Madison Green’s dream is to connect urban Indigenous communities from ceremony to ceremony in and around Waterloo Region.

Indigenous people who must travel to participate in traditional ceremonies could face transportation barriers, she told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo. The morning edition.

This is why she offers a solution.

“I have big visions,” she said. “I want to be able to bring it to Six Nations so that urban Native people in the three cities can attend ceremonies and attend powwows and Six Nations events, and hopefully also in Chippewa, Muncie and Oneida, near of London.”

She says that in addition to ceremonies, she also wants to help bring people to gatherings like craft circles, which otherwise might be difficult to access.

“I know I speak for my family when I say we felt quite disconnected because we grew up quite close to the Six Nations,” Green said.

“I’ve always had difficulty getting to ceremonies and taking buses. Some are not even in the community, but further away, where the buses don’t go…or the buses weren’t really accessible and they are overloaded.”

She is in the planning phase of her project. Green has secured funding and she is currently conducting a survey of community members to learn more about what people would like to see and what types of transportation barriers they currently face.

Green named his project Teionkwayenawà:kon Electric Vehicle Initiative, which roughly translates to “all of us working together” in Mohawk.

“I wanted a word that would encompass taking care of our relationships and our loved ones, but also taking care of our Mother Earth, removing transportation barriers to get people home into the community,” she said.

Green was accepted into an 18-month mentorship program called ImaGENation by Indigenous Clean Energy. The program helps mentor and stimulate young people working on clean energy projects to improve their communities.

Support from the local indigenous community

Green’s project also has support from the Willow River Centre, a community space for two-spirited and LGBTQ+ Indigenous people in the Waterloo region.

Bangishimo is one of the center’s co-founders. They said Green’s project would directly benefit those who visit the center.

“We had a full moon ceremony a few weeks ago and a group drove two hours just to be here,” Bangishimo said.

The group Bangishimo is referring to is made up of members of the Nimkee NupiGawagan Healing Center in Muncey, Ontario. Approximately eight youth and three staff members traveled to the Waterloo region to participate in the ceremony.

“As an urban Indigenous group born in the heart of Willow River Park, we understand the challenges of accessing land for ceremonies,” Bangishimo said.

“To foster cultural connections and strengthen our community, we need access to essential services, like the electric vehicle shuttle system.”

The project is “an important step in bridging the gap”

Aubrey-Anne Laliberte-Pewapisconias is the Program Manager for ImaGENation at Indigenous Clean Energy.

In a statement to CBC News, she said Green’s project was extraordinary.

“Madison’s vision – bringing together traditional practices with clean energy technology – is an important step in bridging the gap between our way of life and innovative solutions, creating pathways for capacity and cultural access to within our communities,” said Laliberte-Pewapisconias.

“Through her work, Madison not only envisions a clean energy future, but also reconnects us to our lands, our waters, and all our living loved ones, anchoring this transition in respect for our environment.”

She said electric vehicles are an important part of being able to move towards a sustainable future.

“Madison’s journey inspires others to follow this path with determination and resilience, embodying a future where Indigenous leadership continues to light the way in the clean energy landscape,” Laliberte-Pewapisconias said in his statement sent by email.

LISTEN | The project aims to connect urban indigenous communities with an electric shuttle: