Our team
The NCIED governance structure includes director, administration and board of advisers. Chair Miles Richardson is supported by the dean of the University of Victoria's Peter B. Gustavson School of Business, Dr. Saul Klein; the dean of law, Dr. Susan Breau; and two faculty champions designated by the deans: Dr. Brent Mainprize and Dr. John Borrows.
These members are strategic thinkers with experience in governance, financial and human resource management, programming, and delivery of services in Indigenous economic development. They each possess a strong interest in building economic capacity in Indigenous communities in Canada.
Chair
A prominent Indigenous leader, Miles brings an extensive background in Indigenous and Canadian government relations.
After graduating in 1979 from UVic, he served as administrator for the Skidegate Band Council and directed the establishment of the Haida Gwaii Watchmen program.
In 1984 Miles was the youngest person to be elected President of the Council of the Haida Nation, a position he held until 1996.
During his tenure, Miles led the drafting of the constitution of the Haida Nation and protected the Gwaii Haanas area of Haida Gwaii with the Gwaii Haanas Agreement, the first modern nation-to-nation agreement between the Haida Nation and Canada.
Manager
Renée has a Bachelor of Commerce and a diverse professional career that includes small businesses, government and a multi-national corporation.
She helped re-structure organizations and her proven track record includes coordinating complex projects with multi‑million dollar budgets to meet objectives and deliverables on time.
With her unique combination of business experience, Renée liaised effectively with a wide range of stakeholder groups.
Renée has a Métis heritage; her paternal grandmother is Cree and her grandfather is French Canadian.
Gustavson School of Business champion
Dr. Brent Mainprize, MBA, PhD, professor at the University of Victoria’s Gustavson School of Business, teaches entrepreneurship and Indigenous economic development.
Brent has over 17 years' experience as an entrepreneurship educator, academic, and facilitator of economic change in Indigenous communities. He brings a wealth of expertise and experience to the NCIED.
Faculty of Law champion
John is Canada's pre-eminent legal scholar and a global leader in the field of Indigenous legal traditions and Indigenous rights. John holds the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Law at UVic as well as the Law Foundation Chair in Indigenous Justice and Governance.
John teaches in the area of constitutional law, Indigenous law and environmental law, and his research focuses on advancing the understanding of Indigenous laws and customs.
NCIED Director, Community Initiatives
Arthur, Simoogit Galga, is a hereditary Chief, and past CEO, Nisga’a Commercial Group, and economic development coordinator for the Nisga’a Lisim’s Government. His broad experience over three decades includes building strategic economic development partnerships that increase business accessibility and capacity building.
For several years, Mercer advised NCIED regarding resource and infrastructure development industries. In 2018, in partnership with BC Ministry of Jobs, Tourism & Skills Training, Arthur and Dr. Brent Mainprize co-facilitated economic development workshops in Indigenous communities in the eight economic regions of BC. The following year, they conducted another set of workshops for the government to frame the re-structuring of Indigenous procurement.
NCIED Research Lead
Chanze Gamble provides research leadership to facilitate NCIED’s mandate to promote independent and collaborative research projects, within UVic and externally, that reflect traditional knowledge, perspectives and wise practices.