TELUS Indigenous Communities Fund

Indigenous artwork superimposed over an aerial view photo of Nootka Island, B.C.

Artwork: nch7mut | One Heart, One Mind, One People
míkw’achi7m | Marissa Nahanee, sḵwx̱wú7mesh and nisga’a Nation
Photo Credit: Mason Mashon, Saddle Lake Cree Nation.

Indigenous Communities Fund

The TELUS Indigenous Communities Fund offers grants up to $50,000 for Indigenous-led social, health and community programs. Together, we can make the future friendly by supporting Indigenous leaders and community groups who know their communities best.

View funding guidelines

TELUS collaborated with Míkw’achi7m (Marissa Nahanee), Squamish and Nisga’a Nation, on the intent, context, and manner of the art used.
Photo: Mason Mashon, Saddle Lake Cree Nation.

Read about our commitment to artistic integrity

Our commitment to reconciliation

In partnership with Indigenous Peoples, TELUS is committed to progressing the path of reconciliation in a deeply meaningful way and is dedicated to fulfilling our role and responsibilities in this regard.

For more than a decade, TELUS has collaborated with Indigenous Peoples and organizations to enable connectivity and bridge digital, geographic and socio-economic divides.

Working together, we are helping create tangible outcomes that will impact generations to come.

Our reconciliation commitment

TELUS is proud to announce the first round of 2023 recipients of the Indigenous Communities Fund.

N'Quatqua First Nation

(B.C.)’s “Learning to live off the land” program will leverage funds to connect youth to the land and teach them traditional ways of gathering and hunting. Participants will learn the Nation’s hunting protocols and other skills such as drying, canning and freezing; the participants will bring their food back to share with the Elders and those in the community that need support.

Xaxli'p

First Nation (B.C.) will use funds to host the

2023 St'át'imc Canoe Journey "Paddling as One"

event. The three day trek from Anderson lake to Seton Lake will bring together 11 communities from across the St'át'imc Territory to join in cultural celebrations, singing, drumming, prayer and more.

Big Horn Health Services

in AB will leverage funds to support

Goodstoney First Nation

through their Big Horn Reserve Recreation Facility Project. A new accessible playground will foster community-wellness and be equipped with a range of play experiences to meet the physical, cognitive, and social needs of children and youth.

The

Manitoba Opera

(MB) will use the funding to support the performance of

Li Keur: Riel’s Heart of the North

. A unique and groundbreaking form of language preservation, reclamation, and celebration, it is the first time that Heritage-Michif, French-Michif, Salteaux, and Anishinaabemowin will be heard on the operatic stage.

Productions Innu Assi

(QC). Featuring the traditional storyteller Charles-Api Bellefleur, this project will record, translate, subtitle, transcribe, distribute and archive 11 ancient Innu tales. This Indigenous-led project will establish a comprehensive repertoire of traditional Innu tales to preserve the thousand-year-old knowledge of the Innu people and their language to ensure it is widely accessible for generations to come.

TELUS is proud to announce the second round of 2022 recipients of the Indigenous Communities Fund.

Lillooet Friendship Centre Society

in BC will apply its funding toward the ECPC Cultural programming. With the help of local Indigenous knowledge keepers, arts and crafts people and language keepers who will demonstrate and pass on traditional culture and skills, this series of speakers and hands-on workshops will be offered to Northern St'át'imc Nation and to Lillooet area participants of all ages. Activities will range from St'át'imc language instruction and practice to hand drumming and traditional songs, to name just a few.

Skidegate Band Council

The GaaGagaay’s men’s group, a mental health and wellbeing project deployed by the

Skidegate Band Council

in BC is aiming to accomplish individual and community healing for male youth, adult and senior participants who currently don't have access to safe spaces where they can open up about their trauma. Coming together in a men's group will provide them with support, hope and personal connections in their journey of healing.

Toosey Band (Tl'esqox)

The Tl'esqox Band will expand their Equine Assisted Learning program and equine therapy, both proven to help with a multitude of mental and wellness issues including PTSD and multi generational trauma. This funding will allow the increase of instructors as well as equine stock, therefore allowing more youth, adults and senior participants living in Tl'esqox Reserve Riske Creek in BC to benefit equine therapy and its positive impacts on individual and community wellness.

Xeni Gwet'in First Nations Government

A Tŝilhqot'in Path to Healing is a healing and wellness program that will be offered to staff and adult participants by the

Xeni Gwet’in First Nations Government

in BC. It aims to enhance community and cultural strength by rooting people through traditional healing and wellness offerings, to support community members’ healing journey through traditional and non-traditional wellness offerings and to provide access to wellness services in the Xeni Gwet’in community.

Chipewyan Prairie First Nation

This funding will support the

Chipewyan Prairie First Nation’s

Head Start Day Care Centre through the creation of a safer and more accessible playground. Enhancements will include the construction of a fence around the play area and landscaping will allow for a greater variety of outdoor activities with easier supervision. Upgrades to the parking and drop off areas will also improve residents and children’s safety during critical times of the day in this integrated community of Janvier and Chard (AB), comprising both a Metis local and a First Nation reserve.

