This report was prepared by the Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities (CFE), led by Lamia Kamal-Chaoui, Director. It was produced as part of the programme of work of the OECD Regional Development Policy Committee (RDPC).
The development of this study was made possible thanks to the support of Canada’s Regional Development Agencies (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, Canada Northern Economic Development, Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario), and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.
The report was co-ordinated by Tamara Krawchenko, Policy Analyst, and Chris McDonald, Policy Analyst, under the supervision of José Enrique Garcilazo, Head of the Regional and Rural Policy Unit in the Regional Development and Tourism Division led by Alain Dupeyras. Tamara Krawchenko was the lead drafter of the report with contributions from Chris McDonald, Laura Springare and Ana Monroy Moreno (Chapter 2), and Lorena Figueiredo (Chapter 3). Jonathan Barr, José Enrique Garcilazo, and Alain Dupeyras also provided comments on the draft. We would also like to thank Professor Frances Abel from Carleton University’s School of Public Policy and Administration for contributing to the first chapter, and Professor David Freshwater from the University of Kentucky’s School of Agricultural Economics for contributing to Chapter 5.
The OECD Secretariat extends its special thanks to the local team co‑ordinators for their involvement, continuous support and close co-operation to the project: Serge Desrosiers and Stephane Pronovost of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec; Lynne Laviolette of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency; Gareth Hitchings; Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario; and Patrick W. Watson from Indigenous Services Canada.
Special thanks go also to all Indigenous representatives and leaders for their guidance, expertise and feedback that have accompanied us on this journey. The project team directly engaged with seven different First Nations and Inuit communities. In particular, we thank Dawn Madahbee Leach, Vice Chair of the National Indigenous Economic Development Board, Canada, for her deep enthusiasm, abundant support and wise reflections, and our Indigenous peer reviewers Lars Anders Baer, Special Advisor, Sámi Parliament of Sweden, Patrice Kunesh, Director, Centre for Indian Country Development at the United States Federal Reserve, Minneapolis, and Anne Marie Roberts, National Director of the National Indigenous Australians Agency Regional Network.
Further, we would like to thank: Chief Bob Gloade (Millbrook First Nation, Canada); Chief Clifford Moar (Mashteuiatsh First Nation, Québec, Canada); Wayne Moonias, former Chief of Neskantaga First Nation; Ted Moses, former Chief of the Grand Council of the Crees; representatives of the Makivik Corporation (Innuit, Québec, Canada); Stevie Komoartok, Mayor, Pagnirtung, Nunavut, Canada; Vanessa Mountain, Trustee, St'át'imc 2011 Trust; Konrad Sioui, Grand Chief of the Huron-Wendat Nation, Quebec, Canada; Emmanuel Bertrand-Gauvin (First Nations Economic Development Commission of Quebec); Peter Moonias (Former Chief, Neskatanga, Ontario, Canada); Councillor Larry Sault (Mississaugas of The Credit, Ontario, Canada); and Jeffrey Maurice, Vice President, Vice President at Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated.
The report was strongly enriched through comments, advice and engagement of the following Indigenous leaders and institutions: Alex Cope and Robert Gloade (Millbrook First Nation), Larry Sault, Brittney Sault, Stacey Laforme (Missassaugas of the Credit First Nation), Chris Moonias (Neskantaga First Nation), Paul Capon and Rosanna Peever (Matawa Tribal Council), Jay Mearns and Stephen Lee (Musqueam First Nation), Vanessa Mountain, Darryl Peters, and Arthur Adolph (St'at'imc Nation), Nancy MacDonald and Jamie Evic (Hamlet of Pangnirtung), Emmanuel Bertrand-Gauvin (First Nations Economic Development Commission of Quebec), Alicia Dubois, JP Gladu, Tabatha Bull, Max Skudra, and Brittney Sault (Canadian Council of Aboriginal Business), Michele Young-Crook, Jason Campbell, Mark Sevestre (National Aboriginal Trust Officers Association), Shannin Metatwabin, Gerry Huebner, and Frank Richter (National Aboriginal Capital Corporations Association), Suzanne Trottier and Brian Titus (First Nations Financial Management Board), Steve Berna and Ernie Daniels (First Nations Financial Authority), Niilo Edwards (First Nations Major Projects Coalition), Brent Moreau (First Nations Tax Commission), and Ray Wanuch (Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers).
The report also benefited from the guidance, support and comments from the following government officials and non-government organisations: Kelley Blanchette, Carlo Rupnik, Autumne Cadieux, Frédéric Lessard, Sunil Bajaj, Dustin Remillard, Catherine Lappe, Torrine Johnson, Eunice Coupland, Tryna Booth, Christopher Duschenes, Tori Wong, and Marc Boivin (Indigenous Services Canada), Marie-Eve Harvey and Stephane Pronovost (Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions), John Price, Nicholas Kavanagh, Magali Bouffard, Stacey Lambert, Jyoti Bhargava, Daniel Canough (Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada), Eugène Leblanc, Darryell Nowlan, Wade AuCoin (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency), Gareth Hitchings (Federal Economic Development Initiative for Southern Ontario), Crescentia Dakubo, Aime Dimatteo, and Anoop Kapoor (Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario), Margaret Buist, Lynne Laviolette and Susan Joao (Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency), Alessandro Alasia and Peter Murphy (StatsCan), Audrey Belanger-Baur (Global Affairs Canada), Annie Cyr-Parent, Nancy Guyon, and Jimi Onalik (Government of Nunavut), and Keith Brown (Cape Breton University Canada).
Thanks are also extended to the team who contributed to the preparation of the manuscript in CFE: Jeanette Duboys and Pilar Philip; and to Alexandra Taylor and her communications team for dissemination and social media support.