Our Team

Dr. Dubé has published over 250 contributions and is a recognized expert in the field of cumulative effects assessment, environmental monitoring, and ecotoxicology. She has worked with municipalities, the energy sector, pulp and paper, base metal and uranium mining, agriculture and forestry. Her work has influenced policy and regulation, developed landmark agreements between industries, governments and Indigenous communities, ensured emergency preparedness and community protection, and resulted in development and commercialization of innovative technologies.

Since 2010, Prof. Humphries has served as academic director of McGill’s Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment, an inter-disciplinary research centre dedicated to community-based research on food and the environment. Murray also holds the McGill Chair in Northern Research, funded by the Institut Nordique du Québec. In this role, Murray initiated and currently leads McGill North, a network of northern and circumpolar researchers at McGill, including professors, post doctorates, and graduate students from 9 faculties and more than 20 departments/units. The objective of McGill North is to promote, mobilize, and interdisciplinize northern, arctic, and circumpolar research at McGill, and to assist McGill researchers in northern community engagement and knowledge co-production. In 2017, Murray received an outstanding alumnus award from the University of Manitoba and was a member of the expert panel that generated the Council of Canadian Academies 2014 report on Aboriginal Food Security in Northern Canada. Murray co-led with Stan Boutin the Environmental Innovation NSERC-CREATE graduate training program based at McGill and the University of Alberta, which partnered with more than 75 non-government, government, industry, and Indigenous organizations to train 50 graduate students and postdocs for careers in wildlife conservation and environmental impact. Murray is currently serving as a returning co-chair of the Ecology and Evolution Review Panel for NSERC Discovery Grants, is a member of the synthesis team and serves on the board of directors for the NSERC Strategic Network ResNet, and sits on the Board of Directors for Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, a leading wildlife research and conservation NGO in Canada.

I am an Indigenous scholar with over a decade of experience in developing insights and tools grounded in traditional law that help communities with consultation, community engagement, and Indigenous-settler relations. My areas of expertise are in traditional law and governance, Indigenous legal traditions, Indigenous-Settler relations, Consultation, and Community Engagement. Much of my research is directed towards Indigenous research methods and includes how Indigenous research should be conducted, how relationships with community and Nations should be maintained, and building the voices of Indigenous Elders and knowledge holders I have come to know. My hope is to build more resilient learning communities that are rooted in sharing truths, transparency, and humility. And though my work often lacks one clear path, I have faith that my culture and teachings will guide me.

Ainsley holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from University of Swansea (UK) and a Master of Science in Ecology and Environmental Biology from University of Alberta.

Sandy joined the CMN now BKC in 2023 as the Strategic Advisor and is now in the role of Governance Manager. Sandy has over 25 years of experience managing complex projects in the environmental, energy, and service sectors, and extensive experience managing board and committee meetings for a large public organization. Her expertise spans program and project management, stakeholder engagement, facilitation, and change management, with a proven ability to lead multi-stakeholder initiatives and deliver measurable outcomes.

Dan Slavik joined Braiding Knowledges Canada in November 2024 as the Research and Training Manager, bringing a wealth of knowledge from over 15 years of dedicated work in Indigenous-led conservation and environmental research across Western and Northern Canada. With a Master’s degree in Environmental Sociology and an MBA focused on Sustainability, Dan has a unique skill set that bridges academic research and practical applications in environmental science. His career has been rooted in collaboration with Indigenous communities, where he has contributed to projects ranging from wildlife co-management to environmental impact assessments and land stewardship initiatives. Dan’s work has included leading critical research on the management of species including polar bear, caribou, and migratory birds, with a focus on the interplay between cultural knowledge and scientific data. He has played an instrumental role in creating and implementing comprehensive monitoring programs that support environmental health and resilience in northern ecosystems, often facilitating training and knowledge-sharing sessions within these communities to ensure long-term sustainability.

Charles (Chas) Filipski is a dynamic and results-driven professional with over a decade of experience in stakeholder relations, Indigenous outreach, and strategic business operations. At Braiding Knowledges Canada, Chas serves as the Stakeholder Liaison Manager, where he leverages his skills to foster collaboration, drive community-focused initiatives, and build partnerships. Chas’s career spans leadership roles across diverse industries, including non-profits, oil and gas, and construction. With a strong background in strategic planning, policy development, and community engagement, Chas has successfully negotiated agreements with Indigenous communities and worked collaboratively with government and private organizations to drive impactful initiatives. Notably, as Executive Director of Influence Mentoring, he played a pivotal role in creating mentorship opportunities for Indigenous post-secondary students. His work earned commendations, including a letter of recognition from Alberta’s Minister of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development for his collaborative efforts in environmental and stakeholder engagement.

