Dustin is a 21 year old Squamish Nation youth who was the first recruit to join the W2 Bladerunners Media Arts Apprenticeship program in 2009. Despite having a keen eye for design and an aptitude for technology, Dustin has not yet completed high school and faces numerous career advancement obstacles.

Bladerunners helped focus his numerous interests, advance his work in the Squamish community as well as giving him an opportunity to exhibit artwork during the Bell 2010 Cultural Olympiad. Dustin has now secured funding from his Nation to develop a web development and graphics business and is advancing his goals of preserving Squamish language. With W2’s assistance, Dustin organized the “Save Your Language” Indigenous Language conference held in Vancouver in June 2010.

He regularly hosts Squamish Language nights twice a week and is working with another Bladerunner graduate, Alejandro, to design a Squamish language website with video courses. Dustin also hopes to work with W2 to have mentorship to create a cultural organization and publication for his community.

Bladerunners has oriented Alejandro (Alejo) on developing himself as a self-employed contractor and connected Alejo with clients and business planning for pricing, invoicing and sales. His clients engage him for videography, editing and documentary filmmaking. Alejo’s work now is balanced between servicing multi-barrier youth and W2 contracts. He initiated and co-facilitated the film and video workshops for the Urban Native Youth Association in July 2010, and is producing Squamish Language video courses with fellow Bladerunners graduate Dustin. Alejo has also secured a medium-term contract as lead peer filmmaker producing videos for the Memory Festival in November 2010.

“My involvement with the Bladerunners apprenticeship program has been one of the most meaningful experiences I have had since I arrived to Canada from Colombia.”