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

Shauna Morgan
Yellowknife North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
shaunamorgan.yknorth@gmail.com
Constituency Office

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following documents for the purposes of public discussion: First, A Draft for Discussion: Private Member's Bill: An Act to Amend the Public Service Act. Second, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Statement of Consistency for An Act to Amend the Public Service Act. Third, Explanation of the Proposal for a Private Member's Bill: An Act to Amend the Public Service Act. And, finally, Frequently Asked Questions on a Private Member's Bill Proposal to Address Concerns Raised by Nurses Regarding the Public Service Act - by MLA...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we also know that as of June of last year, nurse vacancy rates ranged from 23 percent to 36 percent, depending on the type of nurse. And that's alarming enough, but if nurses are now expected to take on even more of a role in seeing patients, if there's a shortage of doctors, is the Minister confident that we currently even have enough nurse positions established, let alone the ability to fill them? So in other words, could the gap between the number of nurses we have and the number of nurses we need be even greater than those vacancy rates are showing? Thank you, Mr...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River North, that notwithstanding Rule 2.1, when the House adjourns on Thursday, March 13, 2025, it shall be adjourned until Thursday, May 22, 2025;

AND FURTHER, that any time prior to May 22, 2025, if the Speaker is satisfied, after consultation with the Executive Council and Members of the Legislative Assembly, that the public interest requires that the House should meet at an earlier time during the adjournment, the Speaker may give notice;

AND THEREUPON, the House shall meet at the time stated in such notice and shall...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will support the amendment as it was always my intention for the committee to focus its work on the government's own legislation and policies. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS nurses and healthcare workers deliver essential healthcare services to residents of the Northwest Territories, including in rural and remote communities that present challenging operating conditions;

AND WHEREAS the delivery of quality health care in the Northwest Territories depends on a stable, well-supported workforce of regulated healthcare professionals, including nurses and allied health workers;

AND WHEREAS healthcare workers are suffering from increased workloads and staffing shortages that contribute to low morale, burnout, and reduced staff retention...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize William Gagnon who is the executive director of the NWT Medical Association who is here with us today. And also thank two of our pages who are Yellowknife North constituents. We have Ace Wickens and Solomon Young, and they're both students at William Mac School. So thanks to all the pages as well for your help this week.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the commitment that the government will be spending $50 million on housing during each of the next three years is significant. We have been working towards this since the beginning of this Assembly. This wasn't something that we just came up with a few weeks ago. And we've been engaged in advocacy for housing both through our committees as Regular Members and in individual meetings with the Minister, that I know many of us have had, trying to figure out a practical path forward on this. So we're starting to see the fruits of those labours, and I am...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is the health authority tracking the number of expected retirements of doctors and nurses over the next three years in order to target its recruitment and workforce planning efforts appropriately? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Hopefully we still have some healthcare workers that have hung on and are continuing to watch because I would like to ask some questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services around healthcare workforce planning.

So we know that there are almost 50 percent vacancy rates for local family physicians and specialists in the territory, and the health authority has been saying that that might not be a problem because maybe we don't need that many doctors if patients are sometimes better off seeing another practitioner instead such as a nurse.

My question, first, when...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 55)

Mr. Speaker, I don't have anything more to add. I'll just ask for a recorded vote. Thank you.