The Saskatchewan First Nations leadership development study is essentially a continuation of my previous research on First Nations leadership and spirituality (2002). The purpose of this study was to explore First Nations leadership and leadership development in Saskatchewan within the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations organizational context. To accomplish this, the study involved an extensive literature review on Indigenous and Western leadership and leadership development theories. Further, an examination of four established and prominent North American Indigenous leadership development programs was conducted to gain further understanding of Indigenous leadership. In addition, 10 First Nations leaders from the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations participated in in-depth interviews. <p>Qualitative inquiry was chosen for this study because qualitative research methods were congruent with First Nations methods of sharing and preserving information. In-depth interviews with semi-structured questions were conducted to obtain information on Saskatchewan First Nations leadership and leadership development. All but one participant agreed to the use of an audio taped interview. Once the interviews were complete, Atlas-ti, a computer software program, was used to assist in the coding, categorizing, and thematic emergence process. <p>The four Aboriginal leadership development programs that were examined were University of Arizonas Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy, Pennsylvania States American Indian Leadership Program, Banff Centres Aboriginal Leadership and Management Program, and the Aboriginal Leadership Institute Incorporated, located in Winnipeg. These programs strived to remain current and were involved in research initiatives. Moreover, they all attempted to incorporate First Nations culture, history, and issues alongside Western leadership skills, training, and education. They evolved, adapted, and were sensitive to change and innovation in leadership development. First Nations leadership development programs, like those studied, are valuable because they unite Aboriginal leadership for the purpose of personal and professional growth.<p>The First Nations leaders that participated in this study shared personal and professional leadership and leadership development experiences and philosophy. <p>The leaders indicated that being a First Nations leader was challenging because it continuously contended with two fundamentally different cultures Western and First Nations. In addition, First Nations poverty, lack of funding, residential school effects, addictions, among other things, made leadership difficult. Because First Nations leadership is physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually taxing, many of the Chiefs cited internal rather than material satisfaction. Moreover, these leaders were often motivated by a cause and the desire for collective well-being and positive change. Family, community members, other leaders, Elders, and the Creator were acknowledged as sources of strength and inspiration. <p>The First Nations leaders who participated in the study perceived leadership development as a life-long process of formal and informal learning experiences. Consequently, many of the leaders indicated that leadership development began in childhood with individual and family development. The leaders described a First Nations leadership development program that was flexible (able to work in community, tribal, and provincial settings), cognizant of First Nations culture, needs, and issues, and aware of current and innovative leadership practices. First Nations leadership development should also incorporate Western knowledge, skills, and education. <p>This First Nations leadership investigation has provided invaluable insight into the values, beliefs, worldview, and philosophies that entail and ultimately constitute Indigenous leadership and leadership development. Studies that focus on Indigenous leadership development ultimately have significant implications for theory, research, fundamental, and practical applications for learning organizations.

The Saskatchewan First Nations leadership development study is essentially a continuation of my previous research on First Nations leadership and spirituality (2002). The purpose of this study was to explore First Nations leadership and leadership development in Saskatchewan within the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations organizational context. To accomplish this, the study involved an extensive literature review on Indigenous and Western leadership and leadership development theories. Further, an examination of four established and prominent North American Indigenous leadership development programs was conducted to gain further understanding of Indigenous leadership. In addition, 10 First Nations leaders from the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations participated in in-depth interviews. <p>Qualitative inquiry was chosen for this study because qualitative research methods were congruent with First Nations methods of sharing and preserving information. In-depth interviews with semi-structured questions were conducted to obtain information on Saskatchewan First Nations leadership and leadership development. All but one participant agreed to the use of an audio taped interview. Once the interviews were complete, Atlas-ti, a computer software program, was used to assist in the coding, categorizing, and thematic emergence process. <p>The four Aboriginal leadership development programs that were examined were University of Arizonas Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy, Pennsylvania States American Indian Leadership Program, Banff Centres Aboriginal Leadership and Management Program, and the Aboriginal Leadership Institute Incorporated, located in Winnipeg. These programs strived to remain current and were involved in research initiatives. Moreover, they all attempted to incorporate First Nations culture, history, and issues alongside Western leadership skills, training, and education. They evolved, adapted, and were sensitive to change and innovation in leadership development. First Nations leadership development programs, like those studied, are valuable because they unite Aboriginal leadership for the purpose of personal and professional growth.