This week’s articles include opinion pieces about UNDRIP. Sad to read such negativity given the progress being made on Reconciliation. Being informed creates understanding and breaks down barriers. Read about recent activity as we continue on the journey of reconciliation on these links:
Elections BC allows petition seeking Indigenous law’s repeal to proceed
First Nation looks to expand gardening programs after landing national award – SaskToday.ca
In Peru, lengthy sentences in killing of Indigenous Amazon defender – Los Angeles Times
Canadians want to experience Indigenous-led tourism activities, survey finds – Windspeaker.com
Living with drought has taught pastoralists lessons the world needs – ICT
Underwater AI data centre proposal concerns Peskotomuhkati leaders in Canada, U.S. | CBC News
Large pension funds lack Indigenous rights-focused investment policies: study – Alberta Native News
(2) Canada can buy icebreakers faster than it can define Arctic security | LinkedIn
Ottawa spending $50M to build three B.C. salmon hatcheries
Large pension funds lack Indigenous rights-focused investment policies: study – Alberta Native News
(2) Canada can buy icebreakers faster than it can define Arctic security | LinkedIn
Ottawa spending $50M to build three B.C. salmon hatcheries
Meet the indigenous tribes of Southern Africa
Adam Pankratz: If Canada is to diversify trade, we must get rid of UNDRIP
https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/canada-court-costs-disclosure-9.7313959
We lost a community — we are allowed to grieve it – Indiginews
An Elder’s fight to save salmon habitat and a W̱SÁNEĆ village
First Mining inks development agreement with First Nations – MINING.COM
Indigenous business may be hit more by Canadian levy than tariffs
Indigenous groups kept in dark while plans for deeply concerning west coast oil pipeline move ahead
Documentary project highlights Indigenous clean energy leadership | News – Concordia University
What The Mines Left Behind – Native News Online
Coast Salish weaver shares her connection to land, lineage and natural dyes | CBC News
Drum Beats
| Ontario Premier Doug Ford Threatens to Cut Electricity, Critical Minerals Supply to US as Trade Tensions Escalate |
| Canada should be prepared to cut electricity and critical mineral supplies to the United States if the trade dispute continues to escalate, says Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Ontario supplies electricity to approximately 1.5 million homes and businesses across Michigan, Minnesota and New York. Canada supplies most US natural gas and electricity imports, as well as approximately 60 per cent of its crude oil imports. It also produces high-grade nickel and uranium relied upon by the US defence and manufacturing sectors. Canada exported C$28.8 billion in critical minerals to the US in 2025, representing around 57 per cent of its total critical mineral exports. Ford’s comments come as the wider trade relationship deteriorates. After negotiations collapsed, the US imposed 50 per cent tariffs on approximately C$27.6 billion of Canadian goods. Much of the supply Ford is positioning as trade leverage lies within Indigenous territory. Ontario’s Ring of Fire alone holds an estimated C$22 billion in undeveloped chromite, cobalt, nickel, copper, titanium and platinum-group elements. Several projects are now advancing through First Nations partnerships. Construction on the Webequie Supply Road began in June, while Aroland First Nation broke ground on access-road upgrades that same month. Work on the Marten Falls Community Access Road is scheduled to begin this month. |
| Woodhouse Nepinak: Nations Stand With Carney against Trump’s Tariffs First Nations are backing Canada’s position in its trade dispute with the United States, says Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak. In a statement issued on 22 August, Woodhouse-Nepinak affirmed full support for Prime Minister Carney’s decision to walk away from negotiations, describing First Nations as “fundamental partners in this country.” The endorsement comes as Indigenous-partnered projects account for a growing share of Canada’s investment pipeline: the C$70 billion Churchill Falls clean energy package, the Nisga’a Nation’s Ksi Lisims LNG terminal, Cedar LNG and three First Nations partnerships opening road access to the Ring of Fire’s C$22 billion critical mineral deposits. The AFN confirmed participation in the Canada Investment Summit this September, the return of Parliament and consultations on the 2026 federal budget. They will also accelerate its cross-border Kinship Agreement with the National Congress of American Indians and invite Congress representatives to the AFN’s December Assembly in Ottawa. A historic meeting of First Ministers and First Nation leaders is expected in Ottawa this autumn. |
| Canada Deepens Ties with Europe Amid Escalating Trade Dispute With the US Prime Minister Carney spoke with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on 24 August to discuss deepening cooperation across defence, security, energy and artificial intelligence. Over the past year the two countries have signed agreements on AI, quantum and battery technologies, launched the Sovereign Technology Alliance, and secured more than six new critical minerals partnerships. Last month, the leaders launched negotiations toward a Canada-Germany Strategic Partnership Agreement covering security and defence, emerging technologies, supply chains and raw materials, energy and space. Carney is set to attend the EU’s State of the Union address on 16 September before addressing the European Parliament in Strasbourg the following day. The visit comes as Canada seeks closer ties with Brussels amid its escalating trade dispute with the US. Germany is Europe’s largest industrial economy, making secure, long-term access to critical minerals a strategic priority. Canada holds significant reserves of nickel, cobalt, graphite and rare earth elements. Indigenous-partnered developments such as the Kearney Graphite Project and the Ring of Fire mineral belt could help supply the resources German industry needs. Aroland First Nation, Gov’t of Ontario Begins Major Upgrades in 3rd Ring of Fire Access Road Aroland First Nation along with the Government of Ontario have begun major upgrades to 97 kilometres of access roads connecting Highway 643 to the proposed all-season corridor leading to the Ring of Fire, which holds an estimated C$22 billion in undeveloped chromite, cobalt, nickel, copper, titanium and platinum-group elements. This is the third Ring of Fire road segment to break ground this year. Webequie First Nation led construction of the first supply road in June, while the Greenstone Transmission Line, which gives four First Nations 50 per cent ownership under Hydro One’s equity partnership model, is already under way. The Marten Falls Community Access Road is also expected to start this month. All four road segments are now scheduled for completion by November 2031, five years earlier than previously planned. The Ring of Fire holds one of the world’s largest underdeveloped critical mineral deposits, with many untapped projects sitting along Indigenous territory. And after years of regulatory and permitting delays, construction is finally underway. THE VIEW | On US-Canada Trade Talks: The Price of Standing Up for Canada The US laid out its terms. Mark Carney said no. Canada walked away rather than accept a deal it considered uneconomic and unfair after nearly two weeks of talks in Washington. The cost will be real, but Canada is not entering this moment empty-handed. Ottawa has committed C$25 billion to protect workers and businesses from the fallout. Growth is projected to be the second fastest in the G7. Foreign direct investment is at a two-decade high. Canada has signed more than 20 trade and security agreements across five continents, while nearly C$500 billion in nation-building projects is moving through the Major Projects Office. Indigenous ownership is increasingly part of that economic recalibration, from the C$70 billion Labrador clean energy package to Cedar LNG, the world’s first Indigenous majority-owned LNG facility. Standing up for the nation’s own interests comes with a cost. Canada is willing to pay the price. How much longer will our southern neighbour continue to put up with the damage to their reputation and economy? Read the full editorial The View is an editorial by Mark Magnacca, Co-Chair and CEO of the Canadian Indigenous Investment Forum. DRUMBEATS PODCAST 🎧 On This Week’s Drumbeats: How Indigenous Partnerships Work in Canada’s Major Projects Canada’s Major Projects Office has referred 15 nation-building projects worth more than C$125 billion. Every one crosses Indigenous territory. For investors, the critical question is how each rights-holding Nation chooses to participate. The four possible positions can reshape a project’s ownership, governance and capital structure. Kluane Adamek, Chair of the Major Projects Office’s Indigenous Advisory Council and former Assembly of First Nations Yukon Regional Chief, explains where the Council’s influence carries weight, and why “yes, but not right now” should be treated as a planning signal, not a rejection. What do first-time investors in Canada need to understand? Here’s an excerpt of the conversation: Mark: For someone looking at Canada for the first time, an asset manager in London, a pension fund in the Netherlands or a corporate development team in Bavaria, what should they understand? Kluane: Economic growth, investment certainty and Indigenous rights are not competing interests. There is absolutely a pathway. If you don’t have the rights holders on board, then, as an investor, you ought to be very concerned. The legal record of decisions supporting First Nations and Indigenous peoples speaks for itself. Rob: How do you navigate the reality that some Nations say yes and others say no? Kluane: The best projects meet people where they are. Sometimes it’s ‘yes, later’. Sometimes it’s ‘yes, but not right now’. Industry needs to understand that it is not always ‘no’, and it is not always ‘we’re in right now’. The fastest path to certainty is building relationships and ensuring everyone is working with the same information. This conversation has been edited for brevity. Listen to the full episode on The Drumbeats Podcast. |
