Matteo Cimellaro

Reporter Ottawa English

News, Indigenous communities, climate change, municipal policing, Ottawa

About Matteo Cimellaro

Matteo Cimellaro is a Cree/settler writer and journalist who currently covers urban Indigenous communities in and around Ottawa, thanks to a grant from the Local Journalism Initiative and the Government of Canada.

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53 Articles

Erin Gilmer, director of Indigenous policy at the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, said Indigenous knowledge is now on par with western science for environmental assessments. Photo courtesy of the Impact Assessment Agency

New federal Indigenous policy framework high on respect for Indigenous knowledge in consultation, but nil on veto power

The new Indigenous policy framework provides a road map for the mandates required around bills C-68 and C-69, which strengthened Indigenous knowledge and collaboration in impact assessments of development projects.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | October 6th 2022

Rhea Blanco (left) and Kayoki Whiteduck (right) stand in front of what Ajashki calls their Squirrel Protecter 2000. Photo by Matteo Cimellaro/Canada's National Observer

Algonquin horticulturist helps Ottawa church’s garden project grow into Indigenous learning centre

The project first materialized as a modest food security project: an Algonquin horticulturalist and members of the First Unitarian Congregation started a garden in the back of the church and hosted lessons on the intersection of food security, foraging and climate change.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | October 5th 2022

Members of the Assembly of Seven Generations sing to commemorate National Truth and Reconciliation Day and a plaque honouring Dr. Peter Henderson Bryce. Photo by Matteo Cimellaro/Canada's National Observer

‘Our country’s history is complicated – but you don’t make it better by ignoring it or glossing over it’: Murray Sinclair

It was a day that centered survivors and their stories, but also demanded that reconciliation march forward each and every day.

News | September 30th 2022

The memorandum of understanding will scale the collaborative work already ongoing in some communities, like Saskatoon, Sask. Photo courtesy of BGC Canada

National community groups partner to advance reconciliation

The top-down approach was inspired by grassroots local affiliates that were already working together, like in Saskatoon, Sask.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | September 30th 2022

The bill that will create an Indigenous-led National Council for Reconciliation is making headway towards royal assent after passing its second reading, says Indigenous-Crown Relations Minister Marc Miller. File photo by Alex Tétreault

Bill to create national reconciliation council set to pass second reading — but not without House gamesmanship, Miller says

The bill is a response to the Truth and Reconciliation calls to action 53 and 56 to create a national council that would act as an independent watchdog.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | September 30th 2022

Five Indigenous youth leaders spoke to the Senate's Senate's Indigenous Peoples committee about what Truth and Reconciliation means to them. Photo courtesy of Taylor Behn-Tsakoza

Indigenous youth leaders call for a Truth and Reconciliation Day that remembers history, honours survivors and celebrates cultural resilience

Reconciliation is as much a personal journey as it is a collective one, said Taylor Behn-Tsakoza, co-chair of the Assembly of First Nations Youth Council.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | September 29th 2022

How an Indigenous tourism training program allowed Paula Naponse and her family tell their story through coffee beans and beads

The Beandigen Café, a coffee-pun play on the Anishnaabemowin word biindigen, or welcome, opened in November 2021 and serves as a storefront for Indigenous artisans and a community space for beading circles, Indigenous open mic nights, and NDN taco pop-ups.

News, Urban Indigenous Communities in Ottawa | September 27th 2022