Fifteen new Fellows are joining the Jane Glassco Northern Fellowship Program.

Several are from the Yukon: Luke Campbell, Ashley Carvill, Alysha Kufeldt, Kelly Panchynshyn and Julianna Scramstad.

Since 2010, the policy development program has worked with more than 30 change makers from across the territories and Inuit Nunangat.

“A new generation of northern leaders is at the forefront of an economic, social and political transformation of the North,” said program manager Melaina Sheldon.

“Northerners have bold aspirations for our communities. For a decade, Jane Glassco Northern Fellows have been at the forefront of this dynamic energy,” Sheldon said.

“This program connects and empowers inspiring leaders as they define a new vision for the North – one that can serve as a collaborative model for all Canadians.”

The Fellowship is built around four regional gatherings and offers skills training, mentorship and networking opportunities.

Fellows collaborate with and are mentored by elders, traditional knowledge holders.

Past Fellows have worked with territorial and national/northern leaders, including Tony Penikett, the Yukon’s premier between 1985 and 1992, Mary Simon, and Northwest Territories leader Stephen Kakfwi.

According to The Gordon Foundation’s President and CEO Sherry Campbell, the newest Jane Glassco Fellows “are among the brightest minds in Canada. They are as diverse as the North itself.”

Current Fellows include mayors, academics, civil servants and business leaders. They each possess an interest in public policy and activism as an effective means to create positive change on issues facing the North. They have histories of community engagement and local leadership.

“We’re excited to support the newest Fellows as they bring forward fresh ideas, innovative proposals and help focus national attention on the North’s unlimited potential,” Campbell added.

Over the next two years, the current Fellows plan to collaborate on northern opportunities and pressing challenges, including resource devolution, education, water protection and truth and reconciliation.

The 2018-2019 Jane Glassco Northern Fellows in the Northwest Territories are Heather Bourassa, Don Couturier, Chloe Dragon Smith, Peter Greenland, and Kristen Tanche.

In Nunavut, they are Laura Arngna’naaq, Tina Piulia Decouto, Marjorie Kaviq Kaluraq, and Megan Pizzo-Lyall. In Nunavik, the Fellow is Hilda Snowball.