Empowering Indigenous youth to shape their futures and strengthen their communities

Adapted from our globally recognized JA Company Program, The JA Company Program for Indigenous Learners equips Indigenous youth with essential business skills to organize and operate their own enterprises. This program is:

 Free of Charge

Culturally appropriate

Available to all schools and organizations in urban and rural communities

Offering unique networking opportunities

Providing a post-program alumni community

JA Program Menu

In-School

Grades 10-12 (10-16 weeks)

A hands-on experience that inspires high school students to create and operate business ventures aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. They develop teamwork, decision-making, and critical thinking skills valuable for their future.

Curriculum Match: ADST, Career Education

Learn More About In-School Program

After-School

Ages 16-29 (10-16 weeks)

A practical learning experience that empowers young adult learners to ideate and plan their own business ventures aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, fostering decision-making and critical thinking skills for their personal success while driving economic prosperity within their communities.
Join us! Explore opportunities on the right.

Stay Tuned – After-School Opportunities Coming Soon!

For more information, please contact Jenna Bisschop at J.Bisschop@jabc.org

Comprehensive 9-Session Outline

Duration: 9 sessions | 1 hour each
Audience: Indigenous youth

Overview:
This adaptation of the JA Company Program is designed specifically for Indigenous youth, centering Indigenous ways of knowing, community values, and lived experiences.

Through the Cedar Weaving Framework — Reflect, Connect, Weave, Share — participants explore entrepreneurship as a tool for self-determination, cultural preservation, and community impact.

Each stage represents part of a continuous learning braid:

Reflect: Grounding in land, ancestors, and purpose.

Connect: Building community and awareness of shared needs.

Weave: Co-creating, planning, and building business ideas.

Share: Giving back, presenting, and mentoring others – completing the circle.

RCWS Stage: Reflect

Content Covered:

  • Welcome & Opening: program framing and intentions, overview of Cedar Weaving Framework (Reflect → Connect → Weave → Share)
  • Land and cultural acknowledgements (territory-specific phrasing)
  • Mentor introduction: personal story and connection to entrepreneurship
  • Program context: JABC & UBC partnership, program goals, benefits of JABC programs, alumni outcomes
  • Introduction to RCWS pathway and cyclical learning
  • Individual reflection: identity, teachings, community strengths, personal values
  • Stories Teach Us: role of storytelling in Indigenous cultures and connection to entrepreneurship
  • Featured Indigenous Business: Sisters Sage video or story highlighting culture, community, and giving back
  • Cedar Reflection Ceremony: guided meditation connecting participants to land, ancestors, and personal strengths
  • Group reflection: lessons from Sisters Sage, culture, and community impact
  • Closing: recap of Reflect stage, preview of Connect stage, gratitude

Learning Goals:

  • Ground participants in identity, land, and cultural teachings
  • Recognize storytelling as a tool for learning and entrepreneurship
  • Connect personal strengths and community values to entrepreneurial thinking
  • Establish a foundation of reflection and cultural grounding for future sessions

RCWS Stage: Reflect / Connect

Content Covered:

  • Introduction to Entrepreneurship: Exploring what entrepreneurship means beyond business — as a way to carry teachings forward, strengthen community wellness, and support cultural continuity.
  • Entrepreneurship as Community Wellness: How businesses can promote self-determination, healing, opportunities for youth, and long-term community impact.
  • Indigenous Business Example: The Sen̓áḵw Project — a real-world example of Indigenous entrepreneurship that combines economic development with cultural preservation and community care.
  • Types of Business Ownership: Overview of common structures:
    • Sole Proprietorship
    • Partnership
    • Corporation
    • Cooperative (Co-op)
  • Reflection & Connection Activity:
    • Participants consider which business structure aligns with their values, gifts, and the needs of their community.
    • Guided reflections on how entrepreneurship can strengthen culture, identity, and community relationships.
  • Collaborative & Community-Based Thinking: Introduction to “One Heart, One Mind” (nəc̓əmat) values — reciprocity, responsibility, respect, and relationships — as guiding principles for entrepreneurship.

Learning Goals:

  • Understand entrepreneurship as a tool for cultural continuity and community wellness.
  • Identify and reflect on business structures that align with personal and community values.
  • Connect personal gifts and teachings to entrepreneurial ideas that benefit the community.
  • Recognize the importance of collaboration, shared purpose, and Indigenous values in building businesses.

