Matawa Messenger – November - Matawa » First Nations

DECEMBER 2012
Living with Us - Moose pg. 3
Grand Opening of the New Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Skills and Training (KKETS)
Office and Launch of the Aboriginal Skills Advancement Pilot Program (ASAPP)
Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment and Training Services
(KKETS) new location officially opened on Wednesday
November 14, 2012 with the launch of the Aboriginal Skills
Advancement Pilot Program (ASAPP). On November 15, 2012
the Premier of Ontario Dalton McGuinty along with Michael
Gravelle, MPP for Thunder Bay Superior North and Minister
for Natural Resources visited the students and staff to gain
more insight to the program. The Premier and Michael Gravelle took the opportunity to speak to all the students about
the program and ask them on how they see themselves improving their own future and their community through such a
Continued on page 2
Understanding Minawshyn
Most business start-ups looking into large
scale business opportunities know they can’t
go it alone. They hire consultants, bring in
interns, and look into developing relationships or joint ventures with other companies
who can increase their chances of success.
With potential regional infrastructure development and other spin off opportunities on
the horizon for the Matawa member First
Nations, a holding company provides the assistance that is better suited for the long run.
Many of the most successful companies in
the world are really holding companies. A
holding company is a company that doesn’t
have any operations, activities, or other active business. Instead, it holds assets. These
assets can be in the form of other businesses
or anything else that has value.
In order for the Matawa communities to
capture and maximize the benefits of current and future development they needed
the right tool for the job or the right corporate business structure.
Minawshyn Development Corporation was
established in 2011 as a First Nation owned
holding company exclusively for the nine
Matawa member First Nations. The role of
Minawshyn is to function as the corporate
business structure to focus on the broad
regional business opportunities and large
scale business opportunities.
Continued on page 5
IN THIS ISSUE:
Building Environmental
Aboriginal Human Resources
Reach Out to Education
Ring of Fire Update
Gathering Information to
Protect Our Lands and Our
Resources
Becoming Your Own Boss
and more.....
MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Continued from page 1
program as ASAPP. The students and
staff took an opportunity to take a
group picture with Premier McGuinty
and Minister Gravelle.
Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen means
“Teaching Knowledge.” KKETS was
set up by the Matawa First Nations
Management to ensure Matawa First
Nation members receive the training
and education they need to secure jobs,
and to capitalize on opportunities in the
growing resources sector. The ASAPP
program is the newest KKETS training
program being funded by Ministry of
Training, Colleges and Universities with
partnerships established with Matawa
Learning Centre and Lakehead Adult
Education Centre. KKETS former location was at Matawa First Nations
Management on Court Street.
“KKETS is a Matawa employment and
training corporation that offers our First
Nations Peoples of the Land potential
opportunities to advance their skills
and employability to get meaningful
jobs in all industries, but particularly
in the growing resources sector. KKETS
is preparing our First Nation members
for jobs in the trades, as well as professional jobs. Our people will have the opportunity to advance their skills so that
they may also start businesses that will
lead to prosperity for their own families
and their communities,” said David Paul
Achneepineskum, CEO of Matawa First
Nations Management.
“The visit by the Premier of Ontario and
Michael Gravelle demonstrates that
KKETS is the leader in providing training for our Matawa members. We will
continue to plan for new training initiatives as supported by our member First
Nations” said KKETS Manager Morris
Wapoose.
“Our goal is to train 100 people by September 2013. ASAPP is geared towards
the learner. We can take our learners
from where they are at, to where they
want to be by providing them with the
required education, skills and training
that will assist them in achieving their
2
education and employment goals.” said
ASAPP Project Coordinator Carolyn
Zadnik.
“As well, Matawa First Nations Management, in partnership with Matawa
Education Learning Centre will work
with our young people in elementary
and secondary schools to help them
consider professional and trade jobs in
all industries. It is our expectation that
through these initiatives from our First
Nations, and Matawa organizations,
that we will enhance job skills and
business opportunities for our Peoples,”
added Matawa CEO, David Paul
Achneepineskum.
