustainable funding base. If you are to deal with your education and health needs, there are certain rates of growth that are there regardless of who is delivering it. Those rates of growth for First Nations communities have been at 2 per cent when in fact provinces are at 6 per cent and the new discussions on the health accord are 6.6 per cent.
With our population growing in the fashion that it is, obviously there is a growing gap that needs to be dealt with. That is what I talked about in terms of sustainable funding. All of the local capacity in the world cannot help you if the sustainable base is not created and maintained.
Second, there is opportunity for resource revenue-sharing and other ways to generate new opportunities, but Attawapiskat is a good example. They are situated in the ring of fire, which is perhaps one of the richest resource opportunities in the world, but they are in this circumstance so they need to participate and find ways of being part of these developments so that they are not the poorest in the richest aspect or richest opportunity in Canada.
Those two elements are important to consider when looking at how these future government should develop relations, how should they be situated and how could they be assisted and empowered to participate fully in such interests.
Senator Meredith: Ms. Ford, you talked about the health of the young people, especially in terms of breakfast programs and the kind of programs that help to feed the youth so that they are alert when they go to school. What kinds of programs do you have in place? You have ideas around education. Will you elaborate on those? We are doing the study from K to 12 on First Nations education. Can you elaborate for me how you are dealing with your current system and what some of the shortfalls are in terms of us having more ammunition to put in our report?
Ms. Ford: In all regions it is a challenge. We do have the new education strategy that was signed on by the leaders and by the provinces and territories. It will be a challenge because you will not have one equal education system across Inuit Nunangat, the four regions. We are dealing with two provinces and two territories. However, there are some things that will help. Right now the focus in starting off is in implementing this strategy. That would focus first on early childhood education and on mobilizing parents.
In terms of moving forward for Inuit education, we do have a strategy developed by Inuit regions and by the relevant provinces and territories that have signed on. It would be to support the strategy that was developed in partnership.
Again, it is different among the four regions, because it is two provinces and two territories, and the responsibility for education is through the provinces and territories. We want to work closely with them to ensure that those programs are in place, early childhood development being a big part of that.
It is great to see that all of these students are here and that they are attending Nunatsiavut. We do have a lot more graduates, but we still have the challenge of getting students to graduate from high school. The focus will be on getting them through the high school process and on to post-secondary.
Senator Meredith: What is your graduation rate now?
Ms. Ford: It is 25 per cent.
Senator Meredith: It is lower, then. Thank you.
Senator Sibbeston: I would like to ask Mr. Chartier about the Metis residential school situation. I heard him talk about it this past summer when we were at the residential school conference in Inuvik as well as on a number of other occasions. He has raised the situation of Metis people not being recognized or given compensation for having been in residential school in the early years. Everyone knows that the federal government has dealt with the Indian residential school situation. There has been some compensation paid to students of Indian residential schools.
Mr. Chartier, could you give us a brief background of the residential schools that the Metis attended? Why do you feel that the Metis have not been included in the residential school settlement?
Mr. Chartier: It essentially comes down to the issue of jurisdiction. The federal government takes the position that it will not provide services to the Metis as a people because our so-called Aboriginal title to land was extinguished. After 1900 they were basically hands off.
The school for Aboriginal children at Île-à-la-Crosse in Northwest Saskatchewan burned down in 1906. A treaty was signed with the Dene and the Cree, and the Metis were distributed scrip. At that point, the church built a new school down the river at Beauval and the school at Île-à-la-Crosse was rebuilt. The treaty kids went to Beauval and the Metis kids continued going to at Île-à-la-Crosse.
From that point forward, there were only minimal payments from the federal government, mainly the federal family allowance. The church had to find ways to make money to keep the Metis kids. In a sense, it has a double negative effect on us. First, the federal government said that because we were Metis they would not provide the church any monies other than the family allowance. We suffered because of the lack of food, while at the Indian residential school they had resources to support the children.
Now that the settlement agreement has come, the federal government is saying that because it was a church run school and not a federally funded school, they will not deal with us. Therefore, we are punished again because of that negative federal action in the first place.
I was there on the floor of the House of Commons when the Aboriginal people received an apology from the government. I went to support those Aboriginal people and the small number of Metis who were fortunate enough to go to an Indian residential school rather than a Metis residential school.
We are not covered by the apology, the settlement agreement or the mandate of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In the end, it is the Government of Canada as ``the government'' that is responsible for all schools, regardless of who ran them, because they were all run under the same policy of assimilation.
Since then we have attempted to talk to the province of Saskatchewan about that one school. We have tried to get the federal government, the province and the survivors of that school together at the table on a tripartite basis. We received a letter earlier this year from the provincial government saying that their cabinet looked at it but they will not accept any responsibility, so we have to go to the court. We are told to go to the court and, of course, we have no resources to do so.
Senator Sibbeston: I am certainly interested in learning more about the situation of the Metis. In order to assist us and our committee, would you send us information regarding this? If you could, reiterate the background and tell us why you feel that the federal government ought to have taken some responsibility for the schools. If you could provide this committee with that information it would be very helpful.
Mr. Chartier: We will. I have raised this in previous hearings. I wrote a letter on October 14, 2009, to Speaker Kinsella. I received a response on April 28, 2010, from the Honourable Senator St. Germain. We asked that the Senate pursue a process to address the exclusion of Metis people who attended residential schools from compensation along the lines of that offered by Indian residential schools agreements. The letter says: ``While we are currently engaged in other legislative and policy work, the committee hopes that it may be in a position to review the recommendations more closely at a later date.''
I think the later date is here. I am here again because we were asked to come and offer our opinion on what the committee should be studying. We are resubmitting this. Hopefully, through the leadership of this committee, this matter will start to be addressed.
Senator Sibbeston: As there are some new senators on the committee, it would still be useful if you could forward us any information. I have not seen any of the correspondence, so I would be interested in receiving whatever documents you have with regard to this issue.
Mr. Chartier: Certainly.
Senator Demers: Thank you very much for coming here tonight. We do care. I am very impressed. It is great that you brought these young men and women here tonight. They are very well behaved. I do not know if someone told them to behave like that. You can see that they are not bored; they are listening. Whoever was the coach of these kids did a great job.
We are all concerned here. You probably think that when you leave we just put the books away, but we care tremendously. I am the father of four children. I would not want my children to get up in the morning and not have breakfast.
These young men and women are the future of our country and the future of your people. If we do not act quickly, we will lose some of these kids, and maybe more than we think, even though you are working extremely hard not to lose them.
Tonight Chief Atleo is at a meeting on accountability, which is so important. There is a problem. We cannot wait two, three or four years. We have to get these kids on track. We are about a month away from Christmas. There is no reason for kids or any human being not to have water or food at any time. We have to get things going.
Senator Sibbeston wants a little more information, but we have to get something done quickly, because in five years it will be too late. I know that you understand what I am saying. Even before five years we will lose many of these kids.
I hope that what I am saying makes sense to you. I would not want to see any of those kids in any more difficulty without hope for the future. We have to act quickly.
Mr. Jock: I think that is exactly the reason that education is seen as such a pressing priority, and the basics of education need to be dealt with and, more than that, a system that will give the opportunity for ultimate success, not minimum success. You have heard the graduation rates of the Inuit. Well, ours are about 39 per cent, which certainly leaves 61 per cent being with a questionable future about where they would be able to secure employment.
I think that you have put your finger on something important, and I would think that National Chief Atleo would think that as well. Demonstrating success in this area is real. If we can start there and make progress there, then that will be one step toward showing how to do things.
Senator Patterson: I want to congratulate all the presenters on some very thoughtful recommendations to us.
