Native Sovereignty: Foundation of Nation-Building

[para. 3]: " Today, I will be talking about native sovereignty. There is a great deal of debate around “sovereignty” and I want to address it, as I believe it is the foundation of our nationhood. To this end, I will be talking about three things. The first topic is native sovereignty; the second will be where we are in terms of Crown relations; and the third will be nation-building and the path going forward. So many of us often feel stuck where we are right now, whether it is negotiating our contribution agreements or trying to engage in economic development. It can be a challenge to focus on the future because the present has so many concerns like the lack of resources. It is difficult to focus on where we are headed, in terms of nation building, as opposed to always being forced by the government to focus on our local crises. Whether it is social, economic, legal or political, Canada creates the crises and we are forced to respond to them."