Madison Green’s dream is to connect urban Indigenous communities from ceremony to ceremony across Waterloo region and surrounding areas.
Indigenous people who have to travel to take part in traditional ceremonies may face transportation barriers, she told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo’s The Morning Edition.
It’s why she’s coming up with a solution.
“I have big visions,” she said. “I want to be able to bring it to Six Nations so urban Indigenous people from the tri-cities can attend ceremony and go to powwow and events on Six Nations, and hopefully also at Chippewa, Muncie and Oneida over near London.”
She says in addition to ceremonies, she also wants to help bring people to gatherings like craft circles, which can otherwise be difficult to get to.
“I know I speak for my family when I say we felt pretty disconnected because we grew up pretty close to Six Nations,” Green said.
“I’ve always had trouble getting to ceremonies and bussing. Some aren’t even within the community, but further away where buses don’t go … or the buses weren’t really accessible and they’re overpacked.”
She’s in the planning stages of her project. Green has some funding secured and she’s currently surveying members of the community to hear more about what people would like to see and what kind of transportation barriers they are currently facing.
Green named her project the Teionkwayenawà:kon Electric Vehicle Initiative, which roughly translates to “all of us, working together” in Mohawk.
“I wanted a word that would encompass caring for our relations and our kin, and also caring for our Mother Earth, addressing transportation barriers to bring people back home to community,” she said.
Green has been accepted into an 18-month mentorship program called ImaGENation by Indigenous Clean Energy. The program helps mentor and boost youth working on clean energy projects to improve their community.
Support from local Indigenous community
Green’s project is also gaining support from the Willow River Centre, a community space for Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ Indigenous people in Waterloo region.
Bangishimo is one of the co-founders of the centre. They said Green’s project will directly benefit those who visit the centre.
“We hosted a full moon ceremony a couple of weeks ago and had a group drive up two hours just to be here,” Bangishimo said.
The group Bangishimo is referring to are members of the Nimkee NupiGawagan Healing Centre in Muncey, Ont. About eight youth and three staff members travelled to Waterloo region to take part in the ceremony.
“As an urban Indigenous group that began in the heart of Willow River Park, we understand the challenges of accessing land for ceremony,” Bangishimo said.
“To foster cultural connections and strengthen our community, we need access to essential services, such as the EV [electric vehicle] shuttle system.”
Project is ‘a powerful 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 is extraordinary.
“Madison’s vision — to bring together traditional practices with clean energy technology — is a powerful step in bridging the gap between our way of life and innovative solutions, building pathways for capacity and cultural access within our communities,” Laliberte-Pewapisconias said.
“Through her work, Madison not only envisions a clean energy future but also reconnects us to our land, waters, and all our living relatives, grounding this transition in respect for our environment.”
She said electric vehicles are an important piece of being able to move toward a sustainable future.
“Madison’s journey inspires others to walk this path with purpose and resilience, embodying a future where Indigenous leadership continues to light the way in the clean energy landscape,” Laliberte-Pewapisconias said in her emailed statement.
LISTEN | Project aims to connect urban Indigenous communities with an electric shuttle: