This paper was prepared as a background to a presentation on Indigenous economic development and indigenous business partnerships for an Indigenous economic development seminar in Ecuador. The primary focus of the paper is to provide case studies and examples of Indigenous businesses and to suggest some possible strategies and tactics that could be helpful as Indigenous Peoples in Ecuador work to become more productively involved in their local, national and regional economies. The paper is intended to stimulate discussion only, it is not designed to be an in depth analysis of the subject.

1. Experiences and
Thoughts on Indige-
nous Business & Eco-
nomic Development
Date: May 29, 2000
Prepared For: Inter-American Development Bank
Prepared By: Wayne Dunn & Associates
Canada
Tel: +1-250-743-7619
Fax: +1-250-743-7659
info@waynedunn.com
www.waynedunn.com

2. -i-
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................1
2 INDIGENOUS BUSINESS IN CANADA: ...............................................................1
2.1 CURRENT STATUS .........................................................................................................1
2.2 INDIGENOUS/NON-INDIGENOUS JOINT VENTURES .......................................................2
2.3 INTER-INDIGENOUS PARTNERSHIPS .............................................................................3
3 INDIGENOUS BUSINESS CASE STUDIES & EXAMPLES...............................5
3.1 WHITE BEAR OIL AND GAS: BRINGING FIRST NATION VALUES TO THE
OIL INDUSTRY ..........................................................................................................5
3.2 VANCOUVER ISLAND NATURAL GAS PIPELINE...............................................7
3.3 GREEN SPIRIT ENVIRONMENT: MAKING A CLEAN SWEEP OF SUCCESS....9
3.4 PRINCE ALBERT DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION: FIRST NATIONS
WORKING TOGETHER TOWARD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ....................10
3.5 NORTHERN RESOURCE TRUCKING/KITSAKI DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION .............12
3.6 NOOTKA MERCHANDISING: MAKING WOOD GO FARTHER........................13
3.7 DEH CHO AIR, FORT LIARD, NWT .......................................................................14
3.8 INUIT COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS LIMITED CONNECTING THE NORTH
....................................................................................................................................15
3.9 LAC LA RONGE INDIAN BAND – KITSAKI DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION A
CANADIAN INDIGENOUS SUCCESS STORY ..................................................................17
4 STRATEGIES AND TACTICS ..............................................................................21
4.1 PROFITABILITY AND BUSINESS OBJECTIVES ..............................................................21
4.2 ORGANIZATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS .........................................................................21
4.3 REGULATORY ADVANTAGE........................................................................................22
4.4 JOINT VENTURES ........................................................................................................22
4.5 NATURAL RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT ........................................................................22
4.6 TOURISM .....................................................................................................................24
4.7 ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND MANAGEMENT SERVICES ...............................24
4.8 DEMINING ACTIVITIES ................................................................................................24
5 SUMMARY...............................................................................................................25

3. -1-
2 Indigenous Business in
1 Introduction Canada:
This paper was prepared as a background to 2.1 Current Status
a presentation on Indigenous economic de-
velopment and indigenous business partner-
ships for an Indigenous economic devel- Today indigenous businesses are active in
opment seminar in Ecuador. The primary every sector of the Canadian economy.
focus of the paper is to provide case studies However, that certainly wasn’t always the
and examples of Indigenous businesses and case, nor is it the case in all regions of Can-
to suggest some possible strategies and tac- ada. It is only in the last 15 years that In-
tics that could be helpful as Indigenous digenous business has started to thrive in
Peoples in Ecuador work to become more Canada. And, in many regions it is still in
productively involved in their local, na- its incipient stages, struggling to find and
tional and regional economies. The paper develop opportunities.
is intended to stimulate discussion only, it
is not designed to be an in depth analysis of Over the period from 1985 to 2000 there
the subject. was over $2 billion1 invested in Aboriginal
businesses in Canada, creating the largest
For Millennia Indigenous Peoples were in growth in aboriginal business ever achieved
total control of the entire economy of the anywhere in the world. A number of fac-
Western Hemisphere. Their business and tors combined to create this boom. Some
trade activities encompassed the entire of the more significant were:
hemisphere, manufacturing and trading
goods and services and supporting healthy • Indigenous leadership recognized the
cultures and communities. However, with need to become productive participants
the introduction of Europeans, the advent of in the economy
the industrial age, and numerous discrimi- • Canadian government provided finan-
natory and destructionist policies, Indige- cial and technical support to Indigenous
nous Peoples of the Americas found them- businesses and indigenous business de-
selves severely marginalized economically, velopment
politically and socially and no longer in • Regulatory requirements mandated in-
control of their own economy. digenous involvement and participation
(this ranged from requirements to ‘con-
Over the past twenty years there has been a sult’ with Indigenous Peoples through
resurgence in Indigenous business. Led by to regimes like the Bayda report which
countries like Canada, where the govern- allowed Uranium development in
ment has provided direct financial support northern Saskatchewan, but required a
and where the regulatory regime often pro- minimum level of Indigenous involve-
vides indigenous peoples with an advantage ment and provided a business prefer-
in supplying goods and services to resource ence for Indigenous owned businesses.
extraction projects, Indigenous peoples are • Early success models such as Kitsaki
starting to develop and operate many busi- Development Corporation’s approach
nesses. to joint ventures (profiled later in this
report), demonstrated the potential of
indigenous business development
1
Note, all figures in this report are in Canadian dol-
lars. The USD$ value is approximately 2/3 e.g.
CAD$1.00 = USD$.66

4. -2-
• Success stories such as Chief Harry many factors and considerations that are
Cook and the Kitsaki Development beyond the scope of this discussion. The
Corporation made themselves available commonality between all of them is they
to share their experiences with other allow Indigenous and non-Indigenous part-
indigenous organizations. ners to work together in mutually beneficial
• Non-indigenous businesses recognized ways.
the value that could be created by part-
nering with indigenous peoples Why do it?
• Canada enacted an Aboriginal Pro- Why share the opportunity? Why would
curement Policy to encourage Federal either party (Indigenous or non-Indigenous)
government departments to purchase want to share the opportunity and the re-
goods and services from Indigenous wards? Why not do it alone and keep all
owned businesses. the profits and other benefits? The reality
• Major resource companies recognized is that it often takes more than one party to
the corporate reputation issues that bring all the pieces together to make a deal
could result from negative relationships happen and the synergy achieved through
with local indigenous peoples. economic collaboration can create a much
• Canadian courts ruled in favour of In- bigger pie.
digenous resource rights in a number of
key cases. Many business and economic opportunities
require a range of ingredients to succeed.
Some of these include, capital, management
2.2 Indigenous/Non-Indigenous expertise, access to labour, financial exper-
Joint Ventures tise, access to land and resources, permita-
bility2 and regulatory compliance, local
Many of the Canadian indigenous business knowledge, local relationships, etc. Often
successes have used a joint venture ap- it is not possible for one partner to have all
proach to enable them to bridge financial of these ingredients. Each party has some
and managerial capacity gaps and take ad- of what is required and together they have
vantage of significant business opportuni- the pieces that can be put together to form a
ties. profitable venture so they come together to
take advantage of opportunities that would
What is it? be challenging for either of them working
Indigenous/non-Indigenous business col- alone.
laboration is often referred to generically as
‘joint ventures’. For this discussion we This is true for many businesses, not just
will work from a definition that covers all indigenous owned and those working with
forms of indigenous/non-indigenous busi- indigenous people. Mining, oil and gas,
ness and economic collaboration including: transportation (airline networks), health
care, information technology, services,
Partnerships manufacturing, etc., virtually all businesses
Joint Ventures and industries are looking at the synergy
Corporations and value that can be created through col-
Sub-contracting laboration and strategic alliances. Take a
Procurement look at a business paper almost any day and
Employment you see announcements of mergers, acqui-
Etc. sitions and joint ventures, or read articles
about virtual organizations in today’s net-
In Canada each of the above forms have
their own legal issues and structures. 2
The ability to acquire the necessary permits and
Which form is used will be dependent upon regulatory approval.

