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Our Story

Sonia was on a mission. She had been around the world looking for a model of economic development that was rooted in values of who we want to be as a people, our relationship with each other, the Earth and all beings. A model that worked and had a shot of continuity on this beautiful planet. Being of Ukrainian heritage (as her first language) and having completed her last year of law school in Argentina, in Spanish, she had the opportunity to work for the Public Defender’s Office in Argentina, for the United Nations Development Program in Ukraine as legal advisor to the Prime Minister, and for the President of the Commission of Human Rights and Justice in Mexico. In 2013, Sonia was working as a finance lawyer at a big Canadian law firm in Toronto, on a six month stint in their Vancouver office’s mining group. As co-chair of the Latin American practice she was working to build relationships between Canada and Latin America. What she saw was a lot of conflict. Nothing seemed to be working.

Then in November of 2013, Sonia met Jerry at the Canadian Aboriginal Mining Association (CAMA) conference in Vancouver. He was this larger than life personality, commanding the room as he walked in. Jerry was serving in his last year as Vice President of CAMA (as founding member, having served for 22 years), along with sitting on half a dozen training and advisory boards in the area of mining.

Earlier that year, he had received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contributions to the inclusion and training of Aboriginal People in the mining industry and was looking to pass on his experience.

Sonia introduced herself to Jerry and learned about how he led in the transformation of his Nation, based on impeccable values and principles of who they were as a people and their responsibility as stewards of the land. Jerry talked about the economy being a means to a healthy and prosperous nation, not an end of itself. He spoke about reinvesting everything back into training his people and building dynamic teams. He spoke about ensuring the Tahltans were decision-makers in how their lands and resources developed. He spoke about their 21 person Tahltan trained environmental and heritage assessment team that evaluated projects based on social, environmental and economic merits. He spoke about how they were not opposed to development, they were authors of what that development looked like. And it worked. 30 years later, they were thriving. As was their environment and their next generation.

Sonia was blown away! A model that finally made sense to her, and it was right here in Canada! Jerry and Sonia spoke over the next couple of days about sharing the Tahltan story with other Indigenous communities around the world, to show what was possible.

As a teacher at heart, Jerry is always eager to help others achieve a brighter future for their people.

Two weeks later, at a breakfast pub in Vancouver, Jerry and Sonia sketched out the business plan for the new organization’s mission and vision on the back of a napkin and the Global Indigenous Development Trust was born.

They have since visited and conducted workshops with communities across the Americas and have been invited to countries across Africa, Asia and to Australia. They have been to heights of 5,000 meters deep in the Andes, into the heart of the Amazon and the Central American rainforests. And now they have come full circle back to Canada to support the re-building of Nations on natural principles at home.

***

Sonia and Jerry would like to acknowledge GIDT’s incredible Board members that walk the walk of these values on a daily basis.

Sean Willy is a leader who truly stands firm in his values. With more than 25 years’ experience, Sean is leading in the creation of innovative new businesses, partnerships and investment opportunities for Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners alike. By reinvesting back into people and building strong teams, he is leading the way for green growth, sustainable businesses, jobs and employment opportunities in English River First Nation and across Canada. Sean truly cares about people and is sharing opportunities and his experiences with communities in Canada and around the world.

Mary Boyden  is a heart-centered leader and committed to creating a world that works well for all people. Having cut her teeth in underground mines more than 40 years ago, and having worked in some of the most difficult arenas, from mining to homeless Indigenous youth and sex trafficking in the heart of one of Canada’s oldest mining regions, to healing of the land and traditional ceremony, you will never see her without a smile on her face and a kind word for everyone she works with. She is a true bridge between worlds, Indigenous and non, spiritual and secular. Mary has been working for the past 8 years on developing ways of bringing together Indigenous knowledge with western science to heal and restore the land from more than 100 years of mining in Timmins.

Nalaine Morin works with First Nations across Canada on projects as varied as mining, pipelines and highway infrastructure. She fights unapologetically for what she believes in and garners incredible amounts of respect for her tenacity and skills. From mining executives to First Nations leaders, her reputation as an environmental expert and advisor is unparalleled. Having grown up in a mining community, her technical background combined with being of Tahltan descent has led to her identifying and developing ways to connect and support First Nations traditional knowledge and Western science, effectively managing complicated resource project issues in a cross-cultural setting. Many of the innovative processes she has helped develop have been subsequently adopted for use at the provincial level.

