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Latest news about the Safe Drinking Water Team
Line 5 transports crude oil through the heart of the Great Lakes, an invaluable cultural resource for residents and visitors to the region who benefit from the connection with the water and the land. The pipeline has already leaked 29 times, spilling over 4.5 million litres of oil and putting 84 percent of North America’s surface freshwater at risk. And yet, Canada continues to prioritize the ongoing operation of the pipeline over this critical global freshwater system.
A Wiikwemkoong Elder could be featured on Canada’s $20 bill following a campaign to have an Indigenous woman featured on the note. CEO of the Native Women’s Association of Canada, Lynne Groulx, says they launched the “Change the Bill” in January, a campaign aiming to get an Indigenous woman featured on the bill to acknowledge contributions made in Canada.
We have a great deal to lose if we don’t acknowledge our shared responsibility to protect and restore the Great Lakes. That’s the underlying premise of Biinaagami, a multi-year collaborative project undertaken by Canadian Geographic and Swim Drink Fish. The project was launched September 26 in Niagara on the Lake with a number of First Nations leaders from Manitoulin Island as key participants.
Serendipity seemed to strike the participants in an Indigenous water ceremony in Niagara-on-the-Lake, held by the Niagara River — the ceremony kicking off a project that's all about just how important water is for us all. As participants raised their voices in song, rain starting falling on them outside the Fort George National Historic Site’s navy hall — which did not go uncommented on by the ceremony’s leader, Linda Manitowabi of Wiikwemkoong First Nation.
The naming ceremony saw the name changed to ‘the Water Walker’ in Ojibwe to recognize water rights advocate Josephine Mandamin. The Anishinaabe grandmother, elder and founding member of the Water Protectors walked around the Great Lakes to bring awareness to water pollution. She walked 25,000 miles around the shorelines of all Great Lakes and other North American waterways while carrying a bucket of water to bring awareness to the need to protect the waters from pollution.
The daughter of a famous Anishnaabe water advocate from Wiikwemkoong said she is moved that a school in Pickering will be named in honour of her mother. Sir John A Macdonald Public School will soon be renamed the Biidassige Mandaamin Public School. From 2003 to 2017, Josephine Mandamin walked around the Great Lakes, bringing awareness to water and environmental issues – especially those in First Nations.
A Pickering, Ont. elementary school will soon bear the name of a female Indigenous leader from Manitoulin Island instead of that of the first prime minister of Canada. Sir John A. Macdonald Public School, located at 777 Balaton Ave., will be renamed Biidassige Mandamin Public School, according to the Durham District School Board. Trustees voted in favour of changing the name at a meeting on Monday.
Autumn Peltier of Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory has been named to the national Clean50 list, which recognizes “outstanding contributions to clean capitalism.” The initiative was created in 2011 by the Delta Management Group, a staffing firm with a focus on ‘green’ initiatives such as cleantech, renewable energy and sustainability.
Starting May 5th to 9th, Plains Cree Mide-Kwe Water Walker Tasha Beeds will conduct a Ceremonial Water Walk for Nibi Nikwejiwong (Junction Creek), in Sudbury Ontario. This will be done following all COVID guidelines. Tasha Beeds was mentored under Josephine-Ba Mandamin, a highly respected Anishinaabe Grandmother and Late Water Walker who walked around the Great Lakes to bring awareness to the problems of water pollution and environmental degradation.
“Through the Canada Water Agency, our government is looking to strengthen collaboration between the federal government, the provinces, territories, Indigenous peoples and other partners to find the best ways to safeguard our freshwater consultations are an important part of this process and I look forward to input from Canadians,” Terry Duguid said in a statement. Mr. Duguid is Parliamentary Secretary to Minister Wilkinson and has been key in the development process. The discussion paper, ‘Toward the Creation of a Canada Water Agency,’ presents key issues and provides an overview of the federal government’s existing activities to enhance freshwater management, and a virtual national freshwater policy forum is planned for January 27 and 28. A series of regional forums will be held in February that will provide additional opportunities to participate in consultations. The discussion paper and additional information can be found at placespeak.ca. Comments can be submitted until March 1.