5. -3-
worked world. All of these are about eco- determining issues of project inputs,
nomic collaboration. The situation with operational control, management, pro-
indigenous/non-indigenous collaboration is ject benefits, etc.
nothing unique.
Joint ventures have enabled many indige-
Another reason that some indigenous or-
nous businesses to secure the financial and
ganizations prefer the collaborative or joint
managerial capacity needed to acquire lu-
venture route to business development is
crative new opportunities and generate
that it allows them to take advantage of
profitable business operations.
more opportunities than they could if they
worked alone. This is because they have
access to more opportunities than they have 2.3 Inter-Indigenous Partner-
the capacity to manage and develop on their ships
own. If they were to work on everything by
themselves they would quickly have all of In addition to cultural and lifestyle similari-
their management capacity deployed and be ties, Indigenous Peoples throughout the
unable to evaluate and take advantage of Americas have shared many comparable
new opportunities that come along. By experiences during the five hundred years
working with partners they are able to lev- since Columbus first landed. Loss of tradi-
erage the managerial and operating experi- tional lands and livelihoods, colonializa-
ence of partners and take advantage of tion, economic and social marginalization,
more opportunities. and attempts at cultural extinction are some
of the common elements of the history of
In addition to the above reasons, in Canada Indigenous Peoples throughout the hemi-
there are often tax advantages that can cre- sphere. Despite these experiences, indige-
ate additional value for indigenous / non- nous culture and identity remains strong
indigenous collaboration. Indigenous Peo- and Indigenous Peoples are beginning to
ples and institutions, by nature of their share new, more positive experiences; as-
unique tax status, may be able to create in- sisting each other to achieve development
cremental value through passing on tax sav- objectives.
ings to the joint venture.
Many of Canada’s Indigenous Peoples have
Necessary conditions begun to focus on business and economic
Experience throughout Canada on indige- development, seeking to become more pro-
nous/non-indigenous economic collabora- ductive participants in the Canadian econ-
tion has shown that long-term success is omy and to gain increased control over
much more likely if several conditions are their own destinies. Over the past twenty
met. years this has produced a virtual explosion
in indigenous business development with
It is a viable business opportunity thousands of businesses, operating success-
It can create meaningful value for each fully in every sector of the Canadian econ-
party to the deal omy. At the same time indigenous peoples
have been developing the political and in-
It can create unique value in the mar-
stitutional capacity to assume increasing
ketplace control of the institutions and agencies that
Collectively the partners have, or can are daily parts of their lives.
acquire the necessary pieces to make
the deal happen Canadian Indigenous peoples lead the
world in Indigenous business development
The partners have a genuine willing-
and have developed expertise in developing
ness to develop win-win solutions to

6. -4-
business in ways that are supportive of cul- Resource companies are often searching for
tures and communities. Latin American new and constructive ways of involving
Indigenous peoples often have access to Indigenous peoples in resource develop-
business opportunities, but lack the finan- ment projects. However, many Indigenous
cial and technical capacity to take full ad- organizations lack the technical and finan-
vantage of them. Indigenous peoples in cial capacity to assist their people to capi-
Latin America have strong families and talize on these opportunities. Linking re-
communities and are not besieged by many source based Canadian Indigenous busi-
of the social issues that are plaguing many nesses together with Indigenous peoples
North American Indigenous Peoples. Fa- from the Ecuador will result in the devel-
cilitating the development of partnerships opment of inter-Indigenous partnerships
and linkages between Indigenous Peoples that will produce meaningful and sustain-
throughout the Americas can help to ad- able benefits for all concerned.
dress many of the pressing social and eco-
nomic issues they are facing.
The experiences of Canada’s Indigenous
Peoples provide a huge pool of develop-
ment expertise that can collaborate with
other Indigenous Peoples who have not yet
had the same development experiences.
Inter-Indigenous Partnerships in which
Indigenous peoples in Canada and their
counterparts in other areas of the world
share experience, capacity and learning are
a promising development strategy. These
partnerships offer a number of specific ad-
vantages for all concerned (Canadian In-
digenous Peoples, Indigenous Peoples from
Latin America and elsewhere in the world,
Development agencies and institutions, pri-
vate sector firms operating in the vicinity or
Indigenous peoples, Nation States, etc.).
The partnerships can facilitate sharing of
relevant experiences, help to bridge capac-
ity gaps, support institutional development
and promote meaningful indigenous par-
ticipation in resource development and
other business projects.
The natural resource sector (Mining, Oil &
Gas, and related activities such as pipeline
construction) is a fertile sector for the de-
velopment of inter-indigenous partnerships
between Canada and Peru. Indigenous
businesses in Canada have a plethora of
experience in providing goods and services
to the resource industry. Indigenous peo-
ples in Ecuador live on lands where com-
panies from Canada and around the world
are exploring for and developing resources.

7. -5-
base royalty as well as options to partici-
pate in the oil production. By taking advan-
3 Indigenous Business tage of these options to participate WBOG
Case Studies & Exam- has more than tripled their revenue. This
ples revenue is either put back into oil produc-
tion or used to help the community by, for
example, assisting youth groups and elders.
The following case studies and examples WBOG also wanted to give something back
illustrate the range and diversity of Indige- to past generations that will never benefit
nous business development in Canada. The from the oil that was a part of their land, so
examples are not necessarily the best, nor the company decided to put up headstone
the only example in the various industries markers for those who have passed away.
and sectors that they represent. They have
been selected to provide an overview of the "We want to put markers on these graves so
various businesses that have been devel- that the people who are gone will never be
oped by Indigenous Peoples in Canada. forgotten, so that our history will never be
lost," says Terry Littlechief, President of
Original sources are noted at the end of WBOG.
each case study.
Chief Brian Standingready believes it is
3.1 WHITE BEAR OIL AND GAS: important that the First Nation focuses on
helping their people, rather than making
BRINGING FIRST NATION
profits. "The oil won't be here forever, our
VALUES TO THE OIL IN- people are our priority," says Chief Stand-
DUSTRY ingready. "We have to respect the land, our
heritage sites, the environment. We always
Oil production has turned into a big busi- consider the future generations and ask
ness for the White Bear First Nation. In- what this is doing for them."
deed, 1700 barrels of oil per day are pro-
duced on the approximately 12,000 hectare Mr. Littlechief agrees, "We believe that
(30,000 acre) reserve located 13 kilometers each action taken has many effects. What
north of Carlyle, Saskatchewan and they we do today will effect future generations.
plan to drill 40 new wells within the next Following strict environmental guidelines
year. But the priorities of White Bear Oil and spending the revenue properly is very
and Gas (WBOG), the First Nation's oil important to us, so that 20 years, 50 years,
company, are helping their community, 100 years down the road our grandchildren
protecting the environment and respecting won't question the decisions we made."
Aboriginal traditions.
WBOG has managed to merge the oil busi-
WBOG's success in the oil industry is ness with their cultural beliefs. For many
largely due to a unique agreement they members of the First Nation, their land, and
signed in December 1993 with Tri Link nature in general, is something sacred. For
Resources Ltd., a Calgary based oil com- this reason, before any activity takes place
pany. The agreement allows Tri Link to on a future well site, an elder goes to the
drill for oil on the reserve and enables area and prays to ask the land for forgive-
WBOG to take part in the oil production by ness and to thank the land for its bounty. As
sharing in the costs and profits and benefit- well, sacred heritage sites are declared no-
ing from the employment opportunities and drill zones. Because preserving the natural
economic spin offs. beauty of White Bear Lake and the sur-
rounding country is important to the First
The agreement provides WBOG with a Nation on spiritual, environmental and eco-

