23rd Annual Malyan Michel Bursary
23rd Annual Malyan Michel Bursary
Awarded: Wed, July 26, 2023
This $500 bursary was established in 2000 by friends and family of Malyan Michel to recognize deserving post-secondary students from the Ktunaxa Nation.
Malyan was a language and culture teacher and always encouraged people to return to school and further their education while still holding onto their Ktunaxa heritage.
This bursary has been awarded to 35 Ktunaxa Nation students so far, totaling $17,500.
The funds for these bursaries are raised every year through raffles and 50/50 draws, as well as donations from our generous supporters.
We would like to thank everyone for their continued support over the years.
To be eligible, candidates must:
- be of Ktunaxa ancestry
- be an existing post-secondary student that will be returning to studies in Sept 2023.
- or be an adult 19 and over beginning or returning to studies in Sept 2023
- show an interest in their Ktunaxa language and culture
Please use the form below to nominate.
Deadline for nominations: Friday, July 21, 2023
Submit nominations to:
Cindy Sutherland 604-603-4733
gregncindy@shaw.ca
CRT agreements are significant to Ktunaxa
June 13, 2023: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ʔa·kisk̓aqǂiʔit / Cranbrook, B.C.:
Through the three separate interim agreements, signed on June 8, 2023, the Ktunaxa Nation, Secwépemc Nation and Syilx Okanagan Nation will each receive five per cent of the revenue generated through the sale of Canada’s share of downstream power benefits under the Columbia River Treaty. (The downstream power benefits are otherwise known as the ‘Canadian Entitlement.’)
“The interim agreements are significant for us,” said Kathryn Teneese, Chair of Ktunaxa Nation Council. “They acknowledge historical impacts to Ktunaxa rights and title, and are a step on the path of reconciliation.”
Since 2018, Canada and the United States have been engaged in negotiations to modernize the treaty. The Ktunaxa, Secwépemc and Syilx Okanagan Nations have been an essential part of the Canadian negotiating team, alongside the governments of Canada and B.C.
The four First Nations as represented by the Ktunaxa Nation Council are ʔakisq̓nuk First Nation, ʔaq̓am, Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi’it, and Yaqan Nuʔkiy.
“Ktunaxa Nation Council, on behalf of our four member First Nations, will continue with the broader collaborative work on Columbia River Treaty renewal with our partners–Secwépemc and Syilx Okanagan Nations, plus B.C. and Canada,” Teneese said. “Ktunaxa perspectives are vital to this treaty process, and we value being at the table.”
The Columbia River Treaty was ratified in 1964 by the U.S. and Canada to provide flood control and generate additional hydro power, but was negotiated without considering the impacts it would have on the rights, culture, economies and ways of life of the Indigenous Nations
Troy Hunter, who is Strategic Initiative Coordinator at Ktunaxa Nation Council, said, “We did not get here today without the many efforts of our ancestors and of those who brought Aboriginal rights and title cases before the courts.”
The late Ktunaxa elder Wilfred Jacobs said the word ‘Kootenay’ is a Ktunaxa word pronounced Kuǂni, and it means to travel by water.
“These agreements are a beginning, but the course we have embarked upon, as we travel together each steering our own yaqsuʔmiǂ, (canoes), is now part of our story,” said Hunter.
Negotiations will continue between the partners towards a long-term agreement to help address environmental, cultural and economic impacts caused by the operations of the Columbia River Treaty Treaty as well as work with the United States to renew the CRT itself.
The Nations have also led efforts to enhance ecosystem function and investigate the feasibility of restoring salmon to the B.C. portion of the Columbia Basin through the treaty-modernization negotiations.
Ktunaxa Citizens’ Excellence Awards, 2023 Nomination Forms
Nominations are open for the Ktunaxa Citizens’ Excellence Awards.
Date for nomination extended to July 5, 2023!
Awards will be presented at the 2023 Annual General Assembly,
July 26 & 27, 2023 • Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡiʔit
Award Ktunaxa Excellence in:
• Sports
• Education
• Arts & Entertainment
• Health
• Cultural Knowledge & Language
• Entrepreneurial / Business
• Lifetime Achievement
(Awards are to honour those who are physically here with us today.
At the 2022 Ktunaxanin̓tik Gathering held in ʔakisq̓nuk,
they recognized those who have passed on, new Ktunaxa babies born, and graduates.
KNC will incorporate this practice into AGAs going forward, starting this year.)
When will the awards be presented?
At the Annual General Assembly in July 26 & 27, 2023 at Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡiʾit
Who can nominate?
Any individual, community group or recognized entity (Band Council, Aboriginal business, etc.)
Who can you nominate?
Any Ktunaxa Citizen or Ktunaxa Citizens’ Group.
Who selects recipients?
The Ktunaxa Citizens Excellence Awards Committee (KCEA).
Please see below for information about volunteering for this fun, Ktunaxa-only committee!
What’s in a nomination?
Please see the nomination form below. It may take a few moments to load.
It is a “fillable” PDF, so you can open it in Acrobat Reader and you can then type in your responses, save it, and email it to caylee.toma@ktunaxa.org.
Or, you can print it out to fill it in and deliver it to the address below.
Or even fax it… number below.
Complete 2023 Ktunaxa Citizens’ Excellence Awards nomination form, with the following details:
• Name of the person or group you are nominating,
• A description of their contributions
or how they have excelled in their field,
• What the person’s or group’s involvement has meant,
• A short description of successes achieved,
• One paragraph describing the nominator’s relationship to the nominee.
How to send in nominations?
Due by Wednesday, July 5, 2023
Mail, fax or email to:
Ktunaxa Nation Council
7825 Mission Road
Cranbrook, B.C. V1C 7E5
Attn: Ktunaxa Citizens’ Excellence Awards
Caylee Toma
Email: caylee.toma@ktunaxa.org
Fax: 250-489-2438
Nomination forms are just below… it may take a few moments for the forms to load.
Date for nomination extended to July 5, 2023!
