In regards to the Sunrise Festival, I know the department really does a great job in promoting our northern lights, and we do see that. It’s pretty evident here in Yellowknife when we see all the tourists here. But like I mentioned in my Member’s statement, there’s no other place that I know of in the world that has a celebration of welcoming back the sun. This is huge and I think that it’s something that we can market as well. Also, the Minister had mentioned in his Minister’s statement before about the Oil and Gas Strategy. We know the economy is slow and that oil and gas activity is not very active at all in the Beaufort-Delta region, so investing in a different type of industry such as tourism.

I’d like to ask the Minister, when he’s going out to promote our northern lights and Destination NWT, would he also promote the welcome back Sunrise Festival equally as the northern lights? Like I said, no other place in the world does something like this.

NWT Tourism obviously is an industry-driven organization that does our marketing. They have representatives from all regions of the Northwest Territories. We do our best, and I’ve mentioned before in the House, on promotional videos having images from across the

Northwest Territories. I understand what the Member is saying and we will try to incorporate festivals and, in this case, the Inuvik Sunrise Festival. I know the commercial that they had with orange juice company, I won’t mention the name but they were very successful in showcasing that festival through a commercial. So other efforts like that through social media and things of that nature certainly should be encouraged, and I’d be happy to promote opportunities in Inuvik for the Sunrise Festival on any promotional trip that I have. Thank you.

I think the concept of having a contest to get Southerners up to our regions in the NWT shows that people are interested in coming up to the North. They had over 4,500 entries just from the Facebook site as well as the radio contest. I didn’t get any statistics on how the TV program showed up.

The active group in Inuvik, the Tourism Stakeholder Committee, is also looking at doing something similar for the Aboriginal Day, Summer Solstice, as well as the Great Northern Arts Festival and our annual reindeer crossing. Would the department look at funding or look at supporting contests of a similar nature for other events like that not only in Inuvik but right across the Northwest Territories? All regions are doing really great things. Is this something that he would look at, a contest type of marketing strategy for the Northwest Territories?

Contests are a good way for us to promote what we have here in the Northwest Territories in terms of tourism product. I know when we launched the Aurora Capital of the World in Vancouver there was a trip giveaway. Just recently at NWT Days in Ottawa we had a grand prize for a trip for two to the Northwest Territories. People like to enter contests. They like to have a chance to come to a place they normally wouldn’t get a chance to come to, and certainly the Northwest Territories is a place people want to try to get to.

Incorporating contests is important and we are continuing to work with Inuvik, with the Town of Inuvik, through Destination Inuvik, new promotional materials to better target potential visitors to the Beaufort-Delta, and we will continue to do that, because really, and the Member mentioned, this is a good opportunity for the Town of Inuvik, for the region, and with the highway going to be completing construction here in two years, there is tremendous opportunity in the Beaufort-Delta to get more tourists in there, not only in the winter but in the summer, and we could be looking at campgrounds, service stations and maybe even more restaurants in the region as well.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to ask the Minister, how do we promote one of our other big attractions, the Mackenzie River? We can look at possibly providing some kind of package for the Mackenzie River. I’d like to ask the Minister, are we promoting our Mackenzie River expedition?

The quick answer to that is yes. The Mackenzie River is one of the great rivers of the world. It’s in our backyard. It’s really the backbone of the territory, historically, culturally, and we do certainly promote the Mackenzie River.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. I want to follow up on my Member’s statement about Thaidene Nene. I’d like to start off by saying the Premier advised on Tuesday… No, the Minister advised on Tuesday in response to Mr. Dolynny, that we hoped to have a northern position in the next few months. I appreciate the info from both the Minister and the Premier, and I also am really glad to hear about the work that we’ve been doing. I think the Minister said we’ve compressed 18 months of work into about six, and that’s awesome. It is time we started moving on this particular project. But there are lots of questions out there. There are lots of gaps in information and there are a lot of people who are interested in this particular development.

I’d like to ask the Minister first of all, how can any interested people, whether they be in Yellowknife, whether they be in Hay River, whether they be down in the East Arm, how can they find out what is going on?

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Minister Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A forum such as this will aid in that process. We are at work right now, as I indicated to Mr. Dolynny earlier this week in the House, that the government see Thaidene Nene as a priority. We see a combination of a small federal footprint supplemented and complemented by various northern tools as a way to maximize the benefit and keep the maximum amount of land in northern control. We also recognize this area as one of immense riches and wealth, both in ecological values as well as the various and many blessings in terms of mineral resources. It’s an area that’s very concentrated. There are lots of issues to deal with, and we see this as a priority, as I indicated already.

Thanks to the Minister for that. As I mentioned, there are a lot of rumours, I guess, currently going around about what kind of

developments, what kind of agreements, what kind of negotiations are taking place. I’d like to know from the Minister whether or not he would put in place some kind of consultation or education process with the public so that the work that is happening is being learned about and it would be not necessarily the details of the negotiation but that people can find out what it is that we’re doing.