8. -6-
nomic levels, WBOG asks that abandoned Petroleum Land Administrators with the
well sites be restored to an environmental White Bear Pilot Project. These individuals
standard higher than oil industry standards. all attended the Southern Alberta Institute
of Technology for training sponsored by the
Tri Link is sensitive toward White Bear's White Bear First Nation and received cer-
environmental and cultural concerns. Mr. tificates as Petroleum Land Administrators.
Littlechief says that Tri Link has worked in
partnership with White Bear to address Many White Bear First Nation members
these concerns and form a relationship built have gained training and work experience
on trust. in the oil industry thanks to WBOG. So far
approximately 38 members have been
In a letter to the White Bear First Nation trained and employed by drilling rigs that
Gary Burns, President and CEO of Tri are working for Tri Link and four have
Link, describes their relationship, "There been trained and are working as contract
are many aspects to the agreement, how- battery operators. Recently four White Bear
ever, the foundation was one of trust - trust members were trained and certified as
between an oil company and a First Nations heavy equipment operators in a program
people...the White Bear Project is similar to jointly sponsored between Tri Link and the
a foreign operation...we try to honour the First Nation-run Kakakaway Learning Cen-
traditional laws and cultural heritage as tre. In the past, the Kakakaway Learning
guests in another land." Centre and Tri Link have teamed up to of-
fer training to 30 individuals in the areas of
Through continual communication and re- chainsaw certification, chainsaw instructors
spect, Tri Link and White Bear have come certification and entry level training such as
to understand each other's aims. One of first aid, CPR and H2S Alive.
White Bear's goals in allowing the devel-
opment of its oil and gas reserves is to cre- As well, the agreement provides White
ate employment and training opportunities Bear companies and private contractors
for First Nation members. with the opportunity to bid for services re-
quired by Tri Link such as surface lease
In his letter, Mr. Burns points to this goal, construction, pipeline construction, seismic
"Part of this agreement between Tri Link line clearing, well site reclamation, truck-
and the White Bear people outlines a moral ing, well site maintenance and drilling and
commitment by Tri Link to help create service contracting. As a result, seven new
longer term employment, to encourage edu- businesses have developed on the White
cation and to be proactive on certain social Bear First Nation creating new employment
issues." opportunities and on-the-job work experi-
ence for many First Nation members. These
Since White Bear began working with Tri activities have provided over 90 First Na-
Link, a number of First Nation members tion people with short or long-term em-
have been trained and employed in the oil ployment.
industry. Tri Link hired two university
graduates from White Bear to work in their White Bear Oil and Gas is very pleased
Calgary office as a petroleum land admini- with the economic development that has
stration assistant and a geological technical resulted and hopes that this is only the be-
assistant. A summer student was hired to ginning. Mr. Littlechief envisions a bright
work out of their Kipling office to gain en- future for WBOG, a future that includes
vironmental and production experience. investing in the oil industry off reserve.
But, he says that as WBOG grows, it will
Two White Bear members work out of continue to base its business on the First
WBOG's office and two members work as Nation's values.

9. -7-
bring the gas across Georgia strait by un-
Indeed, WBOG's mission statement states derwater pipeline. They also were posi-
that the company's goal is "to contribute to tioned to start laying the mainline from
the present and future prosperity of White landfall at Nanaimo south to Victoria and
Bear First Nation by ensuring the quality of North to Campbell River.
life for the people, environment and future
generations through the guardianship and Like many Government and private agen-
administration of our oil and gas resources, cies of the time, the need to consult effec-
revenues and future developments." tively with Aboriginal people either did not
occur to them or it was subordinated to pro-
"There are benefits to having oil revenue, ject deadline demands. In any event no con-
but there is also a down side," says Mr. Lit- sultations took place in spite of the fact that
tlechief. "We deal with weighing this bal- the new mainline would have to cross sev-
ance everyday; whether the damage done to eral Indigenous Reserves.
our land will be worth it in the end. For this
reason we feel very strongly that the reve-
nue has to be spent properly so that it can CHIEF DENNIS ALPHONSE OF THE
benefit us and our grandchildren down the COWICHAN TRIBES INTERCEDED.
road." The Cowichan Tribes, with a population of
3,000 is British Columbia’s largest First
Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Nation. Historically they dominated the
landscape of the island and had a reputation
3.2 VANCOUVER ISLAND for not standing idly by when strangers en-
tered their territory.
NATURAL GAS PIPELINE
Cowichan is located approximately half
INTRODUCTION way between Victoria (35 miles) at the
Vancouver Island (The Island) is on the south end of the island and Nanaimo (35
very west coast of Canada. It has a popula- miles) to the north. The pipeline was pro-
tion of 700,000, is 70 miles wide and 300 posed to cross their reserve lands; in fact
miles long – (all numbers are estimates) not to do so would have meant re-routing
The majority of the development and popu- and adding significant cost.
lation of the island are located in the rain
shadow on the eastern side of the island. When Chief Dennis Alphonse became
aware of both the breach of protocol – no
Until 1991, the island was dependent on one consulted with or asked permission to
electrical power for the majority of its heat cross their land – and the Economic Devel-
& energy needs. This power was generated opment potential of the project for his
on the mainland and brought to the island membership he paid a visit to the head of-
by undersea cable across the Georgia Strait. fice of Centra Gas in Victoria.
To position the island to attract increasing His presentation was straightforward.
amounts of industry while at the same time Come up with a plan for meaningful in-
reducing its dependence on electrical power volvement of the Cowichan people in this
the decision was made in the late 1980’s to project or the pipeline would not cross
bring natural gas to the island. A new di- their land. It is reported from Centra Gas
vision of Westcoast Energy, a Canadian officials that the meeting and request
natural gas company, was established to caught them by surprise. They had simply
facilitate and deliver this service to the cus- not thought of the First Nations or the im-
tomers of the island. This entity, Centra plications of not following protocol or in-
Gas, mobilized the necessary resources to volving them.

10. -8-
Company. Total profits are well over $1
THE OUTCOME million and The Company, Khowutzun
Mustimuhw Contractors has become a suc-
Neither the Cowichan Tribes nor Centra
cess story and model that Westcoast Energy
Gas had any pre-conceived plan on how to
and Centra Gas have tried to replicate in
proceed. Cowichan had neither the capital,
other areas.
nor the relevant business experience to un-
dertake a large service installation contract
to bring natural gas to individual users. It is
LESSONS LEARNED:
reported that a search of suitable candidates
was undertaken and, for reasons known 1. Select Your Joint Venture Partners
only to those involved, a company from Carefully and/Or Ensure That They
Arizona was chosen as a Joint Venture Are Sensitized To Aboriginal Issues
partner for Cowichan. This company had Before You Start. It opens the way to
significant industry experience but little poor communication when the two
Aboriginal experience. The subsequent partners really don’t understand what
Joint Venture Agreement that was negoti- makes the other tick. In the early stages
ated was flawed in favour of the Arizona of negotiations each partner’s goals,
Company. No clear-cut plans were in place objectives and ‘hot buttons’ must be
for involving Cowichans at all levels of the identified and discussed. This forms the
new company. basis for negotiating the agreement.
During the course of the 5-year agreement 2. Make Sure You Involve Experts In
however, up to 65 Cowichan people were Assisting With Preparing The Joint
employed at any one time with work lasting Venture Agreement. The joint ven-
up to 10 months per year. There was a lot ture should be structured by profession-
of complaining from both parties. The als with roles and responsibilities
Cowichan people complained of two sets of clearly spelled out and committed to in
rules on the job, one for the non-natives and appropriate agreements.
one for them. They complained about the
way they were treated by their non-native
superiors. The JV partner on the other hand 3. Provide cross-cultural training and
complained about a lack of productivity, support. All employees should take at
reliability and general cooperation of the least a two-day course so that each un-
Cowichan. They said that they had sur- derstands how to work effectively with
passed their commitment to employ at least the other. Regular in-service seminars
50% Cowichans (they averaged 80%). should also be conducted to re-enforce
important concepts, update the group
on issues and to discuss any areas of
When the 5-year agreement ended in 1996, contention.
Cowichan formed their own company and
operated the business on their own. By
this time they had accumulated a sizeable 4. Establish A Clear Cut Succession Or
labour force of experienced personnel, Exit Strategy. Most Aboriginal people
some capital and an experienced General aspire to have full control over their
Manager. The project and new company, own destiny and eventually own 100%
which are both still operating, has created a of the business. Aspirations must be
lot of meaningful employment and wealth tempered with the reality that operating
for the Cowichan Community both by way a complex business requires building
of wages and net income earned by the capacity. This should be specifically

