AWS and Amazon programs are uplifting indigenous voices and growing support around the globe

Indigenous at Amazon is one of 13 official employee-led affinity groups that serve to expand cultural understanding, serve as a voice for customers and employees, and connect with people in communities around the globe.

Launched in 2018, Indigenous at Amazon works to foster a community of indigenous employees and allies through networking and shared experiences, said Fawn Sanchez, senior HR leader for AWS Talent Management and president of Indigenous at Amazon. Separate from the employee-led affinity group is a corporate initiative called the Indigenous Program Management Office, led by Derek Williams, senior program manager of Global Indigenous Programs.

In honor of Native American Heritage Month, the Life at AWS team sat down with Sanchez and Williams for a Q&A to learn more about what Amazon, AWS, and its employees are doing to support indigenous communities and improve inclusion, diversity, and equity for indigenous peoples.

Life at AWS: What is the primary purpose and mission of the affinity group vs. Indigenous Programs?

Derek Williams: Indigenous Programs , the office I am building, has a different scope than the affinity group. Through the Indigenous Program Management Office, Amazon will build and grow a sustainable yet high-impact program that brings both value and revenue to our indigenous customers and our own business.

We’re very excited about all of the ways Amazon will be making an impact over the next few years. We're working on a strategy that brings economic equity and vitalization to indigenous communities, and our company's knack for solving complex problems such as rural delivery.

Fawn Sanchez: The affinity group, Indigenous at Amazon, is an inclusive employee community within Amazon that reflects the global footprint of Amazon and AWS. We foster a community of indigenous employees and our allies through networking and shared experiences, advocate on behalf of our indigenous customers, and innovate to solve the problems of under-representation and access with culturally aware technologies, services, and programs.

What kinds of activities does the affinity group and Indigenous Programs host throughout the year? What are some of the most important or noteworthy causes or events?

DW: The affinity group hosts guest speakers, events, and panels throughout the year. Indigenous Programs is sponsoring some amazing initiatives over the next year. Through the Amazon Future Engineer program, we partner with Indigitize, a nonprofit with the goal of bringing computer science education to 10,000 Native students across the nation over the next two years. With Indigitize and Amazon Future Engineer, we are sponsoring a Native American Showcase event featuring all Native American Teams at the White Mountain Apache Native American Showcase.

We’re also proud to be a sponsor of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES), which is the largest Native American Organization for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) professionals and students. Indigenous Programs also sponsors LASkins, which is one of the premiere Native American Film Festivals in Hollywood, and numerous smaller events and causes across the globe. We’re excited about many of the events we will be planning and hosting in 2023!

What are some of the main challenges facing indigenous communities? What are the Indigenous at Amazon and the Indigenous Program Management Office focused on to combat these challenges?

FS: Globally, indigenous people have a life expectancy 20 years shorter than their non-indigenous counterparts, according to the World Bank. Forty-seven percent of all indigenous peoples have no formal education, according to the United Nations, 50% of indigenous women have been assaulted by their partner, and indigenous women are murdered 10 times more than all other ethnicities.

Only 20% of high schools on reservations offer foundational computer science coursework, and only 59% of Native American and Native Alaskan students attend a school that offers computer science education. Indigenous at Amazon is seeking to raise awareness about these issues and provide access to resources for these historically underserved communities. This year, Amazon has invested $2.2 million in creating access for Native American students to computer science curriculum, and has supported Native American founders through our AWS Accelerator program.

 

What are some of the other positive ways Indigenous Programs is working to support current and future Indigenous Amazonians?

DW: The office is busy building out more than six programs across multiple lines of business. By 2023, we expect to see Amazon’s presence in indigenous communities significantly increase. We should see many products and services indigenized in a way that attracts indigenous nations and people to come and work with Amazon. We are actively building out talent programs to uplift internal indigenous employees into leadership roles. We also advocate for the flexibility to allow indigenous professionals to work remotely on their ancestral lands.

What are the primary challenges in attracting and hiring more indigenous talent at AWS?

FS: Many of the roles require candidates to relocate to larger cities, but indigenous talent may wish to stay in their communities which may be located in more rural areas. Lack of representation can be a challenge, so we must focus efforts of mentoring and retaining indigenous talent, and growing the talent to become senior leaders in the company.

What are some common misperceptions about indigenous people/communities?

DW: There has been little and inadequate education in the U.S., Canada, and Australia revolving around indigenous peoples, and it leads large swathes of those countries to believe these are antiquated historical groups. Illuminative, a prominent indigenous advocacy and consulting group, describes the misperceptions in the media as indigenous invisibility.

There are so few depictions of Native Americans in popular media and the few that exist have been damaging stereotypes of indigenous peoples as savage, brutal, primitive, drunk, and uncivilized. Although these depictions have largely become unacceptable in content creation today, the impact these depictions have had on non-indigenous and indigenous peoples is immense.

The entertainment industry, confronted with the issue for decades, has finally begun reconciling years of invisibility. New shows and movies depicting indigenous peoples in a contemporary light are being released every few months.

FS: That we are all the same! Here in America, there are over 500 federally recognized tribes and we all have customs and speak different languages. Some of us live in cities, others on federal tribal lands, and others on non-federal lands.

What events are planned for Native American Heritage Month?

DW: Internally, we are hosting a Bar Raiser panel about interviewing at Amazon, a Native roundtable, a panel with the Amazon Legal Diversity Team, and an event with a renowned indigenous chef, Nico Albert. (Learn how Amazon's Bar Raiser program helps us mitigate bias in the interview process.)

FS: Native American Heritage Month will include internal programming such as an indigenous Bar Raiser panel, an indigenous leadership fireside chat, a beadwork demonstration, and cedar-weaving demonstration, a Veterans Day event, and more! We will also have external lists of curated content for our customers to view, including a list of movies and shows on Prime Video.

What are some of the ways Amazonians can support the affinity group and the causes it supports?

DW: Participate, educate, speak up, and be proud of your Indigeneity! If you’re an ally, then you should absolutely enjoy the recent flood of indigenous content that has been released over the past two years.

FS: Everyone is welcome to join Indigenous at Amazon! We welcome allies and those seeking to learn more. We live and work in indigenous communities all over the world, so we welcome everyone to join the group and understand underserved communities by offering products that meet their needs.

What would you tell an indigenous Amazon or AWS job candidate about the culture here?

FS: We take our diversity pledge very seriously. We look at problems from the perspective of those in remote communities, who may not have access to certain services that we provide, so we can innovate on their behalf and provide culturally aware technologies and solutions that meet their needs.

How does the affinity group help new indigenous employees feel supported and included? 

DW: The culture here is indigenous-friendly. We’re also a company composed of dreamers that can do—if you have an idea here at the company that is worth its weight in gold, our leaders will not only allow that idea to flourish, it’s common for our leaders to put you in charge of bringing that idea to life.

It is a big company, but we operate as if we’re still in Jeff Bezos' garage. With that being said, indigenous folks can really have a huge impact in seeing through the horizon. It’s never good to make monolithic claims about indigenous peoples, however one thing can safely be said of most indigenous cultures around the globe: they consider the impacts of their decisions on their descendants many generations into the future.

Similarly, Amazon operates under the same principles. With Success and Scale Bring Broad Responsibility is our company’s newest leadership principle. I’d argue that it’s our most indigenous Leadership Principle, too. Institutional maxims like our newest principle really make Amazon a special place to work. The future set before us is going to be exciting and indigenous!

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