Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice received a report on Groundhog Day that describes a very serious financial situation within his department, but he and his government apparently decided not to notice the black shadow on the horizon.

National Chief Phil Fontaine said the shadow is getting harder and harder to ignore.

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More than 3,000 young athletes from across the country will gather in Whitehorse from Feb. 23 to March 10 to take part in the 2007 Canada Winter Games.

Athletes age 12 to 18 will be taking part in the sporting event, which will feature competitions in 22 sports.

This year's games will be special for several reasons. Not only does the event mark the 40th anniversary of the Canada Games, but also the first time the games have been hosted by a territory.

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It's been decades in the making, but it appears First Nation people in Quebec are finally getting a post-secondary institute to call their own.

In late October 2006, the Quebec government announced it would provide $200,000 per year for operation of the new school. Additional funds to develop program content for the institution were also announced by the federal government, with Indian and Northern Affairs committing $365,000 to the project.

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"Too many Native children in remote fly-in communities do not know how to read. Too many lack self esteem. Too many lack hope. Too many believe that no one cares about them."

These words, spoken by Ontario's lieutenant-governor, James Bartleman, help explain why Bartleman has made improving Aboriginal literacy a priority since he first took office.

"I have made it a priority to do all I can to encourage Aboriginal young people to get a good start in life," he said. "

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Twenty-three-year-old Shannon Baker and sister Shauna, identical Carrier Dene twins from the Stellat'en First Nation are taking the modelling, acting and entrepreneurial worlds by storm.

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Since it was established in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) has amassed a collection of around 12,000 films, including some 700 dealing with Aboriginal themes. Now, getting a sampling of the Aboriginal items in the NFB's vaults is as simple as logging on to the film board's Web site, thanks to the site's new Aboriginal Perspectives feature.

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The stage is set for Aboriginal artists to share and celebrate their talents and energy during the seven day Talking Sick Festival in Vancouver. From Feb. 5 to 11, spectators will watch as more than100 emerging and established Aboriginal artists perform at seven venues during the sixth annual festival hosted by Full Circle: First Nations Performance.

The festival provides an opportunity for performing artists, visual artists and writers to showcase their work.

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Dig Your Roots-Aboriginal is musically enriched with a wide range of diverse sounds. There is something for everyone on this 15 track CD, with an arrangement of hip hop, spoken word, electronic dance, roots, jazz, rock and experimental/audio art.

The album showcases emerging and well-established artists from across the country, including Sandy Scofield, Shirley Montague, the Pappy Johns Band, Elaine Jakesta, Ed Peekeekoot, Jef Tremblay et les Elements, X-Status, Sinuupa, Eekwol, Tagaq, Rez Villain, Leela Gilday, Richard M. Gloade, Graeme Jonez and Digging Roots.

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For more than a decade, the Aboriginal Sport Circle (ASC) has been working to support and recognize Aboriginal athletes and to encourage all Aboriginal people to get involved in sport and recreational activities.

The ASC is Canada's national Aboriginal sports body, bringing together the country's 13 provincial and territorial Aboriginal sports organizations. The ASC gets its mandate from its political partners-the Assembly of First Nations, the Metis National Council and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami.

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The Calgary Aboriginal Friendship Centre will be teeing off this spring with a new youth golf program for 30 Aboriginal girls called Swing into Action.

The unique recreational opportunity will start this February and run for a total of 11 weeks. The first three weeks of the program will consist of cultural awareness, healthy living and nutrition workshops, with the final eight weeks providing participants with a basic introduction to the game of golf.