Produced with participation of : A-Channel Productions, Midcan Production Services, Manitoba Film & Sound, Telefilm Canada, APTN, CHUM Television and Canadian Television fund.

Show 1: SAPE-Strengthening Aboriginal Participation in the Economy -- Show 2: Aboriginal Humour -- Show 3: Good Spirit Medicine -- Show 4: Moccasin Games -- Show 5: Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company -- Show 6: Sugar Fix-Diabetes -- Show 7: Long Road, Full Circle (Part 1) -- Show 8: Long Road, Full Circle (Part 2) -- Show 9: The Next Generation -- Show 10: Stryker -- Show 11: First Music -- Show 12: Youth Gathering -- Show 13: Aboriginal Healing -- Show 14: The Fur Table -- Show 15: Rossdale Flats -- Show 16: Home Advantage-MJHL -- Show 17: Balancing the Medicine Wheel -- Show 18: The Spirit of Norway House Cree Nation (Part 1) -- Show 19: The Spirit of Norway House Cree Nation (Part 2) -- Show 20: Lost Sisters.

Spiritual advisor, Dave Courchene Jr.

Host: Lisa Meeches.

Show 1: The 20th century was not a prosperous time for First Nations People. As Canada reaped the rewards of a land with abundant resources, Aboriginals were isolated from the economic booms of a burgeoning country. Strengthening Aboriginal Participation in the Economy is the brainchild of the Provincial Governments, Aboriginal Affairs MInisters and national Aboriginal Organizations. The Sharing Circle will explore in detail the purpose and initiatives of the SAPE report. We will also examine the Aboriginal business acumen throughout history to establish that Aboriginals are naturally business inclined, possessing intuitive abilities to compete in the econimical evolution of the 21st century.--cover. Show 2: What is it about Aboriginal Humour that makes it so unique? Popular comedian Don Burnstick says Aboriginal humour is all about having fun, but there's more to it than that, it is also an integral part of the healing journey. In this episode we'll explore the uniqueness of Aboriginal humour and how some comedians and spiritualists use it to heal a displaced nation. . Show 3: Sage, Cedar, Sweetgrass and Tobacco have sacred medicines in Aboriginal culture since the first conception of Mother Earth. Used for prayer, cleansing, healing and offerings - each has its own teachings and origin. In modern times, misconceptions of the medicines are everywhere. Western medicine has attempted to bottle the essence of these remedies, but fails to capture the spiritual healing power contained therein. Through the words of elders, the ancient teachings of the four medicines are now helping the generations of today. The Sharing Circle will explore the teachings of each medicine and the way they are used in everyday life and ceremony. Show 4: Traditional games have been part of Aboriginal culture for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The moccasin game was a display of dexterity, chance and a means of fair trade between neighbouring tribes. Sharing Circle will look at the different ways the game is played, the significance and importance of these games and how they're being kept alive for furture generations. Show 5: Founded in 1999 by Dave Pratt, Artistic Director Kennetch Charlette and actors Tantoo Cardinal and Gordon Tootoosis, SNTC has grown into a major contributor to the Saskatchewan arts scene. Finding truth within one's own self is a guiding principle at the :Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company". The company operates with the belief that art and culture are interwined. Using theatre as a vehicle for artistic expression, the company provides a venue for original aboriginal stories and provides opportunities for youth to use their gifts to find truth within themselves. Show 6: Week six of The Sharing Circle focuses on the new social phenomenon that has created this ethnocultural epidemic. Native people have the higest rate of diabetes of any other demographic in Canada. A more detailed examination reveals Aboriginal children in northern reserves to be the most common victims. Lack of resources, poverty, and even cultural identity all correlate to the disease. Show 7: 2-part expose of Aboriginal gang life in urban and rural environments. Revolving around former and reformed gang member Ervin Chartrand, we relive his physical and mental journey from Vice President of the Manitoba Warriors, to his involvement and consequent arrest during "Operation Northern Snow". Institutionalized, it was in Stony Mountain penitentiary where he made a life-changing choice to reclaim his heritage, his family and his soul. Show 8: 2-part expose of Aboriginal gang life in urban and rural environments. Revolving around former and reformed gang member Ervin Chartrand, we relive his physical and mental journey from Vice President of the Manitoba Warriors, to his involvement and consequent arrest during "Operation Northern Snow". Institutionalized, it was in Stony Mountain penitentiary where he made a life-changing choice to reclaim his heritage, his family and his soul. Show 9: In episode nine of The Sharing Circle...The new voices for Aboriginal youth are manifesting themselves as cultural empowerment increases. This episode explores Aboriginal youth who are speaking up for their communities and are becoming the inspiration for many. One such issue takes place in Grassy Narrows, Ontario, where clearcutting on the reserve is generating anger and protest by its residents, and in particular its youth. Show 10: Two first time Aboriginal actors form Winnipeg's north end journey to Venice, Italy to accompany the Winnipeg feature film Stryker. For the first time in the history of the prestigous Venice Film Festival, Aboriginal actors will walk the red carpet of La Sale Grande. Fifteen-year-old Kyle Henry (Stryker) and single mom Deena Fontaine (Mama Ceece) travel across the ocean for the first time to present their work to the international film community. Show 11: Music has always been an integral part of