I will just say about the AFN presentation that your recommendation that we early engage in legislation and all steps is good advice in advance of our education report. I will not say more about our recommendations, but it is no secret that the provisions on education in the Indian Act are antiquated if not pathetic. If we are going to provide a legislative base, which our committee has been considering, we do understand we cannot repeat the mistakes of the past and present the First Nations with a fait accompli and say, ``Take it or leave it.'' That is very timely advice.
With the Métis National Council, I think we are privileged to have a veteran leader here. I can remember Clément Chartier being involved in the repatriation of the Constitution, the talks to define Aboriginal rights back in the 1980s, and I greatly respect you for that. What struck me about your presentation was the money we are wasting on lawyers, and I mean the federal government and the NMC. There has to be a better way, and you challenged us to consider that by expanding the land claims process. To me, the land base is a critical asset that you lack for reasons of history. That struck me with your presentation.
I also want to welcome the Inuit students from Nunatsiavut. Perhaps I will put some questions to you since I represent Nunavut in the Senate. I will be a little bit provocative here.
For a little background, the Inuit have been very proud, self-reliant people for millennia, living in the harshest climate in the world, surviving with humour and strength and being extremely innovative. They were lured into communities by promises of free health, family allowance, no or low rent and education. Life was going to be better. Houses were built and turned over to provinces or territories to maintain. The houses in our communities are not being looked after. The operation and maintenance funding from CMHC, which is based on the lifespan of the homes and the fact that they are eventually going to deteriorate, is diminishing by design. That problem has been in place over successive governments.
Local housing authorities are having trouble collecting rent. The houses are not taken care of. There are boarded up windows all over Iqaluit, where I am based, because the housing authority cannot afford to repair the damages.
I am wondering whether you think that maybe there is a place or a time to take a different approach, to provide meaningful incentives to Inuit, relying on that self-reliance and independence that allowed them to survive in this harsh climate for thousands of years, and say to the Inuit: It is time you acquired ownership of your own homes and took the responsibility for maintaining and caring for your own homes. We need meaningful home ownership incentives; however, I wonder if you think that might be at least one strategy that we could look at.
Ms. Ford: I do not see why it would not be one strategy to look at, but so many other issues around housing in all the regions are challenges for that. Never mind the cost of the operation and maintenance of homes that are there now, but the cost of building in the North is so expensive, as is getting the materials there. You have to think of the development of the land, the water and sewer, and the cost of getting those plots. There are not always enough plots, so there are not enough spaces in communities. There is the challenge of trying to get mortgages when there are no banks in our community for the most part. I think there are many challenges around. It is nice to be able to say it would be great to own your own home. However, when there are not the developed plots and the cost of developing plots in the North is so expensive, there are so many other challenges that we face in the North. Even if you want to own your own home, it is a big challenge. It is not as easy as buying a house that is already built in the South and being able to get a mortgage for that; there is the development of the land, the plots, the cost of the infrastructure, the water and sewer and so forth.
Senator Patterson: I recognize that there are certainly challenges, but what if we can support people to own their own homes, and I know that would not apply to everybody, maybe just a small portion of the population. I think only 10 per cent of the occupants of houses in Nunavut have incomes that are calculated to be sufficient to support home ownership.
I think you need to spend money to encourage people, as there is the land development and so forth. However, the one thing about home ownership is if you are able to support people who can own and maintain their own home, which is the pattern in many parts of Canada, then the government does not have to deal with this ongoing problem of forever maintaining the home. When you talk to people at CMHC, they say they are declining the O&M grant because it is unsustainable. We cannot continue the way we are going.
I do believe we have to find a new approach to this housing problem. I just want to plant the seed that maybe at least for a part of the population — I know there will always be people in need, such as single parents, widows and disabled people — there may be the opportunity to achieve that self reliance that the Inuit are so famous for over the years.
I do have one other question, if I might. Cathy Towtongie, President of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., NTI, was saying in advance of the annual general meeting, which is happening this week, that Inuit have not figured out what they are going to do with the resource revenues from development. There is one mine in Baffin Island; I am not sure if it will go ahead, but it does it will pay $2.1 billion to the Inuit of Nunavut in the first 21 years. That is twice the compensation that was given in 1993 when the Inuit gave up their land.
I am wondering if it is worthwhile, and if you have given some thought to what should be done with these resource revenues? I am not saying let government off the hook, but when you look at the needs — the social issues, the language and culture issues, housing, health and education — has ITK ever considered recommendations?
This is true of all the Inuit homeland. Inuit in Nunatsiavut are getting revenues from the Voisey's Bay mine. Has ITK ever considered if there is a way for a partnership, or a way for the Inuit to partner with the government in tackling some of these problems, using revenues from development of the rich resources on your lands? Has that idea ever come up?
Ms. Ford: I think that our leaders have talked about those things, but each of the regions has its own land claims' process and what they can do with those resources from the land they own or from the land they have through their land claim agreements. I think they do different things. We have, through and from Nunatsiavut, so we do have an impact and benefits agreement from the Voisey's Bay mine. I think they have considered that.
In terms of ITK generally, I know the leaders have talked about it; but I think right now it is more of a regional kind of an issue of how they are going to benefit from the resource extraction that could, may and will happen around their communities and lands.
Senator Raine: I think all of us have become very much engaged in the issue of education, recognizing that without education it is difficult to move forward. We are going to wrap up our study on education K to 12. Obviously, there are two other aspects — early childhood education and post-secondary. Could the three of you comment on which one we should tackle next?
Mr. Jock: I think post-secondary is one that really needs to be looked at in terms of First Nations, where you have the same amount of funding in spite of the fact that our population has grown so rapidly and we have grown in terms of the number of people attending university. That one is a real pressure.
It is resulting in fewer opportunities than would be possible if this program was established on a robust basis. I think post-secondary would be an important policy gap; but ideologically, I think early childhood is very important. The establishment of early childhood programs is one of the most effective ways to ensure long-term development.
Mr. Chartier: It is hard to place priorities; both are very important. For the Metis, we do not have the problem of having a cap because there is nothing to be capped. We would be looking at hopefully getting some supports for post- secondary education.
Currently, we do have an initiative under the employment and training program of HRSDC, where we are allowed to use some of the resources to partner with universities that are willing to set up endowment funds. We have been doing that for about eight years. Our governing members, as we call them, find a willing university and use some of that fund which has been allowed to create a pool for scholarships to Metis students. It is only the interest that is being used. It is minimal, but it has been effective thus far.
We need to see some kind of increase in that perspective for our students. A lot of our students, particularly in the North, finish grade 12 and then stay at home. They do not go on because they do not have the capacity or the supports to do so. Others in the past have taken advantage of student loans and they have finished, particularly single mothers. They have $40,000 to $60,000 in debts and they kind of give up and say, what is the point? There is a need to look at post-secondary education for the Metis.
Ms. Ford: I think as well for Inuit, we do want to look at post-secondary. That is important and it is mentioned in our strategy; but you have heard our graduation rates. I think for us that the focus still is on ensuring that we graduate youth from the high school system. We need to do that by focusing right now on early childhood education and early childhood development to ensure the students get through that system; and making sure the system we do have in place is based on Inuit culture, ensuring we can offer education to our Inuit students in our languages, and getting them through high school so they can have success in post-secondary education institutions.
Senator Raine: I have one other burning question. In studying education, it has become clear to me there is a huge gap in the education of non-native people to understand the history and culture of the Metis, the Inuit and the First Nations. From your perspective, how important do you think it is that the rest of Canada understands where you all come from?
