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Metis National Council (MNC) President Gerald Morin marked the opening of this year's Back to Batoche celebrations with an announcement that the federal government is ready to begin exploratory discussions with the Metis Nation to determine if there is any basis for future negotiations regarding recognition of Metis rights.

Morin was joined by Ralph Goodale, Minister for Public Works and Government Services and the Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians in making the announcement.

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When First Nations veterans gather in Winnipeg in early September to consider the compensation package being offered them by Veterans Affairs, Grand Chief Howard Anderson hopes the offer in front of them is better than the one currently on the table.

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Members of the Aboriginal Financial Officers Association of Canada (AFOA) will be gathering in Saskatoon this fall for the association's third annual conference.

The conference, "Reconciling the Past: Balancing the Future", will be held Nov. 6 to 9 at the Saskatoon Inn.

The conference will feature workshops on how to avoid remedial management; First Nations planning, community involvement and mandates; financial statements; First Nations operations manual; and new technologies for remote communities.

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Homeless First Nations people and those at risk of becoming homeless will soon have greater access to transitional housing in Saskatchewan's major urban centres, thanks to a partnership between the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN), the Saskatchewan Indian Training Assessment Group Inc., five tribal councils and the federal government.

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A group of northern teens spent a part of their summer getting serious about play.

These La Ronge and area youth, ages 12 to 15, spent their mornings learning theatre skills -everything from juggling to the fine art of overcoming stage fright. In the afternoons, however, they could be spotted tooling around town in a paint-splotched black van, searching for bored kids who'd like to, well, play. The youth were responsible for organizing activities for their peers, and for this part of the day, they were paid.

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The federal government is providing more than $1.4 million in funding to try to address the problem of homelessness in the Prince Albert area.

The funds, coming from the National Homelessness Initiative, were announced at the end of July, and will help out six local projects.

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Hupacasath Chief Judith Sayers thanked everyone for coming to the official opening of Choo-kwa Ventures early this summer, and she stated their support and interest is appreciated.

The reason "Choo-kwa" was chosen as the name for the canoe adventures business is because it means, "come here."

Sayers said, "We want everyone to learn about Hupacasath First Nation."

Ed Tattoosh said the opening prayer, and then he and Robert Dennis Jr. blessed two new canoes.

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For the first time in generations, the Katzie First Nation can travel the rivers as their ancestors did, with a canoe of their own. On National Aboriginal Day the band launched its new 43-foot canoe, during a public celebration.

The canoe and 15 Katzie paddlers left Grant Narrows Park, with school children cheering them on. They were accompanied by another canoe, paddled by members of the Tsawwassen First Nation, who were on hand to offer support.

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Throughout the day, hundreds of people took part in workshops that dealt with residential school survival. The Survival and Beyond Hope, Help & Healing Gathering was held at the University of British Columbia July 4 to 7, 2002. A Healing through Laughter & Cultural Evening, held at the War Memorial Gymnasium located on the university campus on Saturday was just what some of the participants needed.

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The conference sponsored by the Indian Residential School Survivors Society titled Survival and Beyond: Hope, Help & Healing Gathering, brought survivors and their families, along with church and government representatives together on the beautiful University of British Columbia campus last month. From July 4 to 7, participants and had the chance to network and move forward in their healing journey.