For more information on ASAPP or
if you are interested in participating
in this exciting pilot program, please
contact your First Nation Employment
Community Coordinator, ASAPP Career
Development Officer or ASAPP Project
Coordinator.
Contact Information for KKETS
Toll free: 1-888-688-4652
Tel: (807) 768-4470
Fax: (807) 768-4471
Art work by Tori Wesley age 6, Aroland First Nation
The 11th Annual First Nations
Northern Housing Conference
will be held Feb 12-14th @ the Valhalla Inn in Thunder Bay.
For more information, please visit the conference website
www.northernhousingconference.com
or Saverio Rizzo, Housing Inspector/Coordinator
Tel: 807-344-4575 ext. 3666
Email: srizzo@matawa.on.ca
Living with us… Moose
The moose is the largest deer species and can run up to fiftysix kilometres per hour. The moose’s favourite places during
the summer are rivers, lakes and wetlands so they can
eat aquatic (water) plants. The adult moose has very few
predators, however, wolves and bears can easily attack calves
and sick/injured moose. In winter, the moose eats shrubs
and pinecones, using their hooves to scrape snow from the
ground to look for lichens and moss.
Photo taken by Xavier Sagutch in the traditional area of
Eabametoong First Nation.
Did You Know… that you can use Geographical Information System (GIS) as a tool to help map traditional hunting and
berry picking sites, archaeological sites, burial grounds and family gathering areas? GIS can help map hunting sites for
moose, calving grounds and moose sightings. Four Rivers provides a service to communities that provides GIS software,
tools and training on how to map. If you would like access to these tools and resources or training on how to map or use
GIS and GPS please contact Four Rivers.
Websites for more information:
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/moose
http://www.mooseworld.com/biologist.htm
http://www.hww.ca/en/species/mammals/moose.html
www.fourriversmatawa.ca
Supporting Community Land and Resource Initatives
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MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Building Environmental Aboriginal Human Resources
Joint Training Event offered by:
Four Rivers Environmental Services Group and
Laurentian University
With the initiation of advanced mine
exploration activities located within the
traditional territories of Long Lake #58,
Ginoogaming First Nation and Aroland
First Nation, there was community
concern about the potential impacts
that the proposed activities may have
on the environment and traditional land
uses. The communities are currently
completing a comprehensive Cultural
Impact Assessment study. The study includes community engagement activities
as well as capacity building initiatives for
the community and the primary Cultural
Impact Assessment Community Coordinator/Environmental Monitor.
The Community Coordinator/Environmental Monitors are completing their
Environmental Monitor Coordinator
Certificate through Building Environmental Aboriginal Human Resources offered
by Four Rivers Environmental Services
Group. The program combines both
classroom training and hands-on environmental field work training. The trainees
participated in a fresh water environmental monitoring training program offered
by Laurentian University and Four Rivers
Environmental Services Group on August
26th and 27th, 2012.
The students
participated in
invertebrate
sampling,
invertebrate
identification labs,
benthic
sampling, fish
processing and
soil sampling workshops. The students
were also provided tours of Dynamic
Earth and Science North where they
were able to view various exhibits such
as underground workings, tailing areas,
slag piles and effluent discharge areas.
All fresh water training workshops took
place at The Living with Lakes Centre
which is a global centre of excellence
in freshwater ecology with a focus
on environmental restoration and
sustainability.
4
Reach Out to Education
The ACE program keeps
people on the right path
to achieve educational and
personal goals. The Academic Career Entrance program is a grade 12 equivalent certificate to help people enroll into
a post secondary program. To achieve
the ACE program certificate there are
four courses to complete and they are
Core Math, Communications, and two
additional courses.
Since I started the ACE program, I have
made better choices and created better
outcomes by focusing on educational
and personal life matters.
The ACE program has learning methods
that might be challenging or unfamiliar
to the students. Therefore, teachers do
an assessment before entering the ACE
program, so that the students are placed
at the right academic level.
