Shauna Morgan

Member Yellowknife North

Shauna Morgan was elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly to represent the constituency of Yellowknife North.

Ms. Morgan was born and raised in Barrie, Ontario. Having called Yellowknife home for the past 15 years, she has embraced the dynamic, creative and eclectic lifestyle in Old Town near Great Slave Lake.

Ms. Morgan’s commitment to public service is evident in her two consecutive terms on Yellowknife City Council from 2015 to 2022. During this time, she held pivotal roles, including Deputy Mayor, Chair of the Community Energy Planning Committee, and Chair of the Community Advisory Board on Homelessness.

Ms. Morgan holds degrees in International Development (B.A. Hons) and International Affairs (M.A.), specializing in community economic and political development in remote and Indigenous communities globally. She worked with a grassroots cross-cultural peacebuilding movement in the Philippines from 2002 to 2003. Her master's research delved into negotiations between mineral exploration companies and First Nations in Canada, focusing on land access during the earliest stages of mineral exploration.

Over the past 15 years in Yellowknife, Ms. Morgan has prioritized work at the community level. Working with private consulting firms and a non-profit thinktank focused on clean energy, she served as a resource person to Indigenous governments and communities across the NWT. Her contributions ranged from planning renewable energy projects to housing initiatives, building cross-cultural environmental research and monitoring programs, and navigating the complexities of major resource extraction projects.

Ms. Morgan has drawn on her well-rounded skill set to diversify her professional pursuits. While serving as a City Councillor, she managed her own piano teaching studio, worked as an on-the-Land educator with Bushkids NWT, and contributed for many years as a full-time member of the Snow Castle construction crew and snow carving team. Additionally, she engaged in facilitation and consulting contracts.

Active in the arts community, Ms. Morgan provides piano accompaniment for Yellowknife’s Aurora Chorealis (adult community choir) and Fireweed Children’s Choir. She served as a Board member for the Yellowknife Women’s Society and a weekly volunteer with Food Rescue and has dedicated time to the Yellowknife Ski Club and Victim Services.

Ms. Morgan’s love for the land is palpable in her adventurous spirit. She enjoys a myriad of outdoor activities in the North across all seasons, from whitewater and flatwater canoe trips to hiking in Auyuittuq National Park and along the Canol Trail. Her passion extends to cycle touring, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, and hunting for moose and ducks with her partner.

Yellowknife North Electoral District

Committees

Accountability and Oversight
Social Development
Economic Development & Environment
Member Shauna Morgan
Yellowknife North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
(867) 767-9143
Extension
12170
shaunamorgan.yknorth@gmail.com
Constituency Office
Email
Email

Statements in Debates

Question 93-20(1): Daycare
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have further questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment regarding daycare.

So on February 9th, the Minister and the Department of ECE shared a very helpful package of information with Members on this side of the House that included detailed numbers broken down by NWT communities and regions about the number of child care providers, the number of spaces we have, and changes over the past decade or so. So will the Minister commit to sharing this information with the Early Childhood Association as they have been requesting? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 85-20(1): Non-Profit Daycares
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So given that three large child care providers are considering opting out of the funding formula, does the Minister have concerns that this could leave us with a segregated system where some parents are forced to pay much more than they currently do? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 85-20(1): Non-Profit Daycares
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. So the other day in the House I spoke to the fact that in the past the government has had to step in when nonprofits collapse and they're providing essential social services. So if the largest nonprofit daycares in our regional centres are forced to shut down because they're no longer financially viable, is the government prepared to take over the operation of these daycares? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 85-20(1): Non-Profit Daycares
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So thank you, Mr. Speaker. So given that fixed amount that the Minister referred to, will the Minister commit to including the NWT Early Childhood Association or child care providers in any future negotiations with the federal government about child care funding agreements? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 85-20(1): Non-Profit Daycares
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thanks to the Minister for making that clear. So can the Minister recommend ways that child care providers can successfully attract and retain staff given that the government's proposed wage grid is well below salaries for comparable positions in early learning in NWT communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Member’s Statement 97-20(1): Daycare
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we had a federal Minister here to celebrate the NWT achieving an average cost of $10aday child care. Unfortunately, this drive to lower fees has pushed this sector to the brink, especially in regional centres of the NWT such as Yellowknife and Inuvik.

The feds and the GNWT seem to have gone about this backwards based on a poor understanding of the struggles and challenges within the child care sector. By treating staff wages and organizational viability as an afterthought, it implies that the problem that we're trying to solve is that these...

Motion 16-20(1): Appointment of Deputy Chairpersons of Committee of the Whole, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 8)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Whereas so this is Motion 1620(1), Appointment of Deputy Chairpersons of the Committee of the Whole.

WHEREAS Section 47(1) of the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act requires that there shall be two elected deputy chairpersons of the Committee of the Whole;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River North, that the Member for Deh Cho, Sheryl Yakeleya; and, the Member for Sahtu, Daniel McNeely, are hereby chosen to be the deputy chairpersons of the Committee of the Whole.

Motion to amend Motion 9-20(1): Establishing a Public Inquiry into the 2023 Wildfires – Safe Disclosure, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 8)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So what are our options here today? We can decide to continue on with the afteraction review where MACA hires an independent contractor, or we demand a fullblown public inquiry with the power to subpoena documents and witnesses to testify before a quasijudicial panel?

I would argue that there is a third path, which is potentially the best one in terms of balancing the need for a fully independent review with the need to do it relatively quickly and cost effectively, and that is to appoint an independent panel to manage an independent review team similar to what was done...

Member’s Statement 83-20(1): Funding for Non-Governmental Organizations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 7)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to reflect today on the problematic way that our government funds and works with nonprofit organizations who are providing essential social services. Yesterday in Committee of the Whole, I raised the urgent situation of the Spruce Bough supportive living housing facility where the nonprofit Yellowknife Women Society is housing and providing wraparound services for 26 people with complex medical needs and addictions issues.

Ever since this facility opened its doors in 2020 with capital funding support from the feds, it's been cobbling together shortterm operational...

Question 68-20(1): Delivery of Essential Services by Non-Government Organizations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 7)

So this is all great news. So my final question is, will the government commit to developing a policy on how such contracts will be developed collaboratively with stable multiyear funding attached for NGOs? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.