11. -9-
addressed and plans prepared for that "Boyd Petro Search was willing to help
both from a Human Resource and fi- develop an Aboriginal corporation so that
nancial capital perspective. Aboriginals could be more than just em-
ployees, they could be the employers."
Source: RJ Isbister & Associates "I didn't want to look back at my life in 20
years and wonder ‘what if?’ But this busi-
3.3 GREEN SPIRIT ENVIRON- ness isn't just important to me, it's impor-
MENT: MAKING A CLEAN tant to other Aboriginal people too," adds
SWEEP OF SUCCESS Dean Manywounds, who managed the on-
reserve gravel operation for eight years. "I
think this industry is, inherently, in the
Dean and Peter Manywounds are cleaning blood of Aboriginal people. We have, his-
up - in more ways than one. torically and culturally, been the protectors
of the earth for thousands of years."
They co-own and operate an environmental
company called Green Spirit Environment Boyd Petro Search, an oil and gas consult-
Inc., which has an office on the Tsuu T'ina ing company, fit the bill perfectly.
Nation near Calgary. Their company pro- "The Aboriginal market was virtually un-
vides services including waste manage- tapped," says Bob Raina, Manager of Envi-
ment, environmental assessments, envi- ronmental Services for Boyd Petro Search.
ronmental management, mediation and "Green Spirit approached us and they had
consultation. the same philosophies as we did so we
Green Spirit's main goal is to better the knew we would make an excellent team."
earth's environment, without becoming po- Mr. Raina says it was the best of both
litical, says Dean Manywounds. worlds for all parties involved. "Culturally,
"Green Spirit is not a hired gun for First Green Spirit had a knowledge that Boyd
Nations, or for energy companies, or for Petro Search could never have. There is so
any other organization," says Mr. Many- much more cultural significance and at-
wounds. "Green Spirit is a hired gun for tachment to the land in the Aboriginal mar-
Mother Earth. We are trying to ensure her ketplace," says Mr. Raina, who is one of
protection for years to come." Green Spirit's Directors. "That's why Green
Spirit is so unique because they approach
The brothers had to look long and hard be- the Aboriginal environmental industry from
fore they found a partner who shared their an Aboriginal perspective."
vision. After a two-year search, they en-
tered into a joint-venture in 1995 with In spite of Mr. Raina's praise for the com-
Northern Enviro Search, a wholly owned pany, Dean Manywounds admits he was
subsidiary of the Calgary-based company, initially apprehensive.
Boyd Petro Search. "We sank all our money into the business
"In our search, we found that a lot of envi- and that was a big gamble," says Dean Ma-
ronmental companies were more interested nywounds. "But six months after opening,
in breaking into the Aboriginal marketplace we were operating self-sufficiently, we
than helping an Aboriginal become suc- were right on target. We were paying our
cessful in the industry," says Dean Many- employees and updating our equipment all
wounds. He and his brother financed 51 through our profits."
percent ownership of Greenspirit entirely Dean Manywounds is also trying to focus
from their own pockets. his energy on educating young people about
the expanding environmental industry. Mr.

12. - 10 -
Manywounds is planning a road trip across
the prairies to talk to young people about Strength in unity is the philosophy of
how to get involved in the environmental PADC. In striving for economic self-
field. sufficiency, PADC gives priority to First
Nations people, but the corporation com-
"I want young Aboriginal people to know bines this with good business sense and
that there is a corporation that is more than always attempts to secure the best-qualified
willing to help them out if they're inter- people. Mr. Daniels believes PADC has
ested," says Mr. Manywounds. helped to change the way people think
about First Nations in the business sector.
Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
"We've shown that First Nations have man-
agement capabilities when it comes to busi-
ness. It used to be that every time a First
3.4 PRINCE ALBERT DEVEL- Nation business went under it was big
OPMENT CORPORATION: news. We've been holding our own and do-
FIRST NATIONS WORKING ing it nicely and proving some myths
TOGETHER TOWARD ECO- wrong."
NOMIC DEVELOPMENT
PADC's first business venture was in the
Eleven years ago the Prince Albert Grand area of real estate. During the 1980s, the
Council (PAGC) was sitting on the side- PAGC took over the administration of
lines when it came to economic develop- many programs and services formerly ad-
ment. First Nation members were pouring ministered by Indian and Northern Affairs
money into Prince Albert's economy, but Canada (INAC). As a result, the Grand
the PAGC had no venues through which it Council was hiring new staff while INAC
could participate in the city's economic de- was reducing staffing requirements. The
velopment. Today the PAGC is playing an First Nations saw an opportunity in devel-
active role in Prince Albert's economy oping a new office complex to house its
through the Prince Albert Development own staff, as well as those of INAC and
Corporation (PADC). Medical Services Branch (MSB) of Health
Canada. The First Nations pooled their
The PADC, with its head office located 10 economic resources in order to provide the
kilometers north of Prince Albert on the equity the newly formed Development
Wahpeton First Nation, was established in Corporation needed to finance construction
1985 and is equally owned by the 12 First of the John E. Mac Donald building. The
Nations that comprise the PAGC. Since its PADC also signed long-term leases with
establishment, the PADC has ventured into the Grand Council, INAC and MSB. Since
real estate, security and janitorial services, constructing this first office building in
the hotel and service industries, construc- 1986, PADC has purchased one more office
tion and employment referral services. complex in the city of Prince Albert and
two properties in the surrounding area.
Wesley Daniels sat on PADC's board of
directors as Chief of Sturgeon Lake First PADC also started a security and janitorial
Nation, was general manager for over a services company in 1986. Over the past 10
year and now sits on the management board years, this company has continued to grow.
which deals with the day-to-day business Today they have contracts with Cogema
operations. Mr. Daniels believes PADC has Resources Inc., Cameco Corporation and
grown as a result of a good business phi- Millar Western Pulp to provide security and
losophy. janitorial services to mine sites, pulp mills
and office buildings.

