The National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation (NAAF) is a nationally registered non-profit organization devoted to excellence and providing the educational tools necessary for Aboriginal youth to achieve brighter futures. NAAF promotes the development and education of Aboriginal peoples and their professional advancement in Canadian society through the implementation of four initiatives – the Scholarship Program, the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, Blueprint for the Future and Taking Pulse.

The Foundation's core focus continues to be providing scholarships for Aboriginal students. NAAF is the largest supporter of Aboriginal education outside the federal government and currently awards more than $2 million each year to deserving Aboriginal students across the country through a combination of corporate and government contributions.

In February of 2003, the Canadian government recognized the importance of NAAF's work and provided a $12 million endowment that will provide much-needed additional support to Aboriginal students pursuing post-secondary education. This endowment will join the many established trusts the Foundation is proud to manage, including the Aboriginal Veterans Scholarship Trust, which honours the contributions made by Aboriginal veterans in defence of Canada. NAAF continues to build its combined educational trust so that scholarships will be available in perpetuity.

The National Aboriginal Achievement Awards show all Canadians the outstanding career accomplishments of Aboriginal peoples within Canada. The NAAA have become a Canadian institution and, most importantly, continue to provide powerful role models for Aboriginal youth. The NAAA event and subsequent television broadcasts on CBC and APTN are produced each year, thanks to the generous support of founding sponsors CIBC, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and CBC, along with a growing list of important private and public sector supporters.

NAAF's career fair series, Blueprint for the Future (BFF), gives Aboriginal students a venue in which they are exposed to new career and employment areas and can garner the wisdom of Canada's top corporate and Aboriginal business leaders. Each year, BFF career fairs are mounted in two Canadian cities with each site hosting roughly 1,500 students. The events are designed to inspire and encourage Aboriginal high school students to pursue education while empowering them towards career options they may never have imagined before.

Taking Pulse is a broad-based project that connects educators, governments and private sector representatives with Aboriginal peoples in creating workable solutions and opportunities to create fuller participation of Aboriginal peoples in the Canadian workforce. NAAF is currently testing the pilot program of one of its Taking Pulse initiatives, Industry in the Classroom, which will expose Aboriginal students to career opportunities within several sectors of the Canadian economy, starting with the railway industry.

The work of NAAF would not be possible without the generous support of its sponsors. We would like to thank each person, organization, corporation and government body for both their financial support and the unwavering belief in the work that we do. Without you, our vision could not become a reality.