<p>The First Nations leaders that participated in this study shared personal and professional leadership and leadership development experiences and philosophy. <p>The leaders indicated that being a First Nations leader was challenging because it continuously contended with two fundamentally different cultures Western and First Nations. In addition, First Nations poverty, lack of funding, residential school effects, addictions, among other things, made leadership difficult. Because First Nations leadership is physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually taxing, many of the Chiefs cited internal rather than material satisfaction. Moreover, these leaders were often motivated by a cause and the desire for collective well-being and positive change. Family, community members, other leaders, Elders, and the Creator were acknowledged as sources of strength and inspiration. <p>The First Nations leaders who participated in the study perceived leadership development as a life-long process of formal and informal learning experiences. Consequently, many of the leaders indicated that leadership development began in childhood with individual and family development. The leaders described a First Nations leadership development program that was flexible (able to work in community, tribal, and provincial settings), cognizant of First Nations culture, needs, and issues, and aware of current and innovative leadership practices. First Nations leadership development should also incorporate Western knowledge, skills, and education. <p>This First Nations leadership investigation has provided invaluable insight into the values, beliefs, worldview, and philosophies that entail and ultimately constitute Indigenous leadership and leadership development. Studies that focus on Indigenous leadership development ultimately have significant implications for theory, research, fundamental, and practical applications for learning organizations.

ABSTRACT In North West British Columbia, First Nations women are playing an essential role in a cultural shift that is positively affecting community health and the education of Aboriginal youth. Historically, the First Peoples of the North West coast were profoundly transformed by European contact. Policies, oppressions and disease disrupted lives and communities that had existed in stasis since time immemorial. The results, described by Thomas Berger as “third world” conditions, are predictable --young and old afflicted with addictions and dysfunctions. Recently, the dominant politics have begun to acknowledge the First Nations as having a legitimate voice in the social and political processes that concern them. This research is one part of the national multi-disciplinary study, Coasts Under Stress: The Impact of Social and Environmental Restructuring on Environmental and Human Health in Canada. In this phase of the larger project, the importance of the educational and community leadership of First Nations women is recognized as they struggle to break cycles of dysfunction that afflict their communities. Increasing enrollment of coastal youth and adults in secondary school and college programs, and in educational programs on reserve over the past decade is one sign of positive change. The main purpose of my study is to explore the role of First Nations women in supporting social and educational opportunities in their villages and in society-at-large. The central research question asks what supports and barriers First Nations women encounter as they assume leadership roles within their villages and without. A purposive sample of seven women joined the research conversation, involved because of the formal leadership roles they have assumed, and because of their perceived influence on the general health of their communities and the region. Their responsibilities represent a wide spectrum of educational and community leadership, and counter a prevailing stereotype of First Nations people generally and women particularly. Carefully chosen qualitative research methods were employed to ensure consistency with Kwakwakawakw practices and protocols. Sustained dialogue was used as a way of drawing on the historical and cultural tapestry framing the research question. Given the hermeneutic nature of the study, the individual narratives became the heart of the study and a voice-centred relational data analysis followed. Analysis based on a theory that characterizes human beings as interdependent, historically and culturally contextual and embedded in a complex web of intimate and larger social relations resonates with First Nations ontology and epistemology. The narratives reveal detailed historical and cultural data, providing for enhanced cultural understanding and knowledge-based theory building. In addition to the contextual material, the narratives provide direction for Aboriginal and cross-cultural research protocols as well as an opportunity for the interested reader to “listen and learn” as Joseph Couture propounds. The stereotypes that continue to confine and condemn Aboriginal women are rightfully eroded by the life histories themselves and their illustration of the process of reclamation of Aboriginal identity. Finally, further evidence is offered for Sylvia Maracle’s assertion that Aboriginal women have been leading community development initiatives for the past thirty-five years. Education and health are the primary beneficiaries of their efforts.