Michelle Francis-Denny comes from Pictou Landing First Nation, a small Mi’kmaw community located in Mik’ma’ki (Nova Scotia). Michelle’s career began, working for her nation more than 20 years ago.  She has a diverse background in professional counseling, employment & training, as well as community development having served as the former point of contact for the Boat Harbour Remediation project.

In recent years, Michelle has had the pleasure of working with several Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations such as The Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq, The Atlantic Policy Congress of First Nations Chiefs Secretariat, and Sobeys Inc. before joining the team at Bird Construction Ltd as the Senior Manager of Indigenous Relations and Community Engagement for the Atlantic Provinces.  Michelle takes pride in her work and is passionate about creating spaces that build meaningful and accountable relationships between industry professionals and Indigenous communities across Canada.

To name a few accomplishments, Michelle holds an MBA in Indigenous Business Leadership from Simon Fraser University, achieved certification in the Tribal leadership program at Harvard University, is an active member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the Indigenous Centre of Cumulative Effects, and has been featured in the 2019 Netflix Documentary “ There’s Something in the Water” that discusses environmental racism in Nova Scotia.  

Michelle enjoys sharing knowledge in the form of her lived and personal experience advocating for Indigenous rights, and environmental stewardship and bringing attention to Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #92 – Economic Reconciliation.