Piikani Foodbank Society

The Piikani Foodbank Society

in AB will apply its funding towards developing the know-how of canning which has been lost. Thanks to the Preserving Foods by Learning to can project, youth and adult participants will benefit from this food safety program where they will learn to can and preserve fruits, vegetables and meat. Learning to can will also help to alleviate constantly increasing food costs.

TELUS is proud to announce the first round of 2022 recipients of the Indigenous Communities Fund.

IndigeSTEAM

designs programming that connects youth with Indigenous STEM role models, helps them develop a passion for STEM, and challenges the notion that science and traditional ways of knowing are incompatible. Programs like the Robot Pow Wow challenge Indigenous youth to design and build a task-solving robot. Grant funds will help expand existing programs and extend their reach through telepresence robots.

Eden Valley Stoney Nakoda Community Garden

Chief Jacob Bearspaw Memorial School

, in collaboration with

Ciclomanias

, will use its grant to implement the Eden Valley Stoney Nakoda Community Garden in AB. Through interactive courses in agriculture, product procurement, consumption and household management, the project will provide practical skills in garden composting and traditional knowledge, encouraging participants to become earth keepers and promote a sustainable community lifestyle.

Enoch Cree Nation’s mâmawinitowin mîyowâyâwin

Enoch Cree Nation

in AB will apply its funding toward a new wellness gathering place called mâmawinitowin mîyowâyâwin. The centre will directly support Indigenous youth by building capacity for leadership, sport, culture, recreation and outdoor learning. Programming will include peer mentoring to develop positive relationships and increase social connections to help foster community unity and engagement.

Gitmaxmak’ay Nisg̱a’a Prince Rupert/Port Edward Society

Funding will support the

Connecting Urban Nisg̱a’a Language Through Tech

project in B.C. Designed to replace obsolete technology, the initiative will incorporate updated ways to deliver advanced virtual language and culture revitalization programs to the 1600+ Nisg̱a’a citizens living in Prince Rupert and Port Edward.

xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) First Nation Ground Penetrating Radar

Musqueam First Nation

in B.C.will apply its funding towards developing Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) resources, including policies and online training tools. GPR is being used nationwide to assess lands around former residential school sites, enabling users to see below ground without excavating. Findings will be shared with community members, industry professionals, media and the public, contributing to enhanced understanding and cultural awareness.

Indigenous Knowledge and Wisdom Centre

Funding for the

Indigenous Knowledge and Wisdom Centre

, owned and operated by First Nations of Treaty 6, 7, and 8, will go towards producing additional Treaty Resource Kits. Inspired from oral treaty history accounts, the Treaty Resource Kits are designed to provide an accurate education on the history of Indigenous Peoples in Alberta and introduce concepts from an Indigenous perspective for educators, students, administrators, community members, and parents.

Kamloopa Powwow Society

Funding for the non-profit

Kamloopa Powwow Society

will help support its 2022 Powwow this July. Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Powwow promotes goodwill, multiculturalism and cross-cultural understanding through song, dance and art.

Workforce Warriors

Funding for the

Workforce Warriors

, an Indigenous-led non-profit, will help expand its STEM training program for Indigenous people in rural Ontario. Partnering with TELUS, the program participants will engage in hands-on training to build careers in telecommunications.

Unamen Shipu Band Council

Funding for the

Unamen Shipu Band Council

(Conseil des Montagnais de Unamen Shipu) in QC, will contribute to the expansion of their community hall. The project, called Mamuk Nakamutau, which in English means, “a shelter for the outdoor stage”, will be used for celebrations, concerts, band council meetings and community gatherings.

Funding Indigenous-led solutions

The TELUS Indigenous Communities Fund provides flexible grant funding to Indigenous-led programs supporting Indigenous Peoples in Canada.

Funding is available for projects focused on, but not limited to:

Health, mental health and well-being
Access to education and resources
Community building and enhancement
Language and cultural revitalization
Inter-community sharing of cultural stories

Funding guidelines

We provide flexible grants to Indigenous organizations, not-for-profits and community groups. Grants are available up to $50,000 and are to support Indigenous-led initiatives that support tangible positive outcomes.

Requests eligible for funding:

Your organization, community group or project supports Indigenous peoples (First Nations, Métis, Inuit) within Canada
You clearly address a pressing social or well-being need and create measurable community outcomes

Requests ineligible for funding:

Retroactive funding
Religious focused projects or organizations
Projects that operate outside of Canada
Go-Fund-Me campaigns or individual fundraising initiatives

Application deadlines

Applications are reviewed two times per year. Please allow 12 weeks following the application deadline to receive a response regarding your application status. Applications are due by midnight (your local time) on the following dates:

March 3, 2023 - Now closed
October 13, 2023– Opens on May 15 and closes on October 13 at 23:59 (local time)

Apply now

TELUS’ commitment to artistic integrity

We are committed to supporting the artistic practices of Indigenous Peoples, while being mindful of the historic role organizations have played in the misappropriation of Indigenous art and culture. We have an obligation and responsibility to ensure that TELUS’ use of Indigenous art in our digital and physical spaces is respectful of Indigenous artists. TELUS works with each artist to ensure that they retain full intellectual property and control over their work.

Contact us

If you have a question or a funding request that falls outside of the application deadlines, please contact us at

[email protected]