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Economic Development Corporation forms behind closed doors By Donna Duric, Writer The Six Nations Economic Development Department is no more. Instead, the new Six Nations Development Corporation is taking its place. And while the corporation is still receiving operational funding from Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada as a department of band council, president and CEO Matt Jamieosn says eventually, the corporation will be left to fend for itself through own-source revenues. The corporation - which Jamieson says is supposed to be arms-length from Six Nations Elected Council - formed throughout the past year and became official in May without any public community meetings. The corporation held its first open house to answer questions from community members last Friday afternoon at the Six Nations Tourism building. The formation of the development corporation has been in the works since 2011 when members of the former Economic Development department undertook the "We Gather Our Voices" project. That project involved interviews in private residences with anonymous feedback from community members in their homes on what they'd like a development corporation to look like. Since those private interviews took place, one community meeting was held to reveal the results of the We Gather Our Voices project in 2013. No meetings have been held since. There are three boards in the new corporation's structure: an advisory board, a board of directors and a board of trustees. There was a call-out for board members in February, with applications received for the advisory board and board of directors, but the corporation is still looking for members of its board of trustees, which would oversee the flow and distribution of funds coming into the corporation. Sitting on the Board of Directors is: Amy Frank, Ruth Martin, Sabrina Saunders (chair), Jeremy Bouchard, and Claudine VanEvery-Albert. Sitting on the advisory committee is: Barry Hill, David Moses, and Sherry Lickers (Chair). Six Nations community members sit at the top of the corporation's governance structure. Band Council comes next (is overseen by the community), and band council then oversees the advisory committee. Band Council would take direction from the community and provide that direction to the advisory committee. The community itself can also provide direction to the advisory committee. The board of trustees and board of directors answer to the advisory committee. Money earned from economic development deals will flow to the community through the economic development trust based on the Community Plan created by the former Six Nations Economic Development department. Jamieson said the corporation won't sit on the finds and only disburse the interest the way the Six Nations Community Development Trust does. Instead the money will go out as soon as it flows in, he said. Community members or community organizations seeking funds, however, will still have to submit proposals to the board of trustees. Six Nations Band Council is the sole shareholder and owner of the corporation. Funds will flow through the corporation from (Continued on page 9)