The Mentorship Collective: Building Belonging in Tech

What does it mean to truly belong in the tech sector? For many Indigenous students, breaking into the industry is about navigating spaces that weren’t designed with them in mind, without a network, without peers who share the same path, and often without anyone to address the unspoken expectations that come with professional life. 

The Mentorship Collective was built to change that. 

From January through March 2026, TECHNATION’s Career Ready Program partnered with Indigenous Tech Circle to deliver an 8-week mentorship experience for 10 students from Native Education College (NEC) in Vancouver, BC. The program brought together mentors from TELUS, R8dius, Disney, and Tech Circle, connecting emerging Indigenous talent with industry professionals through weekly one-on-one virtual calls, shared community experiences, and in-person events designed to build real relationships. 

Over the course of the program, mentors collectively contributed 20 hours of dedicated mentorship support.
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A Program That Responds 

The Mentorship Collective’s strength lies in its agility. Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model to a community with distinct needs, the team at TECHNATION built a program that could respond quickly, connecting Indigenous educators and students with industry in a way that was grounded in trust, cultural awareness and relationship. 

Mentees and mentors met weekly through one-on-one virtual calls, working together on everything from goal-setting and career exploration to networking skills and navigating the real-world expectations of working in tech. Pair by pair, the program created space for honest conversations that rarely happen in a classroom.

Building Community Together 

Beyond the weekly calls, The Mentorship Collective came to life through shared experiences designed to strengthen connections across the whole cohort. 

Participants gathered to kick-off the program and meet their mentors during a hands-on drum making workshop facilitated by Kelly Louis, a member of the Squamish Nation, at the Native Education College. It was a moment that honoured culture and belonging and set the tone for the community that would grow over the weeks ahead. 

The cohort also attended the Indigenous Tech Conference together, sponsored by TECHNATION and hosted by Tech Circle, a non-profit organization connecting Indigenous technologists, founders, investors, and changemakers across Canada. Attending as a group meant no one walked in alone. 

Midway through the program, the full cohort came together for a virtual Community Call to share updates, reflect on progress, and strengthen connections across the group.

Participants arrived with honest updates: goals being made, scheduling challenges being navigated, and a shared desire for more structure and peer support. What emerged was a collective insight: community itself was part of what made the learning work. 

When asked to share one word describing how they were leaving the call, participants offered: inspired, supported, hopeful, excited, full heart, confident, energized, and grateful. 

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TELUS Gardens Tour and Professional Headshots  

The program closed on at the end of March with an afternoon that brought everything together. TECHNATION member, TELUS, generously hosted the group at TELUS Gardens in Vancouver, a landmark space that also serves as a tangible reminder of where this community belongs. Participants and mentors also received professional headshots from photographer Jamie-Lee Fuoco, a meaningful career-ready takeaway and a way to mark the milestone of completing the program. The group also discussed best practices and ways to network using tools like LinkedIn. 

Thank you to Chris Chipak for bringing the program’s identity to life through the design of three people sitting around in energy, orb or fire, having conversations and networking – along with three tipis to show networking encounters and connections can happen wherever you invest your energy.

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Voices from the Community 

The impact of the program was perhaps best captured by Shauna McAllister, a Proud Cree and Métis woman and mentor in the program, who reflected on the wrap-up event:

« I’m so grateful for the leadership of TECHNATION and Indigenous Tech Circle for hosting the wrap of the mentoring program for the tech students from Native Education Centre. I’m extremely proud of Devon Samson-Plante and Faron Dubois for their dedication to building a blueprint for their futures in tech. I have truly enjoyed being your mentor. »

Her words reflected what the data confirmed: participants left the program feeling more connected, more confident and more clear on the path ahead. 

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Why This Matters 

Canada’s tech sector has a representation gap, and for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit students, that gap is compounded by a lack of culturally relevant programming, limited peer networks, and the unspoken expectations that come with entering spaces that weren’t designed with them in mind. 

The Mentorship Collective addresses this directly. By centering relationships, reducing isolation, and building peer support into every touchpoint of the program, it doesn’t just connect students to industry, it helps them see themselves as belonging there. 

At TECHNATION, supporting Indigenous communities is part of our commitment to building a tech sector that reflects the full diversity of Canada. Through program like The Mentorship Collective, we are working alongside Indigenous-led organizations and industry partners to advance reconciliation in a meaningful way. 

Thank You to Our Partners 

The Mentorship Collective would not have been possible without the commitment and generosity of the following: 

• Indigenous Tech Circle for partnering and planning this program with us 
• TELUS, for donating their space for the Wrap-Up event 
• TELUS, R8dius and Disneyfor contributing mentor time and expertise 
• Native Education College, for hosting the drum making workshop and providing lunch and space 
• Jamie-Lee Fuoco, for the professional headshots 
• Chris Chipak, for designing the program’s imagery  

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Get Involved 

To learn more about TECHNATION’s Indigenous programming and upcoming opportunities, visit the Indigenous Pathway Program page. 

For student looking to connect with industry mentors, reach out to Paige at ppeters@technationcanada.ca to explore mentorship opportunities for you and your peers.