Mr. Chartier: I believe it is very significant, very important, and I think curriculum particularly needs to be dealt with. I know in Saskatchewan we have the Gabriel Dumont Institute, which deals with post-secondary education, as well as curriculum for K to 12. We do try to get a lot of Metis content into the schools.
Just recently, in the past number of months in Manitoba, there has been a new history book put out, I believe, for grade 10. It deals with the history of Aboriginal peoples in Canada, but it is geared to Manitoba. It is quite a good book, not because my picture is in there, but it is significant and we are hoping that it is replicated throughout the whole of Canada. I am not sure if it is, but it has the makings of a national curriculum. It is that broad, but then it hones in on Manitoba specifically. Again, I do not know if other provinces are doing the same with respect to their jurisdictions, but something like that would be very helpful.
Ms. Ford: I think it is very important that the rest of Canada understands. There are a lot of challenges and a lot of reasons why our graduation rates are low. We need to do a lot of work around mobilizing parents, because of the whole residential school experience. The experience the parents had impacts on how they perceive education and how students perceive education. I think that Canadians need to understand some of those challenges — the history of residential schools and some of the other challenges as well.
We are focusing on early childhood education and ensuring that youth are graduating from high school, but we do not have a university that is in any of our regions, so that is another challenge. Students must leave their communities and lifestyles in order to succeed at university, and just understanding that challenge is important. There needs to be an understanding about some of the challenges we face in ensuring that our students get through the system.
Senator Raine: Working over the last few years with Minister Aglukkaq has been incredible. She is an amazing, inspirational woman, and I am glad our national health leadership is in her hands. She is a great role model for everyone. Is the First Nation point of view the same?
Mr. Jock: I would like to echo those comments. It is also important to focus on new immigrants because I think having that group, which is certainly growing, is important.
Knowing the history and place of First Nations people is also important as we go forward. There is also the idea that people who make it through the various professions, whether they are physicians, social workers, et cetera, should have cultural competency as part of their training. Of course, focusing on First Nations, Metis and Inuit people and their needs are part of providing effective services and I think should be basic to all of those professions as well.
My final comment is illustrating the example of the War of 1812, when people talk about understanding the role of First Nations and other Aboriginal people as allies. They were equals. I think that is an important part of understanding what needs to be done in the future. Our history does set some of the context for our future, and without understanding, I do not think we see the roots, the reasons or the motivations for it.
The Deputy Chair: On behalf of the all the senators, I would like to thank the panel members for their presentations this evening. You have presented us with a concise and precise overview of the major issues that face the three Aboriginal peoples in Canada: the First Nations, Metis and Inuit. You have delineated the priority areas that you think would be important for our committee to pursue.
I would like to say that I am very proud of this committee. I think the committee members are all dedicated and passionate. I think each person is devoted to making a better life for Aboriginal peoples, so you can rest assured that your suggestions will be taken to heart and we will not forget what you have said.
Honourable senators, help me in welcoming to the table our second panel. Before we begin, once again I would like to reiterate that we are extremely pleased that Inuit, First Nations and Metis youth have come to be with us tonight. We are all very eager to hear from you. The room is full of young people, and excitement is in the air. I think we have made history, because I do not think any other committee has done this. We can be proud that you are here tonight. We are eager to hear from you.
Tonight we have, from the National Inuit Youth Council, Thomasie Johnston, Board Member; from the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council we welcome Kluane Adamek, Executive Member; and bringing us the Metis perspective we have two witnesses, Mitchell Case, who is the youth council member of the Métis Nation of Ontario; and Adrian Mrdeza, Communications Officer, who comes to us from the Métis National Council.
Panelists, I assure you that members of this committee are keenly interested in the issues that concern Aboriginal youth. We have just completed our education study. This committee is very aware of the challenges that you face, and we are most interested in your ideas about how we can provide opportunities for youth to create a healthier, happier and more prosperous Canada.
We look forward to hearing what you have to say. Have you decided amongst yourselves in what order you would like to proceed, or shall I?
Senator Meredith: Ladies first.
The Chair: We will proceed from the left.
[Translation]
Kluane Adamek, Executive Member, Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council: Good evening.
[The witness speaks in her native language.]
My name is Kluane Adamek. I am here on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council. Currently I live in the Yukon and I work for the Council of Yukon First Nations.
[English]
Good evening, my name is Kluane Adamek and I am from the Kluane First Nation. I have Tlingit and Southern Tutchone ancestry. I am from the Wolf clan. I was speaking Southern Tutchone, which is one of my traditional languages, and I also speak French. I graduated from Carleton University in 2009. I minored in French, with an Aboriginal studies and Canadian studies major.
I am speaking to you today on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council, comprised of 10 regions, one male and one female representative from each. Maintaining gender balance is important to us.
I would first like to send my thanks to the Algonquin people for hosting us here on our traditional territory. Also, I would like to thank this committee for inviting me as well as all the other youth here this evening to speak before you.
I have something special with me today, which I will share with everyone. This feather was a gift from William Commanda, who I am sure many of you are aware of. When my class of 2009 graduated from Carleton, we had one of the first Aboriginal graduations, and he presented each one of us with a feather. I brought this to symbolize us as First Nations people and am sharing it with you today.
It is a privilege to be able to speak on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council, and, by extension, First Nation youth across country. With that in mind, I should state that it is difficult to capture the sentiment of all we have hoped to represent in our endeavours here and abroad.
There is a broad spectrum of issues which First Nations youth might deem a priority, and it should be noted that these are not in contrast with issues within the general First Nation population. It is my hope that I can identify or expand on some of those issues during my time before you today.
As you are no doubt aware, First Nation youth under the age of 25 make up close to 50 per cent of the entire First Nations population in Canada. Quite simply, the First Nation population in Canada is young and growing quite rapidly. In fact, the Indian Act is not only a method which has assimilated us as First Nations people, but is also not reflective of our identity.
A growing young population should mean that more and more First Nation youth are engaged and succeeding within the education system. As was raised earlier this evening, unfortunately this is not the case.
First Nations youth face challenges from the start, as they strive to gain the education they need. From my own personal perspective, I moved from my community, which is located in Kluane First Nation, Burwash Landing, to Whitehorse to complete high school in grade 9.
The facilities that many First Nation students attend on reserve are inadequate and lacking the necessary tools to better engage these young minds. My First Nation does not have a school located in our traditional territory, and our students travel 15 kilometres every day to Destruction Bay and return home to their families.
Many First Nation students, both on reserve and off, also struggle in curriculums that are not culturally relevant. Minimal early childhood education and lacking second and tertiary resources are a reality which many of our First Nations communities face. This, in turn, can lead to disinterest and apathy towards school and, eventually, high dropout rates. On top of this, many of our languages are close to being lost. As First Nations youth we should not have to face this fear.
The rate of First Nations youth who do not graduate from high school remains around 30 per cent. Obviously, this translates into few of our youth moving on to post-secondary institutions for continued learning. Those who will go on to post-secondary institutions in the future do not currently have secured funding to do so.
In Canada today, this poses a significant challenge to anyone looking for a decent-paying job and the opportunity for advancement once employed. In fact, the rate of unemployment in some First Nations communities is close to 80 per cent.
There are fewer jobs available and additional competition for those jobs as unemployment grows in large segments of the country. Adding to these problems is a growing number of chronic health conditions, especially in our rural and northern communities. Conditions such as tuberculosis and diabetes, to name a couple, are impacting our communities at much higher rates than the rest of the country. These issues, as well as others, only add to the negative impacts on the mental wellness of so many First Nations youth.
