Indigenous friendship centres say they can't handle the costs of climate crisis and urbanization

Friendship centres, which serve the needs of urban Indigenous people, are increasingly important in responding to climate disasters. 

They have even led emergency responses — like the local friendship centre did at Île-à-la-Crosse, Saskatchewan, coordinating emergency management during wildfires in the region. 

But amid this growing need, the National Association of Friendship Centres is concerned by the lack of long-term investment and climate-adaptation funding. 

The organization representing Indigenous friendship centres across Canada is demanding long-term annual funding of $62.2 million in 2026, and another $10 million to help adapt to a changing climate marked by extreme weather disasters. 

Currently, National Association of Friendship Centre funding is $32 million annually and expires in 2025. 

Now, as the country inches toward an election, Jocelyn Formsma, CEO of the National Association of Friendship Centres, is worried that a budget vote could collapse the government without long-term funding for friendship centres in place.  If this happens, it could  force local leadership in urban centres to cut programming and jobs, she noted.

“The uncertainty in Parliament is really causing a lot of uncertainty in service and that shouldn't be the case,” Formsma said. 

Financial support is more important than ever, she said, as friendship centres continue to expand their role in a warming world marked by severe weather events. Indigenous communities suffer at a disproportionate rate from climate disasters like wildfires, landslides and flooding.

Evacuations from Indigenous communities caused by climate change and the wildfire crisis have prompted friendship centres to expand their role as service providers in urban centres, said Formsma.

“We've seen, especially the last two years, the effects of wildfires, and we know that the wildfires are increasing in their severity and also their reach,” she said. 

In Alberta, for example, Edmonton and Calgary are major centres for evacuees, she noted. But those cities can often meet capacity fast, and so, the smaller urban centres like Lethbridge, Grande Prairie and High Prairie sometimes fill the gaps for Indigenous evacuees. 

Friendship centres in those communities ensure food, shelter, family-care support and supplies, and child-care activities are available, Formsma explained. 

And yet, many friendship centres do not receive emergency management funding, relying instead on private donations. Friendship centres play an essential role in urban Indigenous life, she stressed.

“There's very few other organizations that have a similar breadth and depth to the services we provide,” she said. 

From cultural services to language classes to housing, childcare and employment supports, friendship centres serve over a million people annually, she noted. 

Formsma believes that each dollar invested in the National Association of Friendship Centres is a commitment and contribution to the project of reconciliation laid out by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and UNDRIP. 

"Friendship Centres are at the heart of communities; they provide a safe place, and safe people to turn to for Indigenous youth and community members. Our Government recognizes the important work that Friendship Centres across the country provide. That's why since 2015, we’ve invested over $451 million through the Urban Programming for Indigenous Peoples to support Friendship Centres through organizations like the NAFC," said Jennifer Kozelj, Indigenous Services Canada Minister Patty Hajdu's press secretary. 

"While we can’t speak for other parties, our Government has been and will always support the important work that organizations like NAFC do," the statement continued. 

Matteo Cimellaro / Canada’s National Observer / Local Journalism Initiative