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Since its inception in 1999, the Minerva Foundation for BC Women has made a commitment to diversity: this includes diversity in age, ethnicity, discipline, field of study and sexual orientation. As part of this mandate, the Foundation has actively sought to engage, recruit and award Aboriginal women as beneficiaries, leaders and teachers in its programs.
In 2005, the Minerva Foundation recommitted to assisting Aboriginal women meet the challenges currently facing their communities and open the door for future generations. The Foundation’s role is to act as a catalyst in creating awareness of the cultural traditions, governance, strengths and challenges of the Aboriginal women’s community. The Foundation has initiated a dialogue between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women, to create a trust relationship from which both can benefit. Open communication, resource sharing, networking, mentoring and skill development will assist in the goal to build capacity within this community of women and will produce systemic change with sustainable results.
History
In the fall of 2005, the Minerva Foundation launched a program to initiate community dialogues on leadership among Aboriginal women leaders in British Columbia.
Four regional dialogues were held among Aboriginal women only across BC on their leadership needs and challenges. Input from these sessions was provided to a final joint dialogue, conducted by the Minerva Foundation among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women and girls, various community service organizations, corporations and government, in Vancouver on January 27, 2006. Participants in the final dialogue developed ideas for potential new programs to assist Aboriginal women in developing and enhancing their leadership skills and capacity. This group produced tangible ideas for expanding and/or enhancing existing programs, and developing partnerships and new program delivery in areas not presently addressed.
The Combining Our Strength™ initiative has been developed from this research and input. It is a joint partnership of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women with the objective of creating capacity within the Aboriginal women’s community of BC and effecting some systemic change with sustainable results for this community. The initiative is led by a Council of well respected Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women from throughout the province.
Combining Our Strength™ programming and new initiatives occur in the four key areas of the Minerva Foundation’s mandate, which include education, leadership development, economic security and safety for women and girls.
Education
- An additional $56,500 in COS Education Awards were awarded to Aboriginal women in 2007.
- Cross Cultural Awareness Learning project
- Focuses on the culture and impact of history and historical decisions on Aboriginal people through the eyes and stories of Aboriginal women
- Describes the differences in – and the effects of colonization on – indigenous social organization and governing structures, lifestyles, culture and communication in order to provide a greater understanding of the actions and decisions of the Aboriginal people with which corporations interact.
- The intent of CCAL is to capture the hearts of the participants, lead them to connecting with the Aboriginal communities and promote an understanding of Aboriginal cultures so that they are recognized as valid in the workplace. The program will be interactive and include art, music, food and language, with a mix of traditional and contemporary, including brief traditional ceremonies. The training will be story and relationship based in order to highlight the unique circumstances of Aboriginal women. The overall message is to develop respect based on understanding. Connecting people will develop stronger communities.
Leadership Development
- Learning to Lead™ Combining Our Strength™ leadership development program
- This program is held annually at St. John’s College on the UBC campus over a weekend in the Spring. While Aboriginal women are the majority of the attendees, a number of non-Aboriginal women attend as well. Our participants are women with a variety of leadership experience from across the province. In 2008, women joined us from the lower mainland, Vancouver Island, Haida Gwaii, Cranbrook and Fort Nelson.
- This program is unique from other leadership development programs in that there is a “Continuing Education” component. The leadership learning does not end with the weekend; participants return to their communities and meet for 8 sessions over the 6 months following the weekend in facilitated community talking circles. The facilitators are women that we have trained from the communities and in 2008, three of our community circles are being co-facilitated by an Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal woman.
Economic Security
- Minerva Helping Women Work™ Combining Our Strength™
- This program focuses on assisting women to develop their skills and assets to foster self-sufficiency and economic independence.
- Our research indicates that Aboriginal women often face significant barriers once they complete their education and start looking for work. Although many of these women have the credentials, they often end up underemployed or unemployed for various reasons.
- This program was tailored to assist Aboriginal women in their search for meaningful and rewarding work. Professional assistance in a supportive environment is provided to the program participants to enable them to formulate a work plan.
Safety
The Minerva Foundation provides community grants to other non-profit societies who provide services in the area of Safety for women. The Combining Our Strength™ initiative just recently awarded a grant to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre for a project that will provide crisis counseling and emotional support to women around multiple issues that impact on women’s safety and vulnerabilities to victimization, particularly Aboriginal and First Nations women.
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