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
Email
Phone
(867) 767-9143
Extension
12170
Constituency Office

Statements in Debates

Question 334-20(1): Housing Budget Allocations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So if Housing NWT has its own different way of identifying risk or prioritizing needs, are representatives from Housing NWT in conversation with, you know, deputy ministers at the meetings when -- I guess it's -- I forget the term, is it a working group? But when you're trying to decide overall for the whole government what are the priority capital needs, are we ranking housing needs in relation to other infrastructure needs? And if so, how do we compare or rank those things, or does Housing NWT just get a set amount of money and then they can decide how to rank and...

Question 334-20(1): Housing Budget Allocations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Just under the wire. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my questions are still about housing but this time for the Minister of Finance. So this 2025-2026 capital budget proposes to allocate about $11.5 million in capital spending to Housing NWT and that allocation is hovered around the same amount for the past four years, from around $10 million to $13 million. So is this allocation based on the actual urgent needs for retrofits and new builds for Housing NWT, or is it based on, like, a predetermined number that was set based on a perception of what the GNWT can afford to give HNWT for capital? Thank...

Question 322-20(1): Housing
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you. And thanks to the Minister for that. Can the Minister confirm that a major barrier to increasing our public housing stock, at least up to this point, has been resistance to the idea of increasing the transfer of resources for O and M from the GNWT to Housing NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 322-20(1): Housing
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Housing NWT. First, can the Minister confirm what is the current number of people on the NWT public housing waiting list? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Motion 41-20(1): Recommendations of the Integrity Commissioner respecting the Conduct of the Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to deal with the motion I gave notice of earlier today regarding recommendations of the Integrity Commissioner respecting the conduct of the Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Question 334-20(1): Housing Budget Allocations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Great. So just finally, does the Minister of Finance have some idea when we will get this briefing or explanation of how it's all going to work? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 334-20(1): Housing Budget Allocations
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So that does lead into my next question. So acknowledging that the GNWT's capital needs assessment doesn't include Housing NWT assets, I'm assuming they do their own capital needs assessment, but Members here have not seen it. So how does the Housing NWT capital needs assessment feed into GNWT decisions about what are the priority capital needs for the territory? How do the two capital needs assessments talk to each other or feed in? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 322-20(1): Housing
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And finally, does the Minister believe that it is both a federal responsibility and the GNWT's responsibility to fund public housing through capital and O and M resources, or is it only a federal responsibility? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 322-20(1): Housing
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So next, can the Minister confirm whether it is expected that all of those 897 families can be housed through federal funding to Indigenous governments? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Member’s Statement 349-20(1): Public Housing
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 30)

Mr. Speaker, echoing my colleague from Frame Lake, year after year during capital budget deliberations in this House, MLAs stand up and say we are not spending enough money on public housing. So why does this keep happening if we all agree that housing is a top priority?

Historically, the colonial federal government forced Indigenous families off the land, away from their livelihoods, and into poorly constructed public housing. In the early '90s, the feds stopped building new public housing. Since then, public housing stock has fallen into disrepair and shrunk while waiting lists have continued...