As a designated professional accountant and senior finance consultant, Jen brings a wealth of experience in finance and accounting, primarily in the not-for-profit and public sectors, to her role with BKC. Specific areas of expertise include: planning and budgeting, accounting operations and systems, financial reporting, as well as performance management, governance, and risk. Based in Canmore, Alberta, Jen previously served as Accounting Manager for the Banff Centre and as Executive Director of the Bow Valley Learning Council. Jen received her PhD in Engineering Science from Oxford University and is a strong supporter of mountain research.

Kirsten is a Montreal native but has lived and worked across Canada from Vancouver Island, BC to Machias Seal Island, NB. She joined CMN now BKC in September 2020 to support Murray Humphries, whom she met during her Bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology at McGill, in his position as co-research Director. Kirsten holds a Master’s of Science from the University of New Brunswick and has experience in ecological research as well as project management and nonprofit administration. She is motivated to acquire new skills, whether they be in the field, the lab, or at a desk. She is excited to learn from, and hopefully contribute to, the collective wealth of knowledge within the BKC.

Charity joined the Canadian Mountain Network now BKC in 2019 and is responsible for managing and accounting for the Network’s financial transactions. In this role, she collaborates with a wide range of stakeholders, including with the finance department of the Network’s host institution (the University of Alberta), funding partners, contractors/suppliers, with the Network’s bank and external auditors.

Edward Akumaning is a Financial Administrator at Braiding Knowledges Canada at the University of Alberta, he joined the team in April 2024. His pronouns are He/Him/His. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (BComm) degree in Accounting from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana, an MBA in Enterprise Resource Planning (SAP/ERP) from the Emporia State University (ESU) in Kansas State, US. He is working towards his MSc (Mgt) degree in Accounting at the University of Lethbridge, Canada, and a Doctor of Business Administration in Finance at California Southern University, U.S.A.

Karin Fodor joined Braiding Knowledges Canada in November 2024 as an Administrative Assistant, bringing a wealth of experience from her years at the University of Alberta and various non-profit organizations. With a strong background in managing complex administrative processes, Karin has supported leadership teams, faculty, and researchers through roles in university centers and institutes. She has coordinated meetings, managed event logistics, and streamlined administrative operations to create efficient workflows and build collaborative networks. Karin’s ability to navigate organizational structures and her familiarity with University of Alberta systems will be invaluable to the team.

Kimberley has been working with CMN now BKC since April of 2021 as the Events and Communications Coordinator. She is an independent contractor with a love of nature, dance, and all things marketing.

Annie has been working with the Canadian Mountain Network—now Braiding Knowledges Canada—since June 2019, leading content creation, science writing, and graphic design. As an independent contractor, she helps research networks, scientists, and initiatives effectively communicate science to diverse audiences, including fellow researchers, policy-makers, and the public.

Kirsten Aubrey has worked with Braiding Knowledges Canada since 2024 as a media producer and communications specialist. Her work includes deeply understanding the core values, messages and principles that Braiding Knowledges Canada operates with, to create compelling communications materials tailored for diverse audiences.

Jade Roberts – educator and artist is a Woodland Cree woman from Lac La Ronge Indian Band in Northern Saskatchewan. She currently resides in Treaty 6 Territory in Saskatoon, SK. Roberts graduated with a Bachelor’s of Education from ITEP at the University of Saskatchewan in 2018 and went on to teach an elementary art and Cree culture program for 6 years. Jade is now a full-time artist working with a variety of mediums including digital illustration, painting, and land-based projects. Jade’s artwork often depicts colourful florals or animals and is influenced by her Cree culture and the land. Many of Jade’s pieces are connected to stories and language as a way of honouring and remembering the teachings that have been passed down. You can find more of Jade’s work at www.jadeleviroberts.com or on Instagram @jadelevi_

CeCe Baptiste, a member of Little Pine First Nation, holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree as well as both the Certified Professional Accountant and Institute of Corporate Director designations. Her career spans senior positions in a variety of sectors, including provincial, banking, crown corporations, and higher education.