Aboriginal culture. In this episode, we will begin by exploring the rich heritage of Aboriginal music and how our ancestors interpreted and respected it. With clips from the Juno Awards, we will look at Aboriginal music today and how many artists such as Susan Aglukark, are fusing the old with the new. Finally, we glimpse into what the future might offer and explore how cultural blending through music is a way of celebrating diversity. We will highlight Nelly Furtado's Juno performance with premiere drum and singing group, Whitefish Juniors. Show 12: In week eleven, The Sharing Circle dives into the Annual Traditional Youth Gathering, spearheaded by Crissy Courchene in Grand Rapids, Manitoba. The gathering will see close to 100 youth being fully immersed in the traditional values and practices of their ancestors. Elders from the five major tribal groups of Manitoba will be in attendance. They, along with the youth leaders, will impart their wisdom and teaching on everything from traditional hunting techniques, picking medicines, building a sweatlodge, firearms safety, treaty rights and even the art of making bannock on a stick. Most of all, they will be learning these things as our ancestors did by roughing it in the bush without the conveniences of modern life. Show 13: In week ten we explore the results of the social programs implemented by the National Aboriginal Healing Foundation. This national body devotes funds across the country in support of Aboriginal community programs. The foundation promotes the healing of Aboriginal people who were subjected to the residential school sysytem. The benefits of the foundation past, present and future will be examined. Show 14: Every December, just before Christmas, fur buyers from around the world gather at St. Joseph's Parish Hall in Thompson, Manitoba, to buy pelts- and lots of them! Over five hundred thousand dollars will exchange hands, all in cash. On one side of the table are over 250 northern trappers, most of them Aboriginal, who will sell their bounty to the highest bidder. On the other side, buyers from 5 different fur companies can be seen, cash in hand, feverishly totaling numbers on their calculators. When the bidding is over trappers will collect their salaries for months of toiling on the traplines. As fur prices fluctuate every year, one can never be certain whether the outcome will be celebrated or bemoaned by the trappers and their families. Show 15: In week fifteen, The Sharing Circle profiles a commercial piece of real estate in the downtown core of Edmonton which has become a hot topic between idustry, the city and the Aboriginal population. Human remains as well as artifacts have been unearthed on the current property of the local power company. The diversity of ethnic groups has shocked the community. Scottish, French, English, Metis, and Aboriginal groups have been identified. The task of what to do now with these artifacts is currently in debate. Respect for those who came before us is paramount for the Aboriginal Community, as is the re-acquisition of the land that was once theirs. The continuation of the Aboriginal struggle for their rights is explored in this episode. Show 16: In week fourteen, The Sharing Circle examines Peguis First Nation, located in Manitoba on the Red River. Long ago the community was involved in a surrrender of traditional land known as the St. Peter's Reserve. We'll be talking to the Chief as well as historians and elders on some of the events and issues surrounding the questionable transaction. Peguis First Nation is working towards reclaiming their traditional territory and is currently in negotiation with the federal and provincial governments. Show 17: Dr. Judith Bartlett graduated from the University of Manitoba's Faculty of Medicine in 1987. She was one of the first 3 Aboriginal physicians to graduate from the U of M. A pioneer and a visionary in the field of Aboriginal Health, Dr. Bartlett was the first chair of the National Aboriginal Health Organization and she also played a major role in the formation of Winnipeg's Aboriginal Health and Wellness Centre. In 1994, Dr. Bartlett developed her Aboriginal Life Promotion Framework - a blueprint for balancing the fundamental elements of our lives. Show 18: Manitoba's Norway House Cree Nation, one of the largest Aboriginal reserves in Canada, has recently undergone unprecedented economic growth and development due to the community's prudent spending of a multi-million dollar compensation package they recently negotiated from Manitoba Hydro and from the Governments of Canada and Manitoba for the impact of hydro electric power project development in Northern Mantioba over the last forty years. Show 19: Manitoba's Norway House Cree Nation, one of the largest Aboriginal reserves in Canada, has recently undergone unprecedented economic growth and development due to the community's prudent spending of a multi-million dollar compensation package they recently negotiated from Manitoba Hydro and from the Governments of Canada and Manitoba for the impact of hydro electric power project development in Northern Mantioba over the last forty years. Show 20: Lost Sisters is a half-hour documentary for The Sharing Circle, that explores one of the most serious human rights abuses in Canada today -- the abduction, rape and murder of hundreds of Aboriginal women over the last half century at the hands of strangers, most often white people. This horrific situation continues today, particularly in cities across Western Canada, but the authorities, the justice system and the press seemingly ignore this ongoing tragedy. Last month, Amnesty International condemned Canada in a scathing report detailing these continued human rights abuses that are suffered by Aboriginal women. The purpose of this Sharing Circle documentary is to make sense of this catastrophic situation that arguably would be front-page news if another group of women were being victimized.