E2S - Edmonton 2 Spirit Society

Published purpose

Through this 52-month project, Edmonton 2 Spirit Society will increase its ability to prevent or address gender-based violence against Indigenous women, girls, or 2SLGBTQQIA+ people with a focus on their local community. This will be achieved by reviewing the existing governance structure to improve their governance practices and building new partnerships to expand their networks in consort with strengthening their existing alliances. The project will develop Elder, Matriarch and Youth Councils to engage their communities through knowledge transfers, sharing lived experiences, land-based learning, and healing practices. The organization will also improve its partnerships through various engagement meetings which will help them form stronger relationships with communities and partners in a safe and culturally informed setting to evaluate progress on GBV learning and advocacy. These activities will eventually lead E2S to be able to plan for future activities and programs to address GBV in their community. The outcomes of these meetings will be shared with the community and partners at the end of the project with a E2S Summit event. By the end of the project, Edmonton 2 Spirit Society will have strengthened their capacity to prevent and address GBV against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people in Edmonton and surrounding areas. With the supplemental funds and extension provided in early 2026, the Edmonton 2 Spirit Society (E2S) will increase its organizational capacity through staffing, revision of policies, the development of an Indigenous Evaluation Framework that will inform the development of an E2S Evaluation Framework. Through this, they will further advance gender equality.