Prior to joining the Public Service through the Management Trainee Program at the Canadian Centre for Management Development in 1993, Michel was a teacher at West Island College and co-founder of Macdonald-Cartier Academy, a private French immersion high school. He’s enjoyed a career of challenging assignments as a Policy Analyst in the Privy Council Office, Intergovernmental Affairs; as Senior Advisor to Minister Anne McLellan in her capacity as Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians; as Director of Aboriginal Research and Socio-Economic Development at Human Resources Development Canada; in his role of Departmental Senior Official of Values and Ethics under three Deputy Ministers; and, was the founding Senior Executive Director of the Knowledge Circle for Indigenous Inclusion and the Chair of the Federal Indigenous Executive Network during his last executive assignment upon retiring in September 2022.

Lawrence Ignace is Anishinaabe from Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation within Treaty 3 Northwestern Ontario. He holds a Masters in Public Administration with an emphasis on Natural Resources Policy from the University of Alaska Southeast. His relationship with mountains significantly strengthened over a decade ago when he moved to Whitehorse, Yukon. During this time, he has held positions with Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, Carcross/Tagish First Nation, Arctic Institute of Community-Based Research and Yukon government. He has a passion for advancing the understanding and use of Indigenous Knowledge. As a PhD student at University of Victoria, his research focuses on the intersection of science and Indigenous knowledge and how we can learn from both worlds to shift our understanding. He is active on the Reference Group for the appropriate review of Indigenous research established by the three federal research funding agencies and Protect our Winters Science Alliance.

Alida Thomas is a graduate student in the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She is particularly passionate about human rights, climate justice, and intersectional gender equity. Her academic and work background includes international development, conflict resolution, labour relations, and environmental studies, and impact analysis. In addition to the CMN, She serves as the Board Chair for Flavours of Hope, a Vancouver-based charitable social enterprise that supports and empowers refugee newcomer women to earn a livable income and build social connections in communities through cooking and sharing culinary traditions and stories. She lives in Vancouver, feels most at home in the BC Coastal Mountains and is a long-distance runner and triathlete.

Lynne Hately, CGA, CPA, and CFRE is Director of Development and Communications, Alberta Region with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Canada’s leading national land conservation organization. She has worked with non profits for more than twenty years focused on the environment, international development and youth development, including in indigenous communities. Lynne has a MA in International Development Studies from Carleton University and a BA (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario. She is also a professional fundraiser and holds the Certified Fund Raising Executive credential. Lynne lives in Canmore, Alberta, where she enjoys everything to do with mountains.

Charity Callahan is an affiliate of Western Management Consultants based in Calgary, AB with substantial not-for-profit board governance and risk management experience. Charity has an MBA from Athabasca University and has completed her ICD.D designation from the Directors Education Program (DEP) at the Rotman School of Management.

Laurel Carlton works with organizations and businesses as they bring their ambitious goals to life, through support with organizational development, project management, and governance. Laurel was a member of the staff team at Community Foundations of Canada between 2014 and 2019, and as Director, Strategic Initiatives, she developed and led pan-Canadian collaborations between community foundations, the Government of Canada, and the private sector. Between 2014 and 2016, Laurel was also a member of the team that incubated the Rideau Hall Foundation, where she led the development of the new foundation’s governance practice. Prior to her time at CFC, Laurel held roles related to research and program development in the charitable sector, working in both Canada and in Guatemala. Laurel has a Master’s of Public Administration (MPA) from the School of Public Policy and Administration at Carleton University.

Erinn Drage is an environmentalist, filmmaker, protected areas enthusiast and outdoor adventure guide. Originally from Nova Scotia, she now calls Canmore, AB home. In recent years Erinn has worked as an expedition guide in the Arctic and Antarctica, directed, shot, and edited digital media series’ for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and conducted research on nature-based tourism economies in the Denali region of Alaska. Her first feature-length documentary, In the Footsteps of Our Ancestors, follows the story of the Sahtú Dene and the Canol Trail in the Northwest Territories. She currently works full-time in international conservation policy with Parks Canada and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), while pursuing her other passions by writing and editing film projects on the weekends.

Dr. Glanfield is currently Vice-Provost (Indigenous Programming and Research) and a Professor of Mathematics Education in the Department of Secondary Education. She is an Affiliated Faculty member with the Centre for Research for Teacher Education and Development at the University of Alberta. She earned her PhD in 2003 studying mathematics teacher understanding as an emergent phenomenon.

My name is Dr. Maurice Manyfingers, and I am a member of the Kainai First Nation (Blood Tribe) of the Blackfoot Confederacy of Treaty 7 or Siksikaitsitapi.

