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Indigenous Training & Consulting
Indigenous Training, Consulting, and Advisory Services that help organizations build respectful relationships, strengthen cultural understanding, and advance meaningful reconciliation
Listen & Assess
We begin by understanding your organization's current knowledge, challenges, and goals — without judgment.
Design Together
We co-develop a training or consulting plan tailored to your context, your team, and the communities you serve.
Deliver & Support
We deliver engaging, practical sessions and remain available to support your team as you apply what you've learned.
Our Philosophy
Walqwan
The Mi'kmaq word for "Rainbow" - Building Bridges Between Worlds.
At Walqwan, we believe that the greatest opportunities emerge when different perspectives come together. Inspired by the rainbow, a natural bridge that connects horizons, we are committed to fostering understanding, collaboration, and meaningful connections across people, cultures, ideas, and organizations.
We see every challenge as an opportunity to unite diverse viewpoints, transform differences into strengths, and create pathways toward shared success. Like the many colors of a rainbow forming a single, beautiful arc, we recognize that progress is achieved when unique experiences and talents work together toward a common purpose.
Our philosophy is simple: build trust, bridge divides, and create connections that help people and organizations thrive in a more connected world.
What We Do
Consulting and Training Services
Walqwan offers a range of services designed to meet organizations where they are and guide them toward more informed, respectful, and effective engagement with Indigenous communities.
Training
Cultural Awareness Training
Structured training programs that help staff and leadership understand the history, cultures, rights, and contemporary realities of First Nations and Indigenous peoples in Canada. Available as workshops, seminars, and multi-session series.
Consulting
Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Strategic guidance for organizations navigating consultation, partnership, and relationship-building with Indigenous communities.
Grounded in Relationships, Guided by Experience.
Honesty
Relationship
Honesty
We tell the truth about history, about the current state of Indigenous-government relations, and about what reconciliation actually requires. We do not soften difficult realities.
Respect
Relationship
Honesty
Every engagement begins and ends with respect — for the communities whose histories and cultures we discuss, and for the people in the room who are doing the work of learning.
Relationship
Relationship
Relationship
We believe that lasting change comes from relationship, not transaction. We invest in the organizations we work with and measure success by the quality of the connections that buiild accountability..
Why Work With Us
Knowledge that transforms how you work.
Walqwan's training programs are designed for government departments, agencies, and community organizations that want to build genuine cultural competency — not just check a box.
Why cultural training matters
Effective work with Indigenous communities requires more than good intentions. It requires an understanding of history, culture, rights, and the lived realities of First Nations and Indigenous peoples in Canada today.
Walqwan's training programs are grounded in that understanding. They are practical, engaging, and designed to create lasting change in how your team thinks, communicates, and acts.
Key Course & Consulting Topics
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Foundational training on Indigenous history, residential schools, treaties, rights, reconciliation, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action.
Respectful Indigenous Engagement
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Practical guidance on building trust, following cultural protocols, meaningful consultation, and fostering strong relationships with Indigenous communities.
Indigenous Governance & Leadership
Indigenous Cultural Awareness & Reconciliation
Reconciliation Strategy & Organizational Change
Understanding First Nations governance structures, leadership decision-making, self-government agreements, and the Indigenous political landscape.
Reconciliation Strategy & Organizational Change
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Reconciliation Strategy & Organizational Change
Supporting organizations in developing actionable reconciliation plans, accountability frameworks, and long-term cultural transformation.
Indigenous Policy Review & Development
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Reviewing and developing policies, programs, and frameworks that align with Indigenous rights, reconciliation commitments, UNDRIP, and best practices.
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Cultural Advisory & Indigenous Engagement Consulting
Expert advice on cultural protocols, engagement strategies, consultation processes, communications review, and relationship-building with Indigenous communities
Walqwan
Wyatt White, M.Ed., B.Sc.
Principal Founder & Lead Consultant
Wyatt White is a Mi'kmaw leader, educator, facilitator, and consultant from the Mi'kmaq territory of Listuguj, Quebec. Proud of his mixed Mi'kmaw and European ancestry, Wyatt brings a unique perspective shaped by deep roots within the Mi'kmaw community and a lifelong commitment to building understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
Guided by the principle of Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing), Wyatt embraces the strengths of both Indigenous and Western ways of knowing. Introduced by Mi'kmaq Elders Albert and Murdena Marshall, Two-Eyed Seeing promotes collaboration, mutual respect, and the integration of diverse knowledge systems for the benefit of all.
Wyatt holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from Acadia University and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from St. Francis Xavier University. His professional career has focused on Indigenous consultation, government relations, education, and reconciliation initiatives. In 2013, he joined the Nova Scotia Department of Education, where he led Mi'kmaw Services and played a significant role in advancing Treaty Education during the era of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
He later joined Cape Breton University as a tenure-track Assistant Professor, teaching Mi'kmaw history within the Canadian context while fostering dialogue around allyship, reconciliation, and systemic change. Since 2022, Wyatt has served as Associate Executive Director with the Confederacy of Mi'kmaw Nations, where he provides strategic leadership and works collaboratively with Indigenous communities, governments, and partner organizations to advance social justice and prosperity for the eight Mi'kmaw communities represented by the organization.
In addition to his leadership role, Wyatt works as an independent consultant, facilitator, and knowledge-transfer specialist. Through training and engagement initiatives, he helps organizations and individuals strengthen their understanding of Indigenous perspectives, reconciliation, and inclusive leadership practices.
Having lived, worked, and travelled throughout many parts of Turtle Island, Wyatt has called Kjipuktuk (Halifax) home since 2002. He is passionate about creating meaningful opportunities for learning, relationship-building, and positive change, recognizing that reconciliation is a shared responsibility requiring leadership from all sectors of society.
Experience & Background
· Mi'kmaw leader from Listuguj, Quebec — Mi'kmaq territory
· M.Ed. in Educational Leadership, St. Francis Xavier University; B.Sc. in Environmental Science, Acadia University
· Former Director of Mi'kmaw Services, Nova Scotia Department of Education — led Treaty Education during the TRC era
· Former tenure-track Assistant Professor, Cape Breton University — Mi'kmaw history and reconciliation
· Associate Executive Director, Confederacy of Mi'kmaw Nations (2022–present)
· Independent consultant, facilitator, and knowledge-transfer specialist
