Current Projects

Native Youth Business Plan Competition

The Native Youth Business Plan Competition provides opportunities for Native youth to develop skills, cultivate new ideas, and connect with Native leaders for support in turning those ideas into businesses.

About the Competition

Hosted in partnership with The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED), the Native Youth Business Plan Competition helps Native students increase their knowledge and enhance their business, entrepreneurial, and academic skills to prepare them for business and entrepreneurship opportunities in the future.

The competition provides an educational experience for students by learning the process of creating and presenting a business plan. It also simulates the real-world experience of entrepreneurs seeking start-up funds.

The competition is ideal for Native students who:

  • Have a passion to create positive change within their local native communities
  • Have started a business or have an idea to ​start a business
  • Are interesting in enhancing their ​conceptual, organizational, written and oral presentation skills
  • Wish to demonstrate their ability to ​clearly communicate an idea to a group of experts and peers

See highlights from previous Native Youth Business Plan Competitions


Questions about future Competitions?

Contact Kendall Tallmadge, Senior Program Officer, at (303) 774-7836 or ktallmadge@firstnations.org.

Impact Story from 2021 Competition

For Victor Corpuz (Laguna), presenting a business plan before a gathering of Native business leaders and entrepreneurs provided not only a skills-building exercise, but an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the ingenuity of Native people. This article recaps Victor’s experience and showcases this inspiring event.

Read the story here