Latest Column

This page is dedicated to providing my readers who would like to follow my latest column which I produce on a regular basis every second week.

  • Northern First Nation youth addressed the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Twenty-Fifth Session which was held at the United Nations headquarters in New York from April 20 to May 1, 2026. Pictured (L-R) at the UN in New York are: Kohen Mattinas, Lac Seul FN / Constance Lake FN; Jeronimo Kataquapit, Attawapiskat FN and Ramon Kataquapit, Attawapiskat FN.
    :: Wawatay News :: First Nation Youth Speak At The United Nations

    I was proud to see First Nation youth representing our northern homelands on the international stage this past month at the United Nations. Jeronimo Kataquapit, Ramon Kataquapit, and Kohen Mattinas participated in the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Twenty-Fifth Session, held at the United Nations headquarters in New York from April 20 to May 1, 2026. This year, the event brought together more than 1,000 participants, including Indigenous peoples and political representatives of member states and United Nations entities.

    …. to read the column, please click on the link below

    https://www.wawataynews.ca/blogs-columns/first-nation-youth-speak-united-nations

  • Canada Geese Xavier Kataquapit columnist writer 'The Birds Are Calling For Spring'
    :: Northern News :: The birds are calling For Spring

    I recently took a long walk out on a beautiful spring day. The weather was pleasant, the sun was bright, and the air was brisk and cool. I could still feel the sting of winter hanging on and to confirm that feeling, I could hear it from the song of a familiar bird this time of year. The Chickadee was singing its familiar ‘tee-tee’ song. My Kookoom, my grandmother, often pointed out to us children that this little bird was actually calling out the name of the season. The bird changes its tune depending on the weather. When winter is still lingering with cold winds, the Chickadee will continue its plain one-tone ‘tee-tee’ song. As soon as it senses that warmer weather is on the way, it will change its tune to a two-note song ‘NEE-pin, NEE-pin’. Kookoom noted that this song is actually the name of the season in our Inineemoon, our Cree language. The bird is actually calling out Neepin, the Cree word for spring. 

    https://www.northernnews.ca/opinion/the-birds-are-calling-for-spring

  • Windspeaker - Chikabesh speaks to Tapiskapeesim, the night sun
    :: Windspeaker :: Chikabesh speaks to Tapiskapeesim, the night sun

    When I was a boy growing up in my home community of Attawapiskat on the James Bay coast, I was deathly afraid of looking at the full moon.

    I grew up in a very traditional Cree environment in my home community of Attawapiskat in northern Ontario. In the 1980s, my family and I only spoke Inineemoon or ‘James Bay Cree’ because it was the language our parents and grandparents spoke.

    The language and the world my parents and grandparents raised us in was very different from those in the rest of Canada. Storytelling was very important to our parents and grandparents and many of these stories were told in humorous or frightening ways to make them memorable.

    …. to read the column, please click on the link below

    https://www.windspeaker.com/under-northern-sky-xavier-kataquapit/chikabesh-speaks-tapiskapeesim-night-sun

  • photo by Okiniwak First Nation Youth holding rally at PDAC in Toronto on March 2 2026 to protect FN lands from the Ring of Fire development.
    :: Wawatay News :: First Nation Youth Fighting For The Land

    I was happy to see our First Nation youth continue to speak out against proposed mining development in the far north in the so-called Ring of Fire region.

    These past few weeks, it was good to see Jeronimo Kataquapit, the founder of the ‘Here We Stand – Call To Action’, continue his fight against proposed mining developments near the Attawapiskat River in the Ring of Fire mining region. I was proud to see him stand with his cousin Ramon Kataquapit, co-founder of Okiniwak, a national youth-led movement uniting First Nations youth to advocate for equity and equality.

    It was encouraging to watch and listen to the events they held this past week, which showed that they are present and want to be heard. They made an appearance in Toronto outside of the world-famous Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) annual convention which was held in the city in the first week of March. It was important for these young First Nation advocates and protectors of the land to make themselves known at this prestigious mining conference which brings together billion-dollar companies, investors and professionals in the industry.

    …. to read the story, please click on the link below

    https://www.wawataynews.ca/blogs-columns/first-nation-youth-fighting-land

  • Jeronimo Kataquapit is the founder and leader of the ‘Here We Stand – Call To Action’ grassroots movement to protect the land in the James Bay territory. He is pictured here holding one of his live stream events from Nawashi River, a remote location 140 kms north of Attawapiskat on the James Bay coast.
    :: Windspeaker :: Who is in control of your social media?

    We are all part of a great change in human civilization. Whether we know it or not, we are living through humanity’s first steps into the modern digital age.

    I grew up in the 1980s in my remote home community of Attawapiskat on the James Bay coast in northern Ontario. Back then, it really felt like we lived in another world because we only had one reliable radio signal and three television channels with up-to-date news and content. Long distance phone calls were available, but everyone was constantly concerned about the cost of using a phone, so it was only reserved for the most important calls.

    …. to read the story, please click on the link below

    https://windspeaker.com/under-northern-sky-xavier-kataquapit/who-control-your-social-media