founded
Indigenous women's business panel
Iskwew
Iskwew
owned
Iskwew
run
ᐃᐢᑫᐧᐤ
woman
The Indigenous Women’s Business Panel - Iskwew founded, Iskwew made and Iskwew run was founded upon an idea focused on providing a space where Indigenous women entrepreneurs could have a space and to bring the Indigenous community together - to share our stories, wise practices as Indigenous business owners; to collaborate with one another by building new and existing relationships; and to invest in the Iskwew (Cree word for woman).
Together we have started this journey of building a community founded upon supporting one another, connected through a common history, identity, culture, language, challenges, struggles, and connected with the same stories yet bonded together by our ancestors and our history as Indigenous peoples of Canada. As Indigenous artists and as a community together our goal is to share our stories in our own words there is nobody else that can revitalize the stories expect ourselves to share with others and to contribute to the social, cultural, political and economic structures that make up the Edmonton. Most importantly framing of the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the world by providing a space for local entrepreneurs and artists.
iskwew
The event was founded upon also being mindful of a much greater distinguished truth echoed through the Truth & Reconciliation Canada’s call to action, “economic reconciliation aims to create meaningful partnerships and mutually beneficial opportunities based on a holistic, values-driven approach for community economic prosperity… have an opportunity to learn from each other…to forge stronger paths…engage in dialogue to revitalize relationships and gain a deeper understanding of personal stories and shared histories… to have oneness as expressed by Indigenous peoples through the concept of ‘Namwayut (We Are All One)…through a community-led and community defined process.”
The event is volunteer based and it’s aim is to celebrate, inspire, mentor and provide a sense of hope for all Iskwew residing within the Edmonton area who are running small business and who maybe aspiring to launch a business of their own. We could not have done these events without the support of ATB Branch for Arts + Culture for allowing us to use their space and for sponsoring the refreshments each month. Some of the monthly events include:
Indigenous Entrepreneur & Artist Awards
Stand up and give a round of applause to the ATB Arts & Culture Branch, the Indigenous entrepreneurs and artists who have supported the building this Indigenous space and have made the Indigenous Women’s Business Panel journey a success!
What’s next? Together the ATB Arts & Culture Branch and the Indigenous Women’s Business Panel team are excited to announce a call for nominations for the Indigenous Entrepreneur & Artist Awards who are living within the traditional territory of Treaty 6, Edmonton & surrounding area.
It’s time to recognize, honour and celebrate the outstanding contributions achieved by local Indigenous entrepreneurs and artists leading the way in excellence. This is an opportunity for you or someone you know to shine that spotlight on an outstanding Indigenous entrepreneur and/or artist to show how far they have come in their personal and professional journey – share your story with us!