Marie St-Gelais

Marie St-Gelais is an Innu entrepreneur and civil engineer from the community of Pessamit. She recently completed her MBA dedicated to Aboriginal leaders at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. Marie co-founded Ashini Consultants in 2016, quickly becoming the largest Aboriginal engineering firm in Eastern Canada in a mission to support infrastructure and economic development for First Peoples. She also promotes the engineering profession among First Nations through scholarships for student retention. Having begun her career in the iron ore mining industry, Marie believes that the technical voice of First Nations is essential to the implementation of major projects on the territories of her ancestors, and works actively to ensure that Aboriginal professional firms can make their mark. Among other involvements, she sits on the Board of Directors of the Conseil du patronat du Québec, proudly representing Aboriginal business leaders. She also sits on the Boards of Dr. Stanley Vollant’s Puamun Meshkenu organization and Canada’s Aboriginal Innovation Initiative.