DETTAH - Last week's inaugural Aboriginal Youth Economic Development Workshop in Dettah drew approximately 50 aspiring youth from 20 different NWT communities, and there's already talk of another workshop next year.

Briana Kotchea of Fort Liard was one of 50 youth delegates drawn across the NWT to the inaugural Aboriginal Youth Economic Development Workshop, organized by the Deton'Cho Corporation and held in the upper floor of the Chief Drygeese Conference Centre in Dettah. - Guy Quenneville/NNSL photo

Held from Aug. 9 to 12 in the Chief Drygeese Conference Centre and organized by the Deton'Cho Corporation, the event brought together budding entrepreneurs, future leaders and, in some cases, the simply curious, to rub shoulders – whether in person or via live Internet conference – with former chiefs, development corporation executives and sustainable economic development experts from different parts of the world.

The aim?

"I think that they're trying to get youth more involved," said 19-year-old attendee Carrcie Mantla of Gameti, whose heart is set on a job involving recreation.

"They're trying to tell us to stand up and see what we have to say and speak out about issues and talk to our councillors and our leaders and gain skills, because we're the future generation – we some day in the future have to stand up and talk for our community."

Encouraging and helping young aboriginals to open sustainable businesses is a key to the NWT's future growth, said Mantla. She added that in her community, there's potential for the small business sector to join the mining and community government sectors in adding to the job pool – people just need to know where to go for help.

"I know there's a couple people who want to start up their own business, their own restaurant, and I think they just need the right path to go on and ask for support and (know) whom to go to."

Brendyn Lennie of Tulita, 20, is one of those people.

Lennie has aspirations to both own his own business and invest in other small ventures. What he suspected about the North was only confirmed during the conference.

"There's always room for growth," he said. "The North is just going to keep growing. We have so many resources and everything people want."

Lennie cited the Mackenzie Gas Project and the Mackenzie Valley Highway from Wrigley to Tuktoyaktuk as major potential drivers of the Northern economy, and said that businesses in the NWT have to prepare now for the opportunities that may come from those projects.

"There's so much development going on; I automatically know businesses are going to pop up, and they're going to flourish."

New businesses in smaller communities like Lennie's hometown of Tulita, with a population of 566 people, will also help lower the cost of living, he added.

"We have a Northern Store, and it's (the) only one story in our community and they have (a) monopoly. If they had some competition ... it could really dramatically drop some prices."