Background
The Fireweed Fellowship is a business accelerator program for Indigenous entrepreneurs, the first cohort of this pilot program ran from fall 2020 to summer 2021. The program was housed within Raven Indigenous Capital Partners, and co-created in partnership with RADIUS SFU’s First Peoples Enterprise Accelerator Program (FPEAP).
The idea for the Fireweed Fellowship came about from a desire of co-founders Jacqueline Jennings, Executive Director of the Fireweed Institute, and myself, Candice Day, Manager of the FPEAP, to deepen our efforts at decolonizing business and entrepreneurship programming for Indigenous entrepreneurs. In our early visioning days, we asked ourselves: “if money wasn’t a factor, what would Fireweed look like?” This led us to dreaming up a multifaceted entity with the overall vision of economic liberation for Indigenous peoples. Our design encompassed programming, storytelling & research, a fund, and a land-based centre for various programming – centering culture, connection to the land, and a place of respite and community for Indigenous entrepreneurs. Though we were inspired and emboldened by this vision, we were only hired to develop and deliver an accelerator program. We did not have the funding to bring this vision to life, but these early ideas form the foundation of what Fireweed became and continues to become.
Why “Fireweed”?
Fireweed is one of the first organisms to grow after a major disturbance to a landscape, such as a wildfire. They grow tall (up to 9ft!) with the flexibility to bend and adapt to the changing environment. Their petals bring hope and beauty to a seemingly dreary landscape; and are one of many colours needed to build a vibrant ecosystem. Fireweeds do not grow alone, they thrive together and remain connected through their rhizomes. They offer medicinal and culinary gifts, in addition to restoring disturbed soil. In them, we see a brighter future, and a message of resilience and tolerance (see Yéilk̓’s article, Planet Alaska: Ten lessons from the fireweed for more teachings on this generous plant).
A poem inspired by the fireweed plant, written by Fireweed Fellow Ecko Aleck, founder and CEO of Sacred Matriarch Creative
Darkness of dust and ash
Breathes life beneath the surface
A seedling of hope.. a resilient little being, It knows
The time is now. Perseverance breaks ground
Finding foot amongst soot. The fibres like DNA
Blood memory of the ancestors weave together medicine
A layer of protection that stretches deep into the Earth
Finding freedom like the Phoenix, she rises from the ashes
Nurturing the hurt, to gather the first hope
The knowledge of growth, the journey of design
Rooted in a network of connection.. to the infinite universe
Growing pains only sway this brave little beauty
She’s determined to stay fluid, to move and bend
To pivot as a misfit, relentless in effort
Every breath, every step is a milestone of movement
Every moment is this knowing of the brightness from within
She stretches beyond limits, her petals spring up to sing
Beautiful fireweed you did it
You believed and pushed your dreams
You persevered, now you’re here
A symbol of strength and change
Fireweed’s design and ethos is committed to economic transformation, liberation and wellbeing for all – inclusive of all beings, as well as the land.
Fireweed’s design and ethos is committed to economic transformation, liberation and wellbeing for all – inclusive of all beings, as well as the land. This means a shift from scarcity to abundance with Indigenous wisdom at the centre — celebrating Indigenous excellence. We believe that entrepreneurs are well positioned to lead this transformation; changing dominant narratives about successful business leadership by demonstrating respectful and reciprocal practices that benefit many as opposed to a few, and consider the health of the land and those who inhabit it. In response to a community need for a dedicated space, the Fireweed Fellowship’s first cohort was designed for Indigenous women, 2Spirit, trans/Indigiqueer entrepreneurs from diverse territories and sectors in what is now known as Canada. At the time of design, there were not any Indigenous entrepreneurship spaces of this scope that did not include cisgender men.
After an extensive application and interview process where we considered the thorough and thoughtful applications of over 40 entrepreneurs, 23 entrepreneurs were selected as the first cohort of the Fireweed Fellowship (see link below). The participants represented 20+ communities and 11 sectors, from non-profit leaders to sole proprietors, and from product developers to service providers; all while contributing to their respective communities (see image below).
The dreaming and planning for this inaugural program took place in early 2020, prior to the COVD-19 pandemic. Like many others, we needed to pivot from our original plan of a hybrid accelerator program that would host sessions in four locations across the country, to a fully online offering. With culture and connection being core aspects of our program, and a key aspect of decolonial design, our biggest concern was whether these values could be replicated in an online format. Thankfully, with the support and openness of the Fireweed Fellows, we discovered that this was possible with some very intentional planning, execution, and creative solutions to things like feasting, gifting, and fire keeping.
The program grew into a supportive respite from the uncertainty, precarity, and opportunities brought on by COVID. Every week we logged in to sit in a virtual circle, sharing, teaching, and learning with one another.
The program grew into a supportive respite from the uncertainty, precarity, and opportunities brought on by COVID.
Communities of the Fireweed Fellows
Inspired by Cohort One of the Fireweed Fellowship: The Fireweed Business Model
We found that the traditional Business Model Canvas (BMC) layout wasn’t connecting with the entrepreneurs in our program. Rather, participants felt it was missing essential elements of their business like culture, language, and community. We looked to the fireweed plant for inspiration yet again, and adapted the BMC to help contextualize Indigenous entrepreneurship – first zooming out, and looking at how fireweeds exist together in a field, then their individual structure and growth strategy, and finally their unique flower design.
