Indigenous owned, and proud of the service we put our name on.
Gawáŋ is a partnership with Southern Chiefs Economic Development, working across Canada. The name means to watch over something that was entrusted to you, and that is the standard we want the work measured against.
gawáŋ
gah-WAHNG/ɡəˈwãː/
Stress lands on the second syllable. The final ŋ is nasal, closer to the ng in song than to a hard g.
- Anishinaabe root
ganawendan
gah-nah-WEN-dun
To care for something and keep it safe.
In Anishinaabemowin this verb carries an obligation, not a service. You keep something because it was entrusted to you. The name takes its opening syllable, ga-.
- Dakota root
awáŋyaŋka
ah-WAHNG-yahng-kah
To guard something and watch over it.
In Dakota this is active watching: eyes on it, over time, on purpose. The name takes the stressed middle, wáŋ, which is also where the accent and the nasal ending come from.
Three things the name commits us to.
Entrusted, not just installed
Ganawendan is a verb about keeping something because it was given to you to keep. It is why the service matters here as much as the handover: the obligation starts when the install finishes.
Looking out for you
Awáŋyaŋka is a verb about guarding something and looking after it, over time and on purpose. We look out for you and your facilities, so the systems you depend on stay reliable and retain long term value.
Two languages, one word
The name joins an Anishinaabe verb to a Dakota one, so both languages spoken across this territory carry it at the same time. Indigenous owned by construction rather than by claim.
Southern Chiefs Economic Development.
SCED is the economic development arm of the Southern Chiefs Organization, which represents 33 Anishinaabe and Dakota Nations and more than 92,000 citizens in what is now called southern Manitoba. It exists to strengthen the economic base of those Nations.
It does that by building long term partnerships with established Canadian companies, and by creating employment and training for Indigenous workers. Gawáŋ is one of those partnerships.
Let’s talk about your project.
Early concept, active specification, out to tender, or a system already in place. Wherever you are in the process, our team can help.