I am sure it is hard for many of you to hear just this brief overview of where things are at for our First Nations youth in Canada. Imagine that you live through this and that it is, in many cases, a much more dire situation. You can see why our communities are hit hard by suicide. Each life lost is one too many. Youth are taking action amongst themselves. There is a call to engage in prevention and intervention campaigns, as they relate to suicide.
We continue to need support from the community at large, however. We hope that stronger and long-term funding commitments and investments can be continued so that we can get better help ourselves.
I have mentioned some examples where priority should be placed. These conditions are real, but, as daunting as they might be, they are not irreversible. There is still opportunity and reason for optimism, but it will take a considerable effort and investment by all levels of government, as well as the corporate and private sectors. The panel examining First Nations education will be concluding next week. As a youth, it is my hope that this will not result in more recommendations in a report that just gathers dust on a shelf. As someone who has worked closely with the subject, I hope that we take the next steps in partnership and work together toward First Nation control of First Nations education. It is encouraging to see the federal government working with the Assembly of First Nations on a joint action plan that will improve the long-term prosperity of not only First Nation people but all Canadians.
It is also a general concern that the public education system itself needs to include First Nations-relative curriculum to explain and bring forward the story of Aboriginal people in Canada. For example, there is no reason why a student graduating from high school in the Yukon should not be able to outline the 14 Yukon First Nations. The current situation is that many First Nations who graduate are also unable to note all of the 14 Yukon First Nations.
Principles such as reflecting the role of First Nations culture and language in our history and future gives youth a positive impression of the work being done to help them as they make their way in the world. First Nations youth, while heartened by the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, would also like to see a clear and detailed plan as to how this declaration will be implemented by this federal government. My being here today is proof that it is possible for a young First Nation person to experience success in overcoming the challenges that so many of us face.
In the future, I hope to continue my post-secondary education by entering law school next fall. I have been able to manage my way through the different levels of this country's education system. It has not been easy, and I am certain I will encounter more challenges, especially as I continue my work to help my fellow First Nations people. I, as a young leader in the First Nations community, look forward to working with you in addressing these issues I have brought forward today, as well as many others I have not mentioned.
In closing, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to come before you today to bring forward some of the issues that need priority, not only for First Nations youth but also for all First Nations people.
Shannen, from Attawapiskat First Nation, brought forward an initiative, Shannen's Dream, which some of you might be familiar with. She did not have a school for her community and now, unfortunately, as earlier mentioned, her community has declared a state of emergency. It is imperative that this federal government stays true in respecting and fulfilling the implementation, in spirit and intent, of land claims and modern-day agreements. As many leaders have come before you from the Yukon, I would like to close by mentioning Together Today for Our Children Tomorrow, in an effort for First Nations youth to succeed.
Thomasie Johnston, Board Member, National Inuit Youth Council: Thank you. Good evening.
[The witness spoke in his native language.]
My name is Thomas Johnston. Thank you for inviting the National Inuit Youth Council. We appreciate the opportunity to increase our profile and the work that we do.
As I said, I am Thomasie Johnston, and I am a board member of the National Inuit Youth Council. I live in Iqaluit, Nunavut. I grew up Igloolik, Nunavut, a little island in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, way up there.
I was able to spend part of my summers in a little outpost camp right outside of Quaqtaq, Northern Quebec — Nunavik — with my grandparents.
Jennifer Watkins of Kuujjuaq, our president, was not able to make this trip, as she is a very busy young woman raising a family while working fulltime on top of her presidency.
I am kind of nervous; sorry, guys.
Senator Meredith: That is all right. Take your time.
Mr. Johnston: Sixty per cent of the Inuit population in Canada is under the age of 25. Often, we are told that we are the future and that we must invest in education and capacity-building activities. However, Inuit youth are taking the leadership roles already, sometimes by choice and sometimes because there is no choice. Youth are right now as much as we are the future.
The National Inuit Youth Council, NYIC, was created 18 years ago, in 1993. It was created to give Inuit youth from across the country a way to voice their concerns to each other and to others in a position to support our work. The list of concerns raised at the first National Inuit Youth Summit, back in 1994, are still very much the same as the concerns we have today. These are: suicide, education, housing and living arrangements, and the preservation of Inuit culture and language. These are still our priorities and have been for the last 20 years.
Nearly 20 years later, NIYC is still working to voice the concerns of Inuit youth across Canada, through media such as a website, niyc.ca, and a for-youth-by-youth magazine, entitled Nipiit — I have brought a copy — which translates as ``your voice, your sound.'' Also, members of NIYC participate on a number of national boards and committees that relate to the priorities and concerns of Inuit youth.
Our current priority areas include language and culture, health, education, the improvement of networking opportunities and communication between Inuit youth, support for youth, youth councils and youth initiatives, and housing.
Here are some words of our president at a national gathering of Inuit youth in Inuvik, Northwest Territories last summer:
My vision is to bring back our identity, our culture, our language without shame, to have pride in being Inuk.
Throughout Inuit Nunangat, we are craving for our culture and a greater connection to our heritage. The more we lose, the more we want it back. The more we lose, the more my grandparents become strangers to me. We are the in- between generation, caught between traditional and modern styles of living. Many Inuit youth do not have a firm grasp of either the traditional or modern world, leaving many of them with limited knowledge of themselves and other Inuit around the world.
It is our hope at NIYC to create bridges on which we can stand firmly, healthily and proudly in the traditional Inuk way and the way Inuit are heading today, bridges that guide Inuit youth so that we no longer have to live the multiple- personality lives of the confused younger generation. Inuit youth want to reach a place where we are strong and whole and equal to the rest of Canada, both in a modern and traditional sense.
We want to move forward on a number of fronts. Currently, schools in the North have very little or nothing to do with Inuit history and language. Our graduation rates, as mentioned, are at a low 25 per cent and the competency of graduates is at a level far below that of the rest of Canada. We live in homes that are inadequate and in desperate need of repair. Unemployment rates in Inuit communities are the highest in Canada. In many other unfortunate areas, we can claim to be first. These areas are suicide, and so on. All these factors are leading to great dysfunction among Inuit youth. Each and every Inuk youth has been affected by suicide. Maybe it was a close friend, an uncle, a cousin; maybe it was an attempt; maybe it was your brother. It is these areas — education, housing and suicide preference — that I challenge you to explore in greater depth to work with the Inuit youth and the NIYC to help us address our priorities and reach our goals. A country that claims pride in the multicultural identity should also be interested in keeping Inuit traditions alive and vibrant. All we want is for our children to live healthily and happily and to be proud of who they are. Maybe it does not sound like I am asking for much, or maybe it does, but what I am asking for is not what only the Inuit are asking for; it is what every Canadian and every citizen in this world is asking for. All we want is equality.
The Deputy Chair: We will now hear from the Métis National Council. Will you do separate presentations or share?
Adrian Mrdeza, Communications Officer, Métis National Council: I think we will proceed with Mr. Case doing an overview that was prepared at the national level, and he can also speak to his provincial youth council as well. I can provide some context when necessary.
The Deputy Chair: Thank you.
Mitchell Case, Youth Council Member, Métis Nation of Ontario:
[The witness spoke in his native language.]
To all committee members, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today to identify the main challenges and opportunities facing Metis youth in Canada.
I am the Region 4 representative for the Métis Nation of Ontario Youth Council. The Métis Nation of Ontario is one of five governing members of the Métis National Council.
Like other young people in this country, youth across the Metis homeland dream of having an opportunity to pursue their goals and to be as confident in where they are going as they are in where they have come from. In some cases, these goals are finding a secure job, getting better training or gaining higher education. We also want the freedom to express our Metis identity in our daily lives, and to do so either in traditional or modern ways.