13. - 11 -
Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups have
In 1993, PADC saw that there was a great many advantages. While PADC benefits
deal of potential for the corporation in from PCL's expertise and size, PCL bene-
Prince Albert's hotel and service industry. fits from PADC's influence in the market as
First Nations organizations often met in an Aboriginally owned corporation as well
Prince Albert and required hotel and meet- as PADC's access to the northern labour
ing accommodations. Rather than letting market.
someone else gain the economic and em-
ployment benefits of First Nation business, PADC has capitalized further on the
PADC decided to purchase the Prince Al- McClean Lake mine construction by sign-
bert Inn. The PADC has upgraded the inn ing a two-year contract with Cogema to
by adding over $750,000 worth of im- provide an employment referral service for
provements. The inn includes 108 rooms, a construction through a PADC agency
pool, conference and banquet facilities, known as Northern Employment Services
nightclub, lounge, cold beer and wine store (NES). This agency has compiled an up-to-
and restaurant. date database of over 400 northerners avail-
able to work on the project. Instead of hav-
In its first year of operation under PADC ing to bring in workers from other parts of
ownership, the inn's total sales increased by Saskatchewan or other provinces or having
14 percent. Trevor Ives, the General Man- to search the north for a qualified work-
ager and Director of Finance of PADC, force, the contractor is supplied with a list
says that First Nation ownership has a great of available workers by NES. PADC will
deal to do with the hotel's success. be paid a fee based on the number of hours
worked by employees hired through NES.
"As a general rule the owners of a business In the space of one year over 160 employ-
will support that business. Having a base of ees have been hired through NES generat-
approximately 23,000 owners helps in de- ing in excess of 170,000 man-hours of work
veloping a large market," says Mr. Ives. for residents of Northern Saskatchewan.
"This market, combined with sound man-
agement, committed staff and the support Mr. Daniels says that creating job opportu-
of a strong Board of Directors has been key nities for Aboriginal people is one of the
to our accomplishments in business." corporation's goals. For him creating em-
ployment goes hand in hand with business
Recently PADC has used its service indus- success.
try experience gained at the Prince Albert
Inn to operate the Northstar restaurant and "Success is going into a business and mak-
lounge at the Northern Lights Casino and ing it pay, you make it pay and you create
its real estate knowledge to act as the de- employment and you make it pay more and
veloper for the casino building. you create more employment," says Mr.
Daniels. "The Prince Albert Inn is a good
In 1994, PADC entered into a joint venture example. We increased occupancy and by
agreement with PCL Construction Man- doing so increased employment. As you get
agement Inc. to bid on up-coming construc- bigger you create more jobs."
tion projects. In 1995, PADC/PCL-Maxam,
A Joint Venture, successfully bid on the With a sales estimate in excess of $10 mil-
construction of the new multi-million dollar lion per year and over 200 employees, the
uranium mill near McClean Lake, 45 kilo- majority of whom are Aboriginal, it would
meters west of the community of Wollaston seem that PADC has reached success.
Lake.
But, Mr. Daniels says, "PADC hasn't
Mr. Ives says that joint ventures between reached success. I don't think anyone ever

14. - 12 -
reaches success. If you say you've reached vantage, but that they
success you start to coast. Success is an would need a partner who
ongoing venture." would had the ability to
execute the contract. They
If PADC hasn't achieved success, they've researched several prospec-
certainly made a great deal of progress. tive partners and ap-
Prince Albert's business community has proached Trimac Transpor-
recognized this and made PADC a finalist tation, one of the largest
in the city's Samuel McLeod Business trucking firms in North
Awards in four categories including busi- America. They offered to
ness of the year, job creation, new business joint venture with in the
and investment. Not bad for a corporation establishment of a trucking
that only 11 years ago was watching Prince service to supply northern
Albert's economic development from the Sk. Initially Trimac balked
sidelines. at Kitsaki’s insistence that
Trimac commit to a non-
Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada compete agreement which
would prohibit them from
doing any business in
3.5 Northern Resource Truck- northern Sask. unless it was
done through the joint ven-
ing/Kitsaki Development
ture. After Kitsaki outlined
Corporation the specific advantages the
joint venture provided on
Founding Lac La Ronge First Na- all northern Sask. business
Partners tion/Kitsaki Development Trimac agreed to do the
Corporation deal.
Trimac Transporta-
tion/Northern Resource Current Currently NRT has annual
Trucking Status revenues of $23 million. It
was recently restructured to
broaden the northern Sas-
Industry Transportation – Trucking katchewan indigenous
ownership, bringing total
Location Head office is based in northern indigenous owner-
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan ship to 79%
Canada. They provide
trucking services to the Northern ownership is
mining industry throughout structured as follows:
northern Sk.
• 30% Kitsaki Devel-
Background The initial partnership was opment Corporation,
developed in 1986 to bid now called Kitsaki
on a transportation contract Management Limited
to the Key Lake minesite in Partnership.
Northern Saskatchewan. • 20% Denesuline De-
The mine license provided velopment Corpora-
a preference for northern tion owned by the First
and aboriginal suppliers. Nations of Hatchet
Kitsaki realized that this Lake, Black Lake and
provided them with an ad- Fond Du Lac

15. - 13 -
• 3% Buffalo Narrows 1998 and about 50% of that
Economic Develop- went to northern operators.
ment Corporation –
owned by the northern NRT is the dominant sur-
Village of Buffalo Nar- face transportation com-
rows. pany in northern Sas-
• 3% Clearwater River katchewan and expects to
Development Corpo- continue growing with the
ration – owned by the economy of the region.
Clearwater Dene Na-
tion. Source: Wayne Dunn & Associates Ltd.
• 3% Cumberland
House Development 3.6 NOOTKA MERCHANDISING:
Corporation – owned MAKING WOOD GO FAR-
by the Cumberland
THER
House First Nation and
the Northern Village of
Cumberland House. If you haven't been to Tahsis lately, you
• 3% Des Nedhe Devel- might not recognize it. A new shake mill,
opment Corporation Nootka Merchandising, which produces
– owned by the English top-quality wood products out of waste
River First Nation. wood, is now gracing the handsome har-
• 3% Montreal Lake bour of this small town on northern Van-
Development Corpo- couver Island. In June of this year, Nootka
ration – owned by the Merchandising opened shop, complete with
Montreal Lake First a champagne christening of the mill build-
Nation. ings, and mill tours for the public.
• 3% Nikowtawsik De-
velopment Corpora- The company is owned equally by all seven
tion – owned by the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation chiefs
Peter Ballantyne Cree and councilors. Right now, the quarterly
Nation. revenue for the company is $12,000. In the
• 3% Sakitawak Devel- future it will receive 10 percent of the mar-
opment Corporation - ket value of the finished product. By the
owned by the Northern time the mill is running at full capacity, the
Village of Ile al la owners expect to earn nearly $80,000 annu-
Crosse. ally for assisting administration and secur-
ing fibre contracts, says Larry Andrews,
Currently, about 50% of board director and hereditary chief of the
NRT owner operators are Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation.
residents of Saskatche-
wan’s north They have The company has just added two new saws
about 40 owner operators to the plant, and is expanding to include
and 10 company power 'sawing lumbers' to its list of duties. Nootka
units. The overall opera- Merchandising also makes shake or shingle
tion employs about 120 blocks and paneling. The latter are 4'x8'
people and about 50% are sheets of plywood covered with a layer of
residents of Saskatche- clear wood. The finished product, which is
wan’s North. In fiscal used for siding and wall finishing, is worth
1998 owner operators got a lot more money than the original scrap
about $10,000,000 in fiscal wood it's built from.

