Answering the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, TECHNATION partnered with PathWise Solutions to develop an eLearning course promoting greater Indigenous participation and leadership in the tech sector.
From the beginning, TECHNATION and PathWise worked together to define the essential ingredients for a successful course. These included:
- Involving Indigenous voices through every step of the process, from design to development,
- Taking an honest look at Canada’s history of systemic racism and its lingering impacts on Indigenous representation in the tech sector,
- Highlighting Indigenous knowledges and how they have contributed to the workplace and the tech industry as a whole, and finally,
- Offering concrete steps on what the tech sector can do to encourage greater Indigenous leadership and representation.
Staying true to these core principles kept the course focused and moving toward a well-defined outcome.
Lifting Up Indigenous Voices
Ultimately, the entire course revolved around one central theme: encouraging greater Indigenous representation in the tech sector. That meant Indigenous voices had to guide the project at every stage — from the earliest planning sessions to development and testing.
During planning and design, Indigenous staff from both companies guided decisions on structure, tone, and content to ensure it aligned with the values of Truth and Reconciliation. At PathWise, Kristy McLeod, a member of the Métis Nation of BC and co-author of Decolonization and Me: Conversations about Healing a Nation and Ourselves, brought both professional expertise and lived experience. At TECHNATION, Paige Peters, a proud member of the Chippewa of the Thames First Nation, and Carrie Lamb, an Indigenous Knowledge Carrier, offered essential cultural guidance and knowledge. Together, their perspectives shaped much of the course’s content.
This involvement continued into development, where Indigenous talent contributed directly to the course’s audio and visual style. From narration and music to Indigenous-themed artwork, their contributions ensured that Indigenous voices were present not only behind the scenes but also front and centre throughout the course.
Spotlight: Introductory Videos
Indigenous contributions are visible from the very beginning. Each module begins with an introductory video. The artwork on display is from Chris Chipak, a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation. The music that plays is from Nagamo Publishing, part of the Dadan Sivunivut group of Indigenous media corporations.
Reconciling History
Canadian history is a topic that evokes strong emotions. When looking at our collective past, it was important to present the truth without minimizing or sensationalizing it. From pre-colonization through residential schools to the present day, grounding learners in a common understanding of how the past has influenced the nations and now can lay the foundation for a shared vision of tomorrow.
But understanding history wasn’t enough. We also needed to show how Canada’s colonial past has shaped the lives of Indigenous Peoples today. To make this connection real, we shifted perspective, moving from broad historical events to personal stories of struggle resulting from a legacy of systemic racism. This approach helped learners move from abstract ideas to a clearer, more concrete understanding of the links between past and present.
Spotlight: Roadblocks to Success
In the activity Roadblocks to Success, learners explore stories representing the struggles Indigenous Peoples face when trying to succeed in the tech industry.
Shining a Light on Indigenous Ways of Knowing
Technology is an industry defined by disruption and innovation. So what happens when Indigenous ways of knowing are included with settler knowledge systems in the tech sector?
Throughout the course, we highlighted how Indigenous Knowledges have shaped, and continue to shape, how we interact with technology and each other. From using Indigenous Knowledges to train AI systems to re-evaluating definitions of success, learners discover how everyone benefits when Indigenous voices and leadership are woven into the workplace.
Spotlight: Beyond the Numbers
Beyond the Numbers is an activity where learners explore a town, clicking on different locations to learn various metrics for measuring success. The goal is to determine which metrics reflect the holistic views of success practised in many Indigenous cultures.
Taking Concrete Steps Towards Truth and Reconciliation
Knowledge is valuable, but how can it translate into action?
The course is filled with lessons, examples, and activities that help learners apply what they’ve learned:
- Scenarios allow learners to understand a hypothetical situation, choose the best course of action, and see the consequences before proceeding or adjusting.
- Reflection questions create moments for learners to pause and consider what actions they can take based on the knowledge gained.
- Examples of workplace strategies and sample documents provide templates for applying lessons in real-world situations.
By the end, learners feel not only enriched with new knowledge but also motivated to take their own steps toward Truth and Reconciliation.
Spotlight: Weaving Change
In Weaving Change, learners reflect on their own contribution to Truth and Reconciliation. As they answer a series of questions, a woven pattern emerges, representing how their actions can create a positive pattern of change in the workplace.
Collaboration is the Key
Earlier, we mentioned the role of innovation within the tech industry. As an eLearning company, PathWise always seeks to learn and experiment.
For this course, PathWise faced several challenges that provided opportunities to explore new design and development approaches.
- To balance workloads across teams, AI was used in the early stages of design. However, it was always guided by humans — reviewed and refined with Indigenous oversight at the core.
In this way, our use of AI reflected one of the core ideas of the course itself: just as Indigenous Knowledges can be blended with modern technology to create better outcomes, AI served as a tool to enhance human creativity and decision-making, not replace it.
- On the development side, our usual practice was to assign a single developer to build complete modules, often the entire course. While this ensures consistency, it also takes more time.
For this project, we employed a team of developers working in tandem. The lead developer assigned specific tasks across four separate modules, using templates to communicate both visual design and functionality. This process allowed us to create a large amount of content efficiently while maintaining quality.
Carrying Reconciliation Forward
PathWise is deeply grateful for the chance to work on such a meaningful project with TECHNATION. The course represents each company’s commitment to weaving truth, reconciliation, and Indigenous leadership into the fabric of Canada’s tech sector. Reconciliation is not a one-time effort — it is an ongoing responsibility and process that calls on all of us to listen, learn, and act.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn practical steps for embedding Indigenous perspectives in your workplace.
With Gratitude
In that spirit, we extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who guided, reviewed, and contributed to this project. From Knowledge Carriers and staff who shared their expertise, to the artists and narrators whose work brings the course to life — this project would not exist without you. Your voices, wisdom, and creativity are at the heart of everything learners experience in the course.
