Case Studies
The First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC)
A multi-phase initiative in partnership with the FNMPC to understand what Indigenous leadership should and can look like in the advent of exponential growth in energy transmission projects.
CLIENT
The First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC)
DATE
2024
INDUSTRY
Renewable Energy
The Client
The First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) is a highly respected national non-profit organization established by First Nations for First Nations which supports the economic, environmental, and public policy interests of its members. The FNMPC provides access to free tools and advice used to make informed business decisions about First Nation involvement in natural resource and infrastructure projects. These major projects are often in the hundreds of millions of dollars in scale.
The Need
For Canada to achieve the Net Zero commitments laid out in Paris, it will need to triple the energy transmission capacity of the country. All of the lands and territories on which this new transmission capacity will be built are Indigenous traditional territories. As a result, all roads to a sustainable net zero energy transition run through Indigenous lands. For this transition to be possible, we need to ensure Indigenous leadership in the development of energy transmission projects. Our project with the FNMPC looks to understand what that leadership should look like, from an equity ownership, procurement, policy and employment perspective.
The Bespoke Solution
Mokwateh’s partnership with FNMPC involves a multi-phase approach. The first of which was leading the research and engagement phases. This involved the logistics of organizing and executing cross-sectoral, multi-stakeholder, multi-rightsholder roundtables. We tapped into our network and relationships to secure representation of many voices (policy, government, finance, environmental, corporate, equity, Indigenous, non-profit, industry, and beyond). Working closely with FNMPC, we organized this in-person event in both Toronto and Calgary. Our discussion guide was carefully planned to surface the key challenges and opportunities to Indigenous-led and -owned clean energy projects in Canada.
The Bridge We Built
The information gathered from the roundtables is directly informing the priorities and recommendations in our next phase. The goal is a National Indigenous Electrification Strategy - an initiative to firmly center Indigenous Nations as leaders in decarbonizing and doubling Canada’s electricity generation, transmission, and distribution systems while creating economic opportunities for their Nation members.
