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Social Economy Month 2021 ended on a high note for the First Nations Social Economy Regional Table (FNSERT) with the Rendezvous of Culture with the Social Economy, which was held on November 30, 2021 in a hybrid format.

November is Social Economy Month across Quebec. This is a special time during the year to learn more about this business model and to highlight social economy initiatives in our regions.

Created by four Indigenous women, two Mohawk artists and two Anishinaabe artists, Hannah Claus, Nadia Myre, Caroline Monnet and Skawennati, the Daphne Art Centre is a new self-managed centre for Indigenous artists located in Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montreal.

It is with great pride that the 10 participants of the StartUP Nations Ikwe 2021 successfully completed their training course in social economy, which began on March 8th. Coordinated by the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador Economic Development Commission (FNQLEDC) and by Quebec Native Women (QNW), the 12-week virtual training course ended on May 31, 2021.

The StartUP Nations Ikwe 2020 came to a wonderful end on December 7, 2020 with the participation of all three teams in a completely virtual event inspired by “Dragon's Den”. An overview of the three projects that were presented follows.

As part of Social Economy Month 2020, the First Nations Social Economy Regional Table (coordinated by the FNQLEDC) and the Pôle des entreprises d'économie sociale de la Capitale-Nationale presented the “Indigenous Perspectives on Territorial Development” national conference. Here is a summary of the highlights of this conference.

November is social economy month throughout Quebec. Meanwhile, the activities of the training course in collective women’s entrepreneurship, entitled "StartUP Nations Ikwe", are in full swing. Since September, three urban Aboriginal communities and organizations accompanied women’s groups in the development of a social economy project.

Everywhere in Quebec, November is Social Economy Month. It’s a great opportunity to learn more about this business model and discover both the economic and social benefits generated in the various regions of Quebec.

In Kanesatake, what was supposed to be an economic development project aimed at selling vegetables has finally become a social initiative, The Gardens of Hope project.

Founded in 1974, Les Artisans indiens du Québec is a non-profit organization which specializes in the sale of raw materials for arts and craft. For nearly 50 years, the corporation has been providing Aboriginal artisans from Quebec and all over Canada the raw materials needed to create their craft items. Following is a picture of one of the oldest Aboriginal non-profit organizations in Quebec.

The Coopérative de Travail Inter-Nations (CTIN) was born in Opitciwan in 2009. Specialized in the field of forest management and integrated natural resource management, it has established itself in its territory and is now multiplying development projects.

The Coop Nitaskinan is an Indigenous cooperative registered under the Cooperatives Act. The mission of this social economy enterprise, which was founded in 2015, is to create quality jobs for its current and future members while contributing to the socioeconomic and cultural development of First Nations.

In 2014, the Corporation de développement économique Wabak Pimadizi (CDEWP), which is located in the Anishnabe community of Lac Simon, implemented a project on which its team had been working for several years: the construction of a multipurpose centre featuring a grocery store and a community hall. To administer this centre, the CDEWP opted for the creation of a cooperative, a model that aligns well with the sharing of Anishnabe culture.

In Kitcisakik, an Anicinabe community located about an hour away from Val-d'Or, a solidarity cooperative specializes in carrying out renovations and construction in order to meet important needs in this area.

On February 24, 2020, Filaction announced the relaunch of the Innovation Fund for Governance and Management of Collective Enterprises (Fonds INNOGEC). Projects submitted within the framework of this fund will allow collective enterprises to receive professional management consulting and governance services.

We are presenting a funding program designed to better equip organizations, and prepare them to approach funding providers to get financing for the start-up of a project that will increase the impact of their social mission: the Investment Readiness Program (IRP).

On January 23, 2020, our Social Economy Officer, Annick Tremblay and our Youth Entrepreneurship Advisor, Myriam Vallières, traveled to Kanesatake to present a workshop and a conference on the social economy.

The FNQLEDC and the First Nations Social Economy Regional Table (FNSERT) are proud to present the video of the second edition of the StartUP Nations, an event targeting First Nations youth and focusing on youth collective entrepreneurship.

Social economy groups together all the economic activities with a view to meeting the responsibility of a social mission and contributing to the general interest. It is not focused on financial profitability, but on the benefits it brings to the collectivity. Social economy enterprises offer products and services in innovative sectors, and as diverse as those offered in traditional enterprises.

The second edition of StartUP Nations took place on May 23rd to the 25th at Concordia University, in Montreal. Forty or so young people, aged 15 to 35, representing seven First Nations and eight communities, gathered to acquire tools that will enable them to develop their projects of collective entrepreneurship.

Eight teams participated in the StartUP Nations. This represents as many great collective projects run by young entrepreneurs from several communities. Following is an overview of the different projects.