Dr. Emily Missyabit McAuley is a member of Lake Manitoba First Nation and was born and raised in Algonquin Anishinaabeg Territory in Ottawa. She received an M.Sc. in Biology (Behavioural Ecology & Evolution) from Carleton University in 2009 and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences (Conservation Ecology) from Simon Fraser University in 2020. Her Ph.D. thesis examined the food web impacts of native fish introductions into naturally fishless river systems across the Western Cordillera and resulting migratory behavior and breeding distribution of harlequin ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus). Her research interests include food web interactions, species distribution modeling, geomatics, stable isotopes, citizen science, and Indigenous Science. Emily has nearly a decade of experience fostering federal-Indigenous research partnerships and supporting the braiding of knowledge systems.

Dr. Murray is a transdisciplinary scholar with expertise in both the social and natural sciences. Trained as an environmental archaeologist, she transitioned to focus on contemporary climate change and impacts on people and the environment in the Arctic. In 2016 she initiated the development of the Canadian Consortium for Arctic Data Interoperability (CCADI), a national coalition of universities, Indigenous organizations, federal departments, not-for-profit and private-sector partners. The CCADI is engaged in the development of an Arctic Research Data Infrastructure for Canada to improve access to data, data interoperability and data analytics in support of decision-making across scales and organizations, and for research. Maribeth’s personal research is now focused in three areas: the integration of climate, historic, oceanographic and ecological data to better understand how the Arctic functions as a system; mobilizing genomics and genomics tools for Arctic biodiversity conservation and wildlife management; and research and strategic planning for the ongoing development and implementation of an internationally supported Arctic Observing System. She is the Executive Director of the Arctic Institute of North America at the University of Calgary, a member of the Board of Directors of Polar Knowledge Canada, a past member of the Board of Directors of the Arctic Research Consortium of the United States, and a past faculty member of the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Dr. Niall O’Dea is Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy, at Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Dr. Mark Prystupa earned his Ph.D. in geography with research in Yukon and went on to be a university professor at Laurentian University in Sudbury. He left academia to take a position with the Government of the Northwest Territories in Yellowknife before joining the federal government in Ottawa. He worked with Suncor Energy in Calgary and now works for Vale Base Metals in Sudbury. All of this work has focussed on Indigenous peoples and resource management. Mark has been fortunate to have done this work throughout much of Canada.

Wendy is a Senior Consultant with Humanity Financial Management Inc., specializing in providing accounting and financial management advisory services to not-for-profit organizations and Indigenous communities. She brings over 10 years of accounting and audit experience in both public practice and not-for-profit sector, as well as her understanding of corporate governance. As a passionate volunteer, she had significant involvement in local charities and industry associations.

Meagan Grabowski is a researcher, biologist, and instructor with lifelong knowledge of Yukon systems. Through her business she supports governments and communities in integrated and collaborative approaches to socio-ecological stewardship. Meagan has studied and worked throughout northern mountain regions, including southwest Yukon, Nunavut and interior BC. As a founding board member and 2016-17 Chair of APECS Canada, she enhanced the voice and priorities of northern residents. From 2015-2017, she was a Jane Glassco Northern Fellow creating recommendations for research licensing in the Yukon. Meagan holds a Master of Science in Zoology specializing in plant-herbivore interactions and boreal shrub dendroecology. Meagan is deeply committed to relationship building between the research community and the North, and continues to advocate for the role of northerners in all stages of research.

Marlin Legare is a Métis graduate student and a research project coordinator who aids in the development and production of Indigenous research projects from the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S). He is currently pursuing a Master of Science in the field of Nutrition at the U of S, as well. Finally, Marlin is a U of S member of the Indigenous Initiatives Committee as a representative of the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition.

Adam Gaudry, Ph.D. is a citizen of the Manitoba Métis Federation. He serves as Vice-Dean and Associate Professor in the Faculty of Native Studies at the University of Alberta. His family is from Northwestern Ontario and Red River before that. He grew up in Hamilton.

Adam received his Ph.D. from the Indigenous Governance Program at the University of Victoria and completed his MA in Sociology and BAH in Political Studies from Queen’s University. He is a past Henry Roe Cloud Fellow at Yale University. In his administrative leadership role, Adam oversees strategic projects in the Faculty. This has included strategic planning documents, faculty program reviews, curricular updates, and new research partnerships. He has published extensively on Métis history and governance, Indigenous research methodologies, as well as indigenization policy in Canadian higher education. Adam’s work has been published in Native American and Indigenous Studies, American Indian Quarterly, AlterNative, Critical Ethnic Studies, The Wicazo Sa Review, aboriginal policy studies, the Canadian Journal of Native Education, the Osgoode Hall Law Journal, The Canadian Encyclopedia, and numerous edited collections.