The Metis population is growing rapidly and more than half our population is below the age of 19. This means that within the next 10 to 15 years, more than 100,000 Metis youth will be ready to enter the labour force or to pursue higher education. The time is now to put the supports in place to ensure Metis youth are fully prepared to take these next crucial steps.
The gap in high school education rates between the Metis and the general population has narrowed considerably over the years. Our labour force participation rate is close to that of the general population. However, as Metis, we face certain challenges in getting ahead. There is still an enormous gap in post-secondary education participation between Metis and the general population, approximately 7 per cent of our population versus 18.2 per cent of the general population.
For Metis youth, a major barrier to post-secondary education is financial. Unlike First Nations and Inuit, the Metis are excluded from the federal government's Aboriginal educational funding. Most of the Métis National Council's five provincial affiliated governing members have established endowments with matching funds from universities that provide scholarships and bursaries for Metis attending post-secondary institutions. However, only the investment income from these endowments can be paid out in scholarships each year, limiting the number of students who can benefit. The demand for post-secondary assistance continues to far outweigh the available supply of funding for many Metis youth who will simply not be able to pursue this goal.
One of the best investments the federal government and the provinces can make would be to make direct investment in Metis students through dedicated funding for Metis post-secondary and by strengthening the existing Metis Nation endowment funds. These important investments would result in better employment and career prospects for Metis with post-secondary degrees and ultimately higher tax revenues for governments.
Another good investment for the federal government would be to expand its support for the five province-wide Metis employment and training agencies or assistance programs that have assisted 35,000 Metis, many of them youth, to find employment between 1999 and 2007.
The federal government can be an important partner in Metis education by supporting the Metis nation education institutes like the Gabriel Dumont Institute in Saskatoon and the Louis Riel Institute in Winnipeg, and the additional education programs by all governing members. Currently, these initiatives are funded primarily by the provinces. The Gabriel Dumont Institute's Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program has graduated over 1,000 students with a bachelor of education.
Many of us graduates are working with Metis youth, encouraging them to achieve success in the K to 12 system. The Métis National Council's five governing members have done a lot to involve Metis youth in their decision-making councils. Metis youth have their own representation on most of the provincial councils.
Unfortunately, there is little funding for our activities and some governing members struggle to find the funds to organize a youth gathering once a year. While Metis youth do seek out their own funding or secure in-kind funding to hold activities focused on cultural learning and healthy living activities, there is so much more that could be accomplished.
Currently, the main funding source for Aboriginal youth-driven activities is through the Canadian Heritage Cultural Connections for Aboriginal Youth program. The Métis National Council's governing members have difficulty accessing Canadian Heritage funds because this program does not reflect the demographic reality of the Metis population. Our population is spread across cities, towns, rural areas, and the hinterlands of the westernmost provinces. The funding conditions for the Cultural Connections for Aboriginal Youth program favour activities in concentrated Aboriginal population areas.
The funding is limited in scope and can inhibit Metis youth groups from effectively engaging youth in executing these projects on their own. Métis National Council governing members are forced to draw from their alternative program budgets to pay their staff and to bring youth from distant locations. This is unfortunate because Metis youth representatives who are serving on a voluntary basis are thirsting for opportunities to tap into the energy of their members from across their individual provinces and to project their views to the decision-making councils of the governing members. There is also desire for a national youth body to promote cross-homeland dialogue and an opportunity for learning, as well as to ensure that the Metis youth voice is being used and heard at the national level.
In the past there was a national Metis youth council at the MNC, but due to funding cuts, the council is dormant. Despite the lack of reliable youth funding, the Métis National Council plays a role in coordinating national youth gatherings, such as the Metis Youth Leadership Camp, a four-day camp that was held at the historic site of Batoche this past summer.
The camp focused on the legacy of residential schools and its impact on our families and communities. The goal of the leadership camp was to combine social networking tools and resources to essentially share the story of the Metis residential, boarding and day school experiences through the development of a social media framework that will be used by the Métis National Council to inform the public of this important issue.
The youth heard stories first-hand from Metis survivors on their experiences and how it affected their lives and their ability to parent and build relationships. Other sections included Metis nation history, social media planning, strategic communications, as well as the creation of a past, present and future mural. This is the first time that the youth have been engaged as educators in the issues of residential, boarding and day schools.
Having youth utilize the tools of today to promote healing and help Canadians understand the impacts that have been left on our families and communities was a unique and significant approach to the sharing of knowledge. This is the type of project that the Cultural Connections for Aboriginal Youth program should be funding.
The Deputy Chair: Do you have further comments, Ms. Mrdeza?
Ms. Mrdeza: Currently, we have five governing members, and actively there are three provinces that have a youth council. The youth have representation at the board of directors level and they do have a vote at that table.
The other two provinces, from what I gather, did have a youth council, although it has been suspended due to unreliable funding, the CCAY funding through Canadian Heritage. What I am hearing is that it is just not accessible enough, and the restraints are so deep that it is a complete disservice. The provinces have a youth portfolio, where they will put forward information to youth groups that are Metis focused and that are not held within the governing member itself.
The Deputy Chair: Thank you very much.
Before we proceed, I would like to acknowledge the other youth in the room. I understand that most, if not all, of you are from one school. I believe Thomas Johnston can put on the record where the students or the youth are from.
Mr. Johnston: These fine young men and women are from Nunavut. They are here attending the Nunavut Sivuniksavut — it translates to ``our land, our future.'' These students will be studying here for eight months out of their home territory to learn Inuit history and language. I am very proud that they are here. I have known most of these people for many years. Also, my old teachers are here so it only adds to my nervousness.
The Deputy Chair: Panel members, thank you so much for your presentations. You gave us an excellent overview of the challenges that the youth face and yet the opportunities that are there. Definitely, the four of you are examples of what can be achieved despite the obstacles. I am impressed by you and I am sure that all the committee members are really proud your accomplishments.
We will open the floor to questions from senators, but I will take the prerogative to ask the first one.
I am from Saskatchewan and I am familiar with Gabriel Dumont Institute. In fact, there was a report released just last week by the Gabriel Dumont Institute along with an economics professor by the name of Dr. Eric Howe from the University of Saskatchewan. I am not sure if you are aware of it; it is relative new. He does make a very strong case as to why the investment in education pays off. It pays off not only to the individual person who is getting education; he actually has a dollar figure for what you will earn with a high school education, with a technical diploma, and with a university degree. He puts it very simply as the more you learn, the more you earn. There are huge benefits, as I am sure all of you youth know, to an education to you personally, but there is also a huge benefit to society in general because the more education you get, the more you contribute to the economy and the less you draw from the economy, so there are savings to the rest of the Canadian economy. In Saskatchewan alone, the savings amount to $90 billion. He says that this is more than potash has contributed to the economy of Saskatchewan, and in Saskatchewan potash has been our major economic driver.
There are huge benefits to education. I was very interested to hear that virtually everyone tonight has mentioned education.
Senator Meredith: Again, I am delighted to have all these youth in this room. First, I want to thank the panellists for your wonderful presentation. Ms. Adamek, I want to commend you for your graduation. I know that was a milestone for you, possibly in your family. There were many hurdles to overcome, yet you did it and I commend you for what you are doing.
As someone who has been a youth activist for the last 10 years, speaking out about youth violence in the city of Toronto and gaining government support to help our youth, I have identified as I have been appointed a senator that there is a national crisis in this country where our youth is concerned, not just Aboriginal youth but Canadian youth. Your plight is even more urgent.
