After completing initial staffing and orientation during 2007, personnel from the Oil and Gas Secretariat have hit the ground running.  Some of their activities include:

• Visits to all First Nations to familiarize people with the activities of the Secretariat, discuss community interests and begin the development of a human resources inventory.
  
• Participated in a number of school-based events to inform students, teachers and parents of the employment opportunities available and the academic requirements for many jobs, including the need for proficiency in math and science. 
• Discussions with industry and government on the arrangements necessary to organize and finance training and employment initiatives.  These discussions have resulted in:
• The establishment of a training fund created by the Government of Canada and administered in part by the Meadow Lake Tribal Council.
• The commitment of one major oil company and one major construction company making commitments to collaboratively recruit, train and employ several hundred persons over the next three years.