Economic reconciliation and building career purpose
With a professional background in finance and lived experience growing up in the First Nation community of Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, Camden Maracle (A Strong Frame) is forging a path driven by career purpose 鈥� an outlook he believes is vastly underrepresented on reserves.
鈥淕rowing up, I went to Long House and learned the language,鈥� Maracle (Finance and Economics 鈥�19) explains. 鈥淚 went to elementary school with 30 kids in a classroom, but only a few of us went on to post-secondary. Now that we have these basic requirements like education, how can we create economic stimulants in our communities?鈥�
Maracle鈥檚 current role as a Commercial Account Manager at TD Bank sees him manage a portfolio of 68 businesses across Ontario. Directly with a team of three, he works across securities, private banking and other bank resources to ensure clients get the 鈥渙ne TD鈥� experience.
鈥淟ooking at my job now, there鈥檚 a purpose held within aspects of my career that we don鈥檛 see on reserves. The stimulants that get pushed onto reserves do not meet a standard of purpose when it comes to job fulfillment.鈥�
Maracle traces back his dedication to economic reconciliation throughout his career leading up to TD; at BMO, the role of Indigenous Banking Specialist was explicitly created for him.
鈥淚 consider that portion of my career the learning portion. The was around eight people. We were spearheading the work of financial institutions on reserves, like on-reserve housing programs that offer mortgage financing and trust valuations for land claim settlements.鈥�
鈥淎fter multiple years of me saying I want to be in this space, I was also working with campus recruitment and stakeholder engagement with Indigenous communities,鈥� he adds.
The reconciliation as a return to Indigenous prosperity, citing data showing that employment among off-reserve Indigenous people is than non-Indigenous employment. For Maracle, however, true economic reconciliation will be achieved when growth opportunities are on reserves.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want kids to see their parents in the smokeshop and think they have to go [work] in the smokeshop. Some of our best talents need to leave their families to achieve greater prosperity in their careers. We lose some of our best talents,鈥� he explains,
In the school's Indigenous Alumni Series, Maracle shares his experience moving to Toronto, finding his sense of community as an Indigenous person in Canada鈥檚 largest city and how the Ted Rogers Co-op program helped him define his career path and lead him to where he is today.
Outside his work in the finance sector, Maracle volunteers to support Indigenous communities across Ontario, ranging from Treasurer on the (NCCT) to acting as a baseball coach with
鈥淭he NCCT changed my experience in Toronto, moving me along in my cultural awareness of off-reserve Indigenous people. It鈥檚 the largest friendship centre in Canada, offering social housing, childcare and Thursday-night drum circles,鈥� he adds. 鈥淲ith Sports & Wellness, I鈥檝e been able to help as a coach and with funding. We鈥檝e worked with the Blue Jays Care Foundation and MLSE on sports initiatives for on-reserve communities.鈥�
Maracle doesn鈥檛 talk about regrets, or a lack thereof when discussing his decision to move off-reserve to pursue his education at the Ted Rogers School of Management. The challenges faced are around breaking the generational stigma.
鈥淢y community is two hours east of [Toronto]. I was able to come to the city a few times before visiting, but for further communities, it鈥檚 a jump into the abyss. I would not have had the same opportunities outside of Ted Rogers, especially being directly involved in the Financial District and starting to work with BMO in second-year,鈥� Maracle says.
鈥淚 worked with Indigenous Student Services for three years, and I wasn鈥檛 always the best student, but I was good at showing up at every event,鈥� he says, smiling. 鈥淚t鈥檚 paid off in the long run.鈥�
For all the social, political and policy-driven conversations around economic reconciliation, it鈥檚 important to take a step back and remember that on-and-off-reserve life is not as disconnected as one might think.
鈥淚鈥檝e had the ability to travel to northern reserves and see the grassroots economic system that flows there. It鈥檚 impressive to watch,鈥� Maracle adds. 鈥淟ook, nobody is ignorant of the outside world. We all have iPhones.鈥�
鈥淚f we can bring all that we鈥檙e seeing outside, the impactful jobs, to the reserves 鈥� that鈥檚 what will lead to a generational break.鈥