Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS)

What Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS) does

Liard Aboriginal Women's Society (LAWS) is a non-profit, charitable community-based aboriginal organization registered in the Yukon in 1998 and headquartered in Watson Lake, Canada. It provides social development services to the Kaska Nation across five communities in Yukon and northern British Columbia, with a small staff (11-50 employees, including a six-member Board of Directors, an Executive Director, and an Administrative Assistant). Its core programming comprises the Restorative Healing Program (Guni's Tsi Nedzedundeli') addressing legacy residential school trauma through family psychotherapy, traditional spiritual healing, and cultural restoration; the Hearing Our Voices gender-based empowerment project enabling Kaska women's participation in national constitutional development; and the Youth for Safety and Justice initiative. Supporting offerings span language immersion, addiction treatment, family violence prevention, FireSmart wildfire safety, and leadership development, all delivered through community workshops, potlatches, and cultural programming rather than a technology platform.

LAWS is funded primarily through grants from government agencies (Aboriginal Healing Foundation, Status of Women Canada, Canadian Heritage) and foundations (Gordon Foundation, Google.org Impact Challenge, Bell Let's Talk). Services are provided at no cost to beneficiaries, consistent with its non-profit charitable model. The organization has no proprietary technology product; its principal "outputs" are community programs, cultural materials, and downloadable publications (including an 8,689-download mining report and a 4,420-download advocates training manual). International visibility came via selection as one of 34 global recipients of the Google.org Impact Challenge for Women and Girls in 2021, which included accelerator participation with Vital Voices.

The business model is therefore grant-funded social service delivery rather than commercial revenue generation. There is no paid customer base, no pricing model, and no disclosed revenue. Operating risk concentrates on grant renewal cycles from a small set of federal and foundation funders, while long-term community trust and cultural legitimacy accumulated since 1998 constitute the principal strategic asset.

Name

Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS)

Legal name

Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS)

Website

https://www.liardaboriginalwomen.ca/

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS) is a aboriginal organization providing social development services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Indigenous Social Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment (BPAGABAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Minority, Indigenous & Disability Rights (BPADAGAH), Safeguarding, Accountability & Compliance (ESG, Gender/GBV, Do No Harm) (BPADAEAM), Indigenous, Ethnic & Folk Arts/Heritage Organizations (BPAGAHAI), Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG), Restorative Practices, Conflict Resolution & Discipline Alternatives (EDAKAMAG), Transitional Justice, Accountability & Reparations (BPADAGAL), Tribal/Indigenous Public Health Authorities (HLAJAAAD), Indigenous/Tribal Education Authorities & Boards (EDADABAM)

Keywords

• Indigenous social services
• Restorative healing programs
• Community development
• Cultural preservation
• Gender empowerment

Headquarters

HQ city

Watson Lake

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government and Foundation Funding: LAWS operates as a non-profit organization funded primarily through government agencies and foundation grants. Funding sources include Aboriginal Healing Foundation, Status of Women Canada, Canadian Heritage, and Gordon Foundation. Additional support received through Google.org Impact Challenge for Women and Girls.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Liard Aboriginal Women's Society (LAWS) is a non-profit, community-based aboriginal organization delivering social development services to the Kaska Nation in the Yukon and northern British Columbia. Its offerings center on the Restorative Healing Program (Guni's Tsi Nedzedundeli') addressing residential school trauma, the Hearing Our Voices gender-based empowerment initiative, and the Youth for Safety and Justice project, delivered through community workshops, traditional healing ceremonies, advocacy services, and cultural programming.

Product overview

LAWS operates as a non-profit social services organization offering community-based programs for the Kaska Nation. The core programming includes the Restorative Healing Program (Guni's Tsi Nedzedundeli') addressing residential school trauma through cultural and spiritual approaches, the Gender-based Empowerment Program (Hearing Our Voices) focused on women's constitutional participation and leadership, and the Youth for Safety and Justice initiative. Additional programs cover language immersion, family violence prevention, residential school support, addiction treatment, and community safety. These programs are delivered through community workshops, traditional healing ceremonies, advocacy services, and cultural activities rather than through a technology product platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Youth for Dignity: Youth empowerment project designed to foster community safety and justice for young women and girls
• Youth for Safety and Justice
• Hearing Our Voices
• Kaska Project / Guni's Tsi Nedzedundeli

