BCBusiness

May/June 2023 - Women of the Year

With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.

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INVEST in BC 2 0 2 3 13 Official Publication of the BC Economic Development Association. In special partnership with BCBusiness. series of agreements between the First Nation and the B.C. government. Similar organizations are popping up or expanding all across British Columbia. Deeply rooted in their communities, Indigenous-owned companies offer manpower, logistical support and local knowledge in often remote locations where such services are hard to come by. They can also lend resource companies operating in these areas a measure of social licence, helping them meet their environmental, social and gov- ernance (ESG) commitments. Last fall, a joint venture between the Gitga'at Nation's Gitga'at Development Corp. and Waiward Industrial LP was awarded the main industrial site services contract for LNG Canada, the massive liquefied natural gas terminal now under construction in Kitimat. Gitga'at Waiward had previously won a contract to supply structural steel to the project. "This announcement represents an excellent opportunity to showcase what true partnerships look like," said Joe Bevan, CEO of Gitga'at De- velopment Corp. "It speaks to the commitments made by LNG Canada to use local contractors, aligning with economic reconciliation and the trust developed thus far. The economic success of the region's First Nations is paramount to a robust regional economy." Further north, the Tahltan Nation Develop- ment Corp., established in 1985, is in many ways the template for all the First Nations-owned companies that came after. It continues to expand the suite of services it offers to mineral explora- tion, utility, forest and aviation companies and governments in the Stewart-Cassiar corridor. In the opposite, southeast corner of the prov- ince, the Ktunaxa Nation and metallurgical coal miner Teck Resources have been building on a comprehensive Impact Management and Bene- fits Agreement signed in 2016. Five years later it led to a deal to jointly manage the conservation of 7,000 hectares purchased by Teck for conser- vation purposes. In 2022, the B.C. Assembly of First Nations launched a new Centre of Excellence in eco- nomic development that it hopes will share best practices of development corporations among all 204 First Nations in the province—no easy task considering the range of circumstances facing rural and urban First Nations. Near downtown Vancouver, the Squamish Nation and Westbank Projects have embarked on Sen̓ áḵw, a high-rise community featuring 6,000 rental apartments that is expected to change the face of the city. Meanwhile Vancouver-based Raven Indigenous Capital Partners just closed a second venture capital fund worth $100 million with a mission to finance startup and growth-stage Indigenous businesses that until now often struggled to get the money they needed. You name it, if there's a project you need help with or a service you need supplied, there's probably an Indigenous business that can do it. • PROTECTING THE LAND: The Ktunaxa Nation (top left) will help manage land bought by Teck Resources for conservation; The Squamish Nation is building Sen̓áḵw, Vancouver's largest new community, in partnership with Westbank Projects (top right); Natural gas operations in Blueberry River First Nation territory (center right); Joint venture Gitga'at Waiward landed the main site services contract at LNG Canada (bottom)

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