麻豆原创 Canada鈥檚 Indigenous Ally Network and the Reconciliation Steering Committee have been committed to the helping our employees reflect upon Canada鈥檚 rich history and the informed future we must carve out to be in better relations with Indigenous Peoples and their communities here in Canada.听When 麻豆原创 Canada began the journey, we wanted to ensure our strategy was comprehensive, culturally informed and effective, all while taking action on to create a corporate ethos that embraces Indigenous worldviews, culture and thought leadership.

We are proud of the progress our team is making and the recognitions we have received. Among our initiatives, we honour Indigenous Peoples Day and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation with educational programming and events including Indigenous guest speakers who can share their insights and perspectives directly with our team. We also honour the Day of Recognition for MMIWG2S, also referred to as Red Dress or ReDress Day. And this year we participated in the , distributing over 600 pins to raise awareness for abused Indigenous women and children.

鈥溌槎乖� Canada鈥檚 commitment to Indigenous reconciliation goes beyond educating our people,鈥� said Zahi Maalouf, Head of Diversity & Inclusion, 麻豆原创 Canada. 鈥淥ur teams want to reach into our communities to make a real impact and continue paving the future of our awareness and reconciliation journey.鈥�

To extend training and upskilling opportunities to Indigenous people within the communities we already serve, 麻豆原创 Canada partnered with PLATO. This partnership will create training and employment opportunities within the Indigenous technology workforce.

Our Pro Bono for Economic Equity (PBEE) program is also continuing to support Indigenous-owned businesses in partnership with our Corporate Social Responsibility partner . PBEE is part of 麻豆原创’s continued support of the social justice movement. 麻豆原创 employee participants leverage their skills as pro bono consultants to help address systemic and business challenges. Ninety-five percent of entrepreneurs that have participated in this program have said they feel more prepared to address future challenges for their organization, including Nuez Acres and Chims Motel.

is an Indigenous-owned business that provides vegan pecan oil beauty products. Every pecan is sustainably farmed and is a natural water-free alternative, showcasing the business’ commitment to sustainability. Anthony Wingham, Founder & CEO, Nuez Acres said,听鈥淲e鈥檝e worked with companies in the past that were more interested in 鈥榗hecking a box鈥� with Indigenous businesses. Working with 麻豆原创, they turned a light switch on for us, addressing some of the challenges we have been facing. We felt the 麻豆原创 team really cared and were invested in our success and made an immediate impact on our business, showing savings right away.鈥�

The owners of Chims Motel are offering a unique experience through Indigenous-designed guest house accommodations. 鈥淏uilding an online presence is understandably challenging and I could not have done it without the help of the 麻豆原创 PBEE team. We are continuing to feel the benefits of the new reservation management system booking system and website enhancements the team introduced. We now have a more equitable chance to compete in this market,鈥� said Naomi Nicholson, Co-Owner, Chims Motel.

麻豆原创鈥檚 vision is to help the world run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. We do this for our customers and strive to bring this to our broader communities as well. If you are an Indigenous business owner and are interested in the program, please express your interest .

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As 麻豆原创 doubles down on our commitment to serve those who are underrepresented in tech, including Indigenous communities, we see quality education and economic opportunity as central to this commitment. Last year, 麻豆原创 launched the to help strengthen Black-owned businesses and social enterprises by providing them with support and expertise from our employees. The result of the U.S. initiative results showed that 95 per cent of businesses felt the program met their expectations. Meanwhile, 92 per cent said they felt more prepared to address future challenges for their organization.

The program was so successful in the U.S., 麻豆原创 expanded it internationally to Brazil, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. And this year, we will roll it out in Canada.

Over six-weeks, 麻豆原创 employees will spend one week working full-time with their assigned Indigenous-owned business and five weeks working at least eight hours per week. The program not only allows 麻豆原创 employees to leverage their professional skills, but will contribute to fostering Canada鈥檚 Indigenous economy, worth over $30 billion and expected to triple in size over the next five years. Given the growth projection of the Indigenous economy, Indigenous entrepreneurship is a significant driving force of Canada鈥檚 economic recovery and stability.

麻豆原创 is committed to helping organizations run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. With this initiative, we will help provide Indigenous-owned businesses some of the tools they need to become the best run version of themselves. 麻豆原创 Canada has begun the volunteer recruitment and training process and is looking for Canadian Indigenous-owned businesses to sign-up and participate in the program.

But don鈥檛 take our word for it. Participants of the PBEE program last year were quoted as saying, 鈥淚 looked into how much it would cost to hire consultants, and to be able to get this for free as an early-stage start-up was a huge, huge benefit.鈥�

And our employees also found it incredibly rewarding: 鈥淲e鈥檙e not just talking about making a difference, we鈥檙e doing something to directly address systemic inequity. My connection鈥ontinues to this day and created connections for me across 麻豆原创 that push me to be a better person, personally and professionally.鈥�

As the co-Executive sponsors of the 麻豆原创 Canada Indigenous Inclusion Steering Committee we are very proud of our team for focusing on volunteering their time and expertise and providing the gift of service as part of this program, furthering our social justice ambitions and impact.