With the teachers’ help and support, I’m
continuously improving on my course
studies. Also my progress to my goal is
closely monitored. The teachers consistently advise students on their academic
progress, so students can be at a top
level when entering post secondary.
Continued from page 1
These opportunities would be
beyond the scope and capacity of individual community
owned businesses and those
business opportunities whose
economic benefits go beyond
a single community into
shared traditional territories
of other Matawa communities.
Minawshyn was modeled
after CREECO (Cree Regional
Economic Enterprise Company) a highly successful First
Nation holding company for
nine Cree First Nations in
Northern Quebec. These
James Bay Cree First Nations
According to the stats of Colleges
across Ontario, the ACE program helps
students stay in their post secondary
program and graduate in greater numbers. In most post secondary programs,
professors assume that a student is able
to structure a writing assignment paper.
Certainly, it is important and beneficial
to understand how to write at a post
secondary level.
The communication course teaches
students grammar, paragraph and business writing, oral presentation, research
papers, and documentation style. When
taking communications in the ACE program, students attain the requirements
for post secondary.
After all, post secondary program admissions needs students to meet the requirements, so taking the ACE program
can help with developing a strong infrastructure before entering post secondary. I grew up living in Neskantaga First
Nation, situated along the Attawapiskat
Lake.
Because Oji Cree was the first language
that was introduced to me, it has been
a difficult process learning to structure
writing assignments by transforming
under CREECO have launched
businesses in a broad range
of industries including airline
transportation, construction,
energy-power generation and
their own Quality Inn and
Suites hotels to name a few.
By: Coleen Moonias
the writing structure to English. After
over a year in school, I can identify the
structuring of my parts of speech, I can
hear the development of my speech,
and also I can see the improvement in
my writing.
The ACE program certificate can help
with future goals, whether they are to
enroll in post secondary or to get into
the work force.
The teachers understand students have
prior responsibilities, so teachers will
work around the student’s schedule.
The ACE program might financially support students with transportation and/
or childcare. Students work independently in a classroom and teachers are
there to assist students regularly.
Because the ACE program is giving me
the confidence to obtain a college academic level, I feel it is a great opportunity to enroll in the ACE program before
entering post secondary programs.
Everyone has a dream, and so it is time
people should pursue it and live it. To
enter the ACE program, see the college
near you and make an appointment for
an assessment.
ventures with each other
and with companies of their
choosing.
The holding company makes
it easier for them to secure
and leverage their funding to
invest in equipment, machinery and other resources and
to seek training opportunities for our people to build
a stronger and ready workforce.
Establishing and structuring a
holding company made sense
for a number of reasons.
When raising capital a larger
holding company has more
diversity of assets than an
individual company, which
makes raising capital easier.
With Minawshyn, Matawa
members First Nations are
able to start and structure
their own joint business
Minawshyn helps minimize
the cost of taxation and
protects against the legal
risks. Best of all, a community
start-up can piggyback off the
success of the bigger hold5
ing company and can benefit
from Minawshyn’s expertise
and capability which in turn
helps member First Nations
grow and access larger contracts and opportunities.
In spirit, Minawshyn is a holding company that is in the
business of providing access
to capital and people.
If you have any questions,
please contact
Jason Rasevych, Economic
Development Advisor at
807-344-4575 or e-mail
jrasevych@matawa.on.ca
MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Ring of Fire Update
Environmental Assessment/
Judicial Review
Terms of Reference Short
Timelines:
The Environmental Assessment (EA)
Comprehensive study is proceeding
into the next stages. First Nations
have limited involvement with this
type of comprehensive study (EA) as
opposed to a “Joint Review Panel”
which would involve First Nations
participation in detail. As a result of
the decision made by the Canadian
Environmental Assessment Agency
(CEAA) the First Nations filed for a
“Judicial Review” to overturn the
current Environmental Assessment
and demand the Joint Review Panel
Environmental Assessment be chosen.
