This thesis argues that the First Nations and their material culture have been used as tropes in the construction of national symbols on Canadian money. The twenty dollar bill from the 2004 series of Canadian banknotes, Canadian Journeys, was the impetus for this inquiry. The art of Bill Reid is featured on this banknote. Reid is an artist who identifies, on his mother's side, with the Haida First Nations and his art takes its themes and style from the Haida crest imagery. The implications of utilizing a First Nations artist on a Canadian banknote becomes problematic when considering the antagonistic historical relationship Canada has had with the First Nations and the multiplicity of unresolved land claims. Therefore, I ask, how this Bill Reid banknote should be read. In answering this question I have divided this thesis into three parts. First, I analyze a historical precedent for this contemporary banknote. The 1870 two dollar bill is useful for it both gives an example of the use of First Nations as a trope in representing the nation and it helps expose the importance of money as a national symbol at the time when Canada was struggling to come together as a modern nation. In the next section I analyze the Bill Reid bill as both a part of a symbolic construction of nation and as a material practice which has regional or territorial implications. In the final section I argue that Bill Reid utilized the language commonly used for colonial justification to elevate his own practice. While carving out a market for his work Reid helped to reify nationally accepted histories concerning the First Nations—namely that they are culturally dead.

The development and management of heritage sites, including prehistorical and historical archaeological sites, trading posts and aboriginal traditional-use sites, is of interest to governments for their potential in the fields of tourism, youth employment and economic development. In Canada, the issues of rights, ownership and management decisions for such sites are still in contention as multiple cultures (Aboriginal, French, English) may have occupied and used these sites either successively or concurrently. The First Nations often have some claim to these sites as they are of the original culture, but the government ministries at national and provincial levels maintain some control via heritage legislation. Increasingly, the First Nations are exercising their claim to a voice in the development of such heritage resources, and co-management agreements appear to be the most successful arrangements. Examples of successfully co-managed projects will be evaluated with respect to future development in the cultural heritage sector and the prospects for a World Heritage site designation in the Great Lakes region will be examined.

In recent years we have witnessed an increase in the number of two unrelated phenomena in Canada collaborative partnerships and First Nations casino development. This thesis focuses on the integration of these two phenomena by examining the gaming partnership that the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) and the Province of Saskatchewan established in 1995. The thesis explores the factors that produced the partnership, the issues of negotiations that influenced the partnership arrangement, and the general nature of the partnerships framework from 1995 to 2002. In analyzing these aspects of the partnership, the thesis will address its fundamental question what is the precise nature of the regulatory framework and its implications for the gaming partnership in Saskatchewan? This study reveals that there were deficiencies in the nature of the partnerships framework, particularly with respect to the accountability provisions of the partnering arrangement. Those deficiencies created an accountability crisis in the year 2000, which caused problems both for and between the partners. Eventually, however, the partners decided to move forward in a relatively positive and constructive manner towards a sustainable and successful partnering arrangement.

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of Aboriginal school-site administrators regarding effective leadership behaviors in First Nations schools. Thirteen Aboriginal educational administrators were interviewed over a period of one month and a half using a semi-structured interview approach. The sample of participants was drawn from a list of Tribal Councils and Independent First Nations in Saskatchewan. The interviews lasted approximately 45 minutes to 70 minutes. Participants were asked to reflect on: (1) what leadership characteristics an effective administrator of a First Nation school must possess; (2) whether ethnicity and gender of the educational administrator were important considerations in First Nations schools; (3) positive characteristics of role models of Aboriginal educational administrators; (4) personal and social problems on First Nations that affected the role of the educational administrator; and (5) what training activities were helpful in the preparation of potential educational leaders. <p>Findings suggested that the main characteristics of effective administrators in First Nations schools included being person-oriented and flexible. All thirteen administrators interviewed considered the ability to speak a First Nation language important, although not essential, if the major language spoken on the First Nation was English. Ethnicity of the administrator may not be a necessary consideration for administrators in First Nations schools. Being able to adapt to the cultural milieu of the First Nation was more important. Findings further suggested that gender of the administrator in a First Nation school was not an important consideration. Female administrators could be effective if given the opportunity. Role models in the lives of the participants played a major part in the overall success of the participants. <p>Findings of this study further suggested that effective administrators had definite plans and programming in place when dealing with social problems which exist on First Nations. Being knowledgeable about the types of support services available at the Band level was important. The main strategy employed by the interviewees involved the utilization of a team approach to problem solving. When dealing with student behavioral problems, most administrators followed policies set by the school board. Last of all, the participants made recommendations which potential Aboriginal educational leaders could use in order to move into administrative positions at the First Nation level.

The migration of Registered Indian people to and from their reserves has attracted much scholarly attention over the decades. A significant theme in early literature suggested Indian people migrated back and forth between their rural homes and urban destinations because they could not cope with life in the city and their movement in between the two places was seen by some as urban failure. To some extent Indian peoples authenticity was challenged if they chose city life. In later years scholarly literature began to explore the notions that many Indian people were quite capable of succeeding as urban dwellers, but there was still no rich understanding of migration patterns. Some scholars cautioned other scholars not to misinterpret federal statistics that lack in qualitative detail which may result in misinformed policy and program initiatives. There was a call for more qualitative studies to explain the statistics and present a better understanding of Indian migration patterns and hence population changes in cities and on reserves. Additionally, there was sufficient evidence that more Indian women were migrating to cities than Indian men, a phenomenon that required some attention.<p> Interviewing Registered Indian women about their migrating experiences was an attempt to provide additional detail and understanding of the migration patterns between rural origins and urban destinations. The interviewees in this study clearly revealed that the circular migration of Registered Indian people to and from reserves showed the significance a particular migrant has to their home reserve. This significance should not be understood only as an a reflection of inability to succeed in the city as many registered Indian women return to their reserves with higher educations to work in their communities, only to leave again for further education. Some women leave their reserves to escape domestic problems, only to return to try to work things out with their partners. Many women end up leaving again. But economies, educations, domestic problems etc. are not the only influences on migration. The sanctity of the land and the many years of history that are symbolized by reserves are also factors of circular migration between reserves and cities.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a health concern that is over-represented among First Nations peoples. Optimal prenatal nutrition plays a role in the severity of FASD. Prenatal nutrition as it relates to fetal brain development and fetal alcohol exposure is an under-researched area, especially among pregnant First Nations women. Finding current dietary intake patterns of pregnant women who drink alcohol could lead to developing a nutrition provision strategy. However, there is no appropriate dietary assessment research tool that is specific to this population. This study aims to develop an effective, culturally appropriate and interactive dietary assessment research tool using participatory methods to engage with women and communities in the process. We used community health priorities forums, information sessions, volunteering, collaboration with programs, and a trauma-informed approach as methods to engage with pregnant women. To develop the research tool, top sources of fetal brain development nutrients were determined for the food frequency component, several prenatal health workers reviewed the tool, and a pre-test with 20 pregnant women of the target population was completed. Pre-test results show the tool is being well-received. All of this ground work will help pave a path for further prenatal nutrition research with First Nations women. This research will inform programs and policies which strive to improve food and nutrition security and reduce the severity of FASD. / October 2015

States are the traditional focal point of democratic legitimation. In the standard model, the institution of the state is normatively privileged: it is the primary object of democratic legitimation, and the national political community is the primary subject. How, I ask, should the standard, state-centric model of democratic legitimation be transformed in light of the presence of substantive jurisdictional conflict and plural political identity? Substantive jurisdictional conflict describes a challenge to the state&rsquo;s authority from non-state institutions that represent a territory which overlaps with a part of or extends beyond the state&rsquo;s territory, make jurisdictional claims that are grounded independently from the state, and do not seek to form states themselves. Plural political identity describes the attachment of individuals to multiple political communities. Under these circumstances, I argue that non-state institutions can be important supplementary objects of democratic legitimation alongside states. The normative rationale for this transformation to the standard model is that adding non-state institutions as additional objects of democratic legitimation will enhance the ability of individuals and political communities to rule themselves. The basic shape of the model I develop is that the strength of competing jurisdictional claims can be assessed by comparing the primary roles of institutions. An account of an institution&rsquo;s primary role describes its contribution to the production of democratic legitimation on behalf of a particular political community or political communities. The primary role of the state, for example, is to enable a project of democratic constitutionalism on behalf of the national political community. I then develop a criterion to guide state citizenries when considering how to respond to the claims of non-state institutions: they should distribute the jurisdiction necessary for non-state institutions to play their primary roles, subject to the qualification that their state&rsquo;s primary role of enabling democratic constitutionalism is not negatively impacted. This approach pluralizes the meaning of democratic legitimation away from a strict association with the state towards multiple institutional locations.

An examination of contemporary English-Canadian novels and poems that depict Native characters in ways that support a claim to Canada, making what Fee calls a "literary land claim."

In 2005, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada – Saskatchewan Region initiated a comprehensive community planning (CCP) pilot project with 11 different Saskatchewan First Nations (and their affiliated Tribal Councils) that ran until March 2011. It consisted of three phases (2006, 2008, and 2009) where 11 First Nations participated in the planning process with professional planners from the Cities and Environment Unit (CEU) from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Comprehensive community planning was chosen because it is a holistic planning model that involves community members participation and decision-making in determining the future direction within each community. It is becoming more prominent within First Nation communities across Canada so it was timely to reflect upon the planning process undertaken during the pilot project to determine promising factors or areas of improvement. This study utilizes interviews to gather the reflections of First Nations, Tribal Council representatives, planners, and government officials about the current state of comprehensive community planning in Saskatchewan and what, if any, changes need to be considered. This thesis research indicates strong attempts to perform Indigenous Planning within First Nation communities; however, improvements can be made in certain areas. In order to promote Indigenous Planning more prominently within First Nations, it is important to have strong leadership and community support, continuous experience and skill building opportunities, thorough incorporation of the First Nations culture into any future development by attempting to be comprehensive and holistic, and by reevaluating the role planners play when working with First Nations and their comprehensive community plans.

This thesis argues that the First Nations and their material culture have been used as tropes in the construction of national symbols on Canadian money. The twenty dollar bill from the 2004 series of Canadian banknotes, Canadian Journeys, was the impetus for this inquiry. The art of Bill Reid is featured on this banknote. Reid is an artist who identifies, on his mother's side, with the Haida First Nations and his art takes its themes and style from the Haida crest imagery. The implications of utilizing a First Nations artist on a Canadian banknote becomes problematic when considering the antagonistic historical relationship Canada has had with the First Nations and the multiplicity of unresolved land claims. Therefore, I ask, how this Bill Reid banknote should be read. In answering this question I have divided this thesis into three parts. First, I analyze a historical precedent for this contemporary banknote. The 1870 two dollar bill is useful for it both gives an example of the use of First Nations as a trope in representing the nation and it helps expose the importance of money as a national symbol at the time when Canada was struggling to come together as a modern nation. In the next section I analyze the Bill Reid bill as both a part of a symbolic construction of nation and as a material practice which has regional or territorial implications. In the final section I argue that Bill Reid utilized the language commonly used for colonial justification to elevate his own practice. While carving out a market for his work Reid helped to reify nationally accepted histories concerning the First Nations—namely that they are culturally dead.