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When 麻豆原创 Canada began our journey, we wanted to ensure our strategy was comprehensive, culturally informed and effective. To achieve this, we engaged partners at the First Nations Technology Council (FNTC) to provide expertise and to ensure our process was guided by Indigenous perspectives. The First Nations Technology Council听worked with us to create an action plan focusing on learning enablement and systematic change to help 麻豆原创 Canada become more inclusive to Indigenous Peoples. Working with FNTC and its Moving Beyond Inclusion cohort, 麻豆原创 Canada has an opportunity to take action on TRCCTA#92 to create a corporate culture that embraces Indigenous worldviews, culture, and thought leadership.听听

In 2021, we provided decolonization training, hosted an Indigenous Artist showcase, launched an employee network group, and sponsored learning opportunities, including a six-week training by an Indigenous-owned training consultant focused on Canadian History through the Lens of Indigenous Women as part of our efforts towards reconciliation. We also honoured our first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation with a session on Canadian History and adopted a strong stance towards meaningful land acknowledgments. It was a year where non-Indigenous members of our company reflected personal and collective responsibility to decolonize our corporate systems in Canada.听听

麻豆原创 Canada is proud of the learning and cultural growth we have already seen in the first year of our initiative. This is a journey of reconciliation that must continue to grow and evolve.听听

With the leadership of our Indigenous Inclusion Steering Committee, we have laid the groundwork for 2022 and continue to move forward on our reconciliation journey. We have created a strategy that allows us to set attainable, impactful targets and engage our employees across Canada. In 2022 麻豆原创 Canada will continue to evolve through our designated workstreams. Our goals and priorities for 2022 include:听

Corporate Social Responsibility听

In 2022, 麻豆原创 Canada is working to increase employee engagement in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities focused on Indigenous initiatives and encouraging our employees to learn more about Indigenous cultures. Recently we announced that this year, our Pro Bono for Economic Equity program will focus on accelerating Indigenous-owned businesses in Canada. The program will allow 麻豆原创 employees to leverage their professional skills and expertise as pro bono volunteer consultants for businesses and social enterprises to help address systemic and business challenges.听

Internally, we will begin a benchmarking exercise to review our existing CSR portfolio and provide an assessment on which organizations support Indigenous programs, and at which level. We will then amplify our volunteerism to increase 麻豆原创 Canada employee involvement in CSR activities that support Indigenous programs. Here, our goal is to build relationships and gain a stronger understanding of local Indigenous cultures and communities.听

HR听

To support an inclusive workplace our HR team is updating ethnicity options for employees in SuccessMap. With more inclusive selections, we hope more employees will choose to self-ID. Visibility into the demographics of employees ensures we are investing in programs and initiatives that align with our workforce. HR is also focused on continuing the great learning options provided in 2021 so employees can continue to grow their knowledge on such an important topic. For example, our HR D&I team has partnered with our employee network group to deliver a Territorial Acknowledgement workshop to 麻豆原创 Canada employees in June.听

Our recruitment strategy is focused on re-imagining the recruitment processes. This means looking beyond our typical hiring pools to identify Indigenous talent and enabling an inclusive hiring process where every candidate has an equitable opportunity to showcase their skills. With this goal in mind, our campus engagement strategy for our early talent and intern groups has been working to build relationships with universities’ Indigenous Employer Advisor and Experiential Learning offices and increased focus and presence at the campuses.听

Communication听

This year, we are focusing on creating meaningful and consistent communications centered around Indigenous initiatives at 麻豆原创. This will help our employees to be aware of the resources we are offering and the actions we are taking at an organizational level, while also outlining pathways for personal engagement.听

Indigenous Ally Network听

Finally, to ensure that these initiatives are carried out in a meaningful way, 麻豆原创 Canada launched an Indigenous Ally Network in the first quarter of 2022. The Indigenous Ally Network brings employees together to learn about indigenous culture and history and to engage in supporting indigenous people and communities. The employee network group will help organize, compile resources and volunteer opportunities, and support the workstreams in executing their objectives to deliver meaningful actions both internally and externally. This network is a simple and powerful way to engage employees in reconciliation and inclusion company-wide.听

2022 and Beyond听

As we charter our course for 2022 and beyond, 麻豆原创 remains committed to the work of reconciliation and eager to continue to evolve our strategy, ensuring that our organization reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. Through the first year or our work, we have found that a key factor in our progress so far has been the combination of taking a partnership-based approach working with Indigenous-led organizations, investment from key decision makers in our organization, as well as the engagement of employees company-wide all leaning in together to drive change at 麻豆原创.听 听

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