Every year on June 21, Canadians come together to recognize and celebrate the fundamental contributions, history, art, traditions, and cultures of the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Nation.
As a corporate citizen doing business within Canada and operating in several Indigenous traditional territories and homelands, Babcock is committed to building meaningful and mutually beneficial relations with Indigenous Peoples, communities, and businesses. Across all our lines of work, Babcock strives to recognize and include the culture, heritage, and achievements of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples every day, year-round.
Progressive Aboriginal Relations Certification
In 2020, Babcock was proud to adopt the Canadian Council for Indigenous Businesses’ Progressive Aboriginal Relations (PAR) certification framework. The PAR framework not only guides the development of our policies and programs, but also serves as a truth and reconciliation framework for Babcock to maximize Indigenous participation within our operations.
Earlier this year, Babcock was thrilled to announce the achievement of Phase III Committed status of the PAR certification program. PAR Committed companies are beginning to track and manage their Indigenous relations strategies. They have submitted a report covering one year’s worth of company activities and intend to undergo future external performance verifications.
Babcock’s PAR Committee is diligently working with the greater Babcock team to submit an application for PAR level Bronze in early 2025 as Babcock continues to expand our Indigenous relations and strengthen our commitment to Indigenous peoples, communities, and businesses.
British Columbia Emergency Health Services.
In 2023, Babcock Canada was delighted to be awarded a 10-year multi-million dollar contract by Ascent Helicopters Ltd. to support Ascent in its contract for the provision of rotary-wing air ambulance services for British Columbia Emergency Health Services.
The British Columbia Helicopter Emergency Medical Services contract will service five communities within B.C.: Kamloops, Parksville, Prince George, Prince Rupert, and Vancouver.
As the Approved Maintenance Organization on this contract, Babcock is committed to consulting and working closely with the Indigenous communities whose traditional territories and homelands will house the contract’s bases. During a recent visit to Prince George, our team met with the Lheidli T’enneh and the Chamber of Commerce to discuss the service and the potential it could offer their communities, particularly at a procurement level. As Babcock ramps up our operations to begin in 2025, we are eager and excited to integrate our businesses and social communities.
We look forward to visiting the Metlakatla and Lax Kw’alaams Nations in Prince Rupert next month.
Supporting the Next Generation and Workforce Development
Over the past year, Babcock has been proud to make several $5,000 donations to Indigenous students in STEM at the University of British Columbia, British Columbia Institute of Technology, Camosun College, Red River College, and Algonquin College.
Babcock was also delighted to donate $17,500 to the Verna J Kirkness Foundation which is dedicated to promoting post-secondary education to Indigenous youth. Babcock’s donation will help put 10 students through their program.
At Babcock we are honoured to continue supporting these students career paths from secondary school through to post-secondary studies, and full employment.
The 2023 Babcock International Award for Indigenous Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Students
In 2023, Babcock committed to annually invest $150,000 into Indigenous skills development training. As part of this commitment, Babcock developed the Babcock International Award for Indigenous Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Students.
This award is presented annually to an Indigenous student who demonstrates exemplary academic progress and has successfully completed the second term of the Aircraft Maintenance Engineer program at Red River College Polytech in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Babcock Canada’s Jeff Church, Person Responsible for Maintenance, was delighted to present the 2023 Babcock International Award for Indigenous Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Students to Desiree Charlton in April.
Babcock is proud to continually support the development of Canada’s next generation of aircraft maintenance engineers.
Congratulations Desiree!
Supporting the Communities in Which We Live and Work:
Babcock was delighted to support and attend several events in the communities in which we live and work this year:
In British Columbia, on September 30, 2023, Babcock was thrilled to sponsor and attend the Songhees Nation’s South Island Powwow. Through song and dance, the annual South Island Powwow was an opportunity to recognize survivors and their families in the spirit of reconciliation. We look forward to returning to the Powwow again in 2024.
Babcock was also delighted to sponsor the 2024 Indigenous Partnership Success Showcase. This annual conference responds to the growing demand for practical guidance on how First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities and their enterprise partners can work together for a common purpose and shared success. This year’s conference celebrated five years of fostering powerful business connections and success stories, and we were honoured to participate in these crucial discussions.
Expanding our Supply Chain:
As part of Babcock’s commitment to maximizing Indigenous participation across the organization, we have made significant investments to increase diversity within our supply chain. Over the past year, we were delighted to partner with Indigeno Travel LP, Mobile Resources Inc., LaFlesche Inc., Pure Spirit Solutions Inc., and NCN Thompson Bus & Freight.