I commend all of you for the work you are doing and for the leadership that you have demonstrated. I also want to give credit to your teachers who are in this room to see that your work is not in vain, and to the young people who are in this room, that you should not quit. You have got others who are looking at you, looking at you leaving your place of birth to come to experience what you are experiencing now. Some of you might feel fatigued, but I want you to keep going because someone is watching you and depending on you. I encourage you to not quit in spite of all the adversities, discrimination and racism and the horrific inequality that exists in this country, Canada, in this 21st century. Do not quit. Keep moving forward. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
You have a committee here that is committed to seeing things go forward for Inuit, Metis and First Nations people in general. It breaks my heart to see the plight that Canadians are going through. You are Canadians.
My question to Ms. Adamek is this: What are you doing to engage other like-minded individuals, other like-minded youth, to take up your plight and begin to allow your voices to be heard on these issues, to mobilize a wider voice through whatever medium is possible, to make sure that politicians are hearing the plight and that you are garnering support so that change can actually come to your people?
That is my first question, and then I will have questions for the other presenters.
Mr. Adamek: Thank you, senator, for your comments and also thank you for the question. That is a great and important one.
Uniquely enough, prior to starting this panel, my colleagues and I chatted about how important it is that we can act. We will be having our next meeting in Ottawa in December, the national youth council, and we have formally invited our other panellists to attend so that we can start to share and engage in that respect. Although we culturally have different traditions, we also have many similarities in terms of youth and moving forward for future generations.
In regard to like-minded youth, as mentioned, we have our national youth council. Regionally, there are also youth councils that have supports in place to engage First Nations youth to provide role model and leadership qualities and training and developments. As well, we will be having our national youth summit late in the summer that will bring together First Nations youth from across Canada to come up with a five-year strategic action plan. As mentioned, we are in the last year of our strategic action plan, and education and health have been at the forefront of that.
In terms of initiatives we have been able to establish, Shannen's dream has been in terms of connecting not just with First Nations youth but gathering the interest and awareness of all Canadians to the fact that there are major discrepancies in the school system for First Nations and other Aboriginal youth. As for the other initiatives, there is the First Nations caring society, which Cindy Blackstock is heavily involved with. Her advocacy has assisted in gathering youth from across Canada in coming together to have these discussions. There was the virtual summit, the post- secondary summit that we had earlier this year, which brought together First Nations youth from across Canada to discuss where they would like to see post-secondary funding go and where are their major challenges and how do we get by that.
There have been in this last year many mechanisms that have been structured to assist us in first connecting with each other and then looking at how we are going to move forward.
I hope that answers most of your question. If there is anything else, I can clarify it.
Senator Meredith: Mr. Johnston, you mentioned 60 per cent of the youth are under 25. We heard the horrific stories of suicide and health issues affecting our youth. I always bring this back to leadership. You are demonstrating leadership right now and I thank you for that. Be courageous. We have all felt nervous at some point, so do not be nervous. You are demonstrating true leadership here and others are following you.
Do you think that your leaders are doing enough to bring visible change to your communities? Do you talk about being sick and tired of reports, of millions of dollars being spent and of no implementation? Do you believe that your leadership is doing enough when these reports are created and these sessions are held? Are they doing enough to make these changes within your community to advance your people?
Mr. Johnston: Thanks for the question.
Senator Meredith: Feel free to talk frankly, not otherwise just because they are in the room; speak candidly.
Mr. Johnston: I was about to say it is a pretty dangerous question.
Senator Meredith: You have senators who will back you up; do not worry.
Mr. Johnston: I do not know about all the regions but I know Nunavut very well. I know most of the MLAs in our legislature on a first-name basis. I often spend time with them. I know that when they are out of office and shed their skins that they wear in the legislature, they are usually calm and happy people. I like to see them when they are out of office, when they are communicating and part of the community again. We have a big problem with our leaders. We live in these little pocket communities that are only accessible by airplane; you cannot drive to another community unless you drive by snowmobile. All these pockets have their leaders. Usually the stronger ones who really advocate loudly disappear. They go to Iqaluit or to Ottawa. We should know that they are doing it for our interests, but we do not see them anymore.
Senator Meredith: Is there a lack of communication between your leadership and the people?
Mr. Johnston: There is a lack of being part of the community. Once they are gone, they are not part of us and we want them to come home, not only because they are our leaders and we look up to them but also because they are our family members. Our leaders today could do a lot more with keeping the community spirit alive. Our communities are very tight knit. For all the troubles that we go through, we do not turn always to government to get them fixed. We turn to a family member or we turn to a friend.
Our leaders become disconnected from that. I no longer think that they are advocating for our interests sometimes. Although all the work coming out of the legislature of Nunavut is very nice with the recently tabled document of the Strategic Suicide Prevention plan, the creation of the Child and Youth Advocate Office by the Government of Nunavut and the education bill that was passed and now needs to be implemented, we always return to our troubles. We have all these nice tools in place — very fancy, shiny and good to look at. Most of the time that is all they seem to be good for — to look at and dream.
Senator Meredith: I have a question on economic opportunities. It is so critical to this committee that your voices be heard and recorded. You talk about the fact that finding a job is difficult and that 50 per cent of the youth are under 19. What is being done with the limited resources that you have in terms of creating opportunities, private sector partnerships and so on for these young people? What is being done, if anything?
Mr. Case: Unfortunately, not enough is being done. With the resources we have, it is really remarkable what has been accomplished. There is a statistic that talks about our labour market development and our assets program that helped 35,000 Metis people, most of whom are youth, to attain meaningful employment. We are not under federal jurisdiction, so our provincial organizations are a lot more active than our federal organization. I can speak more specifically to the Métis Nation of Ontario, which I am very active in. The education component is very new. Before, it was simply a labour market development branch that built up those relations with emerging industry. That branch is sort of centred out of my hometown, Sault Ste. Marie. We have been able to implement working relationships with emerging sectors, like energy. I do not know if this is a true statistic but Sault Ste. Marie claims we are the greenest city in Canada because we have the biggest wind farm and the biggest solar farm. I do not know if it amounts to anything but that is what they claim. We have been able to make a lot of movement with those emerging sectors to find meaningful employment for our young people.
Senator Meredith: Is there a mentorship component built into that? Do these emerging industry sectors mentor the young people?
Mr. Case: It is in the long-term goal but is not a reality yet. It is a 5-year or 10-year plan that our education centre put together. They are hoping to make it a reality, but they are not there yet. I cannot speak specifically about the other four governing members, but that is where we are in the Metis Nation of Ontario.
Ms. Mrdeza: To elaborate, the Métis National Council with the help of its governing members produced a video overview of success stories from our assets program that showed the Metis Nation British Columbia and their culinary program. Applicants from the Metis Nation British Columbia go through a culinary program, are sent to a mentorship program, and then go out and work. They have found it very useful. As you cross from west to east within the Metis Nation, you can see those success stories, which are incredible, such as housing developments in Calgary and Edmonton. In Manitoba, there is social housing for single parents who learn how to nurture their children properly and the young mothers can go back to school. They are provided housing. In Ontario, there is a construction program where young Metis adults are brought to the work site and mentored. They can work their way up to be a journeyman. There is a lot of movement but, of course, we are working to build more relationships. The Metis Nation has a plan for economic development in a broader sense that we are moving on at the national level. We support our governing members as best as we can and are trying to ensure that this includes our youth.
Mr. Case: I would like to add that there was the establishment of the Aboriginal Apprenticeship Centre as a partnership between Metis Nation of Ontario and Sault College, which was in business for two years. This is not my area of expertise so I am not exactly sure where the funding came from. Whether it was provincial or federal, the funding has been pulled and the AAC is being operated entirely by the college because they saw how important the program was and the success it had. After two years, the government support was non-existent.
