Water is life. Ownership is power.

Valerie is a proud Mi'kmaq woman whose family originated from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

In 2014, Valerie was nominated for a Woman of Distinction Award with the YWCA in Hamilton, ON for her work creating Ontario's first pre-apprenticeship training program in Welding and Plumbing for Women.

Working with the Aboriginal Apprenticeship Board, Valerie was brought on to the team as a Community Engagement Coordinator to assist with the organization's national expansion to the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick in 2019. Engaged in ensuring that Indigenous youth and their communities received equitable consideration for education and employment opportunities in apprenticeship, Valerie coordinates with stakeholders for the inclusion of Indigenous people with partners and was recently appointed as Executive Director. Valerie is leading the transition of the Aboriginal Apprenticeship Board of Ontario to the Indigenous Skills, Employment, Apprenticeship and Development as a federally registered national not-for-profit, expanding the organization's reach and presence.

With a deep passion for Occupational Health and Safety, Valerie partners with the province of Ontario's designated training centre - Workers Health and Safety Centre. Making occupational health and safety a primary focus of their work at ISEAD, their efforts are fundamental in ensuring safety for workers through meaningful training and compliance with legislation and regulations across all sectors for Indigenous workers. Valerie has been a certified occupational health and safety instructor across all sectors since 2014.

Valerie is a Director with the Aboriginal Skilled Workers Association (ASWA), the Treasurer of the Grand Valley Education Society (GVES), a Director with Roots to Roofs, and a Director with the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF).

Recently, Valerie received the Award of Merit from CSA for her leadership role as Chair of the technical committee that developed the CSA Z301 Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility in Apprenticeship Programs national standard.

VP of Arctic Freshwater. Leads people, culture, community workforce integration, and training partnerships.

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