The Judicial Review is being supported
by the majority of Matawa First
Nations. Unfortunately, First Nations
are often left no other option other
than taking legal action to have
their voices heard and treaty rights
respected. First Nations may have
to continue undertaking legal actions
until they are included and fully
involved in the decision making
process. Decisions such as the location
of the smelter, road access, toll costs,
environmental assessments to name
only a few…
Cliff’s Natural Resources has released
their Terms of Reference (TOR). First
Nations were given a short amount of
time to submit their comments on the
TOR and are greatly concerned because
the contents of the TOR document are
very technical in nature. Many First
Nation members are feeling rushed
through the Environmental Assessment
process and not being given enough
resources and time to fully understand.
No Road Access for First Nation
Communities:
According to the Cliffs Terms of Reference the North/South road corridor
will be used solely for industrial users.
First Nation communities will not be
connected to the road and therefore
not have access for road transportation purposes. An Ontario government
spokesperson has been quoted in the
newspaper articles saying the road is
only for “developers to go in and get ore
and minerals back out”.
Ontario Negotiating Road Toll:
The Ontario Government has confirmed
6
they are going to help build the North/
South corridor all season road. The
road will connect the Ring of Fire mining
development to the highway by Aroland
First Nation. The Road will operate as a
“pay per use” road for all industry workers. In a recent Wawatay news release
a government spokesperson stated that
the Province is “committed to sharing
the cost” of building an all-season road
to the Ring of Fire, and that discussions
continue over how Ontario plans to recoup its investment in the road. Further
statements included, “it could be a toll,
it could be a monthly invoice”, either
way Ontario plans to profit off its users.
First Nations have not been included in
the road toll discussions.
Ontario Mining Commission
Court Decision:
August 29, 2012
Neskantaga First Nation has received a
decision from the Ontario Mining Commission with regards to the North/South
road corridor and rail line crossing the
Attawapiskat River. The Chief of Neskantaga stated in their First Nation press
release that; “The decision is both good
and bad for us, on one hand the commission won’t make a decision about
stopping the road, but on the other
hand it has strongly acknowledged our
First Nation’s right to be consulted.”
Noront Changes Road Corridor
Plans:
Noront has announced they will be utilizing the North/South corridor and no
longer the East/West corridor as originally planned. As a result, Noront will
not have a slurry pipeline, all-weather
road, winter road, transmission line or
Webequie junction. All facilities will
now be located at the mine site including the generating station. Noront has
completed the feasibility study which
has yet to be released. Under the Environmental Assessment Comprehensive
Study they only have to submit amendments to their Environmental Assessment for the changes, it may or may
not require a new assessment. Noront
states they are intending to pay a toll to
use the road.
International Relations
Chilean Delegation Visit
The Ring of Fire Office received a request from Arica Chile, to participate
in an “information exchange meeting” to discuss “sustainable mining in
Aboriginal Territory” with the Matawa
Chiefs, Chilean Aboriginal Community
representatives and Government Officials from Chile. During their “Official
Mission” from “Region XV of Chile”
the Chilean delegation talked with
other Aboriginal groups to further their
knowledge of mineral exploration on
traditional territory, environmental
management and sustainability programs, challenges and government
involvement. The meeting with the
Matawa Chiefs and Chilean Aboriginals
was memorable both groups stated
they shared similar issues, strong connections and referred to one another
as “brothers and sisters” and learned a
great deal from each other.
China Delegation Visit
A request came in from the Consul
General in Toronto from the Peoples
Republic of China to come discuss the
potential surrounding the Ring of Fire
with First Nations members. Consul
General and two Commercial Generals
attended the informative discussion. A
clear message was expressed that Chinese business and representatives have
a keen interest in working with First
Nations on mineral and mining related
projects in the Ring of Fire. First Nations should explore all opportunities to
maximize benefits. Chinese exploration
companies are engaging in discussions
with First Nations.
people and animals to drink and gives
us life, but if you fall out of a canoe it
can kill you.” “We need to respect the
areas where exploration is taking place,
ceremonies need to happen first, we
need to offer tobacco and let mother
earth know what our plans are and
where the land will be disturbed.”
