Keynote

Roberta Jamieson is Mohawk who has achieved many firsts. They include being the first First Nation woman in Canada to earn a law degree; the first woman Ombudsman of Ontario; and the first woman elected Chief of the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory.

Roberta has long been recognized as an effective and visionary member of corporate boards, with an acknowledged expertise in Environmental, Social and Governance criteria. She is currently on the board of directors of Deloitte Canada and Chile, where she sits on the People, Purpose and Culture and the Clients, Industries and Markets committees, and the Royal Bank of Canada, where she sits on the Risk and Governance committees. She is also co-chair of the Indigenous Advisory Council advising the board and CEO of Canadian National Railway on matters relevant to CN’s relationship with Indigenous communities in Canada. At the request of Prime Minister Trudeau, she served on the inaugural Gender Equality Advisory Council during Canada’s G7 Presidency. As President of Indspire, Canada’s largest Indigenous charity, Roberta oversaw an eightfold increase in bursaries and scholarships. Charity Intelligence Canada named Indspire one of the 10 Canadian Charities with the most impact and Macleans and the Financial Post chose it as one of Canada’s Top Charities. Since 2004, Indspire has given a record $153 million in bursaries and scholarships to 49,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis students across Canada. During her time at Indspire, Roberta launched several highly successful initiatives: the first National Gathering for Indigenous Education, a unique conference for educators to network and learn best practices for improving educational outcomes for K–12 Indigenous students and the Indspire Research Knowledge Nest, which publishes the research and data produced by Indspire to encourage policy makers and corporate leaders to invest in Indigenous education and employment. She was also Executive Producer of the Indspire Awards, a nationally broadcast celebration of Indigenous culture showcasing the highest Indigenous honours awarded by their communities. The Indspire Awards has honoured 384 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis individuals for their outstanding achievements. Since leaving Indspire, Roberta has continued her involvement in philanthropy, most recently as a Founding Visionary of the Prosperity Project. Roberta Jamieson has received 30 honorary degrees, earned numerous awards and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.