George Nerysoo

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First of all, I would like to extend birthday greetings out to a special lady who is 85 years young today. Colleagues, I'd like to wish my aunty Mary Effie Snowshoe who is celebrating her birthday today. She's from Teet'lit Zheh.

Mr. Speaker, we have all seen the effects of climate change in the North and, specifically, in our communities. The erosions of the shorelines, wildfires and drought, just to name a few. What is the government doing to address the seriousness of climate change within the Northwest Territories and the impacts on the Indigenous peoples of this...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Does the department have a website where the residents can go to get information on funding to assist in education or alternative of any of these solutions? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Minister. Will the Minister look at working with the Indigenous governments and provide some financial resources to renovate some of these vacant units so some of these residents can have homes with their families?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As you know from all my previous Member's statements, I've always advocated for community-based programs that will benefit the community. This is no different. I want the best outcome for communities of the Mackenzie Delta.

I would like to know if the Minister or her department has had any discussions with the Indigenous governments, with either Aklavik, Fort McPherson, Tsiigehtchic, in reference to collaborating to renovate vacant units within their respective communities? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That's great news. Can the Minister look at working with other departments, such as Education, Culture and Employment, to create projects where we can train some of our residents to gain work experience and at the same time provide them much needed housing within our communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I always, you know, want the best for the communities and dealing directly with communities rather than regional is my preference. Does the Minister or her department know how much vacant units are in each of the communities that can be renovated and occupied as soon as possible in the Mackenzie Delta? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to bring forth the concern of inadequate housing in the Northwest Territories; in particular, the Mackenzie Delta.

As we are all aware, housing is deemed a human right. It is clear that this government, or any government, cannot build enough houses to meet our needs. But with the collaboration of the Indigenous governments and the network within our communities, we can renovate the vacant units in our communities to house some of our residents.

Mr. Speaker, in the community of Fort McPherson alone, there is a waitlist of up to three years. If we work...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today it is very important that we look after our elders, more importantly that we recognize their accomplishments. When we lose an elder, we lose a wealth of knowledge.

Mr. Speaker, today I'd like to bring your attention to two Gwich'in elders who have reached a milestone in their lives. First, Mr. Andrew Neyando who lives in Fort McPherson. On December 5th of 2023, he celebrated his 100th birthday.

Applause.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Neyando was very active out on the land. He spent most of his life living a traditional lifestyle. Only up until a few months ago, you...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First of all, I'd like to thank the constituents of my riding, Mackenzie Delta, from Tsiigehtchic, Fort McPherson, and Aklavik. I'd like to thank them for giving me this opportunity to represent them in this 20th Assembly of the Northwest Territories.

Furthermore, I would like to congratulate the Premier-elect and the Cabinet-elect for a successful campaign, and I look forward to working with you for the duration of this Assembly.

And I'd like to also congratulate my colleagues, the Regular MLAs, who will be trying to keep the executive accountable to their tasks.

And...