About this episode

This episode discusses the challenges and supports for women entering the trades, featuring insights from Women Building Futures CEO Carla Madra and graduate Natalie Bak.

What does it take to build a career in a field that wasn’t built with you in mind? Women Building Futures has been helping women enter the trades and transportation since 1998 — not just with job training, but with the wraparound supports that make it possible to actually get there: childcare plans, housing support, fitness training, and a food pantry. Since the beginning, more than 3,000 women have come through their programs. Their work is supported in part by the JudyLynn Archer Fund , an endowment held at Edmonton Community Foundation. In this episode, we hear from WBF CEO Carla Madra and Red Seal welder Natalie Bak — a graduate who went from a nineteen-year-old with no experience to a welder who’s worked across Western Canada and up into the Northwest Territories. Show Notes: Our guests today were Carla Madra, CEO of Women Building Futures, and Natalie Bak, WBF graduate and Red Seal welder. Read the companion article, “ Forging Ahead ,” in the Spring 2026 edition of Thrive Magazine. Learn more about Women Building Futures Learn more about the JudyLynn Archer Fund ECF Happenings: Find out how to create an Endowment Fund of your own. Read the latest issue of Thrive. Read the…

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