16. - 14 -
joint venture has been established with
The company now has a contract to receive Nootka Forestry under the name of Ahami-
40,000 cubic metres of low-grade cedar, naquus Reman, Ltd., which will employ
which it will transform into various prod- young First Nations people trained for the
ucts. That much wood is enough to keep the job. A contract has been signed between
plant going for about seven-and-a-half A&A Trading and the Mowa-
months. The company is looking for con- chaht/Muchalaht First Nation to make its
tracts for an additional 10-15,000 cubic me- 20,000 cubic metres of timber quota avail-
tres of wood, which would enable the plant able for trade to supply the raw material
to stay open for a season of at least ten required for this operation.
months.
John Mohammed of A&A says the finished
Nootka Merchandising has a few people to product will be sold in established markets
thank for its success. Andrew Petter, then- in China, Korea and Japan. He says the
Deputy Minister of Forests, made the Japanese are especially fond of the wood
rounds of reserves in B.C., announcing the paneling for the interior of their traditional
provincial government's desire to see diver- Japanese homes. Standard-quality lumber
sification in forestry, and suggesting work- produced by this operation will be lami-
ing with low grades as an alternative. nated back into durable solid posts and used
for dimensional purposes in homes. When a
Almost three years ago the Clarke Group home uses these 'engineered-wood prod-
installed the infrastructure for the mill, to ucts' its value increases, since it will un-
the tune of nearly a half-million dollars, doubtedly be standing longer than one built
after being wooed by the promise of a of ordinary solid posts, which tend to twist
20,000-cubic-metre contract for timber. The and bow.
Band members, in return, invested their
knowledge of the industry, found the loca- Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
tion for the mill and secured the fibre con-
tracts.
3.7 DEH CHO AIR, FORT LIARD,
"The idea was to get Native employees,"
NWT
says Larry Andrews. Although Mowa-
chaht/Muchalaht people have first right-of-
refusal for jobs at the shake mill, the staff is Whether its transporting equipment for oil
mostly non-Native. The new Mowa- and gas exploration or flying in canoeists to
chaht/Muchalaht reserve community, Tsax- Virginia Falls, Deh Cho Air is one busy
ana, near Gold River, is so comfortable no company. And that's good news for the
one wants to move to Tahsis. This problem community of Fort Liard, Northwest Terri-
is being broached by a new added-value tories (NWT).
mill in Gold River, to start construction as
early as this fall; equipment has already Deh Cho Air, Fort Liard's air charter com-
been ordered for the operation. Once com- pany, has come a long way since it got off
pleted, the mill will consist of a chop line, the ground in 1985. At that time, its fleet
kiln dryer, ripping saw and molder. Knots consisted of one three-seater aircraft. It now
will be chopped out of low-grade wood and boasts a fleet of five aircraft, five employ-
the remaining wood finger-jointed back ees and a reputation for aviation excellence.
together to yield a 'clean', usable quality
product. "Our business has expanded way beyond
our backyard," says Rob Borelli, Deh Cho
A&A Trading, Ltd., of Vancouver has in- Air's manager. The company's fleet, which
vested the capital cost into this project. A includes single and multi-engine skis, floats

17. - 15 -
and wheeled aircraft, provides a wide range offering canoe rentals, fishing packages and
of air charter services to the southwestern day trips.
NWT.
"Most of the people we take on our trips are
Deh Cho Air has expanded to meet a grow- experienced travelers," says Borelli. "And
ing demand for air charter flights. Much of many return every few years to fly with us."
this demand has come from a surge in oil
and gas activity. In 1994, six companies -- With the construction of roads to the com-
Ranger Oil Ltd., Amoco Canada Petroleum munities of Trout Lake and Nahanni Butte
Company Ltd., Chevron Canada Resources presently underway, Borelli is hoping even
Ltd, Ocelot Energy Inc., Shell Canada Ltd., more tourists will visit the region.
and Paramount Resources Ltd. -- commit-
ted $22.7 million for exploration rights in Ultimately, Borelli and the Fort Liard Val-
the Fort Liard area. ley band would like to see the company run
and staffed by local community members.
The Fort Liard Valley band, owner of Deh With business thriving, Borelli and the
Cho Air, is poised to capture a significant band have a solid foundation to build on.
portion of the companies' expenditures over
the next four to five years. Many of the Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
band's businesses, which include construc-
tion companies, trucking services and a
new motel, are benefiting from the explora- 3.8 INUIT COMMUNICATIONS
tion activity. SYSTEMS LIMITED CON-
Aircraft have become indispensable to
NECTING THE NORTH
modern oil and gas exploration. The re- Inuit Communications Systems Limited
moteness of the exploration sites means that (ICSL) is a Northern company dedicated to
personnel and equipment must be flown in, finding Northern solutions. Since 1982 they
usually by helicopter. Aircraft also enable have been adapting the latest in communi-
what is called "low impact seismic activ- cation technologies to the special require-
ity." Rather than using heavy equipment to ments of Northerners.
cut seismic lines and roads over a large
area, seismic crews can now fly in and cut Fully Aboriginal owned, ICSL is the for-
much narrower lines by hand. profit arm of the Inuit Broadcasting Corpo-
ration (IBC) which produces five hours of
Although oil and gas activity has provided Inuit programming a week for TVNC;
a welcome boom to the region, it's far from Television Northern Canada network which
being the only source of business for Deh spans the entire North from Yukon to Lab-
Cho Air. "We don't have all of our eggs in rador. Through the video production facility
one basket," says Borelli. The company and service centre located in Iqaluit, NWT,
also provides services for construction, ICSL provides technical coordination and
mining, forestry and firefighting. And it consultation service designed to meet the
bills itself as the "Nahanni National Park communication needs of clients across the
Tour Specialist." North. They also supply comprehensive
equipment sales and services on a wide
The completion of the Liard Highway in range of professional broadcast and video
1982 opened up the world famous Nahanni conferencing equipment. In addition to
wilderness region to tourists. Deh Cho Air helping clients develop communications
supplies the majority of the private air char- solutions, ICSL and their marketing office
ters into Nahanni National Park, as well as in Ottawa can implement and oversee a
project through any and all stages.

18. - 16 -
production with a southern Canadian com-
The expert ICSL staff in Iqaluit working in pany for an international market. Having a
association with IBC handle video produc- well developed broadcast production team
tion projects ranging from providing au- gives the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation an
thentic footage in a Northern setting to pro- important opportunity to present an authen-
ducing full-length documentary films. ICSL tic representation of Inuit culture and the
produces local and regional contracts for Northern environment.
groups such as Arctic College, the Baffin
Regional Health Board as well as numerous The most important area of recent expan-
aboriginal organizations and government sion for Inuit Communications Systems
departments. The company also provides Limited has been in developing video con-
full broadcast quality production at all ferencing. It is an area of communications
stages for a growing international clientele technology which presents an exciting fron-
which includes Japan, Europe, and the tier for meeting the communication chal-
United States. As their reputation spreads, lenges of Northerners. ICSL maintains
an increasing number of international com- permanent public access video conferenc-
panies have been knocking on ICSL's door. ing centres in Ottawa, Iqaluit, and Rankin
Inlet, with plans to expand to Cambridge
The greatest advantage of working with Bay by the end of the year. The service
Inuit Communications Systems Limited is which is currently utilized mainly by gov-
the benefit of Northern knowledge and ex- ernment and business, represents a new
pertise. BBC and other international broad- way of doing business in the sparsely popu-
casters, unable to cope with the harsh Arc- lated North.
tic conditions have discovered that it is
more cost effective to use the crew supplied The video conferencing technology set up
by ICSL. The Inuit staff possesses all the in the northern centres will be supported by
tools to film on the land for extended peri- an eighteen-week intensive training pro-
ods. Local know how in dealing with ex- gram. Starting in January six unemployed
treme weather has proved invaluable to get- Inuit will receive specialized training which
ting jobs done on time. Once companies will cover the technical aspects of video
work with ICSL and see the professional conferencing as well as marketing the ser-
quality of productions they know that no- vice, and management skills required to
body does it better in the North. The com- coordinate conferences. The hands-on train-
pany goes the extra mile to build construc- ing will be conducted using the technology
tive working relationships with their clients. itself, with trainees participating from their
"We are always trying to align ourselves own communities.
with people who have strong international
contacts" says ICSL producer Patty Bill- Video conferencing holds a great potential
ings. to connect Northerners to each other or
with people anywhere in the world. Re-
When pursuing co-production opportunities cently, as part of the Museum of Nature
ICSL tries to guarantee the participation of exhibit at the World Conservation Con-
Northerners in productions which tell sto- gress, ICSL coordinated a video conference
ries about the Northern people and way of pilot program linking a class of students in
life. In August, ICSL was given permission Iqaluit with a class in Montreal. The two
to send a team to Repulse Bay to film the groups of students shared presentations via
first legally harvested bowhead whale hunt live video feed and were given the opportu-
in over twenty years. The IBC crew cap- nity to discuss environmental issues, tradi-
tured the return of a significant traditional tional and modern lifestyles, and the man-
cultural activity through Inuit eyes. The agement of resources in the modern world.
astonishing footage will be part of a co- Both groups gained a great deal of under-

