Cultural Survival congratulates Board Member, Grand Chief Edward John, on his appointment as Chairperson of the 11th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). This year's session of the Permanent Forum is taking place at United Nations in New York from May 7-May 18. This is the first time the UNPFII has elected a chair from from North America. John will serve a three year term.
Cultural Survival congratulates Board Member Grand Chief Edward John (Tl’azt’en Nation and Dene Za) on receiving a National Aboriginal Achievement Award (NAAA) in Canada. On February 24, 2012 Edward John will be recognized in Coast Salish territory (Vancouver, Canada) for his political leadership and decades of fighting for First Nations rights and freedoms. The National Aboriginal Achievement Awards is Canada’s largest and most influential annual showcase of Aboriginal achievement. Each year, the NAAA celebrates the accomplishments of 14 recipients.
On September 26, 2011 over 200 people protesting Canadian government's support for Alberta's Tar Sands and the Keystone pipeline XL were arrested trying to carry out a sit-in in the House of Commons in Ottawa.
On November 12th, 2010, the Canadian government endorsed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. We urge the government to move ahead with the implementation of its provisions in a principled manner that fully respects their spirit and intent.
A new film by director Ayelén Liberona focuses on the devastating impact on Indigenous communities caused by processing tar sands in Canada, through the eyes of affected children. The film, called Keepers of the Water, features comments from children aged 9 to 12 in Ft. Chipewyan, Alberta, where there has been a 30 percent increase in cancer rates among Native people, including many cases of very rare cancers.
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are headquartered on Massachusett land, in Cambridge, MA, and we thank the past, current, and future Indigenous stewards of this territory.
