Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment Minister of Education, Culture and Employment
The Honourable Caitlin Cleveland was first elected in the 19th Assembly as the MLA for Kam Lake in 2019, and has served as the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment since 2023 after being acclaimed to the 20th Assembly.
In addition to owning and operating a northern business for over 20 years, Minister Cleveland worked in a variety of communications and policy roles in both the public and private sectors before entering politics.
Between 2019 to 2023, she chaired the Standing Committee on Social Development, fulfilling a goal to be a part of the discussions and decisions affecting social programs in the Northwest Territories. Her noteworthy work on the Committee included guiding the considerable review and input into recommendations on housing in the NWT, suicide prevention, and improvements to caring for children in care and building supported families.
Within the scope of her portfolios, Minister Cleveland is focused on helping children grow into successful NWT residents that recognize opportunities and develop successful careers that contribute to a growing economy. She advocates for new approaches to sector diversification and innovation, and ensures the North is welcoming both skilled foreign workers and investment in the critical mineral resources across the territory. She persistently explores solutions for efficient and equitable access to programs and services, upholding a shared vision of an NWT where people are supported in the ways they wish to live, work, and grow.
Minister Cleveland is a lifelong resident of Yellowknife where she lives with her husband and their three children.
Minister of Education, Culture and Employment Minister of Industry, Tourism, and Investment
Statements in Debates
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 69)
Thank you, Madam Chair. Bill 13, An Act to Amend the Interpretation Act, received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on October 29, 2020, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review. On February 9, 2021, the standing committee held a public hearing with the Minister of Justice and completed its clause-by-clause review of the bill. Committee passed one motion with concurrence from the Minister of Justice. I thank the committee and committee staff for their efforts in reviewing this legislation. Individual Members may have additional comments or questions...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 69)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I just wanted to express my gratitude for this change. I think that this is a time when businesses can use the support and can also use their finances in better ways to grow and evolve their businesses. I appreciate the effort on behalf of the Minister in order to make this change, and I would like to just say thank you. Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 67)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. This relates back to the conversation that was had during the corporate management section, so I think I know the answer I'm going to get. Given the focus that this government would like to put onto remediation and a remediation economy, does the Minister feel that the division is adequately staffed, or is this one of those ones where, in order to really get dollars flowing from the federal government along with ITI, there is a need for additional resources to get that done? Or is this division also properly staffed? Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 67)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. There was a waste management strategy that was published in the fall of 2019, I believe. I'm wondering what has been achieved under that strategy to date. Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 67)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Last question: what is the deadline that the Minister is working toward to have the CHAP program and the associated programs completely reviewed and kind of fresh and ready to go? Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 67)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. While this review is taking place and given that there is a lot of support for increasing the amount of funding to the CHAP program on this side of the House, is the Minister willing to look at increasing funding for an access point where hunters and trappers who are kind of falling into the gaps and not receiving funding through different organizations are able to go directly to ENR in order to get relief in order for them to continue partaking in traditional hunting and trapping and traditional economy? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I look forward to having more conversations about this with the Minister because I think it merits further conversation. My last question I really want to know: does the Minister intend to table the NWT Arts Strategy during this sitting? Thank you.
That's not fabulous news, because a lot of the extra funding and grants that are available to northern artists do come through and are filtered through our government system. They either come from ITI or they come from the NWT Arts Council through ECE. I am wondering if the Minister can confirm or not if NWT artists would actually be better served by an NWT Arts Council that was independent of ECE.
Mr. Speaker, in today's market, the art we hear about the most are often the one-off pieces that garner million-dollar price tags, but everyday art can also generate significant economic value. Art is cultural expression and a powerful conduit for healing, wellness, and economic development. Art is essential for individual and community success.
When we look at the global art scene, we marvel at infrastructure like New Zealand's Te Papa, artist-in-residence programs like Fogo Island, and events like Burning Man, but grassroots initiatives just like these exist in the NWT. Our Northern Arts...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 67)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I will come back during the environment fund then and ask about the waste management strategy. With that in mind, I'm going to flip to contaminated sites. There is currently $339,000 allocated to contaminated sites. My concern with that is that is millions of dollars sitting within the federal government for remediating contaminated sites. Is this the area where the GNWT would be working to access those millions of dollars to be able to remediate the sites and get Northerners to work? Thank you.
