A house is more than four walls and a roof. Concepts like having a house, going home, and being housed are deeply imbued with meaning. For some, housing brings up notions of safety, culture, and family. For others, it is riddled with trauma and displacement. It is impossible to disconnect such definitions from emotion and history—emblazoned with class, culture, and race—which is why Ecotrust Canada is redefining “housing” beyond just the physical structure. What we’re really talking about is well-being (spiritual, mental, physical, and emotional), not just for individuals, but for multigenerational families and communities.    

The cultural relevance of one’s home is paramount to well-being. Where it is. What it feels, looks, and smells like. Who is in it beside you. How, where, and what you cook when you’re in it. We have heard, for example, the need for more multigenerational living units so grandmothers can remain in their homes in a safe way alongside their grandbabies. We have heard requests for more smokehouses and communal spaces, allowing families to cook meals in ways that align with keeping their cultural practices alive. These are the puzzle pieces that make a house a home. 

Housing needs to be integrated with health, education, and cultural services, so that it may be a tool for holistic well-being—an invitation for people to come home, while being supported in their full humanity, in all walks and stages of their lives. 

THE CRISIS 

Communities feel isolated not only by geography but by these systemic barriers that are both chronic and urgent. This is not community-specific; we are in a Canada-wide Indigenous housing crisis. A sustained and coordinated approach is long overdue—one led by communities themselves, yet supported by everyone involved in the sector.   

Stepping up to this challenge, the McConnell Foundation identified that there was no single, comprehensive overview of who was doing what in the Indigenous housing space, especially when it came to civil society actors. Such a resource could enable a more integrated, coordinated, and participatory response by communities, governments, NGOs, researchers, and funders. To address this gap, Ecotrust Canada’s Indigenous Homelands Program responded to the Foundation’s call to analyze the current landscape of the Indigenous housing sector across Canada, with a goal of laying the groundwork for what could evolve into a more collaborative approach over the long term.  

THE PROJECT

“Education is huge," Richard Hall told us. "We need to educate our children on all things housing.” Hall is a Nuxalk housing specialist and visionary for his Nation’s community-based carpentry program. He was one of the experts we interviewed as part of the 10-month-long Canada-wide project. 

The Indigenous Landscape Report focused on civil society actors, exploring questions like: Who are the main players? Where are the current gaps in the sector? And what would a community-led housing ecosystem actually look like? We analyzed and described the current landscape while proposing collective recommendations and observations about how to shift this housing crisis into a housing solution for future generations.  

Our research included an extensive grey literature review, pulling from organizational websites, policy reports, and media articles, as well as 10 interviews with Indigenous and non-Indigenous thought-leaders who act as nexuses for specific regions or demographics. We then created a Systems Map, visually depicting how key actors are connected, geographically and demographically, as well as a narrative report, which summarizes our findings, recommendations, and observations. Included at the end of the report is a list of key organizations currently working across the Indigenous housing landscape in Canada. 

The Indigenous Housing Landscape Report will be released mid-July 2025. If you’d like to be notified when it’s published, sign up here and we’ll send you an email. 

There's More...

In Conversation with the Indigenous Homelands team 

Ashli Akins and Carrigan Tallio with the Indigenous Homelands Program and co-leads on the Indigenous Housing Landscape Report, sat down for an interview with The McConnell Foundation to provide early insights into their findings.  

“If housing is just shelter, it’s not enough. It has to be a foundation for growth, healing, and community,” Carrigan said. 

Members of our Food Systems team were out and about in the Prince Rupert community last week. On June 20, we joined students, teaching staff, supporters, and sponsors (including Ecotrust Canada) at Roosevelt Elementary School, on Ts’msyen territory, to celebrate the grand opening of their new school garden—an exciting step forward for hands-on learning and local food education. 

Climate Preparedness Program now accepting applications 

As an organization that collaborates with rural, remote, and Indigenous communities on energy, food, housing, and community programs that all benefit from stronger climate preparedness, we wanted to highlight this valuable opportunity. The CoNext Climate Preparedness Hub is a free, 5-month training program designed to build climate resilience in small, rural, and remote communities in BC. The second cohort of the program is happening Fall 2025, and the deadline to submit an "Expression of Interest" is July 11. This program is hosted by the Fraser Basin Council in collaboration with a diverse team of organizations.

30 Years of Proving the Possible 

A series of reflections from our past three decades of work.  

2005-2009

In 2005, Ecotrust Canada helped broker and finance the purchase of a sustainable seafood processing plant and store on the traditional hahoulthlee (or territory) of the Tla-o-qui-aht and Ahousaht Nations (Tofino, BC). 

Trilogy Fish Company was one of the last remaining working waterfront facilities in the community. At the time, and even still, waterfront property in the area was in high demand for residential and hotel development. When a local crab fisherman was ready to sell, Ecotrust Canada bought into the company alongside residents, First Nations and outside investors, to help strengthen community control of sustainable seafood production.  

In 2009, the company was sold to one of the shareholders, and the business still exists today, operating as Naas Foods. They purchase most of their fish from T'aaq-wiihak Fisheries. Our fisheries monitoring program supports this fishery, and we’re proud to see the continuation of a boat-to-table enterprise serving the community and visitors. 

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Proving the Possible

Ecotrust Canada works with rural, remote, and Indigenous communities toward building an economy that provides for a healthy and resilient natural environment; sustainable and abundant energy, food, and housing; prosperous and meaningful livelihoods; and vibrant cultures and inclusive societies. We call this approach, building an economy that provides for life. 

Thank you for your continued support!

The Ecotrust Canada Team