Last month, after a year of planning, Niriqatiginnga was registered as a non-profit organization. Congratulations to their program on these great first steps. We see great potential in the work done so far, and are really excited to be able to collaborate with this upcoming program. The efforts of everyone involved with “Establishing Niriqatiginnga: Towards a Framework for Northern Food Systems Innovation” have done a great job, and it continues to grow.
This initiative represents a significant milestone for our collective, and ongoing commitment to community-based, participatory research using arts-based approaches. We’ve really enjoyed all the different projects over the last few years that have led up to these new opportunities. A lot of awesome people came together over the last year in more conversations than we can count to bring all these conditions together. Most importantly, a lot of artists, businesses and organizations stepped up to create the conditions to make it all possible.
Building upon foundations from projects going back as far as 2013, the participatory organizational development activities within this project puts those prior collaborative research experiences into practice, emphasizing grassroots involvement and transformative growth. Since the inception of our @1860 Winnipeg Arts program, and spanning the projects from 2019 to 2024, our efforts have really been focused on fostering innovation and resilience in various spheres crucial to both urban and Northern livelihoods.
Our journey so far, especially this past year, has seen a lot of dialogue and discussion, from arts and culture to the pressing challenges of Arctic climate entrepreneurship and food security. Noteworthy among our activities has been the “Our People Our Climate” project. Together, we’ve been at the forefront of climate education, working to empower communities with knowledge and resources to navigate and communicate the complexities of a changing climate.
This year’s work with Niriqatiginnga builds directly on prior initiatives such as “Developing and Testing an Incubator for Digital Entrepreneurship.” This project represented the beginnings of our leveraging digital technologies as catalysts for economic growth and community development.
As we enter this new month, our focus remains on starting to build up our team and organizational capacity. With projects and activities being funded, our project has a lot of work, and learning ahead. And we’re looking forward to it! Through collaborative research and engagement, we are committed to co-creating solutions that are not only impactful but also rooted in the unique cultural contexts of our small, but growing network.
Stay tuned as we continue to plow ahead on our journey towards innovation, resilience, and creativity.
For further inquiries or to join our efforts, please contact info@niriqatiginnga.ca
