2018 Speakers
Indigenous and Human Rights: An Executive Leadership Program
Charlene Bearhead
Educator and activist
| Bearhead has spent her career as an educator sharing the truth of Canada’s residential school system and its devastating impact on generations of First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. Formerly the Education Lead for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation at the University of Manitoba, she is currently the Education Coordinator for the National Inquiry on Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls. Bearhead received a degree in Education from the University of Alberta, taught in public schools in Calgary and Winnipeg, and was principal and superintendent of education at Paul First Nation in Alberta. She founded Mother Earth's Children's Charter School in Wabamun in 2003 and served as its first principal. Bearhead was national coordinator for Project of Heart, designed to educate Canadians about the history and legacy of residential schools. She co-chairs the board of directors for the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund. |
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Mitch Bourbonniere
Social worker, Louis Riel School Division
Founder, Bear Clan Patrol
| Bourbonniere is a community activist and volunteer with the Mama Bear Clan patrol, Got Bannock, and Drag the Red. As a pipe carrier and a 28-year sundancer, he has kept the fire for many ceremonial events. He helped lobby in the 1990s for the creation of Canada's first Indigenous high school, Children of the Earth. Over the years, Bourbonniere has formed a healing community offering cultural programs for Indigenous youth. He also facilitates the Ogijita Pimatiswin Kinamatwin program that supports gang and justice involved adults in making positive changes. He regularly visits Manitoba prisons to provide support and transition for the men coming out. In addition to his work with the Louis Riel School Division, Bourbonniere serves as an Elder and acts as a consultant to many other community groups and social service organizations. He has a Master’s degree in Social Work and instructs at The University of Winnipeg, Université de Saint-Boniface and the University of Manitoba. |
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Dr. Jaime Cidro
Acting Indigenous Academic Lead, Acting Master’s in Development Practice: Indigenous Development Director, Associate Professor (Anthropology), The University of Winnipeg
| Dr. Cidro’s area of research is socio-cultural determinants of Indigenous health. Dr. Cidro is of mixed Anishnawbe and British ancestry and her work is informed by her personal experiences. She is the principal investigator in two research projects looking at Indigenous doulas as cultural interventions for First Nations women who travel for birth. Her main areas of teaching and research include Indigenous maternal and child health, social determinants of health, medical anthropology, applied anthropology and Indigenous food sovereignty. She holds an undergraduate degree in Environment and Resource Studies and a graduate degree in Economic Development, both from the University of Waterloo, as well as a PhD in Rural Studies, Sociology Anthropology from the University of Guelph. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology, Acting Director of the Master's of Development Practice program, and Acting Indigenous Academic Lead out of the Office of Indigenous Affairs. She is also Associate Director of Urban Aboriginal Knowledge Network Prairie Research Centre. |
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Michael Redhead Champagne
Founder
Aboriginal Youth Opportunities (AYO!)
| Champagne has spent nearly two decades speaking out and leading by example. He takes a hopeful and solution-oriented approach to youth engagement, facilitation, community organizing and mobilization. He was recognized as the 2016 Canadian Red Cross Young Humanitarian of the Year and in Time magazine as a Next Generation Leader. In 2016, Champagne served on the Bank of Canada’s bank note advisory committee with a task of creating a short list of women nominated by the public to appear on a new bank note. He has received a Manitoba Aboriginal Youth Achievement Award and recognition as a CBC Manitoba Future 40 leader, a Manitoba Hero, and a Future Leader of Manitoba. He has served as president of North End Community Renewal Corporation, and as a board member for the Circle of Life Thunderbird House and Marymound Inc. Champagne is known for his straight-up and heartfelt style that will leave you moved, inspired and ready for action. |
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Kevin Chief
Vice President
Business Council of Manitoba
| Kevin is vice president at the Business Council of Manitoba. Growing up in Winnipeg’s North End, Kevin quickly learned to spot people who could see potential where others might only see hardship. They were everyday people, including teachers, coaches, business owners and other mentors who helped him believe that no matter who you are or where you come from, there are always opportunities to give back. As a youth, Kevin’s talent for basketball gave him a sense of generosity in his neighbourhood and school. It opened opportunities for further education when he played for The University of Winnipeg Wesmen as a two-time all-star athlete and graduated with a Bachelor Degree majoring in Justice. Kevin has considerable public sector and community experience. He spent six years as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, representing Point Douglas, and previously spent a decade working in the field of education. Kevin and his wife Melanie have three young sons: Hayden, Kellan, and Daxton. He is also known as a high steppin’ square dancer as part of the Norman Chief Memorial Dancers. |
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Dr. Karine Duhamel
Curator for Indigenous Rights
Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR)
