“You don't know what you don't know. The more you can expose yourself to, the better off you are.” That’s Buddy Cardinal’s philosophy and it’s left him open to many opportunities. He calls North Vancouver, British Columbia home, having moved there from Edmonton in the mid 80s. He’s a manager of Indigenous Relations at Aecon and he’s been there for a couple years now. He works to connect First Nation communities with procurement opportunities and bridges between companies and communities on joint ventures. He’s worked on golf tournaments, powwows and other social initiatives and also worked with local educational institutions to help get the word out about opportunities.

Cardinal got onto this path by chance, as he’s a carpenter by trade and had been doing that work for nearly two decades. When he was looking at his next project, it was at a nonprofit. They mentioned they were hiring and he ended up working with Indigenous people, providing training and employment opportunities for eight years. He worked as a Director of Trade Training, supporting clients in their transition from training to employment. He moved on to this role in Indigenous relations with Aecon and it was a natural fit given his familiarity with construction and community challenges for training and employment.

As far as his own education, he has a Red Seal in carpentry which he obtained by challenging it. He started taking project management and took an operations associate certificate at BCIT. When he started working in the office at the nonprofit, he moved into business and now he’s taking a Business Administration undergraduate program part-time.

When he worked as a carpenter, he worked in residential for a decade, building single and multi-family homes. He worked on three infrastructure projects from start to finish including the Port Mann Bridge, the Evergreen Line Skytrain and the screening plant in Fort McMurray. His path has since shifted and he doesn’t miss the work much, though he does the odd side project.

As far as obstacles, getting into infrastructure work was a challenge because so much depends on who you know and he didn’t have any contacts. For six months he persevered before he finally got an interview. In contrast, getting hired at the nonprofit was a matter of timing and chance when he was thinking about a change. He remembers being young and he realized, “It’s all networking.” Despite not being much of an extrovert, he continued to show up and grow his network and in doing so, broadened his horizons. He said yes to opportunities and took chances.

To students interested in the trades he says,

“if that's a path, don't think of it as that's all you're going to do for the rest of your life, because nothing's really ever linear. But if you're going to get into something, then do it well to the best of your ability".

Always ask. Probably a big one is not being afraid to ask for help. I think people sometimes don't want to ask, and then that could be incapacitating, not letting them grow…. They feel stuck…. If they chose a trade, then finish it off.  I know folks who say, ‘Well, I don't want to be on the tools like my whole life.’ You don't have to be. Look around, see how the operations might be, or any of those aspects. It's never really a linear thing... Trust the process and enjoy. Learn. Don't be afraid to ask for help and continue to show up.”

Looking back on his life and thinking about what he might change, he thinks about how things might have been if he could have gone to university instead of going straight to work, something that wasn’t an option. He gained a lot of experience that worked out well for him but at the same time, he sees people so much younger than him who have their master’s degrees already. “I don't know if I would really change much. I think it all happened the way it was supposed to happen,” he reflects.

To keep his mental health in check, Cardinal smudges to ground himself and he goes to the gym. He talks to elders and benefits from their insights. He prioritizes selfcare because he says, “you can’t be everywhere all the time. If you’re not healthy, not much is running.”

Growing up, the person he looked up to the most was his brother. He excelled academically and artistically and worked for one employer on a long term basis. He adopted some of those traits himself. In the city, he didn’t see many role models other than some instructors, but his brother inspired him.  

In closing, to inspire Indigenous youth, Cardinal wants to reinforce the importance of authenticity, “being true with what you want. Time goes by really quickly. You can get into a space where you're doing something for a long period of time, but it doesn't really bring fulfillment. I think financially, it's nice to have a lot of money, but at the same time, there's that balance, right? Time is the one thing we never get back, and so if there's an opportunity to do something, take it. Sometimes those moments, they're here and they're gone.”

Keeping himself open to opportunities, not knowing what he doesn’t know, Buddy Cardinal has been able to try new things and find a path he enjoys. Bridging between companies and communities and giving back, he continues to build like he used to, just using different tools and skill sets. By growing his network and saying yes to chances to grow, he’s found a new career in Indigenous Relations that he’s proud of and it all happened the way it was supposed to.

Thank you to Alison Tedford for writing this article!