It is good to see that the individual colleges and universities are seeing the benefits of First Nations, Metis and Aboriginal education and are continuing these programs on their own accord, when unfortunately the support is not there.
Senator Raine: Thank you and it is great to hear your stories and experiences. I have so many questions and we do not have a lot of time. We have heard there are problems in Nunavut with housing and people not repairing their houses. Is there a need there for training programs to teach people how to build, maintain and develop the skills necessary to look after homes? Would there be an interest in something like that?
University education is great, but if you live in a community where there is not really a need for the training you get from a university, we need to understand that practical skills and land skills are also very important. I would hope some of the traditional skills used on the land are also recognized as valuable life skills. I would like to hear your comment on that?
Mr. Johnston: For housing or any kind of trades there is a school that recently opened in Rankin Inlet. They are in their first year. They have do not have a big student base yet. In high school, I did a housing type of thing. I have to apologize, Inuktitut is my language and my English is sometimes kind of funny. In high school I got to build an igloo and this is my construction experience. It has nothing to do with wood, walls or nails but I got to learn how sturdy a house needs to be. Where you choose to build is important as are building materials. There is a type of snow that is best for building igloos. We try to instil values and traditions in our government through what is called, ``The wisdoms of the Inuit.'' Each bill and legislation needs to be related to one of the IQ principles. There are eight that the government sticks by, among hundreds of different values. They have chosen eight.
Other than the trades program in Rankin Inlet, there is heavy equipment operating programs just outside of Ottawa offered to Nunavut students. Beyond this, there is not anything specific for Inuit youth to learn trades.
Senator Raine: Do you think there is need for that?
Mr. Johnston: Definitely. We have many needs and this is one of them. I think Inuit are very handy with their hands and are able to foresee a structure before the actual building. To be a journeyman you need a piece of paper or to build a house and I think if Inuit had these pieces of paper we would have pretty cool housing.
Senator Patterson: I thank the presenters, but I will focus on my region.
Mr. Johnston, you talked about the about the highest unemployment in Canada, the grievous issue of suicide, bringing back our cultural identity and seeking equality. I know there are no easy answers to this, but it seems to me that there are big winds of change blowing in Inuit Nunangat, from Nunatsiavut to the west. I am talking about the exploitation of rich, natural resources in the Inuit lands, including diamonds and the purest iron ore in the world. Many jobs are coming. You grew up in Igloolik. Right down the coast in Hall Beach there is a mother of an iron mine being planned. There is the Baffin Island mine planned which is going to employ people across the strait. Nunavut's first gold mine is in production in Baker Lake and another one being built. These are very good paying jobs. They allow time on the land, and for family with the rotations. They would give people money to afford to go out on the land, because we know how expensive it is.
The prospect of jobs would give people some hope that they have not always seen working for the few jobs for government in a community. When you talk about dreams and aspirations — and these mines have to be built in an environmentally, benign respectful way and I believe in that — have the youth considered the winds of change that are blowing may provide some opportunities? Are you considering trades, professions or geology for this new resource sector? Someone will get those jobs if not the Inuit. Is that on your radar?
Mr. Johnston: Mining is bringing in a lot of change. With Baffin land that iron ore mine is expected to run 102 years, yielding trillions of dollars a year. People in the communities know jobs are coming. Through the trade school in Rankin Inlet and the heavy equipment operating school here, we have been able to train a handful of people who could take these jobs and keep them. Hopefully in the coming years we will have — especially with our education bill being passed at legislation — more opportunities for training and we will be able to fill those jobs. I am kind of fearful. I do not think there is anything wrong with the mines. There will be good jobs and money coming in, but now we need to learn how to budget money. I had another point and it was going to be pretty good.
Senator Patterson: It will come back to you.
Mr. Johnston: There will be struggles at first. I fear if Nunavut puts all our eggs in the mining basket, eventually it would be back to ground zero if the mines did not work out as hoped, or did work out but there is nothing left to mine. I wonder where we would be after that. We will need other people with other skills. We need students to come back home.
Senator Patterson: Thank you.
The Deputy Chair: I would like to ask each of the student groups, if the federal government were able to help you out in some kind of programming or whatever, what would you like it to do to help you succeed in fulfilling your dreams? What would be the type of thing that would help you realize there is hope for the future, that you are moving away from the past and that you can still retain your identity yet move forward in the modern world? Is there something you can envision that the federal government could do to help? Could you take a stab at that?
Mr. Case: As I said in my opening statement, I think post-secondary education for Metis youth is the number one priority, access to that post-secondary education, creating sustainable funding to specific Metis education programs and increasing the funding to those endowment funds that were talked about by myself and President Chartier.
I am a post-secondary student myself. I am studying history at Algoma University and the Ojibwe language at the university in Sault Ste. Marie. My application to one of the endowment funds last year resulted in a cheque of $300. We need help. We need support. I am not in any way an economist or a mathematician, but there needs to be some reworking of the figures to help our students. It is difficult to focus on your studies when you know you have massive debt looming. It is hard to give it your all when you need to be working two jobs just so you can be there. It is the same thing that was addressed earlier with lack of nutrition. You cannot learn in an environment like that.
Second, I think it is a responsibility of not only the federal government but of the provincial and municipal governments as well. It is the responsibility of every Canadian to learn the story of Aboriginal people.
As I mentioned, we have limited opportunities to gather, but the one thing I hear from all my fellow Metis youth is that we are tired of having to explain who we are as a people. We know who we are as a people. We know our history. We know what we have been through. We know the positive and the negative things that have happened. It is exhausting having to try to justify who you are to someone else.
Therefore, it is a responsibility not only of the federal government but of everyone to learn these stories. As much as we try to rebuild our communities, we are always having to answer the question, ``Who are you?'' No one else has to answer to that. No one else is asked that question. No one else has someone getting in your face and saying, ``Who are you? Justify who you are.'' That never happens. We are the only people that happens to, all three Aboriginal groups, but specifically the Metis people. We should not have to do that.
I know my first response would probably help you a bit, but that second one is important to everything we do because it is about our very identity as a people.
Senator Meredith: Do you get to apply for OSAP?
Mr. Case: Yes, I am an OSAP indentured student.
Senator Patterson: May I ask a quick supplemental as well? You mentioned the ASSETS program. Is that an HRSDC program?
Ms. Mrdeza: Yes.
Senator Patterson: Do you feel it has been effective?
Ms. Mrdeza: I am not an expert on the ASSETS program at all within the Metis nation, but from what I have been able to observe through my work with the Métis National Council and having to deal within the communications role at the national level and hearing the stories from the governing members, I see what they are promoting and I hear their success stories.
I think they are successful. I think they can have a lot of success. However, it is time, money and dedicated people that need to be working to secure these funds to be put into this program. The Metis Nation is forward thinking in economic development. The nation holds little Metis economic development symposiums to increase economic development within a province, for example. Through this, educational institutions as well as our own governing members are able to see what kind of industry is out there and what kind of jobs they need filled. Our governing members are then able to take that back to the table and create these programs so that whoever is seeking work or seeking a chance at an education and a better life can go to these programs and succeed. There is a lot of potential, and it is just starting.
Mr. Case: The success of the ASSETS program is not only in the hard statistics that come out of it, but something I hear quite a bit in our community is if I had a full-time job and knew I could pay my rent, I could get involved in community activities, come out to more events, be a part of the community, volunteer my time for council or do a night opening the centre up for kids who want to come in and have a place to hang out.
If you are wondering how you will pay rent, if you do not have meaningful employment, then you do not have time to think about the community at large; you are just trying to survive.
