Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
The University of Saskatchewan is proposing a new experiential program in agricultural and bio-resource entrepreneurship for young indigenous people, with an international element.
Tom Allen, the CIBC Scholar, Agricultural Entrepreneurship, at the College of Agriculture is at the centre of the program, which was developed in conjunction with Massey University in New Zealand and the University of Arizona.
“I have met numerous individuals and delegations from First Nations in Saskatchewan and Alberta, and they are frustrated as they go through a claims process without seeing any changes,” Allen says. “Claims are settled; funds transferred; and land purchased, but it has not created very much wealth for the community, and it has created very few jobs.
“I have had an opportunity to travel to the U.S., Australia and New Zealand, and to visit indigenous people in these countries, including Canada. There are some great things happening out there. A year ago, we brought some world-recognized experts from the four countries to talk about land as an economic base because, let’s face it, unless you have an economic base, how can you have a sustainable culture or be sovereign?”
This is why the Canadian program will consist of an intensive short course in entrepreneurship, followed by educational field trips in New Zealand, the United States and Western Canada. It will introduce the participants to viable agricultural and bio-resource ventures established by indigenous people in the three countries.
The program will encourage participants to explore ways of creating new value-added ventures on indigenous lands. Students will broaden their knowledge of the global agricultural and bio-resource industries and, through participation in this program, will acquire the skills needed to become industry leaders when they return home.
“It is a different way of learning,” Allen points out. "You can sit people in classrooms and lecture to them, or you can actually experience the opportunities. We are going to New Zealand because I believe they are the leaders. The Maoris have created business structures that allow them to have economic
development take place. They handle the communal land issue by creating large trusts and corporations to handle their economic development. We can talk about it, but the way to really learn about it is to go and visit.
“Indigenous communities will show us how they do it—how they make it happen. We are going to come back to Canada and, later in the spring, we are going to go to Arizona to meet up with Aboriginal people. We will meet up with people from the University of Arizona, and we are going to come back to Canada to visit some of the progressive Aboriginal communities here.”
But when they come back to Canada, they will bring guests with them, notes Allen.
“We will have Americans with us, we will have some Maoris with us from New Zealand, and we will be sitting down at every stop and talking about how this can work. What can we do to make this work? And will it work at home? It is a way to create excitement; it is a way to explore new opportunities, and I am really keen on it.”
So far, seven people are on board for this first year.
“We have individuals from three provinces and one territory. It is a three-credit course. Some of the students are current students. We have one who is a tribal chief, we have a Director of Lands from Alberta, we have some graduate students—a real cross-section of men and women. They have to be between 21 and 45 years of age.
“On January 26 and 27, we are meeting at the university for orientation. We leave for New Zealand on February 9, where we will stay for 16 days.”
Then it will be Arizona in May, and then the final component will take place back in Canada, explains Allen.
“At that time, for the course, every student has to do a major paper which takes the form of a report to their community about what they have learned in terms of bringing this new-found information home—will it work, will it not. In some cases, it may not. We are going to see a real range of initiatives.”
Allen and his international colleagues hope that this experience will lead to new relationships being built and new networks being formed, and that this will lead to new momentum to utilize the land base to improve social and economic conditions for the indigenous landholders.