Our Team

Dr. Shirley Ida Williams

Elder, Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

Dr. Shirley Ida Williams nee Pheasant (Neganigwane) is Bird Clan from Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve, Manitoulin Island.

An award-winning teacher and prolific author, Shirley became the first Indigenous individual in Canada to achieve the rank of full professor based on her Traditional Indigenous Knowledge. She taught and developed curriculum in Anishinaabemowin at Trent University for many years before retiring in 2004.  She continues to teach on a part time basis and remains active as a translator, cultural advisor, and Elder.

Ian Gilmour

Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

Ian Gilmour is the chair of the Board of Ecologos, a charity dedicated to informing and inspiring citizen action to protect water. An Associate Partner with KPMG, Ian specializes in designing and leading large public sector transformations. Currently advising on health care reform in several American states, he led the modernization of water and wastewater plants and helped design Ontario’s Water Resource Information System.

Georgie Horton-Baptiste

Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

Georgie Horton-Baptiste is a Saulteaux Anishinaabe Ikwe, Atik Doodem, with ancestral roots in the Manitou Rapids Rainy River area in Treaty 3.  She grew up in the Bancroft-Peterborough area and has been a part of the local urban Indigenous community for the past 17 years.  Georgie is an Electrical CAD Technician by trade, a photographer and dreamer at leisure, and a Water Walker by accident. After receiving an invitation to participate in the first water walk in 2010, she said ‘yes’ without knowing what it truly meant.  Since then, her role as a leader in the Annual Water Awareness Walks in the Kawarthas has been map maker, timekeeper, picture-taker and logistics planner.

Elizabeth Osawamick

Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

Elizabeth (Liz) Osawamick is an Anishinaabe Midewiwin-kwe community leader, Water Walker/activist, jingle dress dancer, devoted parent and professional teacher. She is President of Anishnaabemowin Teg, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting, teaching and developing Anishnaabe language and cultural pride. A leader of the Kawartha area Water Walks under the guidance of Elders Dr Shirley I Williams and Nookomis Josephine Mandamin, Liz has dedicated her life to her people, her language, the lands, and the waters.

Rienk de Vries

Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

A recognized water utility consultant, Rienk de Vries has provided advice, direction and facilitation to leading public sector organizations in three countries. He coauthored the Water Environment Federation practice on information technology in utilities. His work with Canadian municipalities and provinces ensured cost-effective services that meet stringent quality standards for drinking water and contaminant removal to protect Canada’s surface and groundwater. A Board member at EcoLogos, Rienk has a special interest is connecting citizens to actions to protect water.

Marcelene Anderson

Gikendaasowin Advisory Circle

As managing director of Raven Strategic Consulting, Marcelene Anderson specializes in strategic management, assisting organizations to develop and successfully implement their strategy, align their organization at all levels, and build high-performance organizations that achieve results day-to-day. A Board member at EcoLogos, she works with First Nations, private and not-for-profit organizations.

Cathy Mitchell

Gikendaasowin Advisory Committee

Cathy Mitchell, Environmental Technologist focused on Energy and Water Conservation for Peterborough Utilities with a passion for climate change mitigation and community engagement. First introduced to the idea of indigenous-led water walking by Elder Dorothy Taylor of Curve Lake First Nation, who came together with many other water protectors to form the Sacred Water Circle – a group of volunteers from all different backgrounds who believe water is sacred. Cathy is a part of Nbi Emosaadamajig and has walked for water every Mother’s Day for 7 years.

Alix Taylor

Project Manager

Alix Taylor is the Water Program Manager, Green Communities Canada. She has been involved in community environmental engagement for over 10 years.  Alix has helped organize the Kawartha Lakes Water Walks for 7 years with Nibi Emosaawdamajig, and is a founding member of the Sacred Water Circle, a collection of Indigenous and non-Indigenous women who believe that water should be sacred in all areas of our lives. Alix is also the Project Mentor for Youth for Water, a program that empowers Indigenous youth to lead water projects in their communities.

