Former Willow Lake Métis CEO’s consultancy firm wins Alberta Indigenous Business Award of Distinction

By Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter 

(ANNews) – A consultancy firm founded by the former CEO of Willow Lake Métis Nation has taken home the 2026 Indigenous Business Award of Distinction at the Alberta Business Awards of Distinction. 

Justin Bourque founded Âsokan Generational Developments in 2023. The firm has worked with more than 40 Indigenous communities on nearly $3 billion in transactions, largely but not exclusively in the energy sector. 

The Indigenous Business Award of Distinction honours an Indigenous-owned business that facilitates economic development for First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities on the road to reconciliation. 

In an interview, Bourque called the award “such an honour,” adding that it was a “pleasant surprise” to even be a finalist, “let alone stacked up against two very impressive companies and to come out the winner.” 

One of his competitors, Backwoods Group, is a company he knows well from his time with Willow Lake Métis Nation, having established a partnership with the 100 per cent Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation-owned firm. Bourque called them a “great, reputable company,” noting their employment of many Indigenous people.

“It’s a unique space that we operate in, and I think the value that we create for Indigenous communities throughout Alberta by way of facilitating opportunities to have ownership and a different type of partnership really speaks to the work that we do, so we’re just thrilled to be there,” said Bourque. 

He credits the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation (AIOC), established by former premier Jason Kenney in 2019 to provide loan guarantees to Indigenous investors, as an important vehicle for being “able to access capital like communities never have before.”

While Âsokan Generational Developments has so far focused largely on the energy sector, Bourque noted that the AIOC’s mandate extends well beyond energy to include sectors such as tourism, transportation, agriculture and telecommunications. 

For Bourque, this expansion into other sectors represents a “likely evolution of where we’re going,” although he cautioned that the “risk profile” is different for each sector. 

“At the end of the day, when we’re doing these transactions, we’re trying not to impose a lot of financial risk on the nations for their participation, and so it’s trying to strike that balance between the risk profile, the needs of the loan guarantee programs and the community,” he explained.

In addition to the ability to access low-cost capital, Bourque says he’s seen a shift in “the relationship between Indigenous groups and industry proponents to the point that communities are no longer identified as risks and challenges, and more looked at as partners and opportunities.”

Bourque says that while industry is generally focused on short-term revenue growth, his clients tend to be focused on building “generational wealth.” Reconciling these two visions can be a challenge.  

One of the projects Bourque is most proud of throughout his career is his role in establishing Athabasca Indigenous Investments in 2022, when he was still with Willow Lake Métis, which saw 23 Indigenous communities raise a combined $1.12 billion to purchase 11.57 per cent in equity for seven Enbridge pipelines. 

In 2024, Bourque helped facilitate the Wapiscanis Waseskwan Nipiy partnership, which saw 13 First Nations and Métis communities in northern Alberta secure 85 per cent ownership of certain Tamarack Valley Energy projects, via the Clearwater Infrastructure Limited Partnership. 

“That partnership was really Âsokan‘s first foray into consultancy and stepping away from my role within the community and out on my own,” explained Bourque. 

Bourque sees the federal government’s recent emphasis on building major infrastructure and energy projects as a valuable opportunity “for communities to really be part of the economic growth of the region.”

“That’s what we really look to create,” he said.