Aboriginal Peoples

Through joint initiatives, partnerships and investments in technology and people, we are forging stronger ties with our Aboriginal neighbours. Bell Canada serves Aboriginal communities directly and through a number of holdings including Northwestel, NorthernTel and Télébec.

Building relationships

By listening to and partnering with Aboriginal Peoples, we can achieve mutually beneficial goals and provide advanced telecommunications solutions and community support. Bell Canada participates in an innovative partnership with the First Nations Buying Group and the Conference Board of Canada's Aboriginal Relations Committee.

In late 2005, Northwestel created and recruited for the new position of Director - Aboriginal Relations. The position is intended to assist the company in developing relationships with Aboriginal Peoples, and to increase our understanding of how Aboriginal governments and businesses operate.

Through the Nunavut Economic Development Forum, Northwestel works with all the formal aboriginal groups in Nunavut. We also sit on two committees dedicated to the development of partnerships between members to enhance education through technology.

Télébec consults regularly with representatives from the various communities in Northern Québec — notably the Cree nation — to determine what they need in terms of communications solutions. Télébec has also hired a number of employees from the Cree community in order to better serve our Aboriginal clientele.

Investing in technology

Access to telecommunications services

We work closely with Aboriginal communities in our markets to help improve access to telecommunications services. We have leveraged the federal government Broadband Rural and Northern Development (BRAND) program to build broadband capacity in northern First Nations communities. We continue to invest in technology that helps connect Aboriginal communities to the things they need. Examples include:

• Northwestel's five-year $85.4 million Service Improvement Plan was completed in 2005. This comprehensive construction program has extended basic telephone service and improved network quality throughout Northwestel's operating area. The program includes switching equipment replacements, analog radio system upgrades, installation of cable facilities to extend service to unserved and underserved customers, as well as providing dial-up Internet service to communities that previously had no access to the worldwide web.
• In 2005, Northwestel partnered with the Government of Nunavut to support the development of telehealth in Nunavut. We contributed $100,000 in cash and in-kind services to establish the Telehealth Centre in Whale Cove and to complete the wiring of buildings at ten sites in the network. Northwestel has developed a full e-health strategy and will work closely with northern governments on its refinement and implementation in 2006.
• Northwestel partnered with the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations and their business arm, Dakwakada Development Corporation in 2005, to provide 1X cellular service to 17 rural Yukon communities in 2006-2007.
• Bell's Chapleau Area First Nations Broadband Project will connect three First Nations (Chapleau Cree First Nation, Brunswick House First Nation and Chapleau Ojibwe First Nation) via Digital Subscriber Line technology. This will provide much needed high-speed Internet access to area residents and businesses, as well as government, health and education facilities. This project complements and bolsters "Project Chapleau," which involves Bell Canada Enterprises, Nortel and the Township of Chapleau, collaborating on assessing the sustainability of wireless networks for serving small, rural communities.
  More info on Bell's Chapleau Area First Nations Broadband Project
  
  
• Télébec's cellular network now connects Waswanipi, Mistissini, Nemaska, Ouje-Bougoumou and Chisasibi. Our high-speed Internet service is now available in Mistissini, Eastmain, Nemaska, Waskaganish, and Waswanipi.
• In November 2005, Bell and NorthernTel, in cooperation with Aboriginal Friendship Centres in Ottawa, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie, Cochrane and Sudbury, provided broadband video links that allowed families separated by the evacuation of Kashechewan in northern Ontario to interact with family members and friends.

Investing in people

Bell supports a variety of Aboriginal initiatives including:

The Aboriginal Youth Health Careers Discovery Program at Vancouver Community College. The program's goals include reducing the high school dropout rate among Aboriginal youth, increasing Aboriginal participation in health-related careers and helping Aboriginal students develop self-care strategies.

The Bell Summit Hockey School in Whitehorse, YT where over 65% of attendees are First Nations youth.

The Children's Gift Box Campaign helps build the Aboriginal communities' pride, confidence and independence by giving young people positive life experiences that allow them to grow and develop. Last year, Bell Canada employees gave gift boxes to the Kashechewan First Nation, which has 900 children. In 2005, Fort Albany First Nation was identified as a community that needed help for their 300 children from ages one month to 18 years.

The Little NHL (Native Hockey League) includes 122 teams from across Ontario. Their tournament promotes citizenship, education, sportsmanship and respect. Teams meet annually to compete under the guidance of dedicated coaches, managers, and trainers. The economic impact results in an injection of approximately $4 million to the local host community.

The imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival in Toronto promotes, advances, and fosters emerging and established Canadian Aboriginal filmmakers and media artists in an international context.

The Nishnawbe Aski Business Awards recognize successful aboriginal businesses in the Nishnawbe-Aski territory. Bell Canada has been a sponsor for over ten years.

Operation Spring Board is an initiative led by the federal Department of Justice whereby a consortium of stakeholders have joined forces to create and implement innovative technology-based solutions for Aboriginal youth involved in the criminal justice system.

The Southern Nations Secretariat Youth Leadership Program provides comprehensive community and culturally based after school programs developed for over 1200 aboriginal youth within the London District Chiefs Council. The Youth Model is structured according to Anishinaabe, Lunaape and Oneida philosophies and cultural practices. The core program covers indigenous sports, community and recreation, healthy lifestyles, cultural knowledge, education, career development and giving back to their people.

In February 2005, Bell Canada announced a $3 million investment to support the development of the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre in Whistler, British Columbia. The Centre, slated to open in the summer of 2007, will be the first of its kind in Canada and will showcase the rich heritage and culture of the Squamish and Lil'wat Nations.

In partnership with the Native Studies Department at Sault College, Bell Canada was a Thunderbird sponsor of the Ted Nolan Golf Tournament in 2005 which raised over $40,000 for the Native Studies program at Sault College and the Ted Nolan Foundation.

Northwestel sponsored a number of First Nations activities and events in 2005, including the Assembly of First Nations National Assembly in Yellowknife, the Dene National Assembly in Deline, the Nihtat Gwich'in Council General Assembly in Inuvik and the Treaty 8 Petitot Gathering in Fort Nelson. We also sponsored the Gathering of Traditions Potlatch summer solstice event in Whitehorse, the Fish Fry at the National Aboriginal Day celebrations in Yellowknife, the Folks on the Rocks Music Festival In Yellowknife and the NWT Summer Games held in Inuvik, NWT.

We believe education is key to the success of Aboriginal communities and we make every effort to increase Aboriginal representation in our workforce. That's why we support learning opportunities for Aboriginal northerners. For instance, in 2005, we:

• Provided telecommunications training for First Nations students in Fort Nelson, B.C., enabling them to leverage existing skills to enhance telephone etiquette and call management skills.
• Participated in Career Week activities in Iqaluit, which included an Information Booth at the Career Fair at Inukshuk High School.
• Continued to sponsor the Northwestel Northern Futures Scholarship Program, which is designed to provide future employment for its recipients. Eleven scholarships were awarded in 2005 to students all across the North, five of them to aboriginal students.