Anishinabek Nation Economic Blueprint undergoing updates through research and engagements
By Rick Garrick
LONDON — Anishinabek Nation member First Nations are spending $1.3 billion per year outside of their communities according to a key finding identified during the update of the Anishinabek Nation Economic Blueprint. The update is being conducted by Sisco and Associates Consulting Services Inc. through research and engagements, including a major economic trends and leakage study conducted in 2021, and strategic planning sessions with economic development officers (EDOs) at the Anishinabek Nation Chiefs Council on the Economy.
“We did find in the study that [Anishinabek Nation] First Nations spend $1.3 billion annually outside of their communities, representing significant leakage,” says Jana George, manager of research and policy development at Sisco and Associates Consulting Services Inc. “We also found that Anishinabek Nation First Nations identify economic well-being differently as supporting economic growth without compromising their values and traditions, asserting sovereignty, self-governance and autonomy, while generating a more stable inflow of funds, protecting rights to land and culture while building wealth and achieving economic and social parity with the rest of the Canada.”
George says they found that settler colonization was identified as the root cause for high leakage, noting that it undermined the traditional economies including trade routes and harvesting which created dependencies on settler governments.
“And the reserve system also led to spending in urban centres,” George says. “In the study, we show the integration model in economics holds true, so smaller communities that are farther apart, like First Nation communities, typically spend more in larger populated communities that are closer together, so urban centres where non-Indigenous people have settled.”
George says another key finding from the study was that many communities are now dealing with trauma and addictions due to settler colonization.
“A lot of the Anishinabek Nation member First Nations want this to be addressed to support community economic well-being as well,” George says.
George says they have integrated their six key findings from the study into their framework and process for developing the new Anishinabek Nation Economic Blueprint, which includes developing a decolonizing framework for the updated blueprint; supporting healing among Anishinabek Nation First Nations from trauma, addictions, and mental health issues; supporting advocacy work for Anishinabek Nation First Nations; and supporting capacity development among Anishinabek Nation First Nations.
“We also recommended supporting Anishinabek Nation EDOs in preparing their funding applications and through the reporting processes as well as supporting Anishinabek Nation First Nations in evidence-based decision-making,” George says. “So in our work on the new blueprint, we have been working on co-developing a framework, which includes three levels of support and four interconnected principles or areas. The three levels of support are first, community-driven, which includes supporting Anishinabek Nation member First Nations community level economic initiatives; the middle level is Anishinabek Nation First Nations collaborations, which includes supporting Anishinabek Nation member First Nations in nation-to-nation economic initiatives with one another; and the last level is Anishinabek Nation reclamation, which includes supporting Anishinabek Nation in engaging in mutually beneficial and sustainable federal and provincial government economic initiatives.”
George says the framework includes four interconnected strategic priorities, which are people, land, infrastructure, and finance.
“For people, this includes economic initiatives that relate to the collaboration, education, advocacy, and building of community groups that intend to support economic development capacity,” George says. “Land is economic initiatives that relate to unlocking the potential of natural resources, land-based competitive advantages, as well as securing land rights for Anishinabek Nation communities; third is infrastructure so policy or initiatives that support social, capital, and economic infrastructure development and projects; and last is finance, so economic initiatives that relate to finance strategies that support economic development projects through investment, revenue sharing, and financial policy creation.”
George says they are currently launching a survey to re-engage individuals to validate what they have previously heard, as well as strategizing next approaches for strategic planning.
The current Anishinabek Nation Economic Blueprint is available online.