| Dr. Duhamel is responsible for all CMHR content that engages the stories of Indigenous people and of communities, assists in building new relationships for story development and advises on program content, media and special initiatives associated. Of Anishinaabe and Métis heritage, she has a keen understanding and interest in the processes and dialogues surrounding reconciliation and reparation. As a professional historian and public educator with expertise in treaties, the residential school system and Indigenous politics, Dr. Duhamel also worked for over 10 years as a professional consultant focusing on First Nations litigation and community development. A recognized educator at the elementary and university level, she has developed courses on Indigenous-statements relationships, on the history of residential schools, and on Indigenous rights movements in Canada and in the United States. Fluent in French and English, she holds an Advanced BA in History from Mount Allison University, a BEd from Lakehead University, and a MA and PhD from the University of Manitoba. |
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Julie Dumontier
Human rights education and cooperation officer
Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ — Quebec)
| Dumontier has worked with the the CDPDJ for the Province of Quebec since 2012, providing training on human rights advocacy, women’s rights, LGBTTQ* rights, housing rights, discriminatory harassment and other human rights issues. She previously worked in the promotion of human rights and in the technology field as a blogger, trainer, editor and coordinator. She is passionate about international issues, especially women's rights. Dumontier co-authored with Éducaloi The Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms Made Easy, published by the Commission — intended to simplify the Charter so that everyone can know their rights. She also hosted the CDPDJ’s first-ever French webinar in 2017. After studying undergraduate and graduate social sciences and languages at Université Laval, Universidad de Granada, Universität Passau and Institut d’études politiques de Bordeaux, she completed her undergraduate and graduate studies in law at the Université du Québec à Montré. |
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Theodore Fontaine
Author and Residential School survivor
Former chief, Sagkeeng Ojibway First Nation
| Fontaine attended the Fort Alexander and Assiniboia Indian Residential Schools from 1948 to 1960. As a youth, he played senior hockey across Western Canada, and later directed a mineral exploration crew in the Northwest Territories. After graduating in Civil Engineering from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in 1973, he worked extensively in the corporate, government and First Nations sectors, including 11 years with the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs as an advisor and executive director. He served in leadership and voluntary roles with organizations such as The Banff Centre for Management, Peace Hills Trust, the Indigenous Leadership Development Institute, the Manitoba Museum, the Victorian Order of Nurses, and Palliative Care Manitoba. Fontaine is a regular speaker and media commentator on Indian residential schools and has presented his national best-selling book Broken Circle: The Dark Legacy of Indian Residential Schools to more than 800 audiences in Canada and the United States. |
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Leah Gazan
Activist and author
| Gazan is a member of Wood Mountain Lakota Nation who has spent her career focused on advancing fundamental Indigenous Human Rights on a national and international level. She has served terms on several boards, including five years as president of the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg. Gazan has been a very active participant in Idle No More and as a co-founder of the #WeCare campaign that engaged Canadians in the crisis of violence against Indigenous women and girls. Most recently, she was a lead lobbyist to ensure that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is implemented in Canadian law. In 2015, Gazan was selected for the International Leadership Program with the U.S. Consulate, presented at a standing committee in Ottawa about violence against Indigenous women and girls, and was selected by the Province of Manitoba to make a statement at the UN Permanent Forum for Indigenous peoples about the Sixties Scoop. |
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Dr. Danielle Fullan Kolton
Department Head, Professional and French Language Services
The Manitoba Teachers’ Society (MTS)
| Dr. Fullan Kolton's work focuses on the research, development, and coordination of professional learning services. She coordinates, trains and mentors a group of 15 teachers and principals who design and deliver workshops across the province, works as a trainer in crucial conversations, engages with the educational community through social media and is the professional development liaison officer with MTS’ Council of School Leaders. She is passionate about working and learning with adult learners and supporting members in the messiness of leading and learning. Her facilitation with MTS members across the province is concentrated in the areas of educational leadership, enhancing communication skills, having difficult conversations, and cultivating collaborative spaces. She has worked as a Kindergarten to Grade 12 teacher, principal, consultant, and university instructor. She has a PhD in Education Public Administration from the University of Manitoba, and a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from San Diego State University. |
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Mireille Lamontagne
Manager, Advanced and Professional Programs
Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR)
