Urban Aboriginal Strategy Prince George
The Prince George Aboriginal Strategy engages the expertise and talents of the entire Prince George community to champion the vision of improving the quality of life for Aboriginal people, today and tomorrow.
Overview
The Prince George Urban Aboriginal Strategy (PGUAS) is a community-government partnership that strives to improve the socio-economic conditions and opportunities for Aboriginals living in Prince George. Aboriginals currently makes up 11 percent of the population in Prince George; this Aboriginal population is young and growing, as nearly half (49%) are under the age of 25.
The PGUAS Management team has outlined the goal in the current 3-year Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan has been developed to increase, by 5%, the number of students staying in school between 2009 and 2012. Students defined under this strategic plan are those who are in junior and senior high school and those who are enrolled in adult upgrading. Four priority areas for the PGUAS have been developed out of the overall goal:
- Elder Care;
- Trades and Training;
- Health and Wellness; and
- Youth.
The PGUAS Management Team strives to create sustained improvements in the quality of life for the urban Aboriginal community of Prince George through collaboration and building upon Aboriginal history, language and culture.
WHERE IT ALL STARTED
The current iteration of the PGUAS started in May, 2007 following the announcement of a 5 year renewal of the Urban Aboriginal Strategy program. Previous to this, the PGUAS existed as a two year pilot program. The bulk of PGUAS activities for the from May 2007 onward involved the following transition activities for the new program:
- Refining the membership structure of the community committee;
- Seeking a mandate from the Aboriginal community; and,
- Ensuring project selection was in line with the program's national priorities while still reflecting local needs.
In order to prepare for the continued delivery of the UAS in Prince George for the next 5 years, a Transition Team of volunteer Aboriginal community members from the former Project Champions Council developed a series of recommendations for the management and membership structure of the PGUAS. This proposed structure was presented to attendees at a Community Engagement Session, held at the Prince George Native Friendship Centre on September 28, 2007. The Community Engagement Session allowed interested Prince George Aboriginal community members the opportunity to input their suggestions on the delivery, structure and priority areas for the new PGUAS.
Participants at the Engagement Session approved a management structure which consisted of a Management Team of twelve to fourteen community seats with additional seats for the four levels of government, (federal, provincial, municipal and First Nation) and incorporating three seats for youth representatives (aged 18 to 30). Eleven of these seats were filled by volunteers at the Engagement Session. The first meeting of the Management Team was held on October 9, 2007.
Details on PGUAS initiatives and our last two year's Call For Proposals may be found under the "Projects & Initiatives" portion of this website while more details on our current activities may be found under the "Strategic Planning" section.