Issue 50 - February 2023
Indigenous Initiatives Report "Taking Action: Collaborating with Indigenous Communities"
Current Affairs recently interviewed Channa Perera, Vice President, Regulatory and Indigenous Affairs about the latest edition of Electricity Canada’s member Indigenous engagement publication, “Taking Action: Collaborating with Indigenous Communities”.
Hi Channa. Taking Action starts by saying that Indigenous inclusion within the electricity sector has grown in the past few years. Is there a particular area that excites you in this regard?
As much as I’d like to pick one area of growth, each of the four pillars and initiatives listed in the report – education/training, employment, business partnerships and capacity building – excite me because they all contribute in their own unique way to advancing reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. There has been a significant growth in the engagement and inclusion of Indigenous Peoples over the last decade. I am very encouraged by the ingenuity of the member initiatives aimed at enriching Indigenous communities and advancing reconciliation.
Member initiatives listed in this report is a response to Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC)’s Calls to Action. What are some of the ways the electricity sector have meaningfully engaged with the TRC’s Calls to Action?
Just to offer some context, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission called on the corporate sector to step-up their action on Indigenous consultations, build meaningful relationships, provide equitable employment and training, and advance education of management and staff on Indigenous history. The TRC has really given the sector a clear focus and I am very much heartened by the response of our members.
We’re making significant progress on issues related to cultural awareness training, as well as support for Indigenous education, training and employment; establishing equity and other forms of economic partnerships, including procurement contracts; and building local Indigenous capacity so they can engage with us as equal partners.
Canada is committed to making its electricity grid net zero by 2035. What is the role of engagement with Indigenous Peoples in achieving this goal?
Successfully meeting Canada’s net zero goals is an arduous challenge to begin with, but without meaningful Indigenous engagement-especially consultation and benefits-sharing-this will be an impossible task to achieve. We need to continue to invest in initiatives to raise awareness of Indigenous cultural values and ways of decision-making, education, training and employment. Most importantly, we need to make efforts to enable their full economic participation through access to capital. We’re off to a good start, but make no mistake, governments and industry have a lot of work to do to enable full Indigenous economic participation in Canada’s net zero transition.
What is the main thing you want readers to take away from this report?
The key takeaway from this report is that the electricity industry is taking demonstrable action to advance Indigenous reconciliation in Canada. I hope this report can inform and inspire companies, both inside the electricity industry and outside of it, to take meaningful action to advance reconciliation so that we can contribute to a more inclusive and just society.
Other stories
- Electricity Canada hosts Electrifying the Future: Innovative Solutions to Support the Clean Grid with industry leaders at GLOBExCHANGE
- Electricity Canada Meetings (Members Only)
- Episode 070: Pollster Greg Lyle’s View of the Evolving Customer
- Electricity Canada and The Smart Grid Innovation Network Canada Strengthen Ties
- Electric Power Research Institute and Electricity Canada enter into a mutual agreement to collaborate in addressing climate change and related energy issues
- Accelerating Learning - Electricity Fundamentals in Canada (EFiC)
- Francis Bradley speaks to CanREA and the Energy Council of Canada
- Electricity Canada participates in the Transition Accelerators new project Electrifying Canada
- Electricity Canada Presents: DataBytes
- Electricity Canada is gearing up to launch our updated Centre of Excellence focussing on net zero
- Electricity Canada responds to EV charging consultation
- Electricity Canada welcomes three new Corporate Partners
- Reliability and Resiliency Award applications are now open
- Women in Electricity Award applications are now open
