Tewanee Joseph will get things underway at Friday morning’s breakfast.  As the Executive Director for the Four Host First Nations Secretariat, Mr. Joseph worked with VANOC and its partners to develop unprecedented Aboriginal participation in the planning, hosting and staging of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.  He also owns and operates a consulting group that has contributed to a broad range of initiatives, including First Nations federal legislation, land management, strategic communications and governance.  Mr. Joseph is a member of the Squamish First Nation of Canada who grew up on the Capilano Reserve in North Vancouver.  Taking office at the age of 21, he was the youngest Band Councillor ever elected, demonstrating a talent for facilitation and coordination.

Calvin Helin will speak following Friday’s luncheon.  He has been called the prophet of self-reliance, and a thinker whose brave ideas evoke Martin Luther King Jr.'s audacious "I have a dream" idealism.  At a time when economic dependency is sweeping the world, Mr. Helin’s ideas provide a blueprint for transforming economic dependency into healthier outcomes, providing greater individual happiness and national security through insight and common sense.  His first book, "Dances with Dependency", now a six times best-seller, has resulted in reviewers being universally star-struck at its brilliance.  Mr. Helin proposes groundbreaking, positive solutions in down-to-earth language that show the road to self-reliance.  Economic dependency is not “Aboriginal in Nature”, he says, but independence, adaptability and resilience are.  Economic dependency has become a way of life for many; Calvin Helin is working to help break that cycle.

Tim Twomey will be Saturday’s breakfast keynote.  He is a professional Geologist with over 25 years of exploration, production and management experience.  Currently, his efforts are focused primarily within Northwestern Ontario.  He played a key role in Goldcorp's "High-Grade Zone" discovery, development and production at Red Lake, Ontario.  More recently, until joining Premier, he was Senior Exploration Geologist with Goldcorp's Regional Exploration Team in the Red Lake Area.  Mr. Twomey’s keynote presentation, “The Future of an Explorationist in Ontario”, summarizes the mining cycle, business and career opportunities available for Aboriginal communities in connection with this dynamic industry.  Additionally, Mr. Twomey will present a model of how partnerships between Aboriginal communities and industry can provide mutual economic benefits, in a manner that results in long term success and sustainability for all parties.  

Janet Matthews will be Saturday’s luncheon speaker, leaving everyone with an uplifting message.  Ms. Matthews first became involved with the Chicken Soup brand in 1997, when she produced and edited stories for another title.  When Jack Canfield invited her and fellow Canadian Raymond Aaron to co-author "Chicken Soup for the Canadian Soul", she jumped at the opportunity.  Four years and 6,000 stories later, the book was released and became an immediate best-seller.  The 84 stories in this book range from moving submissions from ordinary Canadians from all parts of the nation, to stories written in the first person by some of our greatest Canadian heroes.  You will come away inspired to live your own dream, and filled with pride and gratitude - that you are Canadian.

If you have any questions about items you have read in this update or any other OACFDC activities, please feel free to call our office at 888-633-2326