<p>In this story, the author is the GNWT&#39;s Chief Negotiator for the devolution of lands and resources from Canada. Devolution means the transfer of authority from a senior level of government to a junior level. Many national governments today are</p><p>involved with devolution as a means to 'subsidiarity', the principle that political</p><p>power should be exercised by the least central or smallest unit of government</p><p>capable and being as close to the people being affected by those decisions as</p><p>possible. Other countries&#39; regions, demanding more autonomy from their central governments, are accomplishing it peacefully via negotiations &ndash; the devolution revolution &ndash; in places such as Great Britain&#39;s Scotland.</p><p>Complicating this Canadian story of devolution is another order of government, the Indigenous First Nations and their governments which have constitutional standing and are the GNWT&#39;s partners in the delivery of programs and services to their mutual citizens and the general public. At the same time, the Government of</p><p>Canada has responsibility for the nation&#39;s relationship with Indigenous peoples.</p><p>How these tensions are reconciled at a three-sided negotiation table in a historic</p><p>devolution agreement make-up the book&#39;s storyline. As in every good story, it</p><p>builds to a climax of conflict, then of agreement and reconciliation, and finally</p><p>back to living together again in a new relationship.</p><p>The book will be of interest to historians, political scientists, students of public</p><p>administration, Indigenous cultures and governance, and Arctic studies and,</p><p>more generally, the NWT public and those who care to learn about how our</p><p>evolving nation is being built.</p>