SEE BEGAN NOT AS AN IDEA, BUT AS A RESPONSE

In 2019, a community-based study asked Indigenous entrepreneurs across Manitoba to speak honestly about their experiences. What came back was a clear message: the systems meant to support entrepreneurs were, in many cases, causing harm. 

Participants described spaces that tokenized them, advisors who lacked relevant experience, and programs that felt alienating and unsafe. When that same research was brought to Black, queer, and other marginalized entrepreneurs, the answer was the same—“If you build something different, we need it.”

So we did.

SEE was co-founded by Richard Tuck & Joanna Nickerson, alongside a growing circle of trusted partners, Knowledge Keepers, and entrepreneurs. Drawing from past experience building similar programs across Turtle Island and lived experiences across multiple communities, they designed SEE to centre entrepreneurs as full people—not just ventures. 

From day one, SEE has been holistic, trauma-informed, and rooted in Indigenous ways of knowing. Our programming is designed to affirm identity, honour the pace of each entrepreneur’s journey, and offer practical support in real-world ways.

We’re proud to be Indigenous-led, with over 60% of our board identifying as Indigenous, and to embed those values into every layer of our work—from using the Indigenous Social Enterprise Model Canvas to building circles of care around our entrepreneurs. Our Auntie-in-Residence, Michelle Cameron, offers cultural grounding and gentle guidance. And our coaching and service network brings in legal, financial, and marketing expertise from folks who share lived experience with the entrepreneurs they support.

From helping someone take their very first step, to navigating growth, pivot, or even closure—we meet entrepreneurs where they are. We’ve supported queer tech founders, intergenerational fishing families, youth building collectives, and rural visionaries navigating parenthood and business all at once. We believe entrepreneurship is a tool for community wealth and individual agency—and that every entrepreneur deserves a space where they feel seen, safe, and supported.

SEE exists because the people who are most often left out deserve something better—and together, we’re building it.