A helping hand to Indigenous Peoples through financial literacy

Nothing would keep Shannon Haizimsque from her classes—not even nature, despite its best efforts. 

In November 2021, Haizimsque, chief operating officer for Yinka Dene Economic Development, corporate arm of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation, was heading overland to Vancouver. She planned to supplement her business administration degree with a certificate in Indigenous financial management offered through a partnership between Langara College and and AFOA BC, an organization dedicated to enhancing management, finance and governance practices and skills among Indigenous communities and organizations. 

During her trip from Wet’suwet’en, in central British Columbia, severe storms swept away parts of the Coquihalla Highway. Not long after Haizimsque left, it was underwater. Then she was waylaid in the district of Hope by rockslides. 

“They weren’t expecting us to show up,” Haizimsque says of program administrators. 

But she made it. Too much was at stake otherwise. Over the years, she’d seen financial officers come and go from Yinka Dene, disrupting projects. By learning more about the field—which once struck her as unnervingly different from her human-resources background—Haizimsque could provide the continuity necessary for progress. 

Haizimsque’s goal mirrors those of AFOA, now celebrating its 25th anniversary.  

“Our vision is to have certified people in every indigenous community and organization in Canada,” says CPA Terry Goodtrack, president and CEO of the Ottawa-based not-for-profit association. “That’s where the real transformation comes from.” 

That transformation—the kind that underpins real growth for any organization—comes from a thorough understanding of accounting, that universal “language of business,” as Goodtrack describes it. But it also involves going beyond the idea of a bookkeeper. “You need someone who will provide strategic advice, including business opportunities, risk frameworks, accountability, data and IT management,” he says. 

AFOA certifications and workshops are designed to help Indigenous professionals do that. Four certificate streams cover human resources, leadership, administration, and financial management (potentially laddering into CPA certification). Another program, delivered at Harvard Business School, covers investment management and community sustainability. 

Vice-president of education and training Pamela Ouart-McNabb points out that while mainstream educational institutions cover fundamentals, they don’t often present information tailored specifically to Indigenous realities. 

Designed in consultation with communities, “our programming fills a significant gap,” she says. For example, AFOA courses encompass history, culture, and the input of Elders and others.  

Programming also accounts for barriers that conventional post-secondary is just beginning to recognize. “There’s history that comes into this,” says Goodtrack. “Trauma comes into this. There’s geography that comes into this, in terms of moving from maybe a rural area into urban life.” 

Indeed, after overcoming physical roadblocks, Haizimsque saw how AFOA and Langara helped students pass less obvious obstacles. Some members of the all-woman cohort, she says, had never attended post-secondary. One had never been outside her community. All had family and cultural responsibilities that competed for attention throughout the program, delivered over 18 months on site and online. 

After graduating last fall, Haizimsque is already recommending AFOA programming to new employees at Yinka Dene. She no longer needs to wait on a possibly absent contractor to resolve an issue. And she has a network of former classmates ready to offer advice and support. She sees those as far-reaching benefits. 

“Finance is the hub of our administration, our companies,” says Haizimsque. It’s essential to the success of Yinka Dene and has a direct impact on Wet’suwet’en First Nation.  

“It flows out,” Haizimsque adds. “Everything’s connected… We’re able to make better, informed business decisions. That’s all a part of our own self-determination.” 

Haizimsque isn’t done with her education. Noting her strength in accounting, instructors encouraged the class valedictorian to pursue a CPA designation. She’s considering it while also musing about an MBA. To her, the certificate is a “stepping stone.” 

Goodtrack might see that as a sign of his organization’s success. He believes it’s not just leaders who are responsible for realizing vision but “management and financial professionals who can execute on the plans.” With AFOA, he wants those professionals to see themselves as integral to development. 

“This is what I hope for all of what we do,” says Goodtrack, “that it raises the ceiling of what they think is possible.”

Photo Caption: Terry Goodtrack and Elizabeth Richards, Chair of Ngā Kaitatau Māori o Aotearoa, at an AFOA event.