The idea and the issue of a communication plan is an important one and one we’re looking at. We are going to be having a full briefing to Cabinet here in the next couple weeks and then we want to have a chat with committee. Then, once our thinking is clearer, at that point we will be looking at a more formal process of communicating with the public, but first we have to do our own work internally to get to that point.

I want to thank the Minister for the information. At some point there will be public consultation. I appreciate the Minister’s commitment on that. But in the meantime, while Cabinet is considering what’s going on, while committee is considering what’s going on, there are a lot of people who still want to provide their input. To the Minister: Is there any way that the public can right now provide input into this process and get their views known?

Once again, forums such as this, talking to your MLA. I know, for example, some groups like CPAWS have already mounted a campaign getting their members to start calling their Members of the Legislative Assembly and such. I’ve had meetings, as well, with concerned citizens. I know there is lots of interest in this and we will be coming forward with a clear plan of what we intend to do as a government and Legislature in the next few weeks. Until then, people will have to be patient, but they do have to know that we see this as a priority. We see fundamentally this is a very important area. A small federal footprint complemented by various northern tools to maximize and protect the various interests and to make sure that we don’t cut off or limit any potential economic development related to resource development, and keeping the maximum control with the people of the Northwest Territories.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final, short supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister. I’m really glad to hear his description in that answer is very close to my own consideration of what the park should be, that it is able to accommodate all the interests of the people that are wanting to use that land.

I asked if there’s a way for people to get any information. The Minister didn’t really advise. I know there is a website for Thaidene Nene. Is there any other place that people can go to, any information

on the GNWT website or any other website where people can get information on this project?

There will be as soon as we get the key information together and our thinking clearer. We’ve been doing some preliminary work. As I’ve said, we’ve compressed a significant amount of negotiating, about 18 months into six, and we will be coming forward here in the next few weeks with an update and an ongoing portal for folks to stay tuned as to what’s transpiring.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s certainly a pleasure to be able to ask some questions today, and I want to focus in on my Member’s statement. The Minister’s Forum on Addictions and Community Wellness Healing Voices report was tabled almost two full years ago, and it had 67 recommendations in it. Some of them I thought were good. Some of them I thought were fantastic. But the point was about doing business differently. That’s what the key to me certainly was.

Recommendations one to four I will not read, but certainly the first four recommendations were based on community-based community goal setting, on-the-land programming, engaging traditional knowledge. It speaks and screams volumes about engaging the community.

Recently a program called Tulita On-the-Land Healing Program had asked for money and there was no money given to them by our territorial government. They got financing and funding from the federal government and Movember Foundation.

Why has our government not stepped up to support our organization that is doing healing that is necessary in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

The Member has indicated that that particular organization asked us for money and I have checked with the Sahtu Health and Social Services Authority and they indicated that they never had a request and I’ve never had a request to my office asking for money for this particular program. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

They told me even today they had applied, and I looked towards my good colleague, Mr. Yakeleya, Member for Sahtu, who has even signed support letters for this organization to get help. Maybe the Minister can answer how many organizations have applied for community-based funding such as on-the-land programing that engages traditional knowledge and experience. Are we ignoring elders who can bring great things? How many have asked or money and how many have we supported? Thank you.

Earlier in the Member’s statement, he talked about communities and working together and that everybody needs to work together to solve this problem. We have the Aboriginal health and community wellness division of the Department of Health and Social Services who’s worked with every community in the Northwest Territories to develop a comprehensive community wellness plan. These community wellness plans do have some common themes. Housing is often one, mental health and addictions is often another. We have given money to every community in the Northwest Territories to pursue these initiatives, including activities such as this particular program where they wish to have community-based, community-designed or community-driven opportunities.

Also, we have provided significant money to the Sahtu for development of on-the-land programs and the Sahtu Dene Council will be offering two 10-day camps near Deline for families from across the region, including Tulita.

I don’t recall seeing the request the Member is talking about. I understand that the Sahtu Health and Social Services Authority also has not seen the application or the proposal the Member is talking about. I will, once again, ask the department to confirm. I will ask the department to get in touch with Tulita to see where this application is. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I consider it a shame that the government isn’t playing a role in this and is not a partner. We have the Tulita On-the-Land Healing Program, headed by Bessa Blondin, Lawrence Neyelle, Dean Green and Margaret McDonald doing things, connecting with the youth, connecting with the elders and making programs on the land and connecting with the people who need help.

What is this Minister willing to do today, knowing that we have had the federal government and the Movember Foundation come forward to help? Where is our own government in our own backyard helping on this one? Is the Minister willing to roll out the red carpet and show them that they matter? Thank you.