780-717-8296 info@ICDPRO.ca

Assessment

(Important opportunity for your Nation: if you are not a part of the Council, please forward it to your Council for review.)

Good day, Chief and Council: 

The Federal Government has committed $180 Billion to improve Canada’s infrastructure. It has launched a National Infrastructure Assessment to help identify the needs and priorities for our country’s infrastructure and plan for a net-zero emissions future by 2050.  

Several references in their “Request for a Response” are to Canada’s Indigenous peoples. (To read the complete request, please click here.) Here is a summary of these references:

  • COVID-19 has worsened existing social and economic inequities, disproportionately impacting Indigenous Peoples.
  • We need Indigenous-led solutions.
  • It is time to really support Indigenous communities.
  • We need more Indigenous partnerships.
  • Indigenous communities need access to public health in their communities.
  • Accelerate payments to Indigenous communities through the Federal Gas Tax Fund.
  • Reduce the dependency on diesel in remote and Indigenous communities.
  • Self-determination for Indigenous peoples.

The Federal Government has made commitments to close the infrastructure gap in Indigenous communities and mentions priorities such as:

  • affordable housing
  • child-care
  • high-speed broadband
  • clean energy 
  • promoting economic growth
  • job creation
  • training
  • improving social inclusion and quality of life for all Canadians
  • trade and transport in remote Northern communities
  • plant two billion trees over the next 10 years
  • better land stewardship
  • long-term care for the elderly

They have requested a response to the following three statements:

  • Assess Canada’s infrastructure needs and establish a long-term vision.
  • How to improve coordination among infrastructure owners and funders.
  • Determine the best ways to fund and finance infrastructure. 

The purpose of this email invitation is not only to give you an opportunity to respond (which we can forward to the Federal Government on your behalf so your voice is heard), but to give your response to these three statements while keeping in mind your own First Nation’s specific challenges and goals, such as:

  1. What are the top challenges that your Nation faces?
     
  2. What infrastructure does your First Nation both have and need over the next 5 years? How will that new infrastructure help your community in the short term and long term? What gaps in services or barriers are you facing in bringing this infrastructure into your community?
     
  3. How can, or should, the above infrastructure be funded?  What are some possible ways to bring into, or create, monies in your community to help fund this infrastructure?  How will this infrastructure help support economic development in your community?

We hope thinking through answers to these questions will help you share your feedback to the “Request for a Response” in a way that best benefits your community. To do that, please select one of three options:

1. Video – You record your responses to the three statements above and we will convert your response to text and submit it as a letter, on your behalf, to the Federal Government. 

     ► Please ‘click here” if you would like to record a video response to the three statements above.

2. Audio to Text – You record your responses to the three statements above and we will convert your response to text and submit it as a letter, on your behalf, to the Federal Government. 

     ► Please ‘click here” if you would like to record an audio response to the three statements above.

3. Text – You write your own letter and we will submit it, on your behalf, to the Federal Government.  

    ►Please ‘click here” if you would like to write a text response to the three statements above.

If you would like to discuss this assessment with a member of our team, please contact us ‘here‘.

In response to your answers to these questions, we will follow up with you soon to further discuss how we can support you in ensuring your concerns are acted upon.   (Deadline for your response is Saturday, June 26.)

Thank you for giving your time and attention to this important opportunity for your community. We look forward to bringing your responses back to the Federal Government. 

Respectfully,

The Team at ICDPRO