Gratitude, learning and connection: meeting The Nawalakw Culture Project
In October, 2022, folks from MakeWay were invited by The Nawalakw Culture Project (Nawalakw) to spend time with their team in Alert Bay, BC. The Nawalakw movement is a catalyst for community renewal through language revitalization, wellness and healing in the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw territory in what is often referred to as the Great Bear Rainforest of […]
A visit to Mushkegowuk Territory
This summer, CEO, Joanna Kerr, spent 4 days in Northern Ontario hosted by the Mushkegowuk Tribal Council. This was a donor trip that included representatives from MakeWay, Moore Foundation, and OceanKind.
Reflections on Community Learning Trips
Facilitating cross-regional learning is a central goal of MakeWay’s National program team. The sharing of knowledge between individuals and across geographies fosters our ability to grow allowing us to work better together today than we did yesterday.
Bringing people together again: the Reel Youth Film Festival returns in-person with films highlighting youth stories and voices
For communities and organizations, 2022 presented the unique challenge of bringing people together after two years of pandemic lockdowns.
CommUNITY Doulas: recreating the village and supporting Black parents and families
“I feel like the purpose of this work is really to recreate the village, to re-establish networks, and to create systems of support [for Black parents]. That’s the community piece: bringing the village to the modern environment. Birth is really at the intersection of all the experiences of black people, and the struggles we face.” […]
Orange Shirt Day & National Day of Truth and Reconciliation resource list
Content & Trigger Warnings: mention of colonization, g*nocide, r*sidential schools Today is Orange Shirt Day and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and honours the lost children and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. The significance of the orange shirt comes from residential school survivor Phyllis (Jack) Webstad who […]
From across the North, hunters, harvesters, and guardians gather at camp to create a shared vision for evaluation
The positive energy throughout the group was strong. Sounds of drums, laughter and talking, clicks of laptops and projectors coming to life, hammering, and boat engines across the calm lake water. Clanging dishes in the bustling kitchen where the next delicious meal for 25 hunters, harvesters, and guardians gathering on Mackenzie Island, about a 20-minute […]
A summer with MakeWay: Canada Summer Job student reflections
By Kate O’Connor, 2022 Canada Summer Jobs placement student This summer, I worked with MakeWay and OneEarth on the newly launched ‘Fair Earth Living’ initiative which aims to accelerate the ways that communities across Turtle Island can shift cultures and behaviors so we can all live happy lives in balance with nature. The concept of […]
Nancy Uqquujuq Karetak-Lindell receives Order of Canada
MakeWay congratulates board director Nancy Uqquujuq Karetak-Lindell on being appointed the Order of Canada for her commitment to bringing northern and Inuit voices to Parliament. Of Arviat, Nunavut, Nancy was elected as an MP (Nunavut’s first MP and first female MP for the Eastern Arctic) – in 1997. She was re-elected easily in the 2000, […]
The story behind MakeWay’s 2022-25 Strategy
In spring of 2021, Anishinaabe Elders T8aminik Rankin and Marie Josée Tardif, shared a powerful teaching with MakeWay staff and board known as the Seventh Fire Prophecy. Known for hundreds of years, this story tells of a time when western civilization has put all living things, even humans, on the brink of extinction. We were told of […]
