Introducing Biosystems and Experiential Design with MCAD

This pilot program was successfully completed from November 2023 – June 2024.

This project supported relationship development, consultation, and engagement activities aimed at exploring participatory food security research and food sector training opportunities with the Minneapolis College of Art and Design’s Creative Entrepreneurship program. It also contributed to research design efforts to attract research investment to Manitoba.

In 2023, the project was approved for funding from the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Program – Indigenous Agriculture and Food Systems program with Manitoba Agriculture. In April 2024, project activities were also complemented with funding from the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada Indigenous Intellectual Property Protection Program.

Incubating Community Engagement and Regional Relationship Development

The project's impacts successfully strengthened collaborative networks between academic researchers, non-profit organizations, Indigenous-owned businesses, emerging youth and aspiring food sector entrepreneurs, and community-based research projects based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It also informed long-term planning aimed at exploring the potential for future research investments and fostering new collaborative research between Manitoba and Minnesota.

Community engagement began in June 2023, with the project running from November 2023 to June 2024. Using prior participatory and co-designed approaches, the team consulted and engaged experts and students from university entrepreneurship, economics, and supply chain management programs, HQPs in training, technology entrepreneurs, northern community researchers, MB Agriculture staff, and policy specialists. In-depth meetings, roundtable group discussions, and informal consultation sessions were employed to gather insights and perspectives, maximizing planning, design, and development to ensure goals and outcomes were realistic, achievable, and aligned with Nutrition North Canada social programming components.

Relationship-building activities also studied the impact of mentorship programs that paired experienced Nutrition North Canada and Manitoba food sector entrepreneurs with urban and newly-urban Indigenous youth. These efforts provided valuable insights and supported aspiring entrepreneurs in gaining critical skills and knowledge in entrepreneurship and the food sector, all while addressing issues of northern food insecurity.

The project helped establish a supportive network connecting students and participants with mentors and researchers (HQPs in training) in the agriculture and food security sectors, creating enhanced opportunities for knowledge sharing and skill development. Information from consultation and engagement activities informed the assessment of entrepreneurship training programs tailored to the unique needs of Northern Indigenous communities, with involvement from Nutrition North Canada suppliers. It also identified areas where regulatory changes or policy support could be enhanced.

Furthermore, the project aimed to advance economic reconciliation, particularly in the context of Indigenous youth and community participation in agriculture and agri-food-related sectoral development, training, and research creation. It also worked to create opportunities for economic empowerment and address historical economic disparities through the co-creation of food sector entrepreneurship and community-based, participatory research opportunities.

The project also advanced economic reconciliation, particularly in the context of Indigenous youth and community participation in agriculture and agri-food-related sectoral development, training, and research creation. It created opportunities for economic empowerment and addressed historical economic disparities through the co-creation of food sector entrepreneurship and community-based, participatory research opportunities.

The team did an amazing job presenting at the 2024 Arctic Congress in Bodø, Norway. Presentations and relationship development took place between the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, University of Victoria, University of Minnesota Duluth Labovitz School of Business and Economics, and the University of the Arctic Thematic Network on Local-Scale Planning, Climate Change, and Resilience.