Tri-partite Treaty Table
Framework
During the Matawa AGM in Webequie a presentation was made to the
Chiefs regarding a regional negotiations
framework which is being designed
from grassroots input. A resolution
was passed to support the creation of
the regional negotiations process. The
negotiations framework will encompass
the areas of housing, health, social, economic development, revenue sharing,
infrastructure, training, education etc.
The design is to capture all the concerns
which can be addressed to appropriate tables. Chiefs had the opportunity
to look at the draft model outlining
the various tables listed and want this
framework to be called a “Treaty Table”.
For more information contact:
Matawa Elder View on the
Ring of Fire
Raymond Ferris, Ring of Fire Coordinator
rferris@matawa.on.ca
“Mining can be good and it can be bad,
like water, water is good to
Kathy Brady, Mining Advisor
kbrady@matawa.on.ca
7
MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Gathering Information to Help Protect Our Land and Our Resources
Map created by
Xavier Sagutch,
Ebametoong First Nation
If you are looking for Xavier Sagutch and
he isn’t at home you may have to wait
for him to come back from the bush.
Since he was a youth in the 1960’s he
has spent most of his life out exploring
on the land and what the land could
provide for resources (food and shelter
etc.)
When he is out on the land he is gathering information and documenting the
plants, animals, birds, fish, bugs and
much more. He started working on
community based land use planning
information around 2005-2007. He is
doing something very important. Now
a-days he is the Land Use Planning Data
Collector for his community. But he has
also been collecting data for decades
and has a wealth of knowledge about
the traditional territory of his First Nation.
For many years Xavier has been using
a GPS to mark where he finds things
of interest for example historical burial
sites and historical values. In the past he
has had a couple opportunities to have
exploration companies to transport him
in their helicopters and drop him off
far from the community where he will
wander in the bush recording and documenting values, such as abandoned
legacy camp sites. He records what
values and items that he finds at those
locations.
Back in the 1970’s when there was
hard pack snow you didn’t sink your
feet through the snow, it used to be so
strong, like concrete that even a moose
could walk along the top of the snow.
But if they fell through a soft spot then
the wolves could get at them as they
would injure themselves falling through
the snow.
He has seen many changes on the land
in the past thirty years that seem to
verify that climate change is affecting
his community member traditional
area, with less snow, earlier melting
of ice off the rivers and less snow hard
pack, among other changes.
In the 1970’s we used to drive our snow
machines much earlier than now, we
can’t do that anymore because of the
climate changes. Some of those rivers
you can’t go on anymore. Like last year
the ice deteriorated much earlier.
There is also the migration of birds and
disappearing leopard frogs. Fish spawning doesn’t happen at the same time as
it used too. Sometimes it’s earlier or
later in the year. He also experienced 2
early ice break ups in the month of April
around the 17- 20th the usual ice break
up is around May 17-20th.
8
He has gone through the ice numerous times both by foot and on a snow
machine in his life and survived.
Xavier also has a special talent that
makes what he has been doing all these
years even more important. He is a
self-taught photographer. He has an
enormous collection of photographs of
wildlife and plants etc., Several galler-
ies have wanted to do a showing of
his photos but so far he has declined
because he’s working as a community
data land use collector, preferring to
have them used only for educational
purposes.
There is something that has been troubling Xavier for several years now. He
has been keeping records of past legacy
sites in the region. Whenever he comes
across an old fuel barrel, abandoned
machinery or any item left behind from
prospectors and others, he records it.
He also records what others out on the
land tell him about fuel containers they
have found. Xavier wants something to
be done about it, and the areas to be
cleaned up.
They have the potential to contaminate
the waters and lands. There is a lot still
to be done once everything is removed.
Something else has to be done while
cleaning up, such as monitoring and
assessing the areas. There is a lot
involved in removal of these pollutants,
like special containment and transport
licenses for hazardous waste. And how
they are removed is important too and
will require specialists to make sure
the contaminants do not leak out. Soil
around the fuel barrels may already be
contaminated but needs to be assessed
and examined.
