DAWSON CITY – Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in and Yukon College will sign a Memorandum of Understanding on Friday that paves the way for creating a teaching and working farm situated on the First Nation’s traditional territory. The signing ceremony will take place at Strachan’s Farm, located opposite the airport on the North Klondike Highway, 15 km outside of Dawson City.

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in hopes the project will create a healthy, healing, safe and rewarding “on-the-land” environment for TH citizens, and secure a source of fresh produce and other food staples. It is also designed to preserve and maintain indigenous plants and shrubs important to First Nations healing traditions, and preserve a way of life that is based upon an economic and spiritual relationship with the land.

WHITEHORSE-Full-time credit students at Yukon College will have access to free transit again this academic year. The College, City of Whitehorse, and Yukon College Student Union have renewed their partnership allowing full-time student I.D. cards to be used as a bus pass from September 2, 2014 to May 30, 2015.

“The pilot initiative last year was enthusiastically embraced by our students and very successful,” said Dr. Karen Barnes, Yukon College President. “The City’s decision to extend transit service to 10 p.m. was a powerful demonstration that the students’ requests had been heard and contributed to our desire to renew this partnership.”

Overall more people are taking the bus. Figures from the City of Whitehorse show that overall ridership on the Takhini-Yukon College bus route saw an increase of over 850 people for the month of October 2013, when compared with a similar period in 2012.

WHITEHORSE-Orientation week this year at Yukon College Ayamdigut campus is all about providing space to make friends and build community.

Kicking off Tuesday September 2 is a morning of fun, interactive, playful games. Jerry Ewen of Playfair will lead the session that is designed to help students make meaningful connections with one another.

O-week coordinator Monique Benoit experienced Ewen’s particular style of breaking down barriers at a student engagement conference in BC earlier this year.

“Making new friends and feeling included is key to successfully navigating the initial few weeks at a new school or college. Jerry uses humour and physical activity to open up a large group of people in a way that quickly builds connections and community. Thanks to his session, I made a lot of friends at the conference, and knew we had to bring him here to work his magic,” said Benoit.

WHITEHORSE-Bringing Youth Towards Equality (BYTE), Yukon College and Yukon College Student Union are once again joining forces to present a second Future Routes Festival, Friday September 12th at the Yukon College Gym.

The concert will be headlined by Vancouver's famed electronic duo, The Funk Hunters, who have been making waves at music festivals across North America for their groundbreaking combination of heavy electronic beats and classic funk and soul lines. With Sarah MacDougall, Major Funk and the Employment, Dead Simple, Zipline, and Claire Ness and the Wisecrackers, rounding out the entertainment, the all-ages event promises to be a danceable, funk-filled night of music.

“We are excited to be bringing the Funk Hunters to Yukon for the first time,” said Kara Johancsik, BYTE communications coordinator. “BYTE is pleased to be part of creating this memorable end-of-summer celebration for both students and the wider community.”

WHITEHORSE – Yukon College is pleased to announce Kobayashi + Zedda Architects Ltd. as the successful proponent for the contract to design the new Centre for Northern Innovation in Mining building. The award-winning Whitehorse-based architecture and planning firm came out ahead of five bids for the contract.

Funding for design and construction of the Centre for Northern Innovation in Mining (CNIM) building was announced last year by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Yukon Premier Darrell Pasloski.  Government of Yukon has also committed funding across five years in operations and maintenance finding to support CNIM programming.

WHITEHORSE-Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited Yukon College today as part of his ninth annual northern tour.

Harper received a tour of the Cold Climate Innovation testing area which includes a year-round greenhouse and huts which test the insulation value of experimental building materials - practical research which is supported by the National Research Council (NRC) and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

The Prime Minister announced the launch of a new National Research Council Arctic Program. As part of the program, the NRC will enter into research partnerships which focus on technology aimed at improving the lives of Northerners and advancing Northern economic development.

WHITEHORSE—Yukon College is undergoing renovations that will help improve program delivery, student services and security at the Ayamdigut campus in Whitehorse.

“The Yukon government is pleased to support the programs and services at Yukon College with renovations that will contribute to services and safety for students, staff and visitors,” Minister of Education Elaine Taylor said.

The Yukon Research Centre will also see improvements over the next two years. These changes are part of regular work to help meet the dynamic requirements of courses, training and research activities. These renovations will allow the college to use the space available in the most cost-efficient way.

WHITEHORSE – Research on vegetation management strategies in the North is lacking and the Yukon Research Centre (YRC) is working to change this. Plant ecologist and soil scientist Dr. Katherine Stewart, and her students are examining how to best manage vegetation on power line right-of-ways in a cold climate.

Researchers will explore different techniques of managing vegetation throughout the Yukon, from cutting and mowing, to selective planting that will change the ground cover vegetation, to herbicides.

“Our research will provide new information on vegetation management techniques in cold climates, allowing decision-makers to make informed decisions in a northern context,” said Dr. Katherine Stewart, Research Associate, Yukon Research Centre, Yukon College.

WHITEHORSE – Tony Radford and Jordan Lord have spent the past three weeks testing water treatment technologies at the Yukon Research Centre (YRC) at Yukon College. The two students are seeking to discover which of three methods of removing salts and minerals from water can turn brackish water into potable water most efficiently, while creating the least amount of waste.

The results could significantly reduce the environmental footprint of the mineral resource exploration industry, or any activity that takes place in a remote location and requires a reliable source of clean drinking water. It could also have an impact on Yukon homeowners with brackish well water.

WHITEHORSE – Tony Radford and Jordan Lord have spent the past three weeks testing water treatment technologies at the Yukon Research Centre (YRC) at Yukon College. The two students are seeking to discover which of three methods of removing salts and minerals from water can turn brackish water into potable water most efficiently, while creating the least amount of waste.

The results could significantly reduce the environmental footprint of the mineral resource exploration industry, or any activity that takes place in a remote location and requires a reliable source of clean drinking water. It could also have an impact on Yukon homeowners with brackish well water.