First Nation Relationship Building Committee

The First Nation Relationship Building Team (FNRBT) of the corporation will be comprised of representatives of the First Nation Communities who agree to participate as partners in the NSFC.  The goal of this portion of the initiative is to develop strategic initiatives focusing on First Nation priorities and heritage as well as promoting economic wealth and opportunity in these communities.  In order to effectively work in this vertical, the Regional Board will need to become more culturally aware and will need to focus efforts on bridging the gap in the relationship between the municipalities and First Nation Communities.

This stream will be led by the Northeast Superior Regional Chiefs Forum, a partnership between 6 of the regional communities. There will be a representative of the NSFC Board who participates on this committee, and possibly cross appointments from other teams to ensure that projects are not duplicated.  Full composition of this committee will be developed in the first year of operation.

The FNRBT will be responsible for assisting in the creation of the annual work plan as it relates to their portion of the funding.  All dollars in this stream must be matched through First Nation leveraging, or as a portion of a Regional Board application.  All projects that are proposed and subsequently worked on must be consistent with the ideals and goals of the Forest Communities Program and Natural Resources Canada, as holds true with the balance of the NSFC initiative.

The FNRBT will have access to the GM and staff as is made available to other portions of the administrative structure.  Every effort will be made to leverage dollars to hire a First Nation Liaison Officer to bridge the cultural differences that are evident, and to further work on initiatives in this stream.