Announcement – Appointment of Ernie Gladstone – Executive Director, Indigenous Stewardship

Dear colleagues,

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Nang Kaa Klaagangs, Ernie Gladstone, to the position of Executive Director, Indigenous Stewardship within the Indigenous Stewardship and Cultural Heritage Directorate (ISCH), effective January 16, 2025.

Ernie joined Parks Canada in 1992 as a Deckhand within the Gwaii Haanas Field Unit. After occupying various positions, he went on to become the first Indigenous person from the Haida Nation to be appointed in 2001 to the position of Field Unit Superintendent, Gwaii Haanas. For more than two decades, Ernie served as Canada’s co-chair on the Gwaii Haanas Archipelago Management Board and worked with colleagues from the Haida Nation and Fisheries and Oceans Canada to manage Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, SG̱ang Gwaay UNESCO World Heritage Site and to establish the first National Marine Conservation Area Reserve in 2010. With more than 30 years of co-operative management experience, Ernie helped inform protected area relationships across North America and around the world, and he continues to share Haida Nation and Parks Canada lessons learned with both national and international audiences.

Since April 2023, Ernie and his team are leading Parks Canada’s participation in more than 80 rights-based negotiation agreements with Indigenous Partners, the implementation of the Parks Canada-led United Nations Declaration Act Action Plan Measures and the recently approved Indigenous Stewardship Policy as well as providing advice on Indigenous consultation and engagement files to Field Units and Directorates.

Brady Yu has kindly accepted to continue acting as Field Unit Superintendent, Gwaii Haanas until further notice.

Please join me in wishing Ernie every success in this role.

Ron Hallman

President & Chief Executive Officer

#StrongerTogether #ParksCanadaProud

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