Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The official flower of the NWT is the mountain aven. The official bird is the gyrfalcon. But I suggest that we add an official smell, Mr. Speaker, and that official smell would be the smell of a traditionally tanned moose hide. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Minister today for his statement on supporting sustainable livelihoods, and I would like to thank the work ENR is doing to support traditional moose hide tanning. I would like to see more of this.
Mr. Speaker, I have had the privilege of helping many people prepare their hides and attending numerous hide tanning workshops that people have put on across this territory. Yesterday in this House, we heard that it's becoming harder and harder to find traditionally tanned moose hides. The people with that knowledge are many elders are dying, and it's not getting passed on. But I know there is an organic grassroots movement for many people to host hide camps, and I want the department and this government to do everything we can to support that.
Hide tanning, unfortunately, is not a profitable venture. It is weeks to produce a traditional moose hide, and really it is not something that I think can be measured in dollars. The Minister rightly pointed out that passing on this cultural knowledge is a form of healing. And I know we have supported many partnerships and Indigenous governments to host hide tanning camps. I know there is work being done through the NWT On the Land Collaborative. I will have questions for the Minister of ENR just so we can highlight some of this programming and get more money out there for all of our moose hide tanners who are some of my heros, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.
