Tsuut’ina Nation
A community app that brings members, news, and resources together.
Tsuut’ina Nation is a sovereign First Nation whose reserve borders the southwest edge of Calgary. Formerly known as the Sarcee, the Nation is the only Dene-speaking group in Treaty 7 territory, connected to the Dene Nation through its Athabaskan language, culture, customs and territory. Its Elders interpret “Tsuut’ina” as “many people” or “beaver people”. Head Chief “Chiila” Bullhead entered Treaty No. 7 with the Crown in 1877, and the Nation has never relinquished any inherent or Treaty right.
Today Tsuut’ina describes itself as a highly sufficient and economically advanced First Nation, with roughly 2,700 registered members. Most live on the reserve, beside one of Canada’s largest cities. Programs run across the Nation, from the Career & Employment Resource Centre and the 7 Chiefs Sportsplex to the Office of the Peacemaker.
Explore the app
A Nation that size, with that many programs, produces a steady stream of information: training intakes with limited spots, youth trips with drop-off and pick-up times, legal aid days at the Peacemaker courthouse, and documents from Chief and Council. Before the app, members had to follow several channels to keep up. The Tsuut’ina Nation app, powered by Communikit, puts all of it in one feed sorted into News, Events, Jobs and Documents, with the Head Chief & Minor Chiefs document pinned at the top.
An app that feels like Tsuut’ina Nation
Members search for Tsuut’ina and find their own Nation. The Treaty No. 7 crest opens the app over a historic photograph of Nation members, the Nation’s gold and charcoal run through every screen, and posts open and close in the Tsuut’ina language: Dzīnísī gújā (Good day) and Siyasgaas (Thank you). For a language the Nation works to keep strong, everyday notices are another place members see and read it.
Administration keeps full control of what goes out and to whom. Staff, Council and membership messages stay in separate groups. Road closures, water advisories and facility changes go out on push, SMS and voice from one send, so the same notice reaches a phone, a text inbox and a landline. Delivery is confirmed while the send is still in progress.
Every household reached at once, on all three channels
A water advisory does not depend on a member having the app installed. Push, SMS and voice run from the same send, so Elders on a landline hear the same notice that younger members see on their phones. The delivery report shows which channels reached whom while the advisory is still in effect.