“It bothers me a lot that these things
were left behind.” Says Xavier. The
government says the polluter must pay
to clean up the mess, but what happens
when you don’t know who the polluter
is?” That’s where everything stops
because no one knows what the next
steps are.
“We need to speak out, to
stand up together as First
Nations and protect our
lands and resources...”
Xavier will continue to record the locations where he finds these hazardous
chemicals and continue to ask for help
from government, industry, and other
communities to get them cleaned up.
“We need to speak out, to stand up together as First Nations and protect our
lands and resources. Our parents and
grandparents protected and respected
the land and environment and handed
it down to us in good condition. Our
generation needs to do the same for
our offspring.”
Has he ever been frightened in the
bush? Once when he was lost in the
bush for awhile.
He has some advice about that. “If you
are lost do not look at the trees to try to
identify where you are. They can all look
Photo taken by Xavier Sagutch
in the traditional area of
Eabametoong First Nation.
9
too much like each other and mislead
you. You have to find your trail on the
ground from where you came. That
is how you find your way back.” His
other advice is “Don’t go walking in the
bush in the rain, or right after the rain.
Leaves on the ground and the bark on
fallen trees, and rocks are very slippery
because they are wet or covered with
moss, and you can fall and get badly
hurt or worse, break your back leg or
crack your head.”
He says he is most surprised about the
fact that the land is not being used by
the people like how it used to be used
a long time ago. “I am out there and
I just can’t believe how little the land
and waters are being used.” When I’m
out there in the field or walking about
I hardly see people camping or by the
rivers using a portage.
We are all thankful that Xavier is out
there and that he is collecting a permanent record of his traditional territory,
and one of the only comprehensive records of the plants, animals, fish, birds,
insects, land and water of the Boreal
Forest area of Northern Ontario.
How does he feel about the land he is
documenting?
“Truly this is Gods country or the land
of the spirits” says Xavier.
MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Follow Your Dreams
Need training for the new resource sector job market?
Are you a Matawa First Nation member?
Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment and Training Services (KKETS)
can help you achieve your employment goals through a new program
called Aboriginal Skills Advancement Pilot Program (ASAPP).
W
e can help get you where you
want to go to achieve your
employment and education goals.
Through the ASAPP program, you can
acquire the foundational, essential
skills and academic upgrading needed
in order to be prepared for entry into
the labour market.
T
he ASAPP program is based on individual career planning that is synchronized with the growth of the mining sector and other industries. ASAPP
works with our Matawa members to
prepare them for training in the skilled
trades and other relevant growth sectors such as mining, construction and
transportation. The program focuses
on key areas such as literacy, GED/
upgrading/high school credit accumulation, and basic certification training, lifeskills, support from Elders and
KKETS wrap around team with the goal
of preparing Matawa’s First Nation
members for employment opportunities resulting from the Ring of Fire.
T
he first group of 22 adult learners has embarked on their High
School Credit Accumulation and another 20 adult learners will start the
GED component of ASAPP as early as
November 19th, 2012. First Nation
members from the following communities will be participating in the first
cohort: Aoland, Constance Lake, Eabametoong, Ginoogaming , Marten Falls,
Neskantaga,Nibinamik, and Webequie.
T
he goal of ASAPP is to train
100 learners from Matawa First
Nation communities, between October
2012 and September 2013. The second
cohort of the GED component is scheduled to begin April 2013 and the intake
for High School credit accumulation is
ongoing. The training location is being
held in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
We are accepting intake
applications on an ongoing
basis. Please contact your
First Nation Employment
Community Coordinator for
more information or KKETS
ASAPP staff at their new
location.
