The Driver Education and Licensing Project at Sipekne’katik First Nation

Abstract

[...]there is no municipal bus service.2 Although Halifax Transit stops at the Robert Stanfield International Airport, that location is about 30 kilometres from SFN. [...]family and friends are pressed into service, or a local "taxi" can be engaged; but many residents cannot afford the cost. A year later, as we are nearing the end of the work with this group, another 102 adults have applied to be part of a second cohort - an unprecedented response for any initiative at SFN, and an indication of just how important the transportation issue is for community members. In addition to two Band Council members, the Committee includes the Native Employment Officer for SFN, the DELP coordinator, and an administrative trainee, and representation from organizations such as Mi'kmaq Legal Support Network, Mi'kmaq Employment and Training Secretariat, Dalhousie University, and the provincial Registry of Motor Vehicles, Court Services and Aboriginal Affairs. Financial support was obtained from the grant supporting the Poverty Action Research Project provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and administered through Dalhousie University, as well as grants from the Nova Scotia Building Vibrant Communities Fund, the Native Council of Nova Scotia accessing funds from Service Canada, Mi'kmaq Employment and Training, and the Sipekne'katik