PPF names Karen Restoule as its 2018 Prime Ministers of Canada Fellow

Date: Tuesday January 16, 2018

OTTAWA, Jan. 16, 2018 – The Public Policy Forum is pleased to announce that our 2018 Prime Ministers of Canada Fellow is Karen Restoule, who will focus her research on nation-to-nation relationships and reconciling treaty relationships.

“Karen is an advocate and connector within an emerging generation of Indigenous leadership intent on resolving the unfinished business of the past and getting on with a more inclusive future,” said Edward Greenspon, President & CEO of PPF. “I’m eager to see the pathways she can illuminate for PPF, her community and the country.”

“As a country, we are recognizing the importance and value in reconciling our past to allow for a new and more inclusive pathway forward. It is through open, honest and respectful conversations with each other, with the TRC Calls to Action in hand, that we will come to better understand our respective roles and responsibilities in advancing reconciliation in Canada,” Ms. Restoule said. “To be invited to work with the PPF team in this way and to provide insight into this important policy discussion is an honour, and I look forward to working with them to explore ways to build a better and more inclusive Canada.”

Ms. Restoule is a member of Dokis First Nation (Anishinabek Nation) and a beneficiary of the Robinson-Huron Treaty 1850. She currently serves as the Associate Chair of the Ontario Parole Board within Safety, Licensing Appeals and Standards Tribunals Ontario. In 2016, she co-founded Bold Realities, an organization that aims to promote discourse among Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders on the importance of reconciling the relationship between Indigenous communities and corporate Canada. Her focus during the fellowship will be:

  • Exploring nation-to-nation relationships;
  • Reconciling the treaty relationship (with PPF Fellow Jane Hooker); and
  • Organizing an emerging Indigenous leaders gathering.

Ms. Restoule was a named a PPF Fellow in September 2016 and has supported a number of PPF projects, including Your Energy Future.

About the fellowship: Announced in 2012 at PPF’s 25th Testimonial Dinner, the Prime Ministers of Canada Fellowship brings prominent Canadian leaders to PPF to conduct research and convene dialogues about public policy, democratic institutions and good governance. The fellowship is supported financially by the RBC Foundation. Kent Aitken, Madelaine Drohan and Peter MacKinnon are previous Prime Ministers of Canada fellows.

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