| Lamontagne’s career spans 25 years in museum education and program development, grants and contributions management, policy development, heritage preservation and archaeology. Prior to taking on her role in educational programming at the CMHR, where she is an inaugural team member, she worked with the Department of Canadian Heritage, Parks Canada and The Manitoba Museum. Lamontagne is a specialist in pre-contact Indigenous history and heritage and has developed numerous programs that use a decolonizing approach through community-led initiatives. She is the recipient of the Finkle Prize in Anthropology, the Corbeil Award in Program Evaluation, a Deputy Minister’s Award for Program Excellence, and a Canadian Museum’s Association award in New Media for Speak Truth to Power Canada, a resource website for teachers on human rights. Lamontagne holds an Advanced BA in Anthropology from the University of Manitoba, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Cultural Resource Management and a Professional Specialization Certificate in Cultural Sector Leadership from the University of Victoria. |
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Senator Marilou McPhedran
Human Rights lawyer and professor
Senate of Canada
| Senator McPhedran is a lawyer and educator who specialized in teaching and developing systemic and sustainable change mechanisms to promote equality and diversity. A pioneer in research and advocacy to promote human rights through systemic reform in law, medicine, education, and governance, she was appointed Chief Commissioner of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission in 2007, and has served as Dean of The University of Winnipeg's Global College in Manitoba. McPhedran is the founding director of the Institute for International Women’s Rights at The University of Winnipeg’s Global College and the founding course director of the annual ‘Human Rights’ summer institute — a knowledge partnership promoting “lived rights” with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Born and raised in rural Manitoba, Canada, McPhedran was named a Member of the Order of Canada (1985) in recognition of her co-leadership in the successful campaign for stronger gender equality protections in the Canadian constitution. She was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 2016. |
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Angeline Nelson
Manager, Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre
The University of Winnipeg
| Nelson is Anishinaabe and Mushkego, born and raised in Roseau River First Nation, Manitoba. Wii Chiiwaakanak means “partners” and her work at the centre involves helping bridge and connect the University with Indigenous and inner-city communities. Its goal is to build university-bound identities for inner-city youth through education programs rooted in Indigenous language and culture. It is designed in response to a need for an educational gathering place that is inclusive and accessible. Indigenous student applications have increased significantly at The University of Winnipeg since the centre opened, creating a ripple effect that positively affects the broader community. Nelson is a graduate of the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Science. She served as executive director for four years for an Indigenous youth organization in Vancouver. She has been working with the Indigenous community for many years, particularly in helping youth reconnect to their language and ways of being. |
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Derek Nepinak
Former Grand Chief
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC)
| Niibin Makwa (Nepinak), served as AMC Grand Chief from 2011 to 2017. He is also the former Chief of the Pine Creek First Nation and former chair of the West Region Tribal Council. Nepinak has built a reputation as a strong leader and negotiator, with an educational background in law, policy, history and art. His advocacy approach is built on understandings of inherent and treaty rights as the foundation for relationship building and reconciliation with Canada. Nepinak holds a first-class honours BA from the University of Alberta, a law degree from the University of Saskatchewan and has completed an intensive program in Indigenous lands, resources and governance at Osgoode Hall law school at York University in Toronto. Currently, as CEO of Kanata Financial, he is focused on helping Indigenous communities build access to higher education as the key to individual reconciliation. Nepinak is a sundancer, a father of four beautiful children and partner to Sarah. |
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Alex Neve
Secretary General
Amnesty International Canada
| Alex Neve has been Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada since 2000. He regularly conducts human rights missions throughout Africa, Latin America and Canada, including to South Sudan, Côte d’Ivoïre, Tanzania, Ghana, Mexico, Burundi, Chad, Colombia, Guinea, Honduras, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Guantánamo Bay and Grassy Narrows, Ontario. He has represented the organization at international meetings and has appeared before numerous Canadian parliamentary committees, United Nations and other human rights bodies. He appears and writes regularly in the media and speaks to audiences across the country on human rights. Neve has an LLB from Dalhousie University and an LLM in International Human Rights Law from the University of Essex. He has served on the Immigration and Refugee Board, taught at Osgoode Hall Law School and the University of Ottawa, been affiliated with York University's Centre for Refugee Studies, and worked as a refugee lawyer. Neve is an Officer of the Order of Canada. |
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Loretta Ross
Treaty Commissioner
Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba
| Bimaashi Migizi (Ross) is a member of Hollow Water First Nation in Manitoba. She obtained her law degree from Queen’s University and has been a practicing lawyer for over 25 years, serving as legal counsel to many First Nations governments and organizations in such areas as specific claims, treaty land entitlement, trusts and hydro development. Her law practice has also included child and family matters and residential school claims. Ross has served on a number of boards representing First Nation interests, including the Manitoba Civil Service Commission, Legal Education Action Fund, Manitoba Human Rights Commission, Marymound, and the Southern First Nation Network of Care. She believes that the treaties and the treaty relationship can serve as a model for how future relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people and governments can move forward in a healthy and positive manner. Ross is a mother of four and a kokum (grandmother). |
