Nation building in real time

When the Nation voted in favour of developing their own constitution, they faced a daunting question: What next? Only a handful of First Nations have their own and, even so, this one needed to be unique to the Squamish People.

Taking it back to the basics, Squamish First Nation knew that they wanted the constitution to be created for and by their members—a reflection of where they had come from, who they are, and where they are going. 

The barriers lay in the execution. How could they engage as many Squamish people as possible, including young people, elders, and those living away from home in other countries? How should they talk about the constitution and the process in a way that everyone would understand, and want to be a part of? And, how can they inspire record turnout in support of the new constitution, once drafted?

The constitution is for the Squamish People and by the Squamish People. As was this campaign. 

Our team relished the opportunity to support the Squamish Constitution Project team to engage with their community, creating messaging and visuals that truly reflected the Nation, and building capacity and infrastructure to encourage participation and (eventually) the support for it through inspiring Squamish People to vote.

So that’s where we started: Community engagement through interviews, focus groups and surveys. Conversations were facilitated with a wide range of age groups, locations (on and off reserve), disengaged members, supporters and opponents. 

And from these conversations, came an important insight: Salish Eye.

The Salish Eye represents looking to the past, present, and future; a connection between the Creator and the community; a signal of protection and responsibility. In short, the perfect representation of the vision for the Constitution Project itself. 

Our launch video used this metaphor to tell the story of the Squamish People, building up to this historic opportunity to shape the future. The inspiring message, “Our voices. Our future. Our way.” was not just a tagline, but direct responses to community questions:

What’s a constitution? “Our way…”
Why do we need it? “Our future…”
What’s my part?  “Our voices…”

And we didn’t stop there. We initiated a collaboration between two Squamish musicians, a traditional songwriter and a young music producer to create an original piece of music, exclusively written and performed by Squamish members. The song captures the symbolism and inspiration of the moment at hand, and serves as a unifying soundtrack for this years-long project.

In addition to social media and targeted internet ads, this project relies heavily on community organizing. We facilitated digital engagement and supported the Squamish Constitution Project team with in person engagement, training and resourcing. With these tools, the Squamish team is able to have real conversations—online, through text messages, hosting gatherings and family dinners—to spread awareness and build understanding.