CN appoints Jamieson, Sinclair co-chairs of Indigenous Advisory Council

CN's board has appointed Roberta Louise Jamieson and Murray Sinclair as co-chairs of the new CN Indigenous Advisory Council (IAC), an independent body comprised of Indigenous peoples’ representatives from across Canada.

The council will provide advice on issues relevant to CN and its relationship with the more than 200 Indigenous communities in which the Class I operates. 

A Mohawk from the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, Jamieson was the first First Nations woman in Canada to earn a law degree and the first woman to be elected chief of the tribe's Grand River Territory. Sinclair is an Anishinaabe, a member of the Peguis First Nation and a fourth degree chief of the Midewiwin Society.

IAC's goals include reinforcing diversity and inclusion through policies and procedures that reflect these values, as well as fostering meaningful and long-lasting relationships between the railway and Indigenous peoples, CN officials said in a press release.

The IAC is part of a series of measures designed to reinforce CN’s status as a leader among North American Class Is and across the transportation sector, including improvements to the effectiveness, transparency and accountability of the board in line with emerging best practices.