Shauna Morgan

Member Yellowknife North

Shauna Morgan was elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly to represent the constituency of Yellowknife North.

Ms. Morgan was born and raised in Barrie, Ontario. Having called Yellowknife home for the past 15 years, she has embraced the dynamic, creative and eclectic lifestyle in Old Town near Great Slave Lake.

Ms. Morgan’s commitment to public service is evident in her two consecutive terms on Yellowknife City Council from 2015 to 2022. During this time, she held pivotal roles, including Deputy Mayor, Chair of the Community Energy Planning Committee, and Chair of the Community Advisory Board on Homelessness.

Ms. Morgan holds degrees in International Development (B.A. Hons) and International Affairs (M.A.), specializing in community economic and political development in remote and Indigenous communities globally. She worked with a grassroots cross-cultural peacebuilding movement in the Philippines from 2002 to 2003. Her master's research delved into negotiations between mineral exploration companies and First Nations in Canada, focusing on land access during the earliest stages of mineral exploration.

Over the past 15 years in Yellowknife, Ms. Morgan has prioritized work at the community level. Working with private consulting firms and a non-profit thinktank focused on clean energy, she served as a resource person to Indigenous governments and communities across the NWT. Her contributions ranged from planning renewable energy projects to housing initiatives, building cross-cultural environmental research and monitoring programs, and navigating the complexities of major resource extraction projects.

Ms. Morgan has drawn on her well-rounded skill set to diversify her professional pursuits. While serving as a City Councillor, she managed her own piano teaching studio, worked as an on-the-Land educator with Bushkids NWT, and contributed for many years as a full-time member of the Snow Castle construction crew and snow carving team. Additionally, she engaged in facilitation and consulting contracts.

Active in the arts community, Ms. Morgan provides piano accompaniment for Yellowknife’s Aurora Chorealis (adult community choir) and Fireweed Children’s Choir. She served as a Board member for the Yellowknife Women’s Society and a weekly volunteer with Food Rescue and has dedicated time to the Yellowknife Ski Club and Victim Services.

Ms. Morgan’s love for the land is palpable in her adventurous spirit. She enjoys a myriad of outdoor activities in the North across all seasons, from whitewater and flatwater canoe trips to hiking in Auyuittuq National Park and along the Canol Trail. Her passion extends to cycle touring, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, and hunting for moose and ducks with her partner.

Yellowknife North Electoral District

Committees

Accountability and Oversight
Social Development
Economic Development & Environment
Shauna Morgan
Yellowknife North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Shauna_Morgan@ntassembly.ca
Phone
(867) 767-9143(link is a phone number)
Extension
12170
Constituency Office

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 47)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thank you for clarifying. So that is good to know and that we have plans for the additional three. Does the Minister have any insights on what is -- what are some of the barriers to trying to fill up all those positions and whether there's opportunities for broader partnerships with ECE or Aurora College to try to make sure that we can fill up all those apprenticeship spots? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Question 556-20(1): Homeownership Programs and Supports
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 47)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for having those numbers on hand.

So 21 out of 190 units is a pretty low percentage I think we can all agree. Can the Minister explain what were some of the barriers or challenges that prevented more of those HELP tenants from actually achieving that homeownership that they set out to achieve when they joined the program? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 47)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. That's all my questions on this page.

Member’s Statement 522-20(1): Homeownership in the Northwest Territories
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 47)

Mr. Speaker, lots of people here in Yellowknife dream of being able to afford their own home, but more people in small NWT communities can't even dream about it because the path to homeownership is barely possible. And it wasn't always this way. This is a story that many others in this room know much better than me.

Obviously, people used to build their own homes where they wanted, then the federal government started pushing people into government housing around the late 1950s with the promise of $2 a month rent. And sometimes the government actively demolished the homes that people had built...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 47)

Okay, thank you for that. And do we have numbers yet for 2024-2025 in terms of whether it was fully subscribed? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Okay, thank you, Madam Chair. I'm going to switch gears a little bit and point -- so, like, the line item for homeownership entry level and market housing programs.

So I know that are plans to discontinue the homeownership entry level program, and I understand that the goal when this program was started was to allow people to transition towards owning those units, and some people have been in there -- those units for a long time and never have been able to or wanted to transition to homeownership, so it was sort of decided, I guess, enough is enough and we just discontinued the program. But it...

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So if we had $38.6 million available to reinvest last year, can the Minister tell me how much of that was reinvested specifically in repairing vacant units? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Okay, thank you for that. We can establish that as of last year, there was $38.6 million available to be reinvested. Can the Minister confirm whether that has now all been spent and that Housing NWT is back down to the minimum amount that it needs to hold onto just, as we've said before, for payroll and contractors. Has that 38.6 sort of extra net assets that could be reinvested has it been reinvested to date? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 74-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Delete $5,250,000 from Department of Education, Culture and Employment – Departmental Summary, page 29, Defeated
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So I won't be supporting this motion. I agree that the loss of the community learning centres has been devastating, and I think this motion goes the wrong direction towards righting that wrong. I do think that the department of ECE needs to expedite, or as quickly as possible, untangle the exact amount of funding to take away from the allocation to Aurora College that would have gone to these community learning centres. I know that still has to be worked out because there's some aspects of adult education that the college is continuing to do, but as soon as possible we...

Question 543-20(1): Elimination of Housing Maintainer Course
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I apologize for that oversight.

Does the Minister happen to know whether programs such as the housing maintainer program or even the building trades helper program has to be -- is offered only at the campus communities or whether it's being offered in other NWT communities where people live, to be able to take those courses? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.