The First Peoples Innovation Center…in a Nutshell.

What Is It: The First Peoples Innovation Centre will be a one-stop centre where Indigenous women and men eager to improve their community’s standard of living will find support and tools for their entrepreneurial initiatives.

The First Peoples Innovation Centre will work alongside local initiatives for economic transformation and socio-economic innovations that are aimed at responding, in whole or in part, to the challenges the community is facing. The Centre will assist and support the development of local initiatives that will create autonomy and stimulate participation in economic activities as defined by the Indigenous individuals themselves.

By becoming agents of change, these Indigenous “entrepreneurs” will instil a new dynamic in the community and will be tangible proof that they too can contribute to the betterment of their community. These “entrepreneurs” will find at the Centre :

1. Information on the wide variety of existing programs (there are now more than 350 programs) that aim at fostering Indigenous entrepreneurship.
2. Individual support through out the different stages of development of their initiatives.
3. Access to mentorship programs to advise them during strategic stages.

Why such a Centre: Even though there is a wide variety of programs that aim at supporting Indigenous entrepreneurship, the Indigenous outreach remains quite low. A recent study demonstrated that only 4% of Indigenous peoples launch a business. From this 4%, only 17% take advantage of the support programs. These low levels of participation are caused by many factors. However, there is one factor that seems to stand out above all others. The classical business approach seems to reach a small number of Indigenous peoples. Another model, called “social entrepreneurship,” seems to correspond better to the aspirations of Indigenous people, who, we know, have a great community spirit. By offering resources and support for such initiatives, the First Peoples Innovation Centre will foster and support another way of doing business, a way that better corresponds to the cultural inclination of the Indigenous communities.

For Whom: The First Peoples Innovation Centre will not target the “typical” classical entrepreneur. The First Peoples Innovation Centre will rather target those Indigenous individuals (especially women and Youth) who have the potential to become dynamic agents of change, who are keen to invest in the betterment of their community but do not really know how to do it and where to start.

This targeted group do not see themselves as “entrepreneurs”. Therefore, they would not be inclined to turn to entrepreneurship programs to get support and advice. The First Peoples Innovation Centre will help these change agents to implement their initiatives and this, for the betterment of the entire community.

With Whom: The First Peoples Innovation Centre will work with partners engaged in the socio-economic development of the Indigenous people. Rather than increasing the number of programs, the Centre would become an extension of all these actors, presenting the various programs in a unique showcase. It would provide individualized support to Indigenous people wishing to engage in the development of their community.

Partnership with the private sector and large foundations will equally be crucial in order to establish new dynamics in the Indigenous communities, dynamics that will allow Indigenous people to walk away from a dependency and to develop a greater sense of self-involvement and self-setting goals.

The First Peoples Innovation Centre will offer its services on and off-reserve, as well as to Inuit and Métis in rural and urban settings. The First Peoples Innovation Centre will operate where a community exists and where a group of Indigenous people want to invest in the betterment of their communities.

Problem

Even though there is a wide variety of programs that aim at supporting Indigenous entrepreneurship, the Indigenous outreach remains quite low. A recent study demonstrated that only 4% of Indigenous peoples launch a business. From this 4%, only 17% take advantage of the support programs. These low levels of participation are caused by many factors. However, there is one factor that seems to stand out above all others. The classical business approach seems to reach a small number of Indigenous peoples. Another model, called “social entrepreneurship,” seems to correspond better to the aspirations of Indigenous people, who, we know, have a great community spirit. By offering resources and support for such initiatives, the First Peoples Innovation Centre will foster and support another way of doing business, a way that better corresponds to the cultural inclination of the Indigenous communities.

Solution

The First Peoples Innovation Centre will work with partners engaged in the socio-economic development of the Indigenous people. Rather than increasing the number of programs, the Centre would become an extension of all these actors, presenting the various programs in a unique showcase. It would provide individualized support to Indigenous people wishing to engage in the development of their community.

Example

The First Peoples Innovation Centre will work with partners engaged in the socio-economic development of the Indigenous people. Rather than increasing the number of programs, the Centre would become an extension of all these actors, presenting the various programs in a unique showcase. It would provide individualized support to Indigenous people wishing to engage in the development of their community. The First Peoples Innovation Centre will support Indigenous initiatives by offering: 1. Information on the wide variety of existing programs (there are now more than 350 programs) that aim at fostering Indigenous entrepreneurship. 2. Individual support through out the different stages of development of their initiatives. 3. Access to mentorship programs to advise them during strategic stages.

Marketplace

In complement to the efforts aimed at promoting classical entrepreneurship, the First Peoples Innovation Centre will work with partners already engaged in the socio-economic development of the Indigenous peoples and rather than increasing the number of programs, the Centre will become an extension of all these actors, presenting the various programs in a unique showcase. It would provide individualized support to Indigenous socio-economic initiatives that aimed at responding to acute challenges the communities are facing.