b'EMPLOYMENTMissing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. There are also plans for an Orange Shirt Day in the fall. Last year it was mandatory for staff to participate in cultural safety training by Holly Fortier of Nisto Consulting, Inc. For staff working closely with Indigenous peoples and communities, they offered an even deeper aware-ness training with Fortier that involved a classroom session as well and was developed in collaboration with Andrea Louise-Martyn, advisor for Indigenous inclusion at the company. The experi-ence was overwhelmingly positive for staff, Louise-Martyn says. They came out of the experience asking questions and going deeper into their under-standing. It changed their appreciation for Indigenous cultures, for why the relationship between the company and Indigenous peoples is so important, and why their [own] relationship with Indigenous peoples is so important. Emma Lungul, a student taking part in theThey started to ask how they could Construction and Trades Readiness Programshare this information with their kids established by Cenovus and Portage College and families. amazing that can happen because theWe have so many strong, extremely support network and shared experiencescompetent, Indigenous-owned compa-that can enhance Indigenous design isnies working with us and adjacent to there. The Indigenous Design Studious that we have counted on since our creates space for that, [which] is reallyoperations started two decades ago,HITACHI ABB POWER GRIDSspecial, and that is upheld by seniorTrent Zacharias, director, Community management. Because the studio isand Indigenous Affairs at CenovusPOWERINGcross-disciplinedlandscape, architec- Energy says. This is such a central ture and designwe are able to touch onand positive part of our business. WeGOOD FORmany different projects, so it doesnt limithave mutual interests. We can work who we can hire. We can also do publicin alignment with each other for the art. Some people feel like they dont havebetterment of bothits smart busi- SUSTAINABLEa voice, but we always encourage themness practice.to use their voice here. The future isFour years ago, Cenovus new CEOENERGY.bright. I am so hopeful with the next wave of future designers, who are mostlyAlex Pourbaix immediately recog-Indigenous women. Stay tuned! nized the importance of relationships with Indigenous communities, and he DEEPER AWARENESS wanted to learn more. He met withWere never blinded by the While Cenovus Energy recently joinedcommunity leadership to learn aboutscale of a challenge. Uniting the PAR program at the Committedtheir priorities, and housing was high- the talents and expertise of level, they have already been workinglighted as the most pressing need. Intwo pioneers, our unique with Indigenous partners for almost twoJanuary 2020, Cenovus announced anperspective turns the worlds decades. The Calgary-based oil andIndigenous Housing Initiative total- energy issues into a spectrum natural gas company is going throughling $50 million over five years withof solutionsleveraging our significant changes right now, having justthe possibility of an extension to 10digital and energy capabilities purchased Husky Energy. The companyyears. They partnered with six Firstfor a stronger, smarter and has a combined total of 6,000 employees,Nations and Mtis communities closestgreener future.430 of whom attend the Indigenousto their Christina Lake and Foster Community Sharing Circle (ICSC), whichCreek projects, including Beaver LakeLearn more at meets monthly. Many members haveCree Nation, Chard Mtis (Local 218),hitachiabb-powergrids.comattended a National Indigenous DayChipewyan Prairie Dene First Nation, event, Mtis Week, and an event forCold Lake First Nations, Conklin Mtis Aboriginal BUSINESS REPORT35'