The Challenge

In 2021, Finance Canada launched an engagement program to explore key questions related to the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) project. This included understanding whether Indigenous groups along the pipeline corridor and marine shipping route would prefer economic participation through equity ownership, revenue sharing, or a combination of both. The program also sought to determine how Indigenous interests should be represented in future negotiations.

The goal was to gather meaningful input from Indigenous groups to inform a framework for potential economic participation in the project, ensuring that future discussions were grounded in the perspectives and priorities of rights holders.

Our Approach

Ballad and Cascade designed and delivered a comprehensive engagement process with 129 Indigenous groups. This included a series of six virtual multilateral sessions, each lasting 3 to 4 hours, providing a structured forum for dialogue and information sharing.

To complement these sessions, the team created multiple avenues for participation, including one-on-one phone discussions, a confidential engagement website, an economic inclusion workbook, and pre- and post-session surveys. This approach ensured that participants could engage in ways that best suited their preferences and allowed for both collective and individualized input.

Throughout the process, Ballad and Cascade acted as a trusted and neutral liaison between Indigenous groups, Finance Canada, and potential future negotiating entities. As engagement progressed, the team identified a preference among participants for equity ownership, along with interest in forming an Indigenous-led coalition to represent rights holders in future negotiations.

Building on these findings, Ballad and Cascade delivered a second phase of work focused on clarifying negotiating entity preferences and providing information to support informed decision-making. This work helped lay the foundation for future negotiations and strengthened the capacity of participating groups to engage in the process.

What we heard

“This was a very helpful process which shed light on many aspects of what’s on the table for Indigenous groups, as well as addressed some gaps. I appreciate the commitment and genuine approach from the team, and hope our paths cross again.