MESSAGE FROM THE CEO

NEW INITIATIVES • ISSUE 07 • FEB-MAR 2022

A Message from the CEO

It is more important than ever that Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit, transgender, and gender-diverse people have their voices heard. Those voices will only grow stronger in the coming months.

ENGAGING IN ADVOCACY

As NWAC continues to grow as an organization, so too does our commitment to advocate for more inclusiveness and respect. With the incredible help of our partners, we broadened our reach on the national stage and by taking action on our commitments, we were able to make a difference in 2021.

Looking ahead, NWAC will continue to advocate for a number of key actions. These actions include the full implementation of the Calls for Justice outlined by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) in its Final Report and the Calls to Action outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. They also include the establishment and growth of Indigenous-led healing programs, and the work we have been doing to end the economic marginalization of Indigenous women and girls.

BUILDING PTMA CAPACITY
NWAC listens, supports, and advocates for the concerns and needs of Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people at the grassroots level through our provincial and territorial member associations (PTMAs). Together, we collaborate by exchanging feedback and information at the board level on urgent policy issues and actions that must be taken to improve the lives of the people we represent and their families.

We will continue to support the PTMAs to deliver essential programming, and expand their capacity to meet the distinct needs of Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people in their region. We will also work with our PTMA partners to expand - and build - resiliency lodges and healing programs across the country.

DEVELOPING PARTNERSHIPS

NWAC continues to forge new relationships with compatible corporate partners. These relationships are crucial to helping us fill gaps in program funding, enabling us to provide more support to Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people.

We are very pleased to continue our partnership with the Bank of Montreal (BMO) as we prepare to open our new Social, Cultural and Economic Innovation Centre to the public. The Centre, which is located in Gatineau, Quebec, will open this spring. It will house NWAC’s new office space, feature Indigenous-designed meeting rooms, showcase cultural exhibits, and offer a café and an artisan boutique, along with meeting and training rooms.

Thank you, BMO, for your support in developing this critical space to support the resiliency of Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people!

NWAC TEAM

Despite the challenges the pandemic brought this past year, NWAC managed to expand its programs and services. In recent months, we welcomed a large number of new hires in all of our units to help with ongoing services and projects, and to tackle new work coming our way. At over 100 employees, we have reached a new milestone!

As we continue to grow, we will continue to support our staff through our flexible telework policy. And, as we are moving to Quebec, we are offering our staff French language training.

In this issue of Shining the Spotlight, hear more about our many projects and programs! From the Executive Policy team, hear about a CIHR-funded research project on Elder-led supports available during the pandemic. Also in this issue is an article on forced or coerced sterilizations based on research conducted by our Legal Team. We also feature an article on the connections between international advocacy and grassroots priorities from our International Department — and so much more ….

We hope you enjoy reading this month’s issue of Shining the Spotlight!

Miigwetch, Thank you, Merci,

Lynne Groulx

Return to Home

General Inquiries: 120 Prom. du Portage, Gatineau, QC J8X 2K1