Clarence Louie (born 1959/1960) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

leader and businessman. Louie has been the chief of the

Osoyoos Indian Band The Osoyoos Indian Band () is a First Nations government in the Canadian province of British Columbia, located in the adjacent towns of Oliver and Osoyoos in the Okanagan valley, approximately north of the Canada–United States border. They ar ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Okanagan The Okanagan ( ), also called the Okanagan Valley and sometimes the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part of ...

for ten terms, the first beginning in 1985. He has been credited with contributing to the economic success of the small community, and has received regional, national, and international recognition, including the

Order of British Columbia The Order of British Columbia is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Instituted in 1989 by Lieutenant Governor David Lam, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier Bill Vander Zalm, the order is administe ...

in 2004 and the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2016.

Early life

Louie was born near

Oliver Oliver may refer to: Arts, entertainment and literature Books * ''Oliver the Western Engine'', volume 24 in ''The Railway Series'' by Rev. W. Awdry * ''Oliver Twist'', a novel by Charles Dickens Fictional characters * Ariadne Oliver ...

and raised on the Osoyoos reserve by a single mother. Due to high unemployment, many adults in the community had to work as transient labourers on fruit orchards in nearby

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

. Louie was forced to be self-sufficient during his childhood years. At age 19, he left British Columbia and enrolled in First Nations University in

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina ( ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 Canadian census, ...

. He then studied native studies at the

University of Lethbridge The University of Lethbridge (also known as uLethbridge, uLeth, and U of L) is a public comprehensive and research university located in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, with a second campus in Calgary, Alberta. Founded in the liberal arts traditio ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. After receiving his degree, he returned to the Okanagan.

Tenure as chief

At 24 years of age, Louie was elected as chief of the Osoyoos Indian Band. The band has 460 members, and controls of land. He started the Osoyoos Indian Band Development Corporation (OIBDC) in 1988. Through the corporation's efforts, the previously impoverished band started or acquired nine businesses, including tourism, construction, and recreation companies. The band now employs 700 people including non-First Nations. A high-profile business started by the OIBDC during Louie's tenure is Nk'Mip Cellars, the first aboriginal-owned winery in North America. Louie has served 10 terms as of 2012, winning every election but one since 1985. He consulted with federal finance minister

Jim Flaherty James Michael Flaherty (December 30, 1949 – April 10, 2014) was a Canadian politician who served as the federal minister of finance from 2006 to 2014 under Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper. First elected to the Legislative Assemb ...

in 2008 on matters of economic development. He is a two-term chair of the National Aboriginal Economic Development Board. In 2003, Louie was chosen by the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

as one of six Canadian First Nations leaders to review economic development in American Indian communities. In 2004, he received the

. Louie has also been involved in

land claim A land claim is "the pursuit of recognized territorial ownership by a group or individual". The phrase is usually only used with respect to disputed or unresolved land claims. Some types of land claims include Aboriginal title, aboriginal land cla ...

settlements with the provincial government. He was given the Freedom of the Town of

on 21 July 2017.

References

External links

CBC Doc Zone interview (2011)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Louie, Clarence Living people Indigenous leaders in British Columbia Members of the Order of British Columbia Indspire Awards Members of the Order of Canada Year of birth missing (living people)