Keynote speakers announced for SFN Healing the Land Conference

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Saulteau First Nations (SFN) has announced the keynote speakers for next week’s Healing the Land Conference set to take place at the First Nation.

According to the event’s website, speakers include federal officials, Indigenous leaders, industry representatives, and members of SFN. The parties are coming together to explore themes of “innovation, collaboration, preparing for the future, and healing the land together.”

Day one, scheduled for Monday, October 7th, will feature an appearance by Carmen Richter, a member of SFN and an Indigenous Biologist who received a Master’s in Science in 2024. Her thesis focused on the abundance and restoration of caribou homelands in the region.

Keynote speaker Dr. Judith Sayers will talk on the conference’s second day. Sayers has two decades of experience managing clean energy projects.

Jennifer Psyllakis will be a presenter on the morning of October 8th.  Psyllakis is a provincial deputy minister specializing in resource stewardship with the provincial water, land and resource stewardship in Victoria. 

SFN councillors, Chief Rudy Paquette, BC Energy Regulator representatives, and other administration officials, including Teena Demeulemeester, the SFN’s assistant manager of treaty rights and environmental protection, will also speak at the event, which takes place from October 7th to 10th.

Announced in late June, the event is designed to “raise awareness of on-the-ground actions having a direct impact” on Canadian protection and restoration targets. 

It has roots in the reclamation trade show presented by SNF in 2019. The event’s website has a full list of speakers and the conference’s schedule.