Valerie Courtois

Valérie Courtois is a national leader in the movement of Indigenous-led conservation and stewardship. She is the founding executive director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative, an organization that supports Indigenous Nations and their communities in honouring the responsibility to care for lands and waters. The Indigenous Leadership Initiative has worked directly with First Nations across Canada to advance their leadership on the land and has helped secure significant federal funding for the National First Nations Guardians Network and individual programs and area-based conservation initiatives such as Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas. ILI has also acted as the convener for the Our Land for the Future Project Finance for Permanence initiative in the Northwest Territories, which is a partnership between 22 Indigenous Nations, the Government of the Northwest Territories, the Government of Canada and Philanthropic partners, notably the Enduring Earth partnership and other Canadian-based foundations. Courtois is a registered professional forester specializing in Indigenous issues, forest ecology and ecosystem-based management and planning. She is a member of the Innu community of Mashteuiatsh, located on the shore of Peikuakami, or Lac-St-Jean, in Québec. She holds a degree in forestry sciences from the Université de Moncton, an honourary Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from University of Guelph, and an honorary Doctorate in Forestry Sciences, honoris causa, Université Laval. She was named to the 2023 TIME100 Climate, the inaugural list of most influential climate leaders. Courtois was the 2024 recipient of the Shackleton Medal for the Protection of the Polar Regions, and in 2023, she won Stanford University’s highest environmental prize, the Bright Award for Environmental Sustainability. Valérie is also an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. In addition to her work in conservation and planning, Courtois is also on the Board of Directors of the Corporation du Mushuau–nipi, a non-profit that encourages cultural and professional exchanges on the George River. She is also on the advisory council for the Students on Ice Foundation. She lives in Happy Valley—Goose Bay, Labrador, with her partner, and is a proud mother and grandmother.