Kim Wheatley

Nibi Emosaawdamajig Lead, Cultural & Protocol Coordinator

Kim Wheatley is an Ojibwe Anishinaabe Grandmother from Shawanaga First Nation Reserve and carries the spirit name Head or Leader of the Fireflower and is Turtle Clan. She has appeared on TV, radio and in many news articles connected to her passion of Indigenous Knowledge sharing. Kim has worked with over 34 First Nation communities having organized many Indigenous events, authored 4 books, received city awards & volunteers on a variety of boards as an Indigenous Advisor. Currently working as a Cultural Consultant Kim is excited to lead the culture and protocol component of the Great Lakes Water Walk.

Stan Gibson

Ecologos Lead, Partnership & Fundraising Coordinator

Stan Gibson is the founding Director of Ecologos, a charity whose programs have helped reconnect people with deeply felt experiences in order to nourish a commitment to action for a sustainable future.  Best known for its annual Water Docs Film Festival and Grade 8 Water Docs @ School Action Projects program,” Ecologos has been delivering environmental education and action programs since 1999.

Aleyah Erin Lennon

Volunteer Coordinator

Aleyah Erin Lennon is a Certified Ontario Teacher and director at Anam Consulting, with a professional background in Wilderness Education, Environmental Science and Indigenous Studies.  Currently completing a Masters of Sustainability Studies at Trent University, her research interests involve examining Settler Consciousness in Indigenous-led water protection and the role of identity, culture, and spirituality in the co-creation of sustainable communities. As a settler-Canadian of Irish ancestry, Aleyah is deeply grateful for the continued privilege to live, work, and grow in Nogojiwanong.

Kristin Muskratt

Project Administrator

Kristin Muskratt is an Indigenous youth from Curve Lake First Nation. She graduated high school from Lakefield District Secondary School in 2009 and has a background working in administration. Curve Lake First Nation is one of the many communities that have regular boil water advisories and has led Kristin to her interest in water protection. Kristin became Youth for Water Coordinator in September 2016. Her interest in water, the environment, and Indigenous culture has only grown from there.

Lucy Cummings

Interfaith Outreach

Lucy Cummings is Executive Director of Faith & the Common Good, where she is honored to support diverse faith and spiritual communities contributing to greener, healthier, more resilient neighborhoods. She brings 20+ years of global experience in researching, funding, and implementing community-based programs that bridge cultural, political, and disciplinary divides. She is working up the courage to organize a sacred water walk around the lake her family visits each summer.

Emily Charles-Donelson

Social Media Coordinator

Emily is a Social Media Marketer/Content Creator based in Toronto who has been perfecting the art of online storytelling as a method to amplify the important messages of non-profits and charities for the last five years. She takes the tools and techniques of traditional digital media marketing and applies them to organizations working hard to shift our world into a new story – one that is more sustainable and supportive of people and the planet. Follow along with Emily on Instagram @itsahashtaglife.

Bob Isenberger

Community Ambassador Outreach

Bob is the Director of Programs for the Ecologos Institute and Water Docs Film Festival, and Program Manager for Water Docs @ School Action Projects. His early passion for the Earth resulted in a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from the University of Minnesota at Duluth, but he was then seduced into the world of computer software and corporate consulting for over 3 decades. Finally parting ways with the corporate world a decade ago, Bob received a Master in Environmental Studies (with a focus on adult education and behavior change) from York University, and began concentrating his energies on the vital work of helping create a more just and environmentally sustainable world.

Stephanie Sardelis

Corporate Engagement

Always surrounded by water, Stephanie has a deep-seated passion for marine biology and ocean protection. With a Master’s in Conservation Biology from Columbia University, Stephanie’s interests lie at the intersection of environmentalism, public education, policy, and Indigenous rights. A recent addition to the Ecologos team, Stephanie is excited to engage with new audiences in the non-profit sector to help foster Canada’s conservation mindset.

Angela Woodcock

Event Coordinator

Angela Woodcock is a community organizer and campaigner who has been active in social and environmