About Sheila North

An experienced and compassionate leader

GRAND CHIEF SHEILA M. NORTH, Wikahsko Iskwew, is a Cree Leader, Politician, Policy Advocate, Activist, Journalist, and Author of the Bunibonibee Cree Nation in the Treaty 5 Territory who formerly served as the Grand Chief of the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, MKO.  She was elected in 2015 as the first woman to hold the position. 

Grand Chief Sheila M. North is a Lifelong Activist for the Treaty, Title, Inherent, and Human Rights of First Nations Peoples.  Chief North knows that our National Organization was created by our Ancestors to Honor Our Sovereign Nations, Elevate, and Implement our Rights. 

With North’s leadership and part of Grand Chief North’s Action Plan, MKO:

• Contributed to the completion of a Landmark Economic Impact Study measuring Indigenous contributions of approximately $9.3B to Manitoba’s Economy and GDP in one year.

• She advocated alongside many Survivors, Families, Leaders and Allies to see the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls become a reality and continue to advocate for the implementation of the 231 Calls To Justice released in the final report of the Inquiry.

• She commissioned a curriculum and co-created a film on MMIW with support from the Canadian Women's Foundation.

• Created the commonly used hashtag, #MMIW, in 2012 to ensure the issue remains in the public consciousness and that it is always viewed as a Human Rights Priority in Canada.

North is the Director at the International Commission on Missing Persons [ICMP] overseeing Missing Children, Residential Schools, and Engagement.  Fighting to defend the dignity of our people, she is tasked with achieving Accountability, Justice, and Restitution while leading the engagement and political strategy for Missing Children and unmarked Graves internationally and in Canada at former Indian Residential School (IRS) sites.  

North is a trusted Indigenous voice in media as an award-winning Journalist who co-produced a documentary with Leonard Yakir, entitled 1200+, highlighting the systemic issues that place Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirited people at greater risk for violence and sexual exploitation.  Increasingly, the issue also impacts Men and Boys, which is why Sheila now promotes the hashtag, #MMIR, to acknowledge all Relatives impacted by the national tragedy.

North will initiate her international contacts to frame the discussion and strategies to uphold and implement Treaty & Inherent Rights and will use her journalism expertise to broaden the Rights discussion in the country. 

Sheila comes from a large Ininew, close-knit family. She is the mother of two children and the loving grandmother of one.