Indigenous Careers

I’m from the Kikino Metis Settlement, which is approximately 2 hours North East of Edmonton, where my children and I still practice our traditional way of life. I consider myself to be a grass-roots community member with a solid connection to my people, our land, and traditions but have also been lucky enough to cross the barrier into the corporate world and boardrooms of Calgary’s Oil & Gas industry.

For the past 16 years, I have worked for small to large-scale upstream Oil & Gas companies in the Surface Land & Indigenous Relations fields. During my tenure with various companies, I’ve had the pleasure of being exposed to their various corporate cultures and particularly their in-house perspectives and engagement practices for Canada’s Indigenous peoples. In October 2015 I joined the Vertex Team and have seen first-hand the organizational support and commitment to their Indigenous partnerships and labor force.

I can honestly tell the world that Vertex is a company that celebrates its diverse workforce, particularly its Indigenous employees. From the top-down, the organization supports their Indigenous employees with training opportunities, advancement within the organization, and also with understanding and accommodating cultural protocols and sensitivities of Indigenous Peoples. Over the years I have found a lot of organizations claim to allow for the advancement and mobility of Indigenous people within their companies, but quite often we as Indigenous people are faced with barriers and hurdles within their organizational structures; at Vertex those barriers and hurdles don’t exist.

I am a proud member of the Metis Nation of Alberta. I moved from a small town in central Saskatchewan to Edmonton to pursue an academic, research, and professional consulting career in environmental sciences and land reclamation. With both an educational and professional background in Reclamation and Remediation, I have obtained a Diploma, Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy in Reclamation and Remediation.

I have always been interested in trying to find better ways to reclaim and restore disturbed ecosystems using techniques that work with and assist mother nature in helping re-establish ecosystems sustainably and economically. It has been my philosophy that “Nature is the World’s Largest Nursery” and if we treat Mother Nature right, Mother Nature will allow us to reclaim and restore the land.

Vertex has provided me with extraordinary opportunities to pursue my quest to continue to push the envelope in determining better ways to reclaim and restore the landscape using a combination of ingenuity, traditional knowledge, and dedication. Vertex is very supportive in finding ways that create training and employment opportunities for Indigenous peoples. Much of our research is devoted to developing methods that also have great potential to create jobs for local Indigenous communities. I have heard many companies talk about how they are committed to providing opportunities for Indigenous people, but here at Vertex it is actually tangible and that is something I am very proud to be a part of.

Growing up in Slave Lake, AB, 2 hours north of Edmonton, I am proud to be Metis with family ties to the Fishing Lake Metis Settlement, where many of my aunties and uncles still live today. The family values bestowed from generation to generation have helped and guided me through the struggles of moving away at an early age to pursue a higher level of hockey. With hockey and the guidance of mentors I’ve been lucky enough to obtain an education and pursue my goals within the Oil & Gas Industry.

Since joining Vertex in June of 2015, Vertex has really shined a light on allowing me to grow as a Business Development Representative through in-house mentorship and their commitment to providing educational and advancement opportunities. With a team-first mentality and an understanding that you should better yourself every day, Vertex’s organizational beliefs continue to remind me of playing hockey at a high level, but more importantly re-iterating values that my elders once handed down as a younger member of the community.

Being in constant communication with our Indigenous relations representative and learning that Vertex is a company that celebrates their diverse workforce, and particularly their Indigenous employees, allows me to speak freely as a proud member of the Indigenous community.

While Vertex continues to grow through its diverse line of services, it will continue to have a heavy focus on being an industry leader in supporting Indigenous Training & Employment initiatives.

Originally from a farm in northeast Saskatchewan, I left for university after high school and obtained a Commerce degree with a major in business economics. Since 2001 I have been involved with consulting land services spanning from pipeline acquisition work to appraisal and First Nations Loss of Use studies. Taking great pride in my heritage I have been able to trace my Metis lineage back to the days of the St. Peter’s parish near Selkirk, Manitoba. Much of my extended family still reside on the river lots at the heart of the Red River Settlement.

I have been with Vertex for over seven years and in this time I have experienced firsthand the dedication and commitment Vertex makes in supporting Indigenous communities and team members.

I am a proud member of the Metis Nation of Ontario (MNO), my family are descendants from the Manitoulin Island Metis Settlement in Northern Ontario. My children and I work with the MNO and surrounding First Nation Bands within Algoma District, promoting our culture and unity of our people and our communities.

As an Administrative Assistant/Program Coordinator for 24 years, I can admit that I haven’t been in school in quite a few years. While working at Vertex, I was given the opportunity to complete my Professional Writing Certificate specializing in Business and Technical Writing with the University of Calgary. This program has given me the opportunity to advance my knowledge in composition, copy-editing, proposal writing and marketing.

Vertex will work with all their employees to seek opportunities to advance within the company, whether through educational opportunities, mentorship with senior team members or cross utilization training in our various services. We grow together. I am proud to be a part of the Vertex Team!