Ulnooweg and Mastercard Foundation Deepen Partnership to Expand Opportunities for Indigenous Youth

Millbrook, N.S. [October 20, 2026] – The Ulnooweg Indigenous Communities Foundation (UICF) and the Mastercard Foundation EleV Program are expanding their partnership, building on six years of investment in Indigenous youth, communities, and organizations across Atlantic Canada.

Since 2020, the UICF and the Mastercard Foundation have worked together to expand culturally grounded, community-driven opportunities for Indigenous youth. Through nearly 200 initiatives across the region, Indigenous youth have gained greater access to education, employment opportunities, leadership development, cultural revitalization, and community-driven programs.

The next phase builds on a strong foundation, while taking a more focused, long-term approach to creating lasting impact.

Moving forward, the UICF will deepen its collaboration with a smaller number of strategic partners, enabling larger multi-year investments that foster strong alignment across organizations, communities, and sectors.

This renewed approach reflects lessons learned over the past six years: lasting change requires more than individual programs. It requires strong relationships, coordinated efforts, flexibility, and the time and space for Indigenous-led solutions to take root and grow.

“We have learned a tremendous amount over the past several years, particularly from the young people, communities and organizations we have had the privilege of working alongside,” said Michelle Richard, Managing Director. “As we move into this next phase, we are not starting over. We are building on those relationships and that learning, while being much more intentional about how we bring people together and support long-term impact.”

Building on these lessons, UICF will strengthen the network of relationships, organizations, and systems that support Indigenous youth across Atlantic Canada. Working alongside communities, organizations, and partners UICF will align efforts around shared priorities, foster stronger connections, and help create a more coordinated approach to a to achieving long-term impact.

Youth voices will remain central to that process. Through ongoing engagement opportunities, gatherings, and advisory councils, young people will continue to play a meaningful role in shaping the work designed to support them.

The next phase will take a holistic approach to supporting Indigenous youth, recognizing that education, employment and entrepreneurship are deeply connected to relationships with the land, cultural identity, and thriving Indigenous economies

This approach also creates opportunities and strengthens connections across organizations that support Indigenous youth. By bringing partners together around shared goals and outcomes, the UICF will help create more connected pathways and opportunities, making it easier for young people to access the support, resources, and networks they need to achieve their goals.

“Partnership has always been at the heart of the EleV Program,” said Jennifer Brennan, Senior Director, Canada Programs, Mastercard Foundation. “Over the past six years, we have learned that lasting change happens when communities are empowered to lead and when solutions are rooted in Indigenous knowledge, culture, and priorities. This next phase reflects those lessons. By deepening collaboration and investing in long-term relationships, we can help create the conditions for Indigenous youth, communities, and organizations to thrive for generations to come.”

For the UICF, the renewed partnership is also an opportunity to think beyond the lifespan of any single funding agreement. From the outset, the work will prioritize sustainability, strengthen organizational capacity, and contribute to development of a stronger Indigenous philanthropic ecosystem.

The goal is not simply to fund good work, but to help create the relationships, capacity and conditions that allow that work to continue and grow.

“This next chapter is about moving forward together,” said Christopher Googoo, Executive Director. “It means listening first, investing more deeply, connecting the work happening across our region and creating space to adapt as we learn. Most importantly, it means continuing to place Indigenous youth and communities at the centre of decisions about their futures.”

The continued partnership reflects a shared commitment between the UICF and the Mastercard Foundation to advance long-term, Indigenous-led change and create pathways for Indigenous youth to thrive on their own terms.

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