The North West Company is pleased to announce an exciting new partnership with First Nations Voice

PAGE 12 • JANUARY 2012

First Nations Voice and North West Company - a new relationship

BY MARTIN ZEIlIg
A new relationship between First Nations Voice (FNV) and The North West Company (NWC) will bring ben- efits to both partners - something that bodes well for the future.
That's no idle com- ment.
Just ask the two people who initiated this arrangement: Al Isfeld, publisher and owner of FNV - a national, non-political, privately owned paper, which first began publishing in 2008; and, Michael McMullen, Executive Vice-President of the Northern Canada Re- tail Division of NWC - a leading retailer of food and everyday products and services (which is headquartered in Win- nipeg and traces its roots back to 1668) to rural communities and urban neighbourhoods across Canada, Alas- ka, the South Pacific and the Caribbean.
"I think this is an op-

Michael McMullen, North West Company and Al Isfeld, First Nations Voice.

"At the store lev- el, NWC continues to invest in the skills and technology re- quired to refine its merchandise selec- tion and ordering capabilities", com- mented McMullen.
"This combined with the insight of our local managers, enables us to de- liver the best mer- chandise at the best price, one commu- nity, and one cus- tomer, at a time," he added.
NWC is also a big supporter of Com- munity Support pro- grams with a focus on sports and rec- reation, culture and arts, healthy living and environmental sustainability within the various com- munities in which it operates.
For example, noted McMullen, last year the com- pany helped more
portunity for the First Nations Voice to pro- file its working relationship with First Na- tions over many years," said Isfeld during an interview with a reporter.
"It's also an opportunity to engage in a dialogue with all the First Nations commu- nities that are presently serviced by NWC and all their northern stores. It adds to the credible relationship that FNV already has in Winnipeg and with other distribution partners."
McMullen, meanwhile, emphasized that NWC wanted an association with a voice in the Aboriginal community that has "resonance" - a publication that is re- spected and has real growth potential.
"For us, the paper reaches key commu- nities. Its editorial content is based around strong positive messages from First Na- tions leaders," he offered.
"We also believe that this is a vehicle in a practical business sense. It's provid- ing a strong and direct communications channel to the communities we operate in. We'll utilize the relationship and advertise- ments to recruit both management and management training positions. We will also be distributing FNV in 62 of our com- munities."
Isfeld observes that First Nations and Aboriginal people face "challenging ob- stacles," particularly privately owned First Nation/Aboriginal businesses trying to do business with private sector companies and all levels of governments.
"We can in a positive way create an equal playing field for education, jobs and doing everyday business," he explained.
"The First Nations Voice is meant to be used by all First Nation/Aboriginal individu-
als, groups, organizations, and the private sector as well as all levels of government who wish to participate, through sharing of information, and educating each other."
Significantly, as well, this new relation- ship fits in well with The North West Com- pany mandate, mentioned McMullen.
"Our company is driven by a strategy aimed at growing 'with and within' each market we serve," he said.
"You can see this commitment in our continuous expansion into new products and services and in our effort to tailor each store's merchandise mix to the community it serves. While the ongoing expansion of our food offering continues to drive sales growth, complementary products and services in- cluding financial services, healthcare, motor vehicles and gas retailing are growing con- tributors to our continued success."
than 7,000 community members to partici- pate in sporting events.
"Every year, we give more than 450,000 dollars to communities for cultural events and performing arts," he said, noting, too, that since 2000 The NWC has raised more than $2 million for the Canadian Diabetes Association and the American Diabetes Association.
In this day of heightened environmen- tal concern, NWC has, not surprisingly, initiated an environment and sustainability program.
"Since we started our Greener Tomor- row program in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Nunavik, plastic bags have been reduced by more than 60 percent," said McMullen, who has been with the company for five years now, stressing that

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JANUARY 2012 • PAGE 13

A NeW relATioNship

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Chiefs of the North Shore Tribal Council

every year, his company gives more than
$180,000 in scholarships and education assistance help to its staff and community members.
All of these Community Support programs
"From our perspective the commitment to this relationship was predicated on the strength of the Aboriginal leadership as presented in FNV."
McMullen describes this relationship

say NO! to a multi-billion dollar nuclear waste disposal project in their territory

