Meet the Team

For sponsorship opportunities, if you are interested in volunteering before or during the summit, please contact:

  • Robert is the Manager of SevenGen Energy, he assists the SevenGen Youth Council in supporting Indigenous youth advance a sustainable and equitable energy future.

    Robert is from the Gitxsan and Heiltsuk First Nation and is currently in his final year of Indigenous Studies at the University of British Columbia. Having spent the last ten years in youth programming and community development his focus has been on building relations. Understanding the conflicts of living in two worlds, Robert grew up outside of his community and has been navigating the connection to his nations and living in western society. Currently a participant in the Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle, his writing has focused on Indigenous resistance, exploring identity and the relationship to our ancestors. Bending space and time to understand our relationship to kin, community and land. An advocate for Indigenous youth, as manager of SevenGen Energy he is focused on supporting the next generation of Indigenous youth stewarding our relationship to land.

SevenGen Manager (Current)
robertb@studentenergy.org

  • Sara Fontaine is an Anishinaabekwe who currently works at Student Energy as the SevenGen Operations Coordinator where she assists the SevenGen Youth Council in their duties of making clean energy education and opportunities accessible and inclusive to Indigenous youth and communities across the nation. She worked as a Liaison Officer for her reserve where she focused on land use studies, environmental assessments and negotiations with proponents on their traditional territories. Sara believes Indigenous voices belong at the forefront of environmental protection as they have the Indigenous knowledge of sustainability and their identities are rooted in caring for the land. Sara’s position within Student Energy is empowering youth to use their voices to ensure Indigenous inclusion in the clean energy transition. She believes environmental protection should be top priority for all peoples and encourages us to all come together to protect the earth and its invaluable resources.

SevenGen Operations Coordinator (-2024)
sevengen@studentenergy.org

Meet the SevenGen Council

The SevenGen Council is made up of Indigenous youth leaders from the north, south, east, and west, who work together to guide and develop SevenGen Energy’s programs, which includes the SevenGen Summit and the ImaGENation Indigenous Youth Mentorship Program. We act as the vision holders and leaders of the SevenGen Summit 2024.

Mihskakwan James Harper

Mihskakwan James Harper is a proud citizen of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation in Treaty 8, Alberta. He is currently the Business Development Manager at NRStor Inc., where he champions developing large-scale energy storage and clean microgrid projects in a way that empowers communities and contributes to meaningful climate action. He is a Board Member with Indigenous Clean Energy and the Pembina Institute. He holds a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from the University of Manitoba and has recently completed a Master of Science in Renewable Energy from KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Ecole Polytechnique, and the ESADE Business School. He is the co-chair of the SevenGen council, an organization that develops and leads programs for Indigenous youth to lead in clean energy and climate action. He has co-hosted the podcast, Decolonizing Power, a series that aims to amplify voices worldwide on how clean energy enables authentic community empowerment. This experience combined with the 20/20 Catalyst program, he is passionate about the carbon free future, particularly within the power and mobility sectors. He loves his partner, family, and his community, who inspires him to work to build a future that is sustainable and empowers all.

Serena Mendizabal

Serena Mendizabal (she/her) is a Cayuga Wolf Clan-Panamanian woman from the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. Serena is a community-based researcher, grassroots organizer, and environmental advocate. Serena began her journey in climate justice and clean energy when she was 18, working in community engagement and communications at the development corporation in her community. She found gaps in community consent and further explored what climate justice and a just transition can look like in a community of over 28,000 members. From then on, Serena has dedicated her life to Indigenous self-determination, climate justice, environmental health impacts, and clean energy transitions through studies, work, and extracurriculars. Serena is passionate about self-determined community development, action, and futures led by sovereign, healthy nations. Serena is the Co-Chair of the SevenGen Indigenous Youth Council, the Just Transition Manager at Sacred Earth Solar, a Board of Director at Student Energy, and works for Protect the Tract, a Haudenosaunee-led group focused on enforcing the Haudenosaunee Confederacy's moratorium on development.

Janelle Lapointe

Janelle Lapointe is an Afro-Indigenous climate justice and Indigenous rights organizer from Stellat’en First Nation. She is currently the interim co-lead of Public Engagement and Mobilization at the David Suzuki Foundation and a guest on Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) territories. Janelle is also an organizer with Common Horizon, a regular contributor on CBC Vancouver’s The Early Edition climate panel, a member of the Indigenous Climate Adaptation Working Group and a council member of SevenGen Energy. She leans on her lived experience growing up on her small reserve in Northern British Columbia to ensure that intersectionality is at the forefront of environmental narratives, to build power and help others see their stake in fighting back against the status quo.

Connor Storm Johnston

Connor Storm Johnston is a Métis Man from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, who is proud to live and work in Treaty 6 Territory and the heartland of the Métis Nation. Connor earned a Bachelor of Education from the University of Saskatchewan with a focus on Indigenous studies and Métis History, where he developed an interest in anti-oppressive pedagogy and decolonizing education. Since 2022, Connor has worked at the Metis Nation - Saskatchewan as an Infrastructure Project Manager, developing sustainable core governance infrastructure across Saskatchewan. A particular point of pride was his role in constructing a Bison Ranch in Batoche, Saskatchewan, bringing Bison back to Batoche for the first time in over 100 years. Connor is passionate about sustainable development in the Métis public service and moving towards a zero-emissions construction industry.

Willow Bearhead

Willow Bearhead (He/Him) proudly identifies as a Two-Spirit individual of Nakota/Dene/Cree heritage from Paul First Nation, situated in Treaty 6 territory. He has achieved Level 2 certification in Early Childhood Education from Maskwacis Cultural College and is pursuing a degree in Indigenous Social Work at the First Nations University of Canada. Willow ardently advocates for the well-being of Native youth and champions the inclusion of Two-Spirit individuals in all environments. His ultimate goal is to become a social worker who integrates Indigenous teachings into his professional practice.

Currently serving as Vice President for the Northern Campus, Willow actively fosters Two-Spirit inclusion and to create safe spaces for all. In addition to his vice presidency, he serves as the Co-national Post-Secondary Youth Coordinator for 2 Spirits in Motion and as a Youth Worker with the Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC) Youth Homes.

Raylene Mitchell

Raylene Mitchell (she/her) is a proud Inuk woman from Labrador. She currently lives in Toronto working on her PhD at the University of Toronto in mechanical engineering researching energy storage solutions, more specifically for northern, Indigenous communities. She believes in indigenizing the engineering process, and is working toward a future where Indigenous knowledge and science are at the forefront of engineering designs. Raylene is passionate about community-led energy projects and accessible energy education for all. She is especially looking forward to the upcoming summit this October in Iqaluit to discuss the future of energy with other Indigenous youth from across the country.

Dakota Norris

Dakota Norris (he/him) is a proud member of the Gwich’in Nation living on Treaty 6 Territory in Saskatoon, SK with experience in Indigenous youth engagement, sustainable development and climate action. He is currently completing a Master of Environment and Sustainability, focusing on increasing Indigenous ownership in the energy transition, and a Campaign Manager for the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, leading initiatives addressing the health and social justice impacts of fossil fuel extraction. He is passionate about empowering and amplifying Indigenous and youth perspectives to lead a just, sustainable future. Dakota enjoys spending time outdoors, reading and learning, and with family whenever possible.

Left to right, front: Raylene Mitchell, Serena Mendizabal, Janelle Lapointe, Mihskakwan James Harper
Right to left, back: Connor Johnston, Willow Bearhead, Dakota Norris