As members of the Northwest Territories Council of Leaders announced an intent to move forward on development projects like the Arctic Security Corridor, they called for change in the ways that federal and industry partners have done business in the past. Leaders advocated for the unique position of the territory as a land rich with resources and diversity, that will benefit from strategic development but only if guided by principles of land stewardship and in equal partnership with Indigenous governments.
Members of the council leading the discussion in Ottawa include Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Danny Gaudet, Chair of Council of Leaders for the Délı̨nę Got’ınę Government, President Garry Bailey, for the Northwest Territory Métis Nation, Chief Ernest Betsina for the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, Grand Chief Jackson Lafferty, for the Tłı̨chǫ Government, Chairperson Charles McNeely for the Sahtu Secretariat Inc., Premier R.J. Simpson for the GNWT, and Deputy Premier Caroline Wawzonek, for the GNWT.
They called on Ottawa to begin investing and building in the North, advocating for defending Arctic sovereignty, creating and protecting jobs by building infrastructure and developing the potential of the NWT’s vast reserves of critical minerals.
This morning at the press conference, Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet, President Bailey, Chief Betsina, Premier Simpson and Deputy Premier Wawzonek urged the feds to invest in the territory.
Premier Simpson began the conference by emphasizing the importance of governing with Indigenous governments.
“The government of the Northwest Territories, we don’t just consult as a government, we govern together, through the NWT Council of leaders. The government of the Northwest Territories sits with Indigenous governments at the same table as partners and equals. Every leader brings their old priorities for their communities, but when we speak together, we bring attention to the shared priorities for the entire N.W.T. That collaboration is what makes the north different and it’s what makes us strong.”
The premier pointed to some of the big potential projects of the North including the Arctic Economic and Security Corridor and the Mackenzie Valley Highway, and said that the “bigger story” here is how these projects are moving forward.
On behalf of the delegation, the premier said nation building projects of the North have the potential to secure sovereignty in Arctic fuel, the clean energy transition, and advance Reconciliation by putting Indigenous governments in the role of “co-owners and decision makers.” He added that built into these projects is the work to “close the housing gap” while adapting to climate change and securing health and social programs, meet the unique needs of Northern communities.
“Our services have to do more, and they have to do it differently. That’s why we are here together in Ottawa. To show the strength of our partnerships to make clear that our priorities are shared. And to ask Canada to match that unity with firm long-term commitments. The North is ready. Indigenous governments are ready. Our projects are ready. We talked about the North long enough. It’s time to start building,” ,” urged Premier Simpson.
The premier pointed out that the Mackenzie Valley Highway has the potential to connect communities who now rely on barges and winter roads impacted by climate change
Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet advocated for Ottawa to begin investing in the North, in consultation with Indigenous leadership and the GNWT.
“We have quite a few leaders here this week working to try to send a message to Ottawa and to the rest of Canada that the north has a lot to offer,” said Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet.
“The north used to be considered a wasteland, but I think the North could also be a big component to saving or participating in Canada’s economy and building the Canadian economy and we have a philosophy of how do we develop our resources but keep the money and keep the opportunities here for Canadians, I thought about that for a lot of years,” added Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet.
Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet urged that its time to start planning how to begin.
“How do we do that, how do we strengthen Canada?And we think as leaders in the north because we work together with not only the government Northwest Territories, but all the other leaders in the North. We have a real good opportunity to send a clear message to the rest of Canada that this can be done, but we have to work together. In order to do this, this is how we grew up, in our traditional lifestyle, is that we have to work together, we have to share, we have to support one another.That’s been embedded in us,” said Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet.
Ɂek’wahtı̨dǝ́ Gaudet explained there are “a lot of opportunities” in the territory.
“We also have a lot of rare minerals. We have probably every mineral that is on the sheet that’s required to run this world, run this country and it hasn’t been explored to the degree that it could be. I’m not saying that we want to go and rape and pillage the land, we got to figure out a way tha we can find a balance between teh development of that, but also the preservation of our culture, our language, our connection to the land and its resources, the traditional resources that is, and we got to work really hard to figure out how do we preserve all of that also so there’s still a lot of work to be done but we’re at the stage now where we could actually talk about two or three projects and see if we can get them going to help not only secure sovereignty in the north but also for Canada and we know the world is changing and obviously we have to change with it.”
Chief Betsina explained that the vast majority of the proposed Arctic Security Corridor’s road to Nunavut will be built on the Chief Drygeese Territory, the traditional territory of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation..
Chief Betisina emphasized that with the routing of the road, it is mportant to preserve and protect the Caribou migration and the Caribou grounds.
“Caribou is a life source and we want to protect that for future generations.”
Chief Betsina said that YKDFN is also interested in the Talston Hydro expansion project in its access to clean energy.
With the diamond mines closing, there is a need for job creation, something that communities are thinking about, he said.
“We need to start thinking elsewhere, like how do we create jobs for my members in the communities? Maybe there’s one way that we can start creating jobs with the Arctic Corridor, the Taltson Hydro
Betsina spoke about the importance of settling land claims
“What we want to do is create certainty, the federal government industry will know who they have to work with when they’re starting the mines to take out the resources.”
President Bailey also spoke about the importance of land claims and land stewardship
“When we’re dealing with housing, health education, doesn’t matter what the issue is, the Talston is in our backyard. Of course we want to make sure we deal with Legacies of the past, in order to move into the future of being hopefully a part owner of the Talston.
President Bailey spoke about the importance of Indigenous sovereignty regarding land, resources and self government and the ways the Metis of the territory have been practicing that balance.
“We are the only Metis in Canada, who have a negotiation table to deal with land and resources and self-government. There are Metis out there that have self-goverment right now, we’re doing all three and we have been doing it since 1996. So we’re here supporting one another hoping that we can settle our land claims so we can build our own economy for our people and be self-sufficient. It’s very important for our people at this time, with the economy, the way it is is that we finalise these land claims.”
President Bailey was also advocating for equitable recognition for the Metis to help them access services and programs.
“Other things such as the Daniel’s case. Which was done in 2016, but we’re still waiting recently. In almost 10 years. Now we’ve been waiting for some kind of policy to come up where they treat us equitable to the First Nations and Inuit for all programs and services. We’re here to help lobby for that.”
According to the joint announcement issued yesterday, key areas of talks include infrastructure such as projects to develop the North’s critical minerals, employment and housing. Alongside these issues, leaders plan to centre the discussion around collaborative work with Indigenous governments.
Premier Simpson said the group has been meeting with several members of cabinet including the Justice Minister and planned to also meet with N.W.T. MP, Minister Rebecca Alty, minister of Indigenous and Crown Relations, tomorrow.
Currently, Prime Minister Carney is in the US taking part in talks with President Donald Trump over the tariff situation. Beginning in August, US President Donald Trump began implementing a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods exported into the US, except those covered by the Canada-US Mexico Agreement on trade.
Deputy Premier Wawzonek asserted that the “reality is that the North has been underdeveloped,” but “those days have to be over,” she added.
She also emphasized that the territory is in an “exciting position” and will be moving to the next steps soon where it will be possible to estimate a date of when projects like the Arctic Security Corridor will begin.
Wawzonek asserted that there is a dire need to invest in the corridor, saying that if the government can’t convoy the military from north to north, Canadians have some concern around national security.
Deputy Premier Wawzonek said that the cost to fund the Security Corridor “can’t be on the backs of 45,000 (the population of the N.W.T.), suggesting the funding should come from the federal government.