fits in well with the objectives of FNV.
"One of our main goals is to create partnerships that will help eradicate First Nation/Aboriginal poverty by providing ac- cess to economic opportunities and jobs in the private sector," said Isfeld.
"We want to promote issues relating to First Nation/Aboriginal business, culture, health, education and our languages to the public and in schools, including the work- place where applicable. The fastest grow- ing population demographically is the First Nation/Aboriginal community."
The publication already offers some company profiles where job opportunities can be identified by the private sector busi- nesses as well as First Nation/Aboriginal organizations.
as a new perspective in the three R's: The message has to resonate with the com- munity; NWC can help it reach the Aborig- inal communities; It is an excellent recruit- ment vehicle for The NWC.
"We will be advertising in FNV on a monthly basis," he said.
"It will focus on a mix of promotions and healthy living, including low cost meal reci- pes and later in 2012 Aboriginal scholar- ship programs."
For his part, Isfeld praised the "first rate service" provided to First Nations people by NWC for many decades now.
"We're moving into the future," he said, noting that FNV already has a partnership with three major auto dealerships in Win- nipeg and will be marketing
NORTH SHORE TRIBAL COUNCIL
(Cutler, Ontario) December 20 - The First Nations of the North Shore Tribal Council strongly reject the prospect of the North Shore of Lake Huron becoming a site for the long-term storage of nuclear waste for the Nuclear Waste Management Organi- zation (NWMO).
The City of Elliot Lake has publicly expressed interest in possibly becoming one of the sites for the long-term disposal of nuclear waste for Canada's nuclear industry. Elliot Lake has a long history of uranium mining that resulted in the boom and bust of the city, as well as significant and lasting environmental damage to the local watershed and nearby ceremonial grounds. In addition, there are dozens of tailings ponds surrounding Elliot Lake cur-
erations to come, and businesses alike."
The half-life of this material is hun- dreds of thousands of years old and could impact generation after generation. No
site can ever be totally safe for nuclear waste storage.
"Natural disasters sometimes happen, such as we've seen in Japan. It could make this whole area a nuclear wasteland suitable for only that industry," says Chief Sayers.
Our statement to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and to the Nuclear Waste Management Organization is: Do not waste your financial resources if you plan to conduct a study in this area be- cause a nuclear waste dump is not going to happen here.
The North Shore Tribal Council rep-
"Private sector compa-
nies, Crown Corporations and Industry who derive their livelihood by providing services or commodities to Aboriginal and First Nation individuals and communi- ties can use the 'First Na- tions Voice' as a Direct Mar- keting venue and as a job recruitment vehicle, using

We at FNV are excited to be part of this process. This opens the door for any

other corporation or government

or business to

reach their target

them through the Wasaya
Group, Inc. in the publica- tion's pages, as well as be- ing the only First Nations newspaper to carry the APTN T.V. Guide in every issue.
"We at FNV are excited to be part of this process. This opens the door for
any other corporation or
rently waiting for a solution for their safe disposal.
"We cannot idly stand by and watch as they inject Mother Earth with this cancer," says Chief Lyle Sayers, Chairman of the North Shore Tribal Council. "We must ensure that the future natural resources of this area are there for our children, gen-
resents seven First Nation communities across the North Shore of Lake Huron. Chief Lyle Sayers is the Chief of the Gar- den River First Nation and also the Chair- man of the North Shore Tribal Council.

~ Alan Ozawanimke,

Chief Executive Officer , The North Shore Tribal Council e: [e-mail]
their individual procurement strategy," says information on the FNV
website.
McMullen and Isfeld

market through our

publication.

government or business to reach their target market through our
p u b l i c a t i o n . FNV is look- ing for any

Chambers sign memorandum of understanding

began their
initial discus- sions about this partner- ship three years ago when FNV was first l a u n c h e d , noted Mc- Mullen.
"But, it was at the third anni- versary cel- ebrations in
2011 that we decided to create a longer term relationship," he said.
m e a n i n g f u l
partnerships that will be of benefit to First Nations communi - ties. We owe some grati- tude to all the wonderful partners who are coming to our table to try and better the lives of First Nations and Aborigi- nal peoples." Now that
is something we can all support.
At the sold out Aboriginal Chamber of Com- merce Annual Gala Dinner on November 16,
2011, the Aboriginal Chamber of Commerce, The Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, and the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce co- signed an historic Model Aboriginal Procure- ment Policy Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU, believed to be the first of its kind in North America, is intended to fos- ter and encourage the participation of more Aboriginal businesses in Manitoba's main stream economy.
"Procurement practices, or the purchasing of goods, services or construction, are ways to assist in the development of Aboriginal Business and create a more inclusive busi- ness climate in Manitoba and across Canada,' said Andrew Clarke, Chair of the Board, Ab- original Chamber of Commerce. "The Policy is intended to provide opportunities, not hand outs, and its success depends on satisfied customers, just like the success of every oth- er business venture".
"The purpose of the MOU is to help Mani-
toba companies connect more successfully with Aboriginal suppliers of goods and ser- vices," said Manitoba Chambers' President, Graham Starmer. "A good Aboriginal procure- ment program is a hallmark strategy designed to strengthen corporate social responsibility and enhance partnerships with the Aboriginal community for the benefit of both sides and Manitoba as a whole," he added.
By signing this MOU, the three Chambers will use their strengths to enhance procure- ment opportunities, both in the public and pri- vate sectors, as well as enhancing relation- ship building and the potential for partnership opportunities between the Aboriginal and mainstream business communities.
THE MODEL ABORIGINAL PROCURE- MENT POLICY RESOLUTION, approved at the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce Annu- al General Meeting, and the MOU are avail- able at www.aboriginalchamber.ca

~ Aboriginal Chamber of Commerce p: [phone]

e: [e-mail]