{"id":74991,"date":"2021-11-02T16:21:20","date_gmt":"2021-11-02T20:21:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=74991"},"modified":"2021-11-02T16:21:20","modified_gmt":"2021-11-02T20:21:20","slug":"distinguished-leader-helps-first-nations-create-destiny-with-power-project","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2021\/11\/distinguished-leader-helps-first-nations-create-destiny-with-power-project\/","title":{"rendered":"Distinguished Leader helps First Nations create destiny with power project"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tell Margaret Kenequanash she can\u2019t do something and the prominent First Nations leader won\u2019t quietly go away.<\/p>\n

Tell Kenequanash she can\u2019t do something and she\u2019ll prove she can.<\/p>\n

Case in point: Kenequanash led the charge to build Canada\u2019s largest majority First Nations-owned infrastructure undertaking, the Wataynikaneyap Power Project.<\/p>\n

It started out in 2007 as an effort to connect a handful of northern Ontario Indigenous communities to the grid. It turned into rolling out more than 1,800 kilometres of transmission lines and working with 24 First Nations to bring clean, reliable electricity to 17 remote communities that had been powered by spotty diesel generators.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s quite a few industry people specifically that told me I\u2019m crazy and this is never going to happen,\u201d Kenequanash said. \u201cAnd that was more like a booster for me that it can happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kenequanash, who now serves as CEO of Wataynikaneyap Power, told the story of the project\u2019s genesis and significance last Thursday when she addressed the Brock community as the Goodman School of Business 2021 Distinguished Leader. The virtual event was supported by the Wilmot Foundation and is part of the D.G. Wilmot leader series.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Margaret Kenequansh (left), CEO of Wataynikaneyap Power, was recognized in a virtual event Oct. 28 as the Goodman School of Business 2021 Distinguished Leader. She\u2019s seen here during a fireside chat with Goodman Dean Andrew Gaudes.<\/p><\/div>\n

The honour is given annually to a prominent Canadian business leader who shares their story during a fireside chat with Goodman Dean Andrew Gaudes. They also connect with students about their professional experiences.<\/p>\n

Kenequanash accepted the Distinguished Leader title on behalf of the communities and partners with whom she works.<\/p>\n

More than a chance to prove anyone wrong, however, Kenequanash was driven to make the Wataynikaneyap Power Project a success because of the socio-economic benefits it will provide. The impacted communities have existed without reliable energy to power safe, everyday living. Industry growth has also been stymied until now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understood the challenges that, without long-term infrastructure in the area, it would be very difficult for our communities to look at other opportunities, but even just to improve the quality of life in the community to provide safe water, shelter and food,\u201d Kenequanash said. \u201cBecause of the number of outages we have, those get compromised very easily. And I often think about our children, our grandchildren and also the elderly people in the community when there were lots of power outages in the middle of winter. There\u2019s so many challenges out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added the estimated $1.9-billion project, which created nearly 770 jobs for its construction, will forever better the fortunes of the communities connected to it.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur people cannot pursue socio-economic opportunities in business development because they\u2019re restricted with the capacity of diesel (generators) in the community,\u201d Kenequanash said. \u201cPart of this project is the vision \u2014 the vision of how we are going to create our destiny as Indigenous people. I believe in the vision of our people.\u201d<\/p>\n

No less important, she noted, are the undertaking\u2019s environmental benefits. The project will spare the atmosphere an estimated 6.6-million tonnes of CO2 emissions over 40 years once it\u2019s complete in 2023.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re leaving behind \u2026 not only the benefits from this project but also the land we live on, the sacred responsibilities to the water, the animals, all those things. It\u2019s important we maintain that for a very long time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Still, the project didn\u2019t come to be simply by calling the leaders of 24 First Nations and asking them to be part of it.<\/p>\n

It was a precedent-setting, co-ordinated effort that required partnering with Fortis Ontario and other private investors who respected Indigenous cultures and autonomy.<\/p>\n

It not only changed communities, enabling them to \u201clive our purpose according to our creator\u2019s plan,\u201d it empowered Kenequanash, too.<\/p>\n

It solidified her status as an Indigenous woman leader.<\/p>\n

Listening is a key leadership trait, she noted. But so is speaking up at the right time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would hope that I could provide information and knowledge to young women to take up challenges, make change for our people or for anything we do in life,\u201d Kenequanash said. \u201cIt\u2019s how we communicate and how we interact with people \u2026. Always ask questions if you don\u2019t know. You don\u2019t just get smart all on your own.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tell Margaret Kenequanash she can\u2019t do something and the prominent First Nations leader won\u2019t quietly go away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":74992,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[39,9794,3319,1,4],"tags":[10901,3540,2852,594,565,10870],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74991"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74991"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74991\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74994,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74991\/revisions\/74994"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}