June 22, 2011 - The Northwest Territories (NWT) portion of the 2011 Royal Tour will highlight the NWT’s diversity, Aboriginal heritage, unique culture, consensus style of government and natural beauty.

“We are looking forward to welcoming Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to the Northwest Territories,” says Premier Roland. “We’ve developed a program that will give Their Royal Highnesses an opportunity to meet people from across the NWT and learn about who we are and the territory we live in. We already know the NWT is a great place to visit, work and live and we want to share that with the Duke and Duchess. We’re confident that their visit here will be one of the highlights of their time in Canada and unlike anything else they will experience on their tour.”

The centrepiece of the program will be the official welcome to the Northwest Territories, taking place at Somba K’e Civic Plaza in Yellowknife on July 5th. Commissioner George Tuccaro, Mayor Gordon Van Tighem, Chief Edward Sangris and representatives of the NWT’s regional Aboriginal governments will join the Premier in welcoming Their Royal Highnesses to the NWT. The welcome will feature Dene and Inuvialuit drumming and demonstrations of Inuit games and Dene hand games.

A street hockey game featuring NWT Youth Ambassadors and participants from the SideDoor Youth Centre will be another important event on the program, introducing Their Royal Highnesses to this popular Canadian pastime and emphasizing the historical roots of hockey in the NWT going back to the days of the Franklin Expedition. Their Royal Highnesses will also meet with members of the NWT Youth Parliament and will visit with Canadian Rangers, Junior Rangers and staff and students of the Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning at Blachford Lake Lodge.

The NWT program was developed jointly by the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT), the Canadian Secretary to the Queen and the Department of Canadian Heritage in consultation with royal officials. It is designed to reflect the interests of Their Royal Highnesses and the priorities of both the GNWT and Government of Canada. Because the Duke and Duchess will be unable to travel to communities outside of Yellowknife during this visit, the GNWT has made a special effort to include people from all parts of the NWT in planned events.

The full program for the 2011 Royal Tour can be found on the Government of Canada official website at www.royaltour.gc.ca. The program for NWT events can be found on the GNWT’s website at www.gov.nt.ca.

For more information, contact:

Megan Holsapple
Senior Communications Advisor
Department of Executive
Government of the Northwest Territories
Tel: 867-920-3498
Email: megan_holsapple@gov.nt.ca