From 2018-2024, the Indigenous Workways was an multi-institute collaborative action research project that aimed to develop organizational tools and cultures that will empower Ontario’s Indigenous youth in their current and prospective careers. Scholars and Indigenous education centres across four recognized Southwest Ontario institutions—University of Waterloo, University of Windsor, Wilfrid Laurier University, and Conestoga College talked with Indigenous alumni and employees about their experiences in the Canadian workplace, aiming to identify pathways to interpersonal and organizational trust. Funded through the Ontario Research Fund – Research Excellence and SSHRC, the project outcomes help to develop a sustainable solution to underemployment among Ontario’s Indigenous workforce by empowering Ontario's employers with relational, respectful, reciprocal, and relevant workplace communication and climate practices where Indigenous worldviews can flourish. In addition to academic and applied presentations and publications, the project culminated in resources being offered (winter 2024) free to the public through Ontario Open Library that include:
On-line employee training modules:
- Indigenous Worldviews and the organizational context
- Relational Communication
- Microaggressions in the Workplace
- Stereotype Threat in the Workplace
- Holistic Conflict Management
- Psychological and Cultural Safety
Organizational Toolkit:
- Cultural Safety Assessment
- Mentorship Program for Indigenous Employees
- Case: Sponsoring a Career Day for Indigenous Youth