Frank Brown is a Hereditary Chief of the Heiltsuk Nation. He was the director of Land and Marine Stewardship for the Coastal First Nations – Great Bear Initiative and is a BMO Indigenous Advisory Council member.
Maggie Wente is a partner at Olthuis Kleer Townshend LLP, a law firm serving exclusively Indigenous clients from across Canada. She is of Anishinaabe and settler descent and is a member of Serpent River First Nation.
Dave Porter was elected to the Yukon Legislature and became Deputy Premier. He was also elected Chair of the Kaska Dena Council. Porter is currently the CEO for the BC First Nations Energy and Mining Council.
Cathy Wilkinson is an Ottawa-based consultant with a long history of involvement with the Indigenous Leadership Initiative. She also served for many years as a Senior Strategic Advisor to the International Boreal Conservation Campaign, and now serves as the Secretary and Treasurer for the Indigenous Leadership Initiatives Board of Directors.
Jennifer Brunet is an urban multicultural Kanien’kéha:ka Mohawk. She was born and raised in the Ottawa-Gatineau region but remained close to community and ceremony throughout her lifetime. She is Kanien’kéha:ka, Algonquin and French Settler on her maternal side from Kanesatake, a Mohawk First Nation on the shore of the Lake of Two Mountains in Southwestern Quebec. On her paternal side, Jennifer is Tupí-Guarani and Ukrainian from South-Central Brazil.
Dr. Amy Cardinal Christianson is Métis and grew up in Treaty 8 territory (northern Alberta, Canada). She works with Indigenous Nations across Canada on fire stewardship practices like cultural burning and collaborates with Indigenous peoples from around the world on decolonising land management.
Emily Cousins has more than two decades of experience working in strategic communications. In her role at ILI, she helps build public support for Indigenous-led conservation and stewardship and amplify the stories of Indigenous Guardians caring for lands and waters across the country. Previously she was the strategic communications director for the International Boreal Conservation Campaign.
Linda Dwyer is a member of Algonquin of Kitigàn Zìbì Anishinàbeg, situated in south western Quebec. A forester with a bachelors in Natural Resource Management-Forestry and a Master degree in Forest Conservation.
Larry Innes is a partner at Olthuis, Kleer, Townshend LLP where he represents and advises Indigenous Nations across the North on land and resource management issues, including the establishment of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas.
Steve Kallick is an international policy and human rights lawyer with over 40 years’ experience working in Alaska, the Western U.S., Canada, Australia, and Chile.
Carol Kavanagh has a background in graphic design, academic editing, and small business. Her volunteer efforts have contributed to the legalization of midwifery in Ontario, independent schooling, and the local paddling community.
Lynn is Kanienkehá:ka of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy on her father’s side, adopted into the Turtle Clan, and mixed settler ancestry on her mother’s side. Before joining ILI, Lynn spent more than two decades working in her community on land stewardship initiatives, habitat monitoring, mapping, protection, and restoration.
Genae Lako has dedicated much of her professional career to creating and executing strategic communications campaigns that support Indigenous-led conservation and stewardship of lands and waters across North America.
Jennie Vandermeer is Sahtúgot'ı̨nę (person from Great Bear Lake) and grew up in Délı̨nę, Northwest Territories (NWT). She is an Indigenous language speaker (Dene Kedǝ́-North Slavey) and a wellness advocate. Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from Royal Roads University. She has extensive experience working with communities across the NWT within the environmental field.
