President's Corner: July 25, 2026
Posted on: Jul 24, 2026
Last week, I sat down with Minister Rebecca Alty to speak plainly on behalf of our Citizens.
Three files were on the table. Our updated Self-Government Agreement, our Self-Government Treaty negotiations, and Canada’s duty to consult us on the proposed west coast pipeline. All three of these files matter to the daily lives of Métis Albertans, and all three have been sitting for far too long.
So, I did not go into that meeting to exchange pleasantries. I went in to demand progress for Métis Self-Government in Alberta.
On our updated Self-Government Agreement, I was direct with Minister. We have already waited more than thirteen months to initial an updated agreement with very simple amendments. Our Citizens have fought for recognition and deserve to see meaningful progress now. I asked the Minister for a firm commitment that our agreement will be initialled before our Citizens’ Gathering, that Crown consultation letters with First Nations will be completed, and that our team will receive a written schedule of future progress that Cananda will be accountable to. Another expression of goodwill is simply not enough. The Métis in Alberta expect real timelines and real results.
On our Self-Government Treaty, I pressed for confirmation that Canada is still committed to the work, and for substantive negotiations to resume this fall. We are aiming for an early fall meeting as our next milestone. The Minister’s team has committed to keeping the pressure on internally, and our government will do the same.
On the west coast pipeline, I told the Minister plainly that Canada cannot call itself our partner while Alberta shuts Métis rights-holders out of consultation on a project that affects lands and waterways where our Citizens harvest. Canada consulted with us on TMX. The same principle must apply here. I called on the federal Crown to initiate consultation with our government on this project immediately, and to make it clear to Alberta that Métis rights must be respected.
I want to be honest with our Citizens. Not every meeting ends with every commitment locked in. Some of our demands were only met with continued commitments to work together; but I want you to know that I still plan to hold the Minister accountable to each one of those soft commitments.
Whether it is easy or not, whether the results go the way we hoped or not; being your President means showing up to these rooms and doing the work of dragging the government to table. That is often as true today, as it has been throughout our Government’s nearly 98-year history. It also means never taking the few seats we now have at the table for granted, and never letting the people across from us forget what our Citizens are owed.
Our Métis government has been patient. We have been constructive. And we are not slowing down until our Citizens get everything we have fought for, for generations.
Andrea Sandmaier
President, Otipemisiwak Métis Government