The cold hard statistics prove a point, but it goes beyond that to the community level.
The Deputy Chair: I think we will give Mr. Case and Mr. Johnston a chance to answer the question with regard to how the federal government could help you achieve your dreams.
Ms. Adamek: I will outline a few things that I think are representative of not only the National Youth Council but for First Nations youth across Canada.
The first thing would be to have secured post-secondary funding. Currently, there are limitations with many First Nations in terms of the funding that is received.
Highlighting on that piece, for example, the second thing that links in with post-secondary funding is the review and the replacement of the Indian Act. That is something that, as First Nations people, has been an assimilation tool. We need to look at ourselves and each community as very different. There are over 634 First Nations in Canada, and each have different governance structures and ways of identifying who their citizens are, whether it be through clan, moiety or matrilineal. I think that we should not have to be dependent upon a section 1 or a section 2 in terms of identifying who we are as First Nations people.
The third thing would be in terms of K to 12, it has been said many times before, but there is a 2 per cent cap on funding that needs to be removed. This has been in place for over the last 10 years, to my understanding, if not longer.
In terms of the funding that is actually allocated to the First Nations, which does not get vetted through the provincial systems and stays there, that funding actually needs to go to the First Nations. On many occasions, with First Nations organizations and so on, the funding that the communities actually receive and the funding that is allocated do not match. The funding that goes to these schools needs to actually go to the schools.
There are basic things, such as libraries. I am sure everyone around the table has had a chance to play the recorder. An example was given when we met with the national panel about so many of those kids not having a recorder because they do not have that same opportunity as kids going to a public school, for example. Therefore, libraries, computers and desks — everything that all the students that go to a public school receive need to be available to First Nations students on reserve.
There are the issues of support systems for students who might have learning disabilities and/or students that need extra assistance and of culturally relative programming. In terms of learning styles, there are some, and experiential education has been proven to increase learning outcomes, especially for First Nations students. An example that I will give is we had a panel on education in the Yukon a few years ago. One of the students had trouble in the regular high school system. Our students all attend public schools. We do not have reserves, as many of you are aware. All of our students are required to go to public schools. That is the only option. His statement was, ``Why are we not on the land? That is probably our best classroom.'' His connection was that we could be canoeing for gym class or building a cabin and learning about geometry. Therefore, looking at different models of educating students goes not only for First Nations and Aboriginal youth, but also for all Canadians. We need to be looking at 21st century learning models and how we will incorporate those.
Language is another top priority on the list as is looking at different models of success.
Our on-reserve and off-reserve students and the links with some of the comments made earlier by the panellists in terms of creating that awareness in Canadians of the background and the history of Canada, that is not what is displayed in textbooks. That is important and that our pride and our identity are shared in a positive way.
Regarding the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Canada signed onto that, and a few years back, there was an apology, but it seems as though there is never any action. Mr. Jock was speaking to that earlier, and I spoke about a book on a shelf gathering dust. If we are to adopt these things, have it not just be a method to gain political support; have it be an actual action that we will implement. That UN declaration, especially section 24, which speaks to children having the right to education and language in their community of choice, is where we need to be focused.
If legislation is to be developed, it is imperative that the First Nations are at the table developing the legislation. There were comments earlier about how this might be a mechanism that can assist, but as Ovide Mercredi mentioned in discussions with the national panel, First Nations need to be involved in that process. The Indian Act was developed for First Nations people without First Nations' involvement, and we do not want to go back down that route. We need to be involved from step one.
The next issue is respecting modern-day treaties, treaties that have been signed, and all those First Nations who, perhaps, do not have treaties. For example, many treaties outline education and health care as being the top priority. This government needs to recognize and respect the spirit and intent of those agreements, as well as the Yukon and implantation of our land claims and self-government agreements, the 11 out of 14 of our First Nations who are still struggling with that implementation.
The last thing would be to look at mentorship models of success. That was raised earlier today. Uniquely enough, we are under a mentorship program in the Yukon, and it focuses on our rural students — students who have moved from outside communities into Whitehorse. It partners with them an older student who can help them get used to the school system or go to the gym. We do lots of cultural activities, and with my involvement with the Council of Yukon First Nations managing their education department, it is an initiative that we have been able to establish. That has been quite successful. That model of mentorship, in terms of looking at students that are here, for example, from Nunavut and getting partnered up with someone else who might be working in Nunavut and seeing what the day to day structure is, or how things work, what we can do and where do we go from here. Having us here today is a great example of how, indirectly, we are mentored into that leadership capacity as young Aboriginal people.
In closing, I think of action. We have talked about it; studies have been done so many times. The word ``consultations'' has definitely been exasperated, which I think is a good term to use. We need to focus on action. The findings of the national panel, for example, for First Nations specifically, will be very important. There needs to be frankness, and I think that this federal government really needs to recognize the major discrepancies.
The Deputy Chair: You did a good overview there.
Mr. Johnston: I feel like the words have been taken out of my mouth.
I have a few things to add also.
How much does a four-litre bag of milk cost here — $3 or $4? In Iqaluit, I can walk into the store. I have two kids, and I have three jobs right now. I have no choice because my rent is $2,500 a month for my two-bedroom, 700-square- foot tiny little apartment, and I have to go buy milk for my kids and shell out another $15 for four litres. I like how my friend put it. He says, ``Preposterous.''
I had brought up equality. If we were equal in this one way where you guys had to pay the prices that we are paying, you would say ``preposterous'' as well, I think.
There is that issue and also the safer streets and safer communities thing going through. For Inuit, where our population is very young, I think in our system, everything we have will not be able to take the huge influx of criminals. When maybe they should be in school, they will be going through the court system. I heard former Prime Minister Paul Martin speak a few weeks ago. I really felt what he was saying about how it would be better for our youth to be in school and not in jail.
``Sovereignty'' is a big word in the Arctic. I am sure you know what I am talking about. In my circle of friends, we like to call it ``Colonization, Part 2.'' Yes, we need military presence to show that we are part of Canada, but there are other ways to show that we are a sovereign country. It does not have to be through building those new ships that will break apart the ice in the wintertime. Our education should be first. Our housing and our standard of living should be much higher. That, I think, would be the best demonstration for Canada to show that we are sovereign. I think Inuit would greatly appreciate it as well if we took this direction rather than this militarization of the Arctic.
Last, but not least, I would like to add that I get the majority of my funding through federal grants through the Department of Canadian Heritage. In the last year, I have had to cut my budget by almost triple, or 33 per cent.
All of a sudden, the programs that I have been running out of my office for many years are no longer eligible because new rules were put in place on this particular pot of funding. When putting rules on money that we have been accessing for many years, I think we should be allowed to say that your new rules do not work for me.
I am no longer able to bring a group of youth out hunting for a week. I am no longer able to hold a week-long Inuktitut language week in high schools in Nunavut anymore, and I am no longer able to fly in youth to Iqaluit to do a yearly leadership training thing that we do. All of a sudden, under these new rules, it says that I am not teaching the youth anything worth teaching anymore. I think that things like this need to be looked at.
I think we are getting hungry and it is late, so I will stop there for now.
The Deputy Chair: Thank you so much to all our youth panel members. You have provided us with tons of information with your wisdom, with the reality of what you are living with and where you want us to go. I know all the senators share my ideas that this was a wonderful idea to have you here. We will take your ideas to heart.
Before we adjourn, Senator Meredith has arranged for those of you who wish to visit the actual Senate chamber; we will lead you on a tour so you can see where we do our work during the day. If you are interested in doing that, just follow him.
Once again, thank you so much for being with us.
(The committee adjourned.)