Keynote Presentations

Emcee Professional Development - Carla Robinson, Anchor, CBC Newsworld

April 6, 2009 (Recruitment Fair)

Shawn Atleo, BC Regional Chief, Assembly of First Nations
Navigational Aids for an Uncharted World
Once it was the duty of tribal elders to engender in the young a map of the world they could reliably follow over a lifetime. Shawn Atleo, hereditary Chief of the Ahousaht First Nation and Chancellor for Vancouver Island University (formerly Malaspina University), serves this function today by introducing Aboriginal students to the challenges of an uncharted century.

Dr. Alika Lafontaine, 2008 “Canada’s Next Great Prime Minister”
The Value of Mentorship
"My greatest mentors are my Grandfather, Grandmother, Father and Mother. Come learn their stories…and how Crabs and Caterpillars changed the direction of my life."

Charlie Coffey, O.C., former VP RBC and Co-Chair, Aboriginal Human Resource Council, Governance Champions
The Difference Your Difference Makes
One of Canada’s most esteemed champions of inclusion proposes a bold look at the transforming workplace of the 21st century, and the role that young Aboriginal talent will play in those transformations.

April 7, 2009 (Professional Development)

Charlie Coffey, O.C., former VP RBC and Co-Chair, Aboriginal Human Resource Council, Governance Champions
A Welcome to Champions of Inclusion
Recognized nationally as a champion of inclusion par excellence, Charlie Coffey welcomes attendees of Inclusion Works 09 as pioneers and collaborators in one of the most important ventures of our time: the growth of Aboriginal inclusion.

Kelly J. Lendsay, President and CEO, Aboriginal Human Resource Council
Why Inclusion Works
What new potentials are roused when an organization discovers the path of inclusion? A fresh look at the promises made, and the new vistas that begin to open, when employers and employees alike commit to the growth of inclusion.

Jack Poole, Chair, Board of Directors, Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee
Creating an Olympic Legacy
Jack Poole will deliver a keynote address on how VANOC has engaged the Aboriginal workforce in terms of growing economic prosperity, economic development and Aboriginal recruitment, retention and advancement. He will share how his leadership, vision and win-win formula has resulted in outcomes that will create a long lasting employment legacy for the games and the First Nations, Métis and Inuit people in British Columbia and beyond.

April 7, 2009 (Gala Evening)

Emcee Gala Evening – Rick Mercer, comedian and host of The Rick Mercer Report

Gala Evening Welcome Address - The Honourable Steven Point, Lieutenant Governor, British Columbia

Gala Evening Keynote Speaker –  David Chilton, accomplished storyteller and author

 April 8, 2009 (Professional Development)

Aboriginal Leadership Panel
Crisis as Opportunity – How can Today’s Economic Downturn Drive Fresh Opportunities in Aboriginal Employment?
Times of crisis are times of opportunity; this ancient truth has pushed history forward in waves of progress. Just as investors are looking with hope to President Obama’s revitalization of the American economy from the ashes of the financial crisis, so too are there landmark opportunities within the global downturn to advance Aboriginal education, employment and community development. What unique skills and experiences can Aboriginal people bring to companies in crisis? How can current events catalyze new opportunities in entrepreneurship and economic development? What is the potential to create new horizons for Aboriginal youth and women? Join Canada’s Aboriginal leadership, featuring national chiefs, Aboriginal senators, and leading political and economic experts, for an unprecedented discussion of the potential to engage our country’s fastest growing labour force to reach higher, faster and further than we ever have before.

Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Winnipeg
Making the 21st Century University a Laboratory of Inclusion
In the short period he has presided over the University of Winnipeg, Dr. Lloyd Axworthy has shown himself to be one of the most forthright and innovative leaders of Aboriginal inclusion in Canadian education. He will introduce us to those inclusion strategies and tell us what drives them. With a distinguished humanitarian career that has spanned more than 27 years, Dr. Axworthy speaks with authority on the importance of inclusion partnerships and educational tools that encourage organizations to move up the inclusion continuum.

Allan McLeod, President and CEO, Tribal Council Investment Group of Manitoba Ltd.
Three Undiscovered Secrets of Aboriginal Inclusion
Over the last decade the business case for inclusion has grown by magnitudes – thanks to social scientists searching the roots of social capital. This presentation not only presents three unexplored ways that inclusion can drive growth, innovation, and prosperity, it is designed to rouse a larger sense of – and commitment to – Aboriginal inclusion.