28 Cumberland St. N. 3rd Floor,
Thunder Bay, ON P7A 4K9
TEL: (807) 768-4470
FAX: (807) 768-4471
TOLL FREE: 1-888-688-4652
ASAPP Staff:
Andrea Collins,
ASAPP Career Development Officer
acollins@matawa.on.ca
Una Petten,
ASAPP Project Assistant
upetten@matawa.on.ca
Carolyn Zadnik,
ASAPP Project Coordinator
czadnik@matawa.on.ca
Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment and Training Services (KKETS formerly Matawa Employment and
Training, is an Agreement Holder with Human Resource Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) under the
Aboriginal employment and training program “Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy (ASETS).”
10
MATAWA MESSENGER | JULY 2012
Matawa First Nations Management Welcome New Staff
Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment & Training (KKETS)
ASAPP Career Development Officer, Andrea Collins
Andrea, originally from Thunder Bay, began her
employment and training career with the MamoWichi-Hetiwin Area Management Board as a
Program Officer for the jobsOntario Program in
Timmins, Ontario. When the jobsOntario program was drawing to a close in 1996, she opted
to go to University; attending Lakehead and
Dalhousie Universities for a total of 11 years and 4 degrees in
English Literature and Education. Upon returning to Thunder
Bay, Andrea began working for Confederation College as the
Employment Advisor, assisting clients to apply for employment opportunities and training funds such as Second Career,
Self-Employment Benefits, and Skills Link Work Experience
and Training. While with Confederation College and Northwest Employment Works, she also developed and delivered
an eight-week program designed to empower women. The
program was a success and the women from this program
gained the self-knowledge and confidence to move forward
in the development of their own learning plans or career
paths; some moving toward Second Career training, some
continuing with upgrading and others applying for employment. She is now excited and honoured to be part of the
Aboriginal Skills Advancement Pilot Program as the Career
Development Officer where she hopes to be able to use
all her skills and knowledge to assist Matawa First Nation’s
members reach their education and employment goals.
Project Officer, April Head
April Head comes from the community of Bingwi
Neyaashi Anishinaabek, which resides on the
southeast shore of Lake Nipigon and formerly
known as Sandpoint First Nation. April grew up
in the city of Thunder Bay however, remains an
active member within her community. She
currently attends Lakehead University on a part-time basis
and is working on completing her Honours Bachelor of Arts
with a Major in Indigenous Learning. April worked in various
capacities with Aboriginal organizations in Education,
Employment & Training Sectors for over 10 years. In her
most previous roles she worked in an Executive Assistant role
in the Education Sector for Nishnawbe Aski Nation Executive
Council and Wequedong Lodge of Thunder Bay. As well, she
worked for Lakehead University in the Aboriginal Cultural
& Support Services as well as in the Employment & Training sector with the Metis Nation of Ontario. April strives to
learn, as well as, teach the traditional ways of living a healthy
and prosperous life. Working for First Nation’s people in an
Education, Employment and Training field has always been
her passion and she believes that with positive motivation,
encouragement and proper supports can build a pathway to
success.
Education Department
Tutor, Jeff Nielson
Jeff Nielson was born and raised in Thunder Bay.
He attended Sir Winston Churchill CVI, completing the International Baccalaureate Program. Later
he studied Mathematical Physics (specializing in
Astrophysics) as well as Pure Math, at the University of Waterloo. During school and since returning
home Jeff has tutored students privately, with The Children’s
Aid Society of Thunder Bay, and for The Eabametoong Education Authority. Jeff’s other past jobs (Science Demonstrator at
Science North, and Tutor in the Matawa Learning Centre) also
speak to his interest in student engagement and learning. He
hopes to help bring success to the students in the GED and
Adult Education Program being offered at the Learning Centre
this Fall.
GED Coordinator, Jackie Bedard
Jackie Bedard is a member of Marten Falls First
Nation. She was raised in Thunder Bay and maintained close ties to the land by spending time on
her family trapline watching her grandparents and
parents trap, hunt, fish, and practice traditional
crafts. Following in her mother’s footsteps, she
pursued studies in the field of Education, and received her
Bachelors degree in Education from Lakehead University in
2001. Jackie is certified to teach by the Ontario College of
Teachers, with additional qualifications as a Reading Specialist.
Jackie’s teaching career began in Matawa communities.
