Since Spring is the time of new beginnings, I thought I would take an opportunity to recognize some of the people working behind the scenes at UINR–our Board of Directors. The UINR Board has representatives from our five Unama’ki communities. Traditionally, the five Chiefs have formed our Board. Now that I am Chief, I will … Read More
A Story by Charlie Dennis I was visiting Uncle Simon Gabriel on one of many evenings after a long day of fishing oysters in Malagawatch. Gabriel lay on his bed next to the warm stove. His mouth was full of chewing tobacco and there was a spittoon nearby. Often something was said by him or … Read More
www.brasdorcepi.ca is the place to go to learn about the Bras d’Or Lakes Collaborative Environmental Planning Initiative. There you can learn about the Lakes, contribute to the development and assist in the implementation of a management plan for the Bras d’Or Lakes and surrounding watershed. The website is new and CEPI is working on it … Read More
A Science Forum on Water Resource Management was recently held at Cape Breton University, sponsored by NS Environment and Labour and CBU. Of special interest was Kim Paul’s presentation on Potlotek’s Source Water Protection Plan. In 1999, recognizing the importance of protecting the water source at Indian Lake, the Potlotek Watershed Protection Committee was formed. … Read More
A long, long time ago, the Mi’kmaq people were faced with a dilemma–a situation of great proportion that Kluskap was summoned for a solution. It was at a time in our history when the people told Kluskap that the animals were too big and fierce in the forest. The bear was too big, gigantic in … Read More
Madeline Yakimchuk, of Gryphon Media Productions, directed this short, two and a half minute video that gives a quick overview of UINR, touching on some of our many projects and partnerships. The video is fast-paced and packed with photos and video from around Unama’ki. Narrated by Lisa Young and Charlie Dennis, the video gives a … Read More
The Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources, in cooperation with the Eskasoni Fish & Wildlife Commission, has created an information map for each of the Unama’ki First Nation communities. Using Geographic Information System (GIS), these maps are a valuable resource for long-term monitoring and community planning. The maps contain information on drinking water monitoring sample sites, … Read More
Angela Morris has been working at UINR under a special internship from ECO Canada. Here’s what she has to say about the experienceâ “As a result of the Internship, I learned many new things at UINR. It was an opportunity to use my previous skills and acquire new ones. The training has been very useful … Read More
Shelley Denny was recently appointed to the Fisheries Resource Conservation Council by the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans. Since 1993 , the Fisheries Resource Conservation Council has been a partnership between scientific and academic expertise, and all sectors of the fishing industry. Together, Council members make public recommendations to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans … Read More
As a result of the difficulties experienced during the 2006 lobster food fishery, the Unama’ki Chiefs have agreed that a lobster food fishery management plan is required. While Mi’kmaq follow similar regulations as the rest of the industry (with the exception of season), the industry fails to realize this. A documented management plan for the … Read More
Annie Johnson, UINR’s financial officer recently attended the annual Aboriginal Financial Officers Association’s (AFOA) conference in Vancouver, BC. Here is her report. “This conference is getting bigger and better every year! There were aboriginal finance employees from all over Canada, and I was glad to see more local people there this year than ever before. … Read More
The State of the Bras d’Or Lakes Marine Environmental Water Quality Background Report (MEQ), looks into the current state of the Lake’s water quality. The report examines the Bras d’Or Lakes and its sub-watersheds. Marine environmental quality is measured in many different ways. For the purposes of the MEQ report, it is examined in three … Read More