Products and services

• Restorative Healing Program (Guni's Tsi Nedzedundeli') Cultural and spiritual restoration program addressing the legacy of sexual and physical abuse in residential schools through community development, family psychotherapy, traditional spiritual healing, language programs, and summer camp activities for Kaska Nation community members.
• Hearing Our Voices (Gender-based Empowerment Program) Women's empowerment initiative engaging Kaska women in national constitutional development, public policy, and leadership roles within the Kaska Nation through public consultations across five Kaska communities.
• Youth for Safety and Justice Youth empowerment project designed to foster community safety and justice for young women and girls through peer support, youth advocacy, and community social action using Response-based Practice principles.
• Indian Residential School Support Program Support services for residential school survivors and those affected by intergenerational trauma.
• Kaska Language Immersion Program Language preservation initiative teaching Kaska language and traditions to youth and community members.
• Comprehensive Kaska Treatment Strategy Treatment and wellness program addressing addiction and mental health needs within the Kaska community.
• Breaking the Silence on Family Violence Initiative addressing and preventing family violence within Kaska communities.
• FireSmart Program Wildfire prevention and community safety initiative.
• Indigenous Women in Leadership Program Program developing leadership skills and capacity for Indigenous women.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Vital VoicescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAs part of the Google.org Impact Challenge, LAWS participates in a four-month accelerator program led by Impact Challenge partner Vital Voices to move their project forward.
• Nextpoint CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLAWS contributed to collaborative practice knowledge for family violence prevention through partnership with Nextpoint Collaborative. Reports were published and shared through the Family Violence Initiative at Public Health Agency of Canada.
• Watson Lake High SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool facilities used for youth knowledge and skill development sessions for the Youth for Safety project, planned to take place five times a year over three years.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Whitehorse Aboriginal Women's Circle: A Yukon-based Indigenous women's organization providing cultural programming, healing, and advocacy. WAWC is directly comparable to LAWS in mission (Indigenous women's empowerment and wellness) and geography (Yukon), and is explicitly cross-linked on the LAWS website as a peer resource.
• Native Women's Association of Canada: National umbrella organization representing Indigenous women in Canada, including political advocacy, MMIWG response, and gender-based-violence prevention. NWAC is comparable to LAWS in target population and core mission of Indigenous women's empowerment, but operates at a national policy scale rather than community-program delivery.

Regional players

• Pauktuutit Inuit Women of Canada: National organization representing Inuit women with comparable programming on family violence, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and cultural wellness. Comparable mission but serves a distinct Indigenous nation (Inuit rather than Kaska) and northern geographies.
• Ontario Native Women's Association: Provincial Indigenous women's association delivering healing, violence prevention, and leadership programs. Directly comparable in program mix but serves Anishinaabe and other First Nations communities in Ontario rather than the Kaska Nation in Yukon/BC.
• Vancouver Aboriginal Health Society: Urban Indigenous health and wellness organization providing culturally grounded health and social services. Comparable in combining Western therapy with traditional healing and in serving Indigenous populations, but operates in an urban setting in BC rather than remote Yukon communities.

Broad incumbents

• YWCA Canada: National federation delivering women's shelter, housing, and empowerment services. Comparable in serving women facing violence and in operating community programs, but YWCA is a broader incumbent that does not specialize in Indigenous-specific cultural and language programming.
• Women and Gender Equality Canada (formerly Status of Women Canada): Federal department that funds women's-empowerment programming across Canada, including LAWS's Hearing Our Voices. Comparable as a funder and policy actor but operates as a government body rather than a community-delivery non-profit.
• Assembly of First Nations: National advocacy organization representing First Nations citizens in Canada, including advocacy on MMIWG and residential-school redress. Comparable in mission scope and Indigenous-rights focus but operates at a national political level rather than delivering community-based healing programs.

Others

• National Association of Friendship Centres: Network of community-based Indigenous service hubs delivering cultural, social, and health programs. Comparable as community-level Indigenous service infrastructure but operates as an urban-network model rather than a single-nation focused society like LAWS.

Emerging players

• Yellowhead Institute: Indigenous-led research and policy think tank producing publications on Indigenous rights and resource governance. Comparable in producing Indigenous-perspective thought leadership (e.g., LAWS's mining-report download volume) but focused on research and policy rather than direct service delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Liard Aboriginal Women’s Society (LAWS)