Focus Forward for Indigenous Youth (FFFIY) is an Indigenous national registered charity working with Indigenous communities on culturally relevant employment and skills training opportunities for Indigenous youth facing barriers to employment. We collaborate with Indigenous communities across Turtle Island, empowering youth through community driven skills development programs to support Indigenous youth in defining their future employment pathways. Our approach honors the whole person. We build autonomy by providing wellness supports and capacity to achieve their life goals.

FFFIY collaborates with community partners to co-develop programming under two streams; Experiential Employment and Traditional Skills & Entrepreneurship:

Under the Experiential Employment stream, FFFIY partners with community agencies to provide practical employment opportunities to Indigenous youth aimed to offer hands on experience relevant to the local labour market. The majority of programs are designed to align with high school course curriculum giving students an opportunity to earn high school credits for their participation. During their program, Indigenous youth also gain industry relevant training and certifications and participate in various employment readiness workshops (career direction, resume and cover letter development, interview skills, financial literacy).

Under the Traditional Skills & Entrepreneurship stream, FFFIY partners with community organizations, Indigenous elders, and Indigenous knowledge keepers to provide programming for Indigenous youth. The focus on programming is to explore pathways to sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families grounded in culture and traditional knowledge. Program parameters are determined through consultation with partners where each program centered around opportunities for learning traditional skills (moccasin making, beading, hunting and trapping), pairing with technical entrepreneurship training.