Frank Brown

Frank Brown is a member of the Heiltsuk Nation from Bella Bella. His Hereditary Chiefs–Yím̓ ás name is λáλíya̓ sila meaning “preparing for the largest potlatch.” He is an adjunct professor of Resource and Environmental Management at Simon Fraser University, of Recreation and Tourism Management at Vancouver Island University, and is a senior advisor to the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions hosted by University of Victoria. 

Brown was the founding director of the Heiltsuk Integrated Resource Management Department and director of Land and Marine Stewardship for the Coastal First Nations–Great Bear Initiative. He co-created and implemented an Indigenous Ecotourism training program with the Heiltsuk Tribal Council, Vancouver Island University, and North Island College. He also supported the development of a stewardship technician Guardian training program with Coastal First Nations–Great Bear Initiative and Vancouver Island University. Currently he is co-creating a combined guardian-guide training program in BC.

A leader in the Pacific coast-wide ocean-going Indigenous canoe resurgence, Brown served as initiator and senior events planner for the Tribal Journeys to Bella Bella for Qatuwas “people gathering together” in 1993 and 2014. He is also executive producer and co-curator of the Sacred Journey and bakvla travelling exhibits. He received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Vancouver Island University in 2019. 

The conservation economy initiatives SeeQuest Development, a consultancy firm, and YuWala Marine Charters, an Indigenous ecotourism venture, are co-owned and operated by Brown and his wife Kathy. They also participate in the annual Heiltsuk herring roe-on-kelp fishery.