Episode 4: Nikutik — What if economic sovereignty could become a blueprint for the entire world?

Tristan Jackson and Erica Ward are two of the driving forces behind Nikutik — a groundbreaking Indigenous-led economic sovereignty fund created by seven Mi’kmaq nations in Atlantic Canada.

For generations, Indigenous nations have been excluded from the financial systems that shaped their territories.
Nikutik is changing that.

Created by seven MMi’kmaq nations in Atlantic Canada, Nikutikis an Indigenous-led Sovereignty Wealth fund that shifts communities from being consulted by industry, typically after the fact, about plans by outsiders to do development on their hereditary territories, to becoming the planners, initiators, and owners of major infrastructure projects, as well as the long-term stewards of the land — developments in clean energy, housing, food and water systems, and other critical infrastructure.

What makes it extraordinary isn’t just what it builds. It’s how it’s built.
Moving beyond Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). Community-first ownership. Ancestral governance principles woven into modern financial architecture. A quadruple bottom line — people, planet, profit, and culture.