AGA: Nation Chair Message

By Kathryn Teneese
Chief Negotiator
Ktunaxa Nation Council

As in previous years I am writing to provide a brief overview of events from this past year related to the treaty negotiation process. I am reporting in my roles of the Director of Treaty and Chief Negotiator. This past year has presented many challenges and limited our ability to gather together for in person sessions.

I have previously mentioned the amended approach to treaty negotiations that has been shared with many of you at Council briefings and Community Information Sessions presented by the Treaty team. As a reminder, some of the key changes are: No longer full and final, No extinguishment of rights, Recognition of our Nation and homeland and Loan Forgiveness. These changes were described in documents previously mailed out to Citizens.

The focus of the treaty department continues to be on negotiations and governance transition. The governance transition work is focused on Nation rebuilding. Work is continuing on the Ktunaxa Constitution that will be available for review and Input in the next few months.

I continue to attend meetings of the First Nations’ Chief Negotiators (that were held virtually this year) to share and gather information from the other tables. I also attend meetings of the First Nations Summit (also virtually) on behalf of the Nation.

In closing I want to once again express appreciation to all citizens for their patience and guidance as we continue with this complex and challenging work of trying to reach an agreement with Canada and BC. I want to remind you that we continue to be guided by the direction provided by Ktunaxa citizens at the outset of the process and further refined at Nation gatherings. We’ve been very clear to the governments’ negotiators that our instructions from the Nation’s citizens have not changed. For those of you who were not involved in that earlier work, you are encouraged to contact the treaty team for information. In the upcoming months we will be seeking citizen feedback on the path forward.

I also want to express my thanks to the past and present staff and elected officials of the Ktunaxa Nation who have helped to advance our agenda. As I have stated so many times, “We need to do all the work we’re doing whether we finalize a treaty or not.” There is much good work that is taking place throughout the Nation that is making a difference. There are also challenges that we have to work through together.

We must continue to focus on making our Nation Vision Statement a reality. That is our challenge and our responsibility.

Kathryn Teneese

Chief Negotiator

By Kathryn Teneese
Nation Chair
Ktunaxa Nation Council

This is a report on activities and highlights of the past year and will also include comments on what we've been experiencing since March of 2020. This report is provided on behalf of the Nation Chair and the Ktunaxa Nation Executive Council (KNEC).

The KNEC met as scheduled throughout the year all via Zoom. The last in person meeting of the KNEC was held on March 25, 2020.

Membership at the KNEC table includes the 4 Community Chiefs and the 5 Chairs of the Sector Councils. Since last year's report there have been some changes: Chief Ryan Nicholas from Akisqnuk has joined the KNEC along with Councillor Garrett Gravelle as the Chair of the Education and Employment Sector and Councillor Corey Letcher has returned as Chair of the Social Sector.

This past year has been challenging In that many of the activities that occurred in previous years were not held due to the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting directives from BC's Chief Medical Officer. The efforts of the leadership and staff who were responsible for following up at the local levels are most appreciated.

Although we were not able to connect in person I want to thank and acknowledge everyone who participated in the numerous sessions through the use of technology. Thanks to all the IT staff for their assistance. While this was not the ideal way to interact with each other, we were able to connect at least virtually. One downfall of virtual meetings is the tendency to schedule too many sessions resulting in 'Zoom' fatigue.

In closing, I want to acknowledge the efforts of everyone involved in the advancement of our efforts to achieve our Vision. I also want to take the time to remember the contributions of those who came before us and to remind ourselves of our responsibilities to those yet unborn. As I have stated many times, we all have something to contribute toward making our world a better place for ourselves and our neighbours today and into the future.

A special thanks to all those involved in ensuring our safety in our homes and workplaces during these challenging times. I also want to acknowledge the efforts of all Ktunaxa Citizens for doing their part by getting vaccinated. We have all learned that there are many ways to get things done. I know we're all looking forward to being together with friends and family as soon as we're able.

Taxa,

Kathryn Teneese, Nation Chair

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