Otipêy Foundation
About us
Vision
Thriving and sovereign Indigenous Peoples, communities, and Nations, living in harmony with a healthy Mother Earth.
Mission
To improve the wellbeing of Indigenous Peoples by researching and co-creating supportive financial approaches that center Indigenous knowledge, governance, and community-defined priorities.
Working alongside Indigenous communities to build lasting change
For too long, funding for Indigenous communities has been slow, inflexible and not aligned with community priorities. Otipêy Foundation is helping to shift this approach by supporting Indigenous communities to lead the design and delivery of solutions and by connecting funding to measurable results.
The Foundation was created to help advance these solutions. We work with Indigenous communities to co-design initiatives and develop financial approaches that deliver measurable results and support long-term, sustainable funding, so communities can lead lasting change on their own terms.
Our holistic, culturally grounded approach to capacity-building supports communities in unlocking and deploying capital. This enables them to access, use and sustain capital for initiatives that strengthen long-term well-being and self-determination.
Breaking barriers in Indigenous funding
For too long, funding for Indigenous communities has been slow, inflexible and not aligned with community priorities. Otipêy Foundation is helping to shift this approach by supporting Indigenous communities to lead the design and delivery of solutions and by connecting funding to measurable results.
This approach strengthens self-determination by keeping decision-making in community hands and supporting long-term, sustainable impact. It is a practical path toward lasting systems change and meaningful Reconciliation.
Our values
Self-Determination
Communities lead. We follow their vision, direction, and governance.
Seven Generation Thinking
We act with the future in mind—making choices that support well-being for generations to come.
Good Relationships
We build trust through respect, reciprocity, and long-term collaboration.
Two-Eyed Seeing
We honour both Indigenous and Western ways of knowing to create stronger, more balanced solutions.
Meet our team
Meet the people leading Otipêy Foundation's day-to-day work in research, community partnerships and impact.
Marie-Josée Parent
Chief Operations & Impact Officer
Marie-Josée is Chief Operations and Impact Officer at Otipêy Foundation. She previously served as a Montreal city councillor and executive council member and as executive director of DestiNATIONS, an Indigenous Cultural Embassy project. Her experience spans public policy, Indigenous culture, impact measurement and climate action, including advisory roles with UNESCO and CCUNESCO. She chairs Workers for Climate Justice and serves on the board of Transition en Commun. Her family is deeply rooted in the Baie-des-Chaleurs region and is of mixed Acadian and Mi’kmaq ancestry. Marie-Josée holds a BA in philosophy, a master’s in art history and executive training in impact measurement and management from Oxford University.
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Sami Saad
Sr. Associate, Impact
Sami Saad leads financial innovation at Otipêy Foundation, developing investment models and the financial and impact frameworks used to measure their outcomes. He brings more than 15 years of experience in commercial banking, venture capital and impact investing across EMEA and North America. Previously, he was vice-president of investment at IM Fndng, a USAID-backed fund supporting entrepreneurs in emerging markets, and taught economics and accounting at the American University of Beirut. He remains a venture partner at Misfit Ventures. Sami holds an MBA from HEC Paris and a degree in economics.
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Sydney Ferguson
Program Officer
Sydney brings extensive experience in nonprofit leadership, community health care and equity-focused initiatives. Throughout her career, she has helped strengthen organizations, build partnerships and advance community well-being. She takes a collaborative, people-centred approach grounded in strong relationships, community priorities and locally led solutions. Sydney is particularly passionate about supporting Indigenous leadership and creating lasting social and economic impact. She lives in Toronto as a settler on the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, Anishnabeg, Chippewa, Haudenosaunee and Wendat peoples.
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Jeff Cyr
Founder and Managing Partner | CEO, Otipêy Foundation
Jeff, Métis from the White Horse Plains in Manitoba, is the architect behind Otipêy's outcomes finance model. With over two decades of leadership in Indigenous policy, investment, and innovation, he spearheaded Canada's first Community-Driven Outcomes Contract. Jeff is also CEO of Otipêy Foundation and was a founder and managing partner of Raven Indigenous Capital Partners. He is an Ashoka Fellow and a recognized voice in Indigenous social finance globally.
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Meet the board
Board members guiding Otipêy Foundation's governance and strategic direction.
Carl Mashon
Board Member
Carl is a proud family man with three adult children: Danielle, Mason and Hannah. He enjoys nothing more than sharing time with them especially when it involves outdoor adventures, story telling and good food. Carl was born in Calgary, Alberta and was scooped at birth by the Sisters of Providence into their child welfare system. He is of Cree ancestry, his birth Mother a treaty member of the Saddle Lake First Nation. Carl was adopted out of care at age 5 by a non-native ranching family in southern Alberta and didn’t connect with his birth Mother and extended family until he was in his mid-thirties. Carl has a diverse employment background with 10 years in the oil/gas sector as an engineer, manager of a GIS digital mapping conversion facility, Aboriginal liaison officer in forestry, IT and GIS Director for the Shuswap Nation Tribal Council, General Manager of BC Association of Aboriginal Friendship Centres, and is now recently retired as Director of Metis Relations and Reconciliation for the BC Government. He serves as a board director for several Indigenous non-profit societies including M'akola Housing and Development Societies, Hulitan Community and Family Services, the Oasis Spiritual Health Society and the Cree Language Society.
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Nicolas Allarie
Board Member
Nicolas Allarie is a public policy leader with experience across the federal and provincial public services, and Indigenous organizations. Throughout his career, working alongside Indigenous peoples and communities has been a consistent thread in his work shaping and advancing policy, strategy, and good governance. He brings experience navigating complex issues spanning Indigenous and reconciliation matters, environmental and marine protection, transportation and infrastructure, national defence and security, and public-sector governance. A Métis from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Nicolas has roots in the historic Red River Valley and a strong connection to his Métis heritage and community. He is committed to advancing reconciliation and believes that lasting progress begins with listening, respect, and a willingness to work together to turn shared priorities into practical action and results. He studied at the University of Manitoba, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and Master of Arts in Political Science and History.
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Jason Cardinal
Board Member
Jason Cardinal is a member of Bigstone Cree Nation in Treaty 8 territory. He's passionate about Indigenous food sovereignty and supporting First Nations communities as they build strong, community-led systems. He's also an avid programmer and data scientist who loves finding ways technology and data can serve community goals. Jason is excited to join the board and support its work advancing Indigenous-led solutions.
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Catherine Pennington
Board Member
Catherine is KPMG Canada’s National Lead for Indigenous Client Services and leads Indigenous Advisory Services within the Infrastructure, Capital Projects, and Sustainability practice. She also serves as KPMG’s Truth and Reconciliation Champion. She brings nearly 20 years of experience in the North American energy sector, having held a range of public and corporate affairs roles with a strong focus on partnership and collaboration with Indigenous Nations and communities. As a proud citizen of the Métis Nation, born and raised in Duck Lake Saskatchewan on Treaty Six and the Metis Homeland, Catherine is dedicated to enhancing educational opportunities, economic development, healthcare services, and overall prosperity for Indigenous communities.
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Two organizations.
One shared commitment.
Otipêy and Otipêy Foundation
are sister organizations with distinct but complementary roles.
Otipêy designs and manages investment funds that advance Indigenous economic self-determination. Otipêy Foundation is a charitable organization focused on research, education, capacity building and community collaboration. It works with Indigenous communities to design, test and scale innovative solutions that strengthen Indigenous well-being and support long-term systems change.
Together, the organizations help move ideas from research and community-led development toward investment and lasting impact.
