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Reconciliation, steps forward and the importance of animals in modern Indigenous life

On the show this week, we talk reconciliation with Carolyn Bennett, the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, and discover how caribou, whales and moose still play important roles in modern Indigenous life.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett talks with children in the Attawapiskat First Nation. (Chris Wattie/Reuters)

On the show this week, we talk reconciliation with Carolyn Bennett, the minister of Indigenous and northern affairs, and discover how caribou, whales and moose still play important roles in modern Indigenous life.

She went from being the opposition critic to the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs. Carolyn Bennett shares her journey from family doctor to Minister of Reconciliation and the big job she has ahead.

Tundra soap by Uasa Soap. (Uasa Soap/Facebook)
Preparing to tan a hide is extremely hard work, it's physical and time consuming. But some women taking part in a hide tanning camp in Lutsel K'e, Northwest Territories, say it's as much about the relationships built around the hide as the hide itself.

Bernice Clarke is an Inuk living in Iqaliut, she once paid almost $100 to have two containers of body butter shipped to the North. Bernice started her own company, Uasa Soap, and is making products with whale oil. 

Due to hunting, resource development and climate change, the caribou population in northeast B.C. is dwindling. But two B.C. First Nations are trying to save them. Recently, they welcomed six new calves as part of a recovery project.

This week's Playlist

A Tribe Called Red (Falling Tree Photography)

A Tribe Called Red - Stadium Pow Wow
Don Amero - Please Come Home
Tanya Tagaq - Caribou
Calvin Pameolik - Been Away Too Long