Over the years she has taught in both Federal and Provincial
schools in the Thunder Bay and Sudbury/Manitoulin districts.
Jackie considers it a great honour to work on behalf of
Matawa communities to help bring educational opportunities
to members. Jackie is currently Matawa’s GED Instructor which
fulfills Jackie’s ambition to assist others along their educational
journey and challenges her to remain current in this particular
area of adult education.
Communications Department
Communications Assistant, Grace Winter
Grace Winter is from Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug and a member of Kingfisher Lake. She has
lived all over Ontario including Toronto, Sault Ste.
Marie and Sioux Lookout. She attended Sault College for Graphic Design. Grace was the Director
for SEVEN Youth Media Network a magazine, radio
show, website and youth advisory committee. Her previous
work experience includes: Graphic Designer for Wawatay NCS
working with the newspaper, Sagatay and print services. She
also worked for CBC Radio ONE (Thunder Bay) as a journalism
intern. She’s very passionate about our people, and hopes
that her work experience will be beneficial for the work she
does for the communications department, and looks forward
to working with the members of Matawa.
11
MATAWA MESSENGER | DECEMBER 2012
Becoming your own boss exploring entrepreneurship
What is an entrepreneur? An
entrepreneur is someone who
sets out to start and run their
own business. Most people are
motivated to start their own
business because they want to
be their own boss and secure income through self-employment.
Others want to start a business
because they are passionate
about making that first sale,
opening a new location, employing more people, getting an
industry award, and getting great
feedback from customers. Some
do it simply for the challenge
or because they have identified
an opportunity that nobody has
taken advantage of yet.
First Nation entrepreneurs can
face many obstacles on their
journey to launching their own
business. First Nation owned
businesses tend to have less
access to funding and established business networks, incur
higher costs of business due to
their often remote locations, do
not always have access to the
necessary skills or training, and
encounter limited understanding
of First Nations circumstances
by non-First Nations firms and
individuals. Matawa First Nations Management has advisory
and support services available for
community members who are
interested in exploring entrepreneurship.
Matawa can help you prepare
MATAWA
FIRST NATION
MANAGEMENT
your business or marketing plans
and have developed a business
network through the Thunder
Bay Chamber of Commerce.
We have many resources available like a business plan template, toolkit and information to
help community members find
sources of financing for their
business ideas. We can help you
with researching start-up costs,
finding suppliers, getting customer information, scheduling your
operations and forecasting sales
which are all important parts of
your business plan.
OUR SERVICES:
CHIEFS COUNCIL SUPPORT AND
ADVISORY SERVICES
COMMUNICATIONS
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ADVISORY SERVICES
EDUCATION
Growth in self-employment rates
is strong among our people. In
2006 there were about 34,000
Aboriginal entrepreneurs in
Canada, an increase of 25% from
2001. The rate of growth in
self-employment among Aboriginal Canadians was more than
three times the national average
of non-Aboriginal Canadians.
Despite the obstacles faced by
Aboriginal entrepreneurs the impact of First Nations businesses is
remarkable as a recent report estimated Aboriginal-owned businesses in Canada were projected
to earn $974 million in 2011.
FINANCIAL ADVISORY SERVICES
FOUR RIVERS
GATHERING OF RIVERS FOR
COMMUNITY CARE
HEALTH AND SOCIAL MENO BIIMADESWIN
KIIKKENOMAGA KIKENJIGEWEN
EMPLOYMENT & TRAINING SERVICES
(KKETS)
MEMBERSHIP SERVICES
If you have any questions on
starting your own business or
require support please contact
Jason Rasevych, Matawa First
Nations - Economic Development Advisor at 807-344-4575 or
email: jrasevych@matawa.on.ca.
RING OF FIRE OFFICE
TECHNICAL SERVICES
For more information please see the
information below.
Matawa First Nations | 233 S. Court Street | Thunder Bay, ON P7B 2X9 | Tel: (807) 344-4575 | Fax: (807) 344-2977 | Toll Free: 1-800-463-2249
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