It’s great to be back with our weekly messages. I hope you all had a chance to enjoy the summer. It was wonderful to see so many of you at our gatherings, soaking up the sunshine and spending time together.

Of course, the summer also brought its challenges. Wildfires across the country affected many families, and our thoughts and prayers remain with those impacted.

One of the key moments for me was attending the Bill C-5 Summit in Ottawa, where I joined other Indigenous leaders and federal officials to talk about Canada’s infrastructure plans. Bill C-5 aims to speed up major projects by reducing red tape. While that might help the economy, we raised concerns about how it could affect Indigenous rights, especially since there has been little consultation. It was made clear that if Canada wants to close its infrastructure gap, it must work with us, not around us. Development needs to respect our sovereignty and reflect our values.

I also met with Prime Minister Carney this week at an announcement at Newdock in St. John’s, and I left feeling encouraged. It seems like our message from the summit was heard, and there is real effort to strengthen relationships with Indigenous communities.

Last week, I was in Winnipeg for the Assembly of First Nations Chiefs Assembly, where we passed several important resolutions. One of the most urgent was a call for immediate federal action to address the fentanyl, opioid, and substance abuse crisis that’s affecting First Nations communities across the country.

We also reaffirmed our commitment to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, especially those focused on health and the full implementation of Jordan’s Principle. Unfortunately, recent changes by Indigenous Services Canada have made things worse, causing delays, denials, and a backlog in services for First Nations children and families. We will continue to do our best to work with families to alleviate the stress caused by this.

We’re not backing down. We’re calling on both the federal and provincial governments to fix this, starting with allocating funding and support for the creation of culturally grounded addiction treatment centres and aftercare programs. These are essential for healing, especially for our youth and families, who deserve real support.

As we settle into the school year, we’ll keep sharing updates and working together to build a stronger Nation.