The Esquao Awards are unique, there is no competition.  All First Nations, Metis, and Inuit women who are nominated will be honoured.  IAAW’s policy on nominations recognizes our ‘Angels Among Us’.

The event reaches out to the women and brings  light to their significant accomplishments.   Aboriginal Women are nominated by their communities from various regions of the Province in the categories of Arts & Entertainment, Performing Arts, Business, Science & Technology, Community Involvement, Social Services & Advocacy, Literature & Visual Arts, Justice, Education, Health & Medicine, Culture and Lifetime Achievement.

Through this recognition, IAAW promotes the self-determination of Aboriginal Women who contribute to the well being of their communities; promotes personal growth of the recipients; and encouragement for those in the audience.

Event Details

The Esquao Awards Gala will take place Saturday, May 1, 2010 at the Shaw Conference Centre Hall D  (9797 – Jasper Avenue) in Edmonton, Alberta.

• 5:00 pm Cocktails
• 5:30 pm Grand Entry
• 6:00 pm Dinner
• 7:00 pm Award presentations

*Entertainment and award presentations alternate.

**Event will be concluded by 10:30pm.

Tickets

The cost of the ticket is $150 each and tables of ten are available for $1,500.

You can purchase your tickets online or by contacting Sara Singer at (780) 479-8195 or Toll Free 1-877-471-2171.

Feedback/Questions

It is important to know how we may be able to improve this event.

Please forward suggestions to esquao@iaaw.ca or 780-479-8195 or toll free at 1-877-471-2171.

The Sustainable Livelihoods framework, as adapted by Eko Nomos, explores four contextual dimensions of poverty in order to support more active, strategic interventions:

A: Vulnerability Context
B: Assets
C: Dynamics of Change
D: Policy and Institutional Context

A: “Vulnerability Context”
This explores the context that creates and perpetuates people’s vulnerability to poverty at two levels: the individual and their circumstances, and broader institutions and systems that control the options that are open to people. The “Vulnerability Context” acknowledges that while people can and do make choices that deplete assets and make their lives less stable, there are powerful external systems and forces that combine to maintain a long-term cycle of poverty.

B: Assets
Assets are the building blocks of a sustainable livelihood at the individual level and a sustainable community at the neighbourhood level. People pursue various asset-building strategies that support them both in surviving and in coping with the context that makes them vulnerable to poverty, so that they can move towards stability and sustainability. A limited range of assets makes people vulnerable to poverty and social exclusion.

The Sustainable Livelihoods framework identifies five broad asset areas that offer a holistic picture of all the capabilities, resources and entitlements that people have invested in and developed over time. In focussing on assets rather than deficits, the framework avoids the negative, deficit-based approach that is so common to the social service and economic development fields.

The five broad asset areas are:

Social Assets

• The social connections that people can draw upon to achieve their goals
• Building a foundation of networks and contacts, enhance support systems, making it easier to develop other assets

Physical Assets

• Basic needs for housing and food
• Access to the information and services required to build a livelihood

Human Assets

• Employability, including skills, knowledge, education and leadership
• Central to all livelihood strategies, yet not sufficient on their own to ensure progress towards a sustainable livelihood
• Includes health as a pre-determinant of person’s ability to participate in the economy

Personal Assets

• Includes sense of personal and cultural identity, and private values and beliefs
• Self-confidence and self-esteem, as well as motivation and strength
• Less tangible assets that people bring to the process of personal transformation

Financial Assets

• Earnings, money and financial security (including access to financial entitlements from government)
• Important entry-point for transformation and development: the ability to earn money and decide how it should be spent provides people with a powerful means of building up a wider range of assets

C: Dynamics of Change

Our research revealed that assets and outcomes can best be understood in terms of the progress that individual people make towards a livelihood. We identified a “theory of change” about how people develop assets over time and the stages through which they progress on their way towards sustainable livelihoods.
When people are in survival mode and have few assets, asset development strategies often focus on accessing basic needs. As people get on their feet, strategies to reduce social isolation and support participation become important. Once a reserve of assets is in place, people move from coping strategies towards strategies to build their employability.

D: The Policy and Institutional Context

“Transforming Structures and Processes within the livelihoods framework are the institutions, organisations, policies and legislation that shape livelihoods. Their importance cannot be over-emphasised. They operate at all levels, from the household to the international arena, and in all spheres, from the most private to the most public.
They effectively determine:

• Access (to various types of capital, to livelihood strategies and to decision-making bodies and sources of influence);
• The terms of exchange between different types of capital; and
• Returns (economic and otherwise) to any given livelihood strategy.

By looking at the context provided by our institutions and their current policies, we can understand some of the constraints and opportunities, and develop strategies to build a more enabling policy environment.

DOWNLOAD REGISTRATION FORM

DOWNLOAD SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS POSTER

As a result, IAAW is proud to offer the following workshops; Sustainable Livelihoods, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Cultural Awareness and River of Life Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Workshop.

REGISTER ONLINE HERE

Workshop Brochure

Poster for Sustainable Livelihoods

NEED TO REGISTER BY FAX?
Download the forms here:

Sustainable Livelihoods Workshop

Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Workshop

Cultural Awareness Workshop

The River of Life Workshop

Payment in full is required one week before the scheduled workshop. Space will not be reserved without payment. IAAW reserves the right to cancel training courses if minimum registration numbers are not met.

If you require more information please contact Sara Singer at (780) 479-8195  ssinger@iaaw.ca

**Additional dates planned, ask to be put on a wait-list if selected course is full.**

It is because of this gap between occurrence and reporting of human rights injustices and discrimination that the Commission initiated this research to inform and engage Aboriginal people and all Albertans on this significant issue.

The goal of uncovering, addressing, and ending discrimination is to ensure that Aboriginal people can contribute and participate fully in the social, cultural, political, and economic life of the province while maintaining unique identities, histories, traditions, languages, and rights that characterize First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people and communities throughout Alberta and Canada. The lessons from Aboriginal people in Canada can also strengthen human rights collaborations with Indigenous peoples around the world – perhaps through the now ratified Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.

This research is a first step in creating a more complete Aboriginal human rights story in Alberta that will be used to expose issues, to develop policy, and to inform community race relations. It will create a foundation from which meaningful community strategies and programming can be created to address Aboriginal human rights issues.

Download the ACHRJ Annual Report

Download The Esquao Newsletter

Free short forums designed to assist Aboriginal women and their families in obtaining information and accessing services within the City of Edmonton.

All forums are from 6pm-7pm at the IAAW Boardroom:  #201,10812 178 St Edmonton, Alberta

November 18/08: Time Management
November 24/08: Bed Bugs!
November 26/08: Youth Ambassador Program
December 1/08: ColIective Kitchens
December 3/08: Business 101
December 10/08: Make Every DolIar Count

For more information contact Sara Singer by phone or e-mail
ssinger@iaaw.ca
Phone (780) 479-8195
Fax (780) 471-2169 Share and Enjoy:

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Join us in Recognizing the valuable contributions that Alberta’s Aboriginal Women have made to their communities.

Esquao Awards Gala 2010
Edmonton Shaw Conference Center
May 1, 2010
8PM

Call the Institute for The Advancement of Aboriginal Women to reserve your tickets at 780-479-8195.