Audrey Mae Poitras (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Audrey Mae Dumont; born 1950) is a Canadian politician who served as president of the

Métis Nation of Alberta The Métis Nation of Alberta (MNA) is a registered not-for-profit society in Alberta, Canada, that acts as a representative voice on behalf of Métis people within the province. Formed in 1928 as the Métis Association of Alberta, its primary fo ...

from 1996 to 2023. Poitras is the first female to serve as president. She also serves as vice-president on the Canadian

Métis National Council The Métis National Council () is a representative body of the Métis people of northwestern Canada. The MNC represented the Métis Nation both nationally and internationally, receiving direction from the elected leadership of the Métis Nation's ...

and joined the Board of the Canadian Executive Service Organization in 2004. The daughter of Jean Baptiste Dumont and Mabel Kinchshe, Poitras shares common ancestry with Gabriel Dumont, and has family ties to the Fishing Lake Métis Settlement. She grew up on a farm near

Elk Point, Alberta Elk Point is a town located in Eastern Alberta, Canada. It is located on Highway 41. A number of oil related businesses have located in Elk Point. Agriculture is also important in the Elk Point area. Elk Point is located on the North Saskatch ...

, 150 kilometres northeast of

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

. She currently lives in

, Alberta.

Career

As the

(MNA) President, Audrey Poitras is one of the highest profile Métis women in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and has been an advocate for Métis rights. Elected as the first female President in 1996, she has since become the longest-serving President of the MNA. Poitras has been an advocate for Métis rights and will continue to move the Métis rights agenda forward with the help of the Daniels Supreme Court decision in 2016. Poitras successfully negotiated partnerships with colleges and universities, for Métis Endowment funds of $22 million. She also oversaw the creation of the MNA's Rupertsland Institute and the Métis Centre of Excellence, which is a partnership with the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

promoting education, training, and research. In September 2003, as Interim President of the

, Poitras announced to the world, "We won! We won!" when the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; , ) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants eac ...

made its historic ruling in ''

R v Powley , commonly called the Powley ruling, is a Supreme Court of Canada case defining Métis Aboriginal rights under section 35(1) of the ''Constitution Act, 1982''. Background A Sault Ste. Marie father and son, Steve and Roddy Powley, were charged ...

'', a

landmark case Landmark court decisions, in present-day common law legal systems, establish precedents that determine a significant new legal principle or concept, or otherwise substantially affect the interpretation of existing law. "Leading case" is commonly u ...

that affirms Métis as Aboriginal people with rights protected by the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

. One year later, in 2004, Poitras completed negotiations and signed the historic Interim Métis Harvesting Agreement with Alberta, which is the first agreement in the country to deliver

harvesting Harvesting is the process of collecting plants, animals, or fish (as well as fungi) as food, especially the process of gathering mature crops, and "the harvest" also refers to the collected crops. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulses fo ...

rights to Métis. In April 2004, Poitras represented the Métis Nation at the historic Canada Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable attended by more than 20 federal

cabinet ministers A cabinet in governing is a group of people with the constitutional or legal task to rule a country or state, or advise a head of state, usually from the executive branch. Their members are known as ministers and secretaries and they are ...

and 70 Aboriginal leaders from across the country. Sitting alongside the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

and other national Aboriginal leaders, Poitras affirmed the Métis Nation's commitment towards a Canada-Métis Nation Framework Agreement. Poitras witnessed the signing of the Framework Agreement on 31 May 2005 during the federal Policy Retreat on Aboriginal issues in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. In 2005, Poitras was named among "The Alberta 100" by

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

, and "Alberta's 50 most influential people" by ''Alberta Venture'' magazine. In 2017, the Alberta Chamber of Resources selected Poitras as the 2016 Indigenous Leader of the Year. She has also received various other awards and achievement milestones throughout her career, including a

National Aboriginal Achievement Award The Indspire Awards, until 2012 the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, are annual awards presented by Indspire in Canada. The awards are intended to celebrate and encourage excellence in the Aboriginal community in Canada. About The award ...

. One of Poitras' most significant achievements was the creation of Métis Crossing, a multimillion-dollar cultural interpretive site, along the banks of the

North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows from the Canadian Rockies continental divide east to central Saskatchewan, where it joins with the South Saskatchewan River to make up the Saskatchewan River. Its water flows event ...

near

Smoky Lake, Alberta Smoky Lake is a town in Central Alberta, Canada. It is located northeast of Edmonton at the junction of Highway 28 and Highway 855. It lies between the North Saskatchewan River, Smoky Creek, and White Earth Creek, in a mainly agricultural area ...

Achievements and awards

* Appreciation Award,

School of Native Studies 1998 * Region 2 Recognition Award, Metis National Council, 1999 * Native Counselling Service of Alberta, 2001 * Uniting for Children, Children's Services Ministry 2003 * Esquao Lifetime Achievement Award, Institution For Advancement of Aboriginal Women 2002 * Louis Dorion Award for Outstanding Commitment,

Batoche Batoche, which lies between Prince Albert and Saskatoon in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, was the site of the historic Battle of Batoche during the North-West Rebellion of 1885. The battle resulted in the defeat of Louis Riel and his M ...

2002 * Politics Award, Aboriginal Role Models of Alberta 2002 * Order of the Métis Shawl, Métis Elder's Council 2003 *

Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal may refer to: * Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee Medal (1887) * Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal creat ...

2003 * Hon. Degree in Management,

Northern Alberta Institute of Technology The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) is a public polytechnic and applied sciences institute in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. NAIT offers approximately 120 credit programs leading to degrees, applied degrees, diplomas, and certifica ...

2005 * CBC's The Alberta 100 Recognition 2005 * "one of Alberta's most influential people", ''Alberta Venture Magazine'' 2005 * Circle of Honour, Institute For Advancement of Aboriginal Women 2007 (highest honour given for work to improve lives of Aboriginal people) * Recognition Award, Aboriginal Veterans Society of Alberta 2009 *

for Women in Politics 2011 * Alberta Chamber of Resources Indigenous Leader of the Year Award 2016 * Region 3 Recognition Award 2018

References

External links

Métis Nation of Alberta: President profile
*audreypoitras.com 1950 births Living people Canadian Métis women People from the County of St. Paul No. 19 Women in Alberta politics Indigenous leaders in Alberta Métis politicians Indspire Awards Métis Nation of Alberta people Women Indigenous leaders in Canada {{Alberta-politician-stub