Over three editions News/North will interview each of the three candidates for National Chief of the Dene Nation SA国际影视传媒� Norman Yakeleya, Richard Edjericon and Eileen Marlowe SA国际影视传媒� ahead of the Aug. 22 election. The third candidate, Eileen Marlowe, is originally from Lutsel K'e and now lives in Yellowknife.
She is the director of communications for the Treaty 8 Tribal Corporation, and has been involved in discussions focusing on land claims and communications around treaty negotiations. Marlowe is a single mother with a full-time job and is currently working on her masterSA国际影视传媒檚 degree in communications. She says she isnSA国际影视传媒檛 going on a traditional campaign trail, but is trying to use modern technology to reach out to people instead. This interview has been edited and condensed.
N/N: How will you work to improve the lives of Dene peoples?
When you look at all the communities, almost every single First Nation band office in the Northwest Territories doesn't employ a communications person. Communications either makes us or breaks us in our relationships and how we interact with each other. And so, it's almost like we don't really see the value of communications, yet it's an important piece of any kind of relationship, whether internally or externally, whether at home or at work. There's nobody who focuses strictly on policy or communications or you know, how to deal with media, how to follow up on various things. As First Nations, we could do so much better if we could understand the importance of communications and how we interact not only with our community members, but internally within the band office and also externally with government and industry.
People don't really value communications. They see it as a soft skill yet it's so fundamental. At the end of the day, it prevents us from moving forward in a successful and a strategic way where we're creating relationships or initiatives that are going to actually benefit the community and the people in the community
N/N: What are the top priorities in your platform?
My top priority is communication, and working collectively collaboratively with each of the regions to basically say, 'OK, how are we going to work together and what are some of the issues that matter to you the most?' And that's where the mandate comes in, looking at possibly changing the mandate so that it's more reflective of today's current events in terms of what's going on with the First Nations with respect to land claims and self-government. And we need to have a clear understanding of how we're going to work together going forward and that's what the communications system or framework comes in.
And our culture and language is important. I also look at that as a communications opportunity.
To me, education is critical. Self-government processes could take up to 10 years and it's going to go through its growing pains as it goes through the implementation phase. But during that time, we could be educating a lot of our own people and getting them ready. If we're going to be self-governing and we want to be taking advantage of those opportunities within our own communities, we need to be prepared and we need to be educated. You need to be able to manage a government and we need to have that high-level understanding. We need to be able to generate our own revenue at some point once we get there and we need to be able to be confident to say, 'OK, we're going to orchestrate this project.'
N/N: What has Dene Nation been doing right? What can Dene Nation improve upon?
Quite often I would have discussions with some friends and I asked them, SA国际影视传媒楧o you know what Dene Nation does?SA国际影视传媒� And they don't know, or someone else might say they think they work on various programs, not entirely sure what. There's this uncertainty of precisely what the Dene Nation does. This is a communications issue.
N/N: What role will elders play when you are chief?
I see the elders playing a role through the eldersSA国际影视传媒� council or senate as a crucial part of this. I would like to see youth being involved and having an active voice as well.
N/N What are your feelings on resource sectors, including mining, oil and gas and other exploration in the territory?
Just that you shouldn't paint all First Nations with the same brush because we're not all the same, the same goes for the regions. It's going to be very different how the resource sector plays out in the regions, and it will be defined by the people in the regions.
N/N: How would you work to improve environmental issues?
Obviously, the environment is of huge importance to First Nations and now going forward, the effects and impacts of climate change obviously is a concern. And again, we have to look at it regionally as well because there are different regions and how they're being impacted is going to differ. So, and again, it's the regions that are going to be the ones to say, SA国际影视传媒極K, these are the issues that we have.SA国际影视传媒�
N/N: How will you unify regional Indigenous governments?
The how boils down to at the end of the day saying to each region, SA国际影视传媒楲ets find some examples of what hasn't worked in terms of communications and look at what we could have done better if we took comms as a crucial element in this relationship, in this dynamic.SA国际影视传媒�
People will start shifting their thinking to acknowledge that communications breaks down a lot and sometimes we don't keep each other informed and not only that, there's misunderstandings because we make assumptions. We don't necessarily ask for clarification and then we end up with hard feelings.
At the end of the day, the direction is going to have to come from the communities and the regions. I can make suggestions, but it's not my job to say, SA国际影视传媒楾his is how it's going to be.SA国际影视传媒� At the end of the day, this advocacy organization is about them and their issues and their voices and their concerns and ensuring that it's heard.
N/N: What role do you see for the GNWT in Denendeh?
There's that need for reconciliation and the need to approach things with reconciliation in mind and thereSA国际影视传媒檚 a need for a renewed relationship that's focused on collaboration.