Participants felt the traditional Business Model Canvas was missing essential elements of their business like culture, language, and community. We looked to the fireweed plant for inspiration yet again, and adapted the BMC to help contextualize Indigenous entrepreneurship
This more holistic view is aligned with a relational worldview that considers one’s role and responsibility in community and the collective good. In the Fireweed model, the land is represented as the nourishing soil where plants take root, much like the connection to land is a source of strength and a relationship of reciprocity for many Indigenous entrepreneurs. Moving below the surface, we are rooted by our connection to community, however that may be defined. Community is represented in this model by plant roots to show its significance to the health of a venture/organization. In turn, the venture contributes to a nutrient rich soil for other fireweeds to take root and proliferate (mentoring, resource sharing, role modelling). The above ground system of rhizomes connect and support other plants, much like how an entrepreneur’s network connects and strengthens its members. The impact created by the venture disperses like that of a seed, it can travel near or far and take root in unexpected places, sometimes out of view. Once rooted, it becomes part of a bright and vibrant community, a thriving Indigenous economy.
Zooming in and looking at the flower of the fireweed, we see an alternating petal/sepal pattern, each sitting across from its respective petal/sepal. This structure symbolizes the core elements of the business model, with the petals and the centre of the flower including much of the same elements contained with the BMC (black text in image below). Relationships between segments are represented by what is directly across from each petal and sepal. “Flow of Funds” includes revenue streams and cost structure; “Relationship to Customers” includes customer channels and customer relationships; and the centre of the flower, the “Value/Service” provided by the business, includes the value proposition and the venture’s key activities.
The sepals represent elements of Indigenous entrepreneurship that anchor the business model in purpose, governing protocols (leadership), family (the team, often including family members), and culture/language. These are relevant to non-Indigenous entrepreneurs as well, we just found that there was less emphasis on some of these areas in the BMC, particularly culture, purpose, and leadership as it relates to cultural protocols and teachings.
Five years later…
This coming fall, It will be five years since the inaugural Fireweed Fellowship. Of the 23 entrepreneurs who embarked on that journey with us during the pandemic, over 70% continue to grow, adapt, streamline, and maintain the same businesses they were operating during the Fellowship. Others have shifted to new business opportunities or new careers. During the Fellowship, the key needs and/or concerns of the entrepreneurs included:
- Decolonial and anti-racist business and leadership practices
- Network of other Indigenous entrepreneurs
- Finance and investment readiness training
- Leadership development
- Marketing strategy, particularly online marketing
- Building and managing a team
- Planning for growth
After checking-in with some of our alumni, some of the above needs have changed and some remain the same, including:
- Access to funding/finance
- Administrative support
- Larger business network
- Setting up new manufacturing (location)
- Developing additional sales channels
- Expanding new product development
- Professional services
- Distribution partner
- New market development
- Marketing strategies (beyond social media)
This tells us that some of our alumni have made big strides with their businesses since the program ended in 2021, and despite a global pandemic, some entrepreneurs have thrived. We also see that there is still a gap in accessing funding for Indigenous women, 2Spirit, trans/Indigiqueer entrepreneurs. This persistent need is one we hope to address by equipping investment-curious Indigenous folks with the skills and knowledge to step into impact investing and transform how and where investment dollars are spent. For years Indigenous peoples have been on the demand side of the investment equation, but what happens when more Indigenous people are on the supply side, deciding where capital is invested? The next phase of Fireweed endeavors to shift these scales, among other things.
For years Indigenous peoples have been on the demand side of the investment equation, but what happens when more Indigenous people are on the supply side, deciding where capital is invested?
The Future of Fireweed
After a few years of fundraising for Fireweed as a program, with partners like RADIUS offering to house it and provide administrative support, we made the decision to incorporate Fireweed as its own society. The Fireweed Institute came into being in November 2022 and it’s the next step towards realizing that early vision of a multimodal approach to economic liberation for Indigenous entrepreneurs.
The Fireweed Institute is a Centre for Excellence in Indigenous Entrepreneurship & Innovation. It will clear a path for economic self-reliance, social impact, and a thriving future for Indigenous innovation, offering both virtual and in-person programming. The Fireweed Institute is supported by six lodge poles — a purpose-built, land-based center, wisdom and research, storytelling, advising and consulting, a community wealth fund, and programming and learning.
The Fireweed Institute will provide Indigenous-led, decolonial programming by way of the Indigenous Venture Accelerator and Indigenous Impact Investor Training. Through these programs, the Fireweed Institute will amplify innovative impact-driven Indigenous businesses and close the gap on access to financing through the deployment of capital by and for Indigenous peoples.
Stay tuned for the Fireweed Institute’s next offering – a venture accelerator, “skills boost” for early-stage venture incubation. For more information reach out to:
In our stories, we do not ask students to elevate themselves to make decisions for others; rather, we invite students to learn from expert entrepreneurs and business leaders about how those leaders got to where they are now.