RECONCILIATION: MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER - BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS
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their policies or practices to suit the diverse needs of Indigenous Nations, communities, or organizations. For example, there is a requirement to set up a society to receive funding through the Indigenous Housing Fund. A couple of the Nations interviewed suggested that this requirement has become an “extra hoop to jump through.” One respondent also elaborated that it has prevented them from being able to use their land for the community’s intended purposes, stating: “I was so angry because we – the Band – wanted to add to the tax base. So here was BC Housing giving me the money that I thought would create a positive plus situation. But no. Because we have a housing society, the funding would become tax exempt because it is a non-profit society . – Indigenous Nation We also heard that current operating agreements and operational funding does not adapt to the needs of urban Indigenous housing providers. One respondent noted that while the previous Urban Aboriginal Program included funding for a Tenant Relations Coordinator,
current operating agreements are missing this important piece and are not flexible enough to address other Indigenous programming needs (e.g., programs that incorporate educational and health components). Some respondents expressed discontent with BC Housing’s Indigenous relationship model. 64 Three people (7 percent of respondents) suggested that using AHMA as an intermediary body is not reflective of reconciliation. One person suggested that this is because AHMA does not reflect a government-to-government relationship. Another respondent explained that the way in which the relationship was set up felt oppressive because BC Housing did not ask their organization if they wanted to be in a relationship with AHMA:
Why This Is Important These comments speak to the diversity of interests across Indigenous Nations, communities, and organizations. They should be the ones to decide how they prefer to have housing developed in and for their communities and organizations, as well as how they prefer to develop a relationship with organizations such as BC Housing. This diversity will always exist, and BC Housing should recognize that there are multiple pathways and approaches to address these interests.
64 Under the current model, several Indigenous Nations and communities have a government- to-government relationship with BC Housing and work directly with them on the development of new housing projects. In contrast, 41 Indigenous housing providers have a less direct relationship with BC Housing, because they are under the mandate of AHMA. As mentioned above, BC Housing transferred the Indigenous housing portfolio to AHMA in 2013, including 40 of its operating agreements with Indigenous housing providers. Today, the majority of BC Housing’s relationships with Indigenous housing providers flows through AHMA.
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