Heather Latter
It was a “first date” of a different kind as 34 representatives from area First Nations and municipalities gathered for a local government networking session last Tuesday at the Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre.
Co-ordinated by the Fort Frances Chiefs’ Secretariat and hosted by Rainy River First Nations, the meeting was called to determine the interest of all parties uniting to help better the district.
“It really was just a ‘first date’ kind of meeting—getting to know your neighbour,” explained FFCS executive director Tammy Ryll.
“I think we all recognize that we need to work together in order to make the district a bit more sustainable and attractive for younger people to come back and have opportunities to live and work here,” she noted.
“But how do we do that? We have to work together in order to make that happen,” she stressed.
Ryll said the idea to hold the meeting stemmed from local discussions about developing a regional strategic plan.
“It was taking a step back from that saying we don’t even know if communities even want to work together,” she remarked.
“I think a lot of First Nations and municipalities don’t talk,” she added. “And how do you know if you want to work with somebody if you don’t even talk to them.”
But Ryll indicated there was a positive response to attend the networking session, with people responding just hours after the invitations were sent out.
“Everyone is looking for a starting point,” she reasoned. “No one municipality or no one First Nation can save the district.
“I think it’s just collective thinking that is going to move us forward,” she added. “I think people were hungry for that because to get the response that we did was so impressive.”
Ryll noted nearly all the area municipalities and First Nations were represented, so it was a large gathering.
“It was quite positive and quite exciting,” she enthused, saying their intention was to get a sense if people actually really wanted to work together in the district.
“And I think I can say the answer was an unequivocal, ‘Yes, we’re going to work together.’
“It’s just how and in what areas.”
The meeting was facilitated by former local MP Ken Boshcoff, who Ryll said did a
“wonderful job.”
The morning was comprised of opening remarks and a welcoming prayer, followed by an exercise in the afternoon, which was a SWOT analysis—considering the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of working together.
“That exercise went over really well,” she said. “The commitment is definitely there for coming to the table again and further flushing out what it means to work together.”
Ryll added there was a genuine sense of happiness and positivity from the participants.
“The theme seemed to be that this was long overdue,” she remarked. “But there was also some realness in the room that said we don’t want this to be a kumbaya-type of meeting where we get together and play nice.
“We really need to have a plan,” she reiterated. “[People didn’t] want to attend a meeting where it’s a one-time thing and then nothing happens.
“We need to make sure we have follow-up.”
The Local Government Networking Group, as they will be referred to at this point, are planning to meet again in January to identifying specifics of where they could work together as a district to bring about the most change.
Ryll said participants at last week’s meeting discussed tying in the recent “Buy Local” initiative and economic development, as well as the relationships that already exist between people in the district.
“We have been involved in one another’s lives, whether it’s through recreation [such as fastball] or other areas, but we’ve never really taken a collective political approach,” she conceded, citing one of the elders on hand provided the analogy of a canoe.
“He said we all have to look at ourselves as being in the same canoe and being able to paddle in the same direction. That’s the challenge,” Ryll said, adding a canoe may become the group’s symbol, although nothing has been formalized at his point.
“We have history with one another and some of it isn’t good,” Ryll admitted. “We do have challenges amongst First Nation and municipalities, and how do we get past that?
And how do we acknowledge that those things are there and still find common ground in other areas to work for the betterment of the district?
“That is what we need to focus on as we move forward,” she reasoned.