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Dr. Annette Trimbee
President and Vice-Chancellor
The University of Winnipeg
| Dr. Trimbee became President and Vice-Chancellor at UWinnipeg in August 2014. UWinnipeg is located on Treaty 1 territory in the heart of the Métis homeland, with approximately 10,000 full- and part-time students. UWinnipeg is committed to integrating Indigenous perspectives within the academy, and works closely with the surrounding community to support inner-city children in developing a university-bound identity. Dr. Trimbee's key accomplishments to date include completing a university-wide strategic directions plan, and introducing an Indigenous Course Requirement for all undergraduate students, among the first in Canada. Dr. Trimbee serves on the boards of Universities Canada, the voice of Canadian universities at home and abroad; and USports, which oversees sports at 56 Canadian universities. Previously, Dr. Trimbee served as Deputy Minister of several departments in the Alberta government, including Finance and Treasury Board, Service Alberta and Advanced Education and Technology. She holds a PhD from McMaster University in Ecology. |
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Wanbdi Wakita
Dakota Spiritual Leader and Sundance Chief
| Wanbdi Wakita has spent a lifetime making prayers for people. From the humble beginnings of reserve life on Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, to eight years in residential school and six years in the Canadian Armed Forces as a Peacekeeper, Wanbdi has walked many paths. Eventually his journey led him to the work that was always waiting for him, a work given to him by Creator, that of a Wicasa Wakan or Holy Man. With the gentle nudging of profound spiritual experiences & visions, Wanbdi Wakita surrendered into this role and since then has worked tirelessly to help people from all nations and all walks of life. His life is a testament to one’s ability to overcome tragic circumstances, heal and go on to fulfill one’s potential and purpose. Wanbdi Wakita has devoted three decades to working with men in prison, is a gifted counselor, captivating storyteller and presenter. Wanbdi is often described as gentle and soft spoken, a man of integrity and profound wisdom. He possesses a rare breadth of traditional and culture knowledge which he combines with a message of healing and unity between all nations. |
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Hanwakan Blaikie Whitecloud
Regional manager
In.Business program
| Whitecloud is a member of the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation in Manitoba. An Asper business graduate, his professional work involves mentoring Indigenous high school students to see themselves as future business success stories, under the In.Business program administered by Cape Breton University. He is also co-owner, producer and director of Wakan Productions Inc. As a documentary filmmaker, he creates profiles of urban Indigenous people as he works to create an identity for himself outside of stereotypes and barriers. Whitecloud is also an avid skateboarder, which he also considers an act of empowerment. His projects this year have included a TV series called “Myths, Monsters, and Aliens” for the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, a web series called “Living by the Drum: Canadian Powwows” and a long-form documentary for CBC Arts about Errol Ranville and the C-Weed band. His spare time is spent on social justice projects with his wife Tessa. |
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Jenna "Liiciious" Wirch
Co-founder
Aboriginal Youth Opportunities (AYO!)
| Wirch has worked since 2010 as the Youth Engagement Coordinator for AYO!. She is a strong Anishinabekwe advocate/community helper from the North End of Winnipeg and has since taken up a role as a youth empowerment facilitator, a community development worker with Immigrant Refugee Community Organizations of Manitoba. You can also find her as “the megaphone girl” at virtually every rally that takes place in Winnipeg. She is very active in Winnipeg's inner city at many events and mentors other young people from the inner city to help them reach and realize their full potential. A published author and Former Manitoba Women's Advisory Council member, Liiciious brings her attitude and fun style to each engagement she does. Inspiring in every way, from how she dresses and talks to the way she gets tattooed, she is ready to help our community take concrete steps towards healing and hope. |
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Dr. John Young
President and CEO
Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR)
| Passionate about democracy and human rights education, Dr. Young has renewed the Museum’s efforts to engage with Canadians online and serve as a national and international hub for human rights learning. He has also been keenly engaged with concepts of reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada, working to ensure the CMHR can play a valuable role as a national museum. Previously, Dr. Young was an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC), where he also served as Interim Provost and Vice President Academic and as Dean of the College of Arts, Social and Health Sciences. Recognized by UNBC for his teaching excellence, he has been a visiting professor in the United States and Japan and has lived and worked in Germany and Russia. Dr. Young has also worked with the Canadian Parliamentary Centre, as a director of the CBC, and as a member of the CMHR Board of Trustees from 2012 to 2015. |
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