RCWS Stage: Connect/Weave

Content Covered:

  • Reflection on previous session (Connect) and introduction to the Weave stage of the Cedar Weaving Pathway.
  • Teaching of nəc̓əmat (“one heart, one mind”) — understanding unity, trust, and shared rhythm as foundations for teamwork.
  • Team-building activity: “Paddle Together” Challenge — experiencing communication, rhythm, and leadership from both front and back of the “canoe.”
  • The canoe as a living teaching of balance, humility, and community sovereignty — everyone contributing gifts for the shared good.
  • Guided reflection: identifying individual gifts, fire (passions), and community needs to discover shared purpose.
  • Group brainstorming: weaving personal strengths and community priorities into early business ideas using the Four R’s (Reciprocity, Responsibility, Respect, Relationships).
  • Reflection and discussion: what makes a team strong; how connection supports creation.
  • Looking ahead: preview of refining and grounding business concepts in the next session.
  • Closing teaching and quote reinforcing nəc̓əmat and gratitude for teamwork and unity.

Learning Goals:

  • Understand and apply nəc̓əmat (“one heart, one mind”) as a guiding value for collaboration and leadership.
  • Experience teamwork through Indigenous teachings emphasizing rhythm, balance, and shared purpose.
  • Recognize the canoe as a metaphor for relational awareness and collective movement.
  • Identify personal gifts, passions, and community needs as the basis for purpose-driven business ideas.
  • Begin co-creating team business concepts grounded in Indigenous values of reciprocity, responsibility, respect, and relationships.
  • Strengthen communication, trust, and cooperation as participants transition from Connect to Weave in the RCWS cycle.

RCWS Stage: Connect/Weave

Content Covered:

  • Understanding a value proposition
  • Identifying who we are helping and what needs we are meeting
  • Exploring customer segments and relationships
  • Channels: reaching community through storytelling, social media, and events
  • Community-centered impact and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
  • Introduction to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
  • Begin the Business Model Canvas: Value Proposition, Customer Segments, Customer Relationships, Channels

RCWS Stage: Connect/Weave

Content Covered:

  • Identifying essential daily operations and responsibilities
  • Mapping key partners: Elders, artisans, peers, local networks
  • Identifying key resources: materials, knowledge, tools, spaces
  • Resource-mapping activity
  • Continue building the Business Model Canvas: Key Activities, Key Partners, Key Resources

RCWS Stage: Weave

Content Covered:

  • Understanding fixed and variable costs
  • Exploring expense areas for Indigenous-run small businesses
  • Revenue types: sales, services, subscriptions, donations
  • Designing culturally appropriate and sustainable pricing models
  • Complete the Cost Structure and Revenue Streams on the Business Model Canvas

RCWS Stage: Weave/Share

Content Covered:

  • Review and refine all nine components of the Business Model Canvas
  • Ensure alignment with team values, community purpose, and cultural teachings
  • Peer and facilitator feedback
  • Teams prepare short summaries or visual representations of their business

RCWS Stage: Share

Content Covered:

  • Public speaking tools: the 6 Ps (Projection, Pace, Pitch, Posture, Poetry, Poise)
  • Using storytelling to share business purpose and cultural grounding
  • Building a short pitch: Hook, Problem, Solution, Ask, Call to Action
  • Peer-led pitch practice with feedback

RCWS Stage: Share/Reflect

Content Covered:

  • Team sharing of final business ideas and learnings
  • Demonstration of understanding of business concepts, community purpose, and Indigenous values
  • Emphasis on storytelling, personal motivation, and cultural grounding
  • Final output may include: Business Model Canvas, team pitch, or storytelling presentation

The program encourages youth to build businesses rooted in purpose, respect, reciprocity, and responsibility to future generations.

This hands-on experience inspires Indigenous learners to create and operate business ventures aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on how these global goals can be applied to address the unique needs and priorities of their own communities.

Here are some examples:

Empower Indigenous learners through culturally relevant education and entrepreneurship.

Develop curricula that integrate Indigenous knowledge and history to foster business skills.

Broaden learning opportunities by offering in-depth mentorship and real-world, hands-on business experience, empowering participants to gain practical knowledge.

Foster entrepreneurship among Indigenous communities, providing tools for financial independence.

Encourage sustainable economic growth through practical business development training.

Create pathways to meaningful employment by building local businesses and increasing economic opportunities within Indigenous communities.

Encourage innovation in business models tailored to Indigenous traditions and modern entrepreneurial needs.

Support Indigenous-led businesses through mentorship and infrastructure improvements.

Strengthen digital infrastructure in Indigenous communities to promote connectivity and access to markets.

Reduce economic and social disparities for Indigenous communities by providing equitable access to entrepreneurial opportunities.

Empower individuals from underrepresented Indigenous communities to overcome systemic challenges.

Promote inclusivity by ensuring equal access to resources and opportunities for all Indigenous entrepreneurs.

Delivery of the Company Program for Indigenous learners in B.C. is generously supported by:

View the 2024-25 JA Company Program for Indigenous Learners Program Report