![]() Every season in Thaidene Nëné is wonderful, but summer is particularly special because it is when we receive most of our visitors. For the month of July, Parks Canada will be hosting a Welcome Camp at Chëlaa Delk’os Ghe near Portage Inlet, with support from the Thaidene Nëné Department and the Ni Hat’ni Dene guardians. The guardians will also be conducting patrols on the lake throughout the summer and look forward to engaging with visitors. This newletter includes updates on departmental activities, including the biodiversity monitoring work and community programming, as well as Thaidene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı and Frontier Lodge. Are you a young leader interested in youth development and land-based learning? Do you want to develop your skills doing research with people? Do you want to make a difference for future youth in Łutsël K’é? Apply today to be a youth researcher!
Position The youth researcher will be part of a fun and collaborative team planning a workshop and interviews for former youth participants of land camps (such as caribou camps, canoe trips, culture camps, etc.). The purpose of the workshop is to hear directly from young people about how these camps have impacted them. With more camps to come in Thaidene Nëné , the youth researcher will have a direct impact on future activities for Łutsël K’é Dene youth. Skills Required
Hours and Salary The position begins May 17, 2024, and ends July 30, 2024. This is a part-time position. The youth researcher will work 20 hours/week on average. The salary is $24.86/hour. Working Relationships The youth researcher will work in partnership with the Wildlife, Lands, and Environment Department (WLED) and the Thaidene Nëné Department (TDN) and will report to the WLED/TDN managers and Carrie Karsgaard, assistant professor at Cape Breton University. To apply, email resume to [email protected] and [email protected]. Deadline to apply: May 10, 2024 ![]() Engagement has officially begun for the relationship plan for Thaidene Nëné. We hope to see community members at the open house in Łutsël Kʼé on Tuesday, March 26. The open house will be an opportunity to learn more about the plan that will guide stewardship of Thaidene Nëné over the next ten years and offer your feedback. There will also be open houses in Yellowknife, Fort Resolution, Hay River, and Fort Smith. In addition to information about the relationship plan engagement, this newsletter includes updates on Ni Hat’ni activities (e.g. ice monitoring, muskox survey), a variety of youth programs happening in the community, and a research project about the establishment of Thaidene Nëné. ![]() In 2022, Tanner Catholique was hired on as a summer student in Łutsël K’é’s Thaidene Nëné Department. The highlight of the summer was spending time on the water and visiting different places in the protected area. “We went on a couple of camping trips that I really enjoyed. We went to Reliance and to Wildbread Bay. We also did a lot of fishing. I really like fishing,” says Tanner. As a side note, when asked about the biggest fish he ever caught, Tanner reported that it was a 35-pound trout. Lucky for him, he landed it during a fishing derby. He came first and won $5,000 for his efforts. When Tanner learned that the Thaidene Nëné Department was looking for full-time guardians in June 2023, he applied. “I enjoyed my summer position,” he says, “so I thought I might like being a guardian full-time. Also, I didn’t want to sit behind a desk.” Ni Hat’ni Dene are more likely to be found sitting on skidoos or boats than at desks. Shortly after he started work as a guardian, Tanner was sent out on patrol. “We went to Taltheilei Narrows. We cleaned up an old cabin there.” Other activities in his first six months on the job have included hauling lumber to the new cabin site at Old Snowdrift and working with the lead carpenter on the build. “We’ve also been harvesting animals like moose, muskox, fish, rabbits, grouse, etc, and sharing that with community members and Elders,” Tanner explains. Tanner likes the fact that being a guardian allows him to stay active. He also appreciates the many and varied learning opportunities that come with the position. “I’ve been learning things like basic maintenance of quads and skidoos, how to site a gun, how to skin different animals,” he says. As he works alongside the older guardians, as well as Elders and knowledge keepers, Tanner is also being exposed to and absorbing critical Łutsël K’é Dene knowledge. Tanner says it was his mom, Iris, who showed him how to be on the land. “She brought me out to the Barrenlands when I was young.” Tanner was nine or ten when he harvested his first caribou near Ɂedacho Tué (Artillery Lake). “My papa [Matthew Fatt] had to hold my shoulder because the gun kicked me back.” Tanner is quiet and reserved, but he laughs when he tells this story. When he’s not working with the guardians, Tanner likes riding around on his skidoo or quad. He also enjoys going out on the land with his grandparents. “Granny always asks me to bring her out to Tomato Island for berry picking, making fire, catching fish, cooking the fish,” he says. Tanner identified two places in Thaidene Nëné that are special for him: Desnéthchée and Ts'ąkuı Thedá. Speaking about the spiritual gathering site, Tanner says, “I like how the community gets together there each year.” He also feels fortunate to have had a chance to visit Ts'ąkuı Thedá, the old lady of the falls. Tanner doesn’t see a lot of other young people in the community who are interested in doing the kinds of things he is doing as a guardian, but he hopes that changes because, in his words, “protecting Thaidene Nëné is important.” On March 12, Thaıdene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı, the operational management board for Thaidene Nëné, and shared management partners, including the Łutsël K’é Dene First Nation, Northwest Territory Métis Nation, Parks Canada, and the Government of Northwest Territories, released a draft relationship plan for Thaıdene Nëné, titled Thaıdene Nëné badı xá, for public comment.[1]
Thaıdene Nëné is an Indigenous protected area established in 2019. It is 26,376 square kilometers and is located within the territories of the Akaitcho Dene First Nations and the Northwest Territory Métis Nation in the Northwest Territories. Thaıdene Nëné includes a national park reserve, a territorial protected area, and a territorial wildlife conservation area. The relationship plan sets out a long-term vision, specific objectives, and strategic direction for the protected area. “The foundation of Thaıdene Nëné badı xá is nuwé ch’anıe. Nuwé ch’anıe is our Indigenous values and knowledge systems, including our relationships with and responsibilities to care for the land, water, and wildlife,” says Addie Jonasson, chairperson of Thaıdene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı. “This plan will lay the foundation for the future, ensuring countless generations to come will be able to care for and benefit from Thaidene Nëné. Our aim in releasing this draft to the public is to ensure Indigenous governments, stakeholders, and Canadians have an opportunity to provide input on the future direction of Thaıdene Nëné.” Thaıdene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı will be hosting a series of open houses over the next month. Events are currently scheduled in the communities of Łutsël Kʼé, Yellowknife, Fort Resolution, Hay River, and Fort Smith. The first open house will be held in Yellowknife on Monday March 25 from 6-8:30pm at the Tree of Peace Friendship Center (5011 51st Street). Thaıdene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı and the partners invite the public to attend and learn more about the draft plan. Light refreshments will be served. There will also be giveaways and the chance to win a number of prizes. Thaıdene Nëné Xá Dá Yáłtı is accepting comments from the public on the draft relationship plan until April 28, 2024. For more information about the plan and to download a copy, visit https://www.landoftheancestors.ca/relationshipplan.html or https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/nt/thaidene-nene/info/plan. Beginning March 21, members of the public can also leave comments on the draft plan at www.haveyoursay.nwt.ca. [1] Thaıdene Nëné xá dá yáłtı is pronounced “thigh-denay nenay ha da yawl-ti.” Thaıdene Nëné badı xá is pronounced “thigh-denay nenay badi ha.” |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
July 2024
Categories |
CONNECT |
VISIONWe are the Lutsel K’e Dene First Nation. Our vision for Thaidene Nëné is:
Nuwe néné, nuwe ch'anıé yunedhé xa (Our land, our culture for the future). We’re working with our partners to permanently protect Thaidene Nëné—part of our huge and bountiful homeland around and beyond the East Arm of Tu Nedhé. |