Today, the word economy is often associated with money and the management of resources, finances, income, and expenditures within a community or business. In pre-contact First Nations contexts, economy did not involve money or shareholders; instead, it focused on the procurement of resources needed to live and thrive. Resources were shared within the community, and surplus was traded for goods and foods not readily available in the territory.  

In a society that is well resourced and deeply culturally rooted there is time for both work and leisure, leading to highly sophisticated cultural artistic expression.