Global Indigenous Trust

Our Vision

Our vision is a global network of healthy, vibrant, thriving communities and people, living their true potential.

info@globalIndigenoustrust.org
1400 – 18 King Street East, Toronto, ON M5C 1C4

Join GIDT for @LocalFoodFarmCoops Assembly 2022: P Join GIDT for @LocalFoodFarmCoops Assembly 2022: Pollinators of Change! This year's focus is to imagine how the world can work differently, regeneratively and cooperatively 🌿⁠
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Sign up to participate with our Co-Founder @SoniaMolodecky, Becky Big Canoe, Mike DeGagne, and the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario! They will be discussing Land Trusts and Alternative Land Access on April 19th from 1 PM-2:30 PM EST. Let’s dig deep into solutions for the future together!⁠
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Click the link in bio to register for this event, or to join one of the many interesting discussions on food sovereignty and cooperative organization structures for building community and local economies!⁠ The assembly runs up until April 29th.⁠
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Swipe through for more information on the topic and speakers 👉
Please Join Us and our friends @bearstandingtal fo Please Join Us and our friends @bearstandingtal for a Virtual Tipi Commemoration event for the Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, Two-Spirit and Gender Diverse. Register here for this Wednesday: 
https://hopin.com/events/s-first-event-f3ca31e8-a7d2-46b0-9561-38dab3143231 

We are pleased to invite you on March 30th for a day of healing and awareness with Bear Standing Tall and Associates. This is an online Virtual Tipi Commemoration event for the Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, Two-Spirit and Gender Diverse. The day will be spent  honouring these Life Givers through Support and Action for Ontario First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Families Survivors as well as Ontario Indigenous front-line workers. 

Guest Speakers include Monica Rutledge Indigenous Constable for Toronto Police Department, guests from BC MMIW Team: Alexandra O'daunaghey, Gladys Radek; Highway of Tears Commemoration project, Becky Big Canoe; followup on inquiry and actions across Canada and more!

The goal of this event is to present Indigenous Voices in a way that will educate and engage our audience of 100 guests from Industry, government and community leaders so we can walk away with concrete ideas on how to move forward with reconciliation surrounding the final report of the MMIWG2S, as well as have a better understanding of the deliberate human and Indigenous rights violations and abuses in violence against Indigenous women in Canada.This conference aims to foster understanding, and allyship of non-indgenous peoples by creating a safe space for these important issues to be understood. 

This event is free to attend, but spots are limited so please register today! 

Tipi Commemoration to be unveiled May 5, 2022 in Honour of our Life Givers: Prayers for their return home @evergreen_brick_works
Check out our Program + Speaker List for our Inter Check out our Program + Speaker List for our Inter-Continental Gathering this Friday! 🌍⁠
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We have an amazing selection of inspiring leaders speaking throughout the day. The event runs from 8AM-3PM and we encourage everyone to join and participate in any part of the day’s events.⁠
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Click the link in bio to register! 👆⁠
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#InterContinentalGathering #IndigenousWisdom #DogonMali #Spirituality #IndigenousSpirituality #CanadianIndigenous #AfricanIndigenous
Swipe through to read the bios of our First Nation Swipe through to read the bios of our First Nations Speakers 👉 ⁠
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It's not too late to sign up for our Inter-Continental Gathering, click the link in bio to register for this free virtual event! 🌎⁠
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Join in and participate in any part of the day’s events 💻⁠
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#InterContinentalGathering #IndigenousWisdom #DogonMali #Spirituality #IndigenousSpirituality #CanadianIndigenous #AfricanIndigenous
Join us for an Inter-Continental Gathering of Indi Join us for an Inter-Continental Gathering of Indigenous Nations virtually on February 25th from 8AM-3PM EST!⁠
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This event will be held between the Dogon People of Mali and various Indigenous Nations of Canada. These Indigenous leaders and knowledge-holders will meet in friendship and conversation focusing on:⁠
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👉 The ways they interact with the land⁠
👉 Their respective forms of spirituality, tradition, and the strategies they have developed to address natural resource extraction and climate issues and realities⁠
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The goal⁠:⁠
🙌 To establish an intercultural dialogue between the Indigenous nations of Mali and Canada⁠
🙌  To build bridges of knowledge and experience between one another⁠
🙌  To strengthen each one's respective leadership and advocacy on natural resource governance, development and trade by creating a harmonized framework of actions⁠
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We welcome you to join us for this event to celebrate this year's African Heritage Month. Click the link in bio to register for this free virtual event!⁠
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#AfricanHeritageMonth #Education #BlackHistoryMonth #Indigenous
GIDT Co-Founders Jerry & @soniamolodecky spoke at GIDT Co-Founders Jerry & @soniamolodecky spoke at an Indigenous Knowledge Collaboration today and if you'd like to watch, a recording will available through the link in bio!

Indigenous knowledge is vital to effective Canada-Africa trade and investment. Successful communities have enabled local businesses and community well-being - grounded in institutions informed by longstanding tradition, knowledge and insights. ⁠ ⁠ 

There will be top private sector and civil society insights, followed by post-panel insights from the Government of Canada - who will outline their support for natural resource development in Africa, and the Canadian business innovators ready to partner.
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© 2022 Global Indigenous Development Trust

  • Who We Are
    • Our Story
    • Our Team
  • What We Do
    • Our Projects
    • Our Impact
    • Our Partners
    • Building a Nation Case Study
    • Events
    • In the Media
  • Work with Us
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
Global Indigenous Development Trust