Carmen Lawson

Tell us about your role in your community or where you work

New! Economic Development Officer - The goal of the position is to create, with the development of a department, an economy and wealth for the community through the Heiltsuk Tribal Council. This includes development of policy and procedures; ongoing effective communication with stakeholders; pursuit of funding from various sources; reporting to Executive/Council/community; Seek and assess new opportunity for Heiltsuk and develop relationships both local and external; assist with IBAs; oversee off-reserve land and holdings; assist with development of Master Tourism plan, create a Chambers of Commerce, oversee marketing and Heiltsuk branding.

Tell us a story about a time you brought people together to improve your community.

2018 AGM - as the Executive Director at that time - I wanted to relay to the community, both on reserve and off reserve that their governing body (leadership) is invested in their future. I wanted to demonstrate that the employees and joint leaders truly care about community success - that we need to build on past successes, work together and to not only be competent, but driven to succeed for future generations. This is accomplished by removing barriers and identifying opportunity for Heiltsuk.

What challenges in your community or the world are you trying to address?

Heiltsuk Economic self-reliance; Our community and our living standards need and deserve to be equivalent to any other municipality in Canada economically, in health, and in accessibility.

What do you want to learn in this program? How will you use that in your work?

I want to know what others are doing, best practices - I want to get more focused on next steps and learn to deal with competing interests. I want to motivate; ask the right questions, sharpen my listening skills, organize priorities and be efficient and effective to get this job started and moving. I need to gain confidence in talking with community by learning more how to interact with them and people wanting to invest in our community.