19. - 17 -
standing from the face-to-face encounter. 3.9 Lac La Ronge Indian Band –
As producer Patty Billings explains projects Kitsaki Development Corpo-
like this are just starting to tap the potential ration A Canadian Indige-
of interactive two-way communication. "It nous Success Story
was very successful. This is a way to use
the video conferencing technology to link
the world to Northerners". One of the most successful examples of
Indigenous business development is the Lac
Not only is ICSL making steps towards La Ronge First Nation from Saskatchewan
connecting the North to the world, it is also in Central Canada. In the mid 1980s the
taking a giant leap toward connecting First Nation formed Kitsaki Development
communities throughout the circumpolar Corporation (KDC), which has since
world. A community consultation model is changed its name to Kitsaki Management
being developed to link communities via Limited Partnership, to serve as a vehicle
video and tele-conference. The advantages for the First Nation’s business and eco-
of the interactive component of the tech- nomic development activities.
nology, which can encompass a larger
symposium beyond the delegates sent to KDC hired professional management and
conferences, are within reach. Additional developed an objective of becoming a ma-
delegates can be linked in via video confer- jor economic force in northern Saskatche-
encing studios, and others groups can be wan and a major participant in all sectors of
linked through teleconference at hamlet the northern Saskatchewan economy. This
offices. In addition, through broadcast on was quite a challenge at the time as KDC
TVNC, the symposium can link communi- had literally no business experience and
ties throughout the North to the proceed- little capital. However it had several key
ings, and provide the opportunity for input advantages:
via a 1-800 number. The potential for com-
pletely interactive, live, simulcasts shows • A Chief and Council who were com-
great promise to expand direct community- mitted to the success of the business
based decision making and information and who allowed the business to oper-
sharing among Inuit. ate at arm’s length, eliminating political
interference
As Inuit Communications Systems Limited • A requirement that Indigenous people
expands the greatest challenge is keeping benefit from resource development.
on top of technology. Finding innovative (This requirement was articulated in the
applications which serve the practical needs Bayda Report, which set out the condi-
of Northerners and the cultural needs of tions for the development of the north-
Inuit, often go hand in hand. "In the North ern Saskatchewan Uranium industry,
we are able to be on the leading edge of it" stipulating that indigenous peoples
explains Patty Billings. "Just because of the should be beneficiaries)
distance, we need all the modern equipment • A visionary and entrepreneurial man-
just to communicate. Inuit are very accept- ager.
ing of this." Through a willingness to find
solutions ICSL is closing the distances be- Today, fifteen years later, they are one of
tween communities in the North and pro- the most successful examples of indigenous
viding vital links connecting the Inuit business development anywhere. They are
world. a major economic force in northern Sas-
katchewan and are 100% owners or major
shareholders in over 10 businesses with a
Source: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
combined value of over $50 million and
employing hundreds of people. The fol-

20. - 18 -
lowing provides a brief description of the in a safe and efficient manner since 1986.
company and some of the main businesses Kitsaki and Trimac Transportation Services
they are involved in. Ltd. started this business (see case study in
main paper), and subsequently expanded
Kitsaki Management Limited Partner- the ownership base to include a number of
ship owns Kitsaki Development Corpora- Métis, Dene and Cree Nations across
tion and performs the for profit economic Northern Saskatchewan.
development activities of the Lac La Ronge
Indian Band. The chief and council serve as The highly trained leased operators haul a
the board of directors and together they variety of sensitive commodities, over chal-
work to serve the 7,000 band members who lenging roads, and through intense weather
live in the six communities that make up conditions. In addition to quality service,
the band. Those communities are Grand- NRT is mandated to select, train and de-
mothers Bay, Hall Lake, Little Red, Ne- velop northern and aboriginal people in the
meiben River and Stanley Mission. Chief industry. With offices in Saskatoon and La
and council know that profitable economic Ronge, NRT runs the biggest equipment
development will ultimately lead to job allowed in Saskatchewan. NRT is a prime
creation and training opportunities. Kitsaki example of what can be achieved through
examines many potential business opportu- cooperation between the mining industry,
nities and selects only a few that meet ap- and aboriginal business.
propriate profitability, risk and employment
criteria.
The La Ronge Motor Hotel Limited
It takes many years to have an economic Partnership, is the only full service hotel
impact on thousands of band members but in La Ronge. It is newly renovated and of-
to date Kitsaki’s investments have proven fers convention and banquet facilities, in
successful. Kitsaki seeks to create and addition to 60 air-conditioned rooms with
manage a portfolio of active business in- cable television, a new beer store, coffee
vestments rather than the individual com- shop, dining room and lounge. The business
panies. They try to obtain a majority inter- is 100% owned by Kitsaki and is located on
est in a business with a highly motivated beautiful Lac La Ronge Lake, across from
entrepreneur or a strong corporate partner the public beach and tennis courts. The staff
and then work with that partner to maxi- prides themselves on their first class cus-
mize profits, employment and training op- tomer service. The La Ronge Motor Hotel
portunities. has proven to be a fine training ground for
La Ronge Band members and other abo-
Kitsaki has already won a number of riginal people entering the hospitality in-
awards for its success in the field of abo- dustry.
riginal economic development but the work
is far from done. Unemployment remains Kitsaki originally purchased the hotel in a
high in Northern Saskatchewan and there is joint venture with existing management.
a growing population of young people. The However, after several years of operational
Band wants to provide employment oppor- challenges, it bought out the partner and
tunities for these people so they can help now owns 100% of the business.
strengthen the Saskatchewan economy.
The Lac La Ronge Indian Band, as a mem-
Northern Resource Trucking Limited ber of the Prince Albert Grand Council, is
Partnership serves Saskatchewan’s mining also an owner of three hotels in Prince Al-
industry, hauling, primarily to Uranium bert. The Prince Albert Inn, the Marquis
mines owned by Cameco Corporation, and Inn and the Marlborough Hotel.
Cogema Resources Inc. NRT has operated

21. - 19 -
The Prince Albert Inn is a 109-room, full rivers, by driving airboats through these
service hotel in Prince Albert, Saskatche- rice patches. This raw product is then proc-
wan, located Adjacent to the Northern essed in La Ronge at a state of the art proc-
Lights Casino. The newly renovated hotel essing plant. The finest wild rice in the
features a family restaurant, pub, beer and world is then marketed primarily to the
wine store, plus a new swimming United States, Europe and elsewhere in
pool/whirlpool complex. The Prince Albert Canada. The wild rice industry is supported
Inn provides convention facilities for up to by Kitsaki, to provide an important sea-
250 people along with executive suites that sonal economy for a number of band mem-
include fax machines and e-mail access. bers in one of the few industries that re-
The Hotel is owned equally by twelve First mains consistent with those who continue
Nations of the Prince Albert Grand Coun- to live close to the land.
cil, including the Lac La Ronge Indian
Band. First Nations Insurance Services Ltd.
offers group pension and benefits to first
Kitsaki Meats Limited Partnership pro- nations, their institutions, and businesses.
duces meat snacks sold across Canada un- Started by Kitsaki, ownership is now being
der a variety of private labels. It is one of transferred to the Federation of Saskatche-
only a few federally inspected meat plants wan Indian Nations. Peter Ballantyne Cree
in Saskatchewan, and the only one in the Nation is also a minority partner. The com-
north. The plant can smoke; process and pany’s plan is tailored to suit first nation
package a wide range of products including people. While status Indians enjoy certain
natural jerky ground and formed jerky, in basic treaty benefits, the benefit plan of-
both individual sticks and bulk packaging. fered by First Nations Insurance builds on
The company also sells its own Northern these basic benefits and adds many addi-
Lights line of meat snacks. tional important benefits. The First Nations
Insurance pension plan puts first nations
The retail meat division supplies fresh meat people in charge of first nations invest-
to a variety of customers across northern ments
Saskatchewan. Better quality food at lower
prices is one of the benefits that Kitsaki has Athabasca Catering Limited Partnership
brought to the north. It is also provided does food service and janitorial work for a
unique training opportunities, in a manufac- variety of northern mines, and in particular
turing environment, to many northern abo- for Cameco Corporation. Kitsaki and pri-
riginal people. Kitsaki meats is also a grow- vate entrepreneurs started the company.
ing exporter of Wild Rice. The ownership base was subsequently ex-
panded to include the first nations of Black
La Ronge Industries Ltd. is the largest Lake, Fond du Lac, Hatchet Lake, and Eng-
grower of wild rice in western Canada. lish River. The employees of Athabasca
Wild rice is a gourmet, organic food that is have served millions of meals to hungry
popular in quality restaurants and kitchens miners across the north, and the company
around the world. The business is 51% has been able to pay tens of millions of dol-
owned by Kitsaki, and 49% by a corpora- lars in wages to the employees whom are
tion controlled by the Federation of Sas- primarily aboriginal people of northern
katchewan Indian Nations. It controls wild Saskatchewan. The seven-day in seven day
rice leases scattered throughout hundreds of out nature of the employment means that
picturesque lakes in remote areas of north- even people from remote communities can
ern Saskatchewan. The Lac La Ronge In- hold these jobs and still stay in their home
dian Band also has extensive wild rice areas community during their time out.
on its reserve lands. The rice is harvested,
from a variety of shallow areas in lakes and

22. - 20 -
Dakota Winds Kitsaki Mechanical Ser- vices for both surface and underground
vices Ltd. performs plumbing, heating, re- mine sites. The company can also provide
frigeration, and mechanical services in Sas- extensive related construction service. The
katchewan. The business was originally joint venture partners of this business in-
started by Whitecap Dakota Sioux First clude Keewatin Mining Corporation, a
Nations and Inter-city Mechanical (1985) company owned by Kitsaki, together with
Ltd. Kitsaki joined as an owner in 1999 as the first nations of Black Lake, Hatchet
the company expanded to La Ronge. The Lake, and Fond du Lac. Keewatin owns
company’s target areas of growth include 51% of the joint venture. While the other
province wide contracts in both the public 49% is owned by Procon Mining and Tun-
and mining sectors. They are also involved neling Ltd. Procon has extensive mining
with the expansion of the northern indus- and tunneling experience using a variety of
trial projects such as sawmilling, natural mining techniques, both surface and under-
gas distribution, and the maintenance of ground, and has operated in a wide variety
commercial infrastructures. The company of soil conditions. Procon also operates an
has developed a successful training and industrial construction division, as well as
recruitment model for aboriginal youth that maintaining a division that can provide ex-
will meet the future needs of the company tensive access to a great variety of heavy
and their home communities as they be- equipment. Keewatin Procon has success-
come trained journey persons. This busi- fully completed projects at Macarthur
ness, using unionized labor, is capable of River, McLean Lake, and Cigar Lake. The
training in five different trades, plumbing, joint venture was also involved in the Nisto
pipefitting, welding, refrigeration, and sheet Mine Decommissioning.
metal.
Source: Adapted from Kitsaki Development Corpo-
Wapawekka Lumber Limited Partner- ration Website by Wayne Dunn & Associates Ltd.
ship is a modern technology sawmill lo-
cated north of Prince Albert. The 22.5 mil-
lion-dollar sawmill processes small diame-
ter logs into lumber. Started in 1999, the
business brings Kitsaki together with Peter
Ballantyne Cree Nation, Montreal Lake
Cree Nation and Weyerhaeuser Canada.
The business has already established itself
as an extremely safe world-class sawmill
based on a unique partnership and a diverse
talented work force. Wapawekka Lumber is
a unique partnership between the Woodland
Cree and Weyerhaeuser creating higher
value quality products from small diameter
logs, while providing employees with ongo-
ing growth and career opportunities. The
highly skilled, predominately aboriginal
work force, have been trained in a variety
of areas including, computers, fire and
safety, work systems, cultural awareness,
principles of teamwork, W.H.M.I.S. and
occupational health and safety.
Keewatin/Procon Joint Venture has been
established to provide contract-mining ser-

23. - 21 -
Without profits, none of this would be pos-
sible.”
4 Strategies and Tactics
The experience of indigenous business de- 4.2 Organizational Considera-
velopment in Canada and elsewhere in the tions
Americas suggests a number of strategies
and tactics that may be considered by In- Business development requires a business
digenous Peoples in Ecuador as they seek organization. For various historical and
to participate more productively in the Ec- developmental reasons, Indigenous Peo-
uadorian economy. The following are pre- ple’s organizations are generally structured
sented as suggestions for exploration only as political/social organizations. This type
as the author does not have direct experi- of organization is often necessary for the
ence in indigenous development in Ecua- pursuit of political and social objectives.
dor, and accordingly is reluctant to offer However, it does not immediately lend it-
specific recommendations. However, based self to use as a business development or-
on experiences in other locations in the ganization. In addition to various legal is-
Americas, there appears to be some univer- sues surrounding undertaking profit ori-
sality in the following strategies and tactics. ented projects, the organizational structure
of political/social organizations is often too
cumbersome and restrictive to enable a pro-
4.1 Profitability and Business
active and strategic approach to business.
Objectives
In general, to participate more effectively in
Businesses should be run to make an eco- business and economic development, it is
nomic profit. This is not to say that the necessary to have a business organization
business may not have other, higher-level that is dedicated to this objective. Two ap-
objectives, or that the profits cannot be re- proaches that have been used successfully
invested in the development of people and are:
community. But, if a business does not
consistently produce an economic profit, it • Wholly owned business corpora-
cannot survive to meet other employment tion – One approach that has been
and development objectives. The experi- used successfully is for the politi-
ence in Canada and elsewhere demonstrates cal/social organization to create a
conclusively that failure to maintain a focus wholly owned business develop-
on business viability and profitability lead ment corporation that is structured
to failure and the inability to meet other such that it meets the legal re-
developmental objectives. As Chief Harry quirements to enable it to go into
Cook of the Lac La Ronge First Nation has private, profit oriented business.
explained numerous times, “If our busi- The political/social organization
nesses do not produce a profit, they cannot would generally own 100% of the
fulfil our employment, training, manage- shares in the corporation. Often the
ment and capacity development objectives. ownership is a trust arrangement
But, if they are profitable, they can provide whereby the shares are owned in
the fuel that allows our people to become trust for the members of the organi-
more productive participants in the econ- zation. While the legal require-
omy and meet our other development objec- ments of the country will have
tives. The profits from our businesses have some impact on how the Board of
enabled us to provide our people with a Directors is constituted and other
range of training, social development, cul- organizational requirements, the
tural development and other objectives. business corporation will generally