The Dene Nation has established an on-the-land healing camp at the Aurora Village site, near Yellowknife, but an error in a funding application could prove costly.
“Go to the land — easy concept, quite challenging to do. However, today, we’ve done it with good partners,” said Dene National Chief Norman Yakeleya.
The federal government contributed to make the healing project a reality during the Covid-19 pandemic. It will help “homeless members of the Dene from all regions,” according to Yakeleya.
With nearly 350 underhoused people in Yellowknife, the camp is a huge initiative for the city, he said.
However, the $1.3 million in funding is only expected to last until Jan. 23. That wasn’t the original plan, but a mistake occurred.
“We calculated what we would need to get people off the streets, into this camp, and look after them,” said Trevor Teed, the Dene Nation’s lands and environment director, at the announcement of the Wellness Camp on Dec. 2. “But we made mistakes, I made mistakes. We miscalculated. We didn’t understand harm reduction because we were not counsellors and not experienced in that area, so what we did is we took the values that were given to us at the Arnica Inn and we put it into the proposal.
“We didn’t account for the medical monitoring that was required,” he said. “We missed that in the proposal. We need doctors. We need nurses to assess people and monitor them and help us reduce the alcohol as required and safely.”
Despite Teed pointing to a “miscaluation” during the conference, Leanne Goose, Dene Nation communications advisor, told Yellowknifer the error belongs to the GNWT.
“It is a result of the GNWT not supporting health needs like harm reduction at the on-the-land healing-camp,” said Goose.
Overall, the actual funding amount required for camp operations hasn’t been determined yet, according to Teed.
“We’re still assessing what we’re being charged by participants that are involved in providing service,” he said. “We should have something in the near future.”
The site can accommodate 25 guests.
“Under the terms of the proposal, that’s what we could satisfy,” said Teed.
Michael Fatt, organizer of the Yellowknife chapter of the Crazy Indians Brotherhood, said he and his colleagues were eager to support the project.
“It was something that made me very proud right off the hop,” said Fatt.
The structure of the camp came about through a collaboration with the Sahtú Renewable Resources Board and the Dene Nation’s Rapid Response Covid-19 Team. There are also partnerships with Aurora Village, Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation, other community partners and traditional councillors and Elders from the regions.
Teed added that the Dene Nation hopes that the initiative becomes a year-round project.