The Kwe-Biz Program for Indigenous Women, offered through the Queen's WE-CAN Project, has provided dozens of culturally intuitive workshops and one-on-one mentorship sessions framed in an Indigenous perspective. Delivered by Indigenous business leaders and entrepreneurs Rye and Shyra Barberstock, 90 Indigenous women entrepreneurs have received services through the Kwe-Biz Program as part of the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES) Ecosystem funding provided to Queen’s University by the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
Over the past three years, more than 1,300 women have been supported by the WE-CAN Project led by Queen’s Partnerships and Innovation (QPI) in achieving their entrepreneurial goals. Recently, the project celebrated its entrepreneurs and partners at a wrap-up event to mark the conclusion of the funding and to outline plans for the future. Though the program's three-year funding commitment has come to an end, WE-CAN will continue to offer several programs and free resources to local entrepreneurs in the greater Kingston region and Bay of Quinte.
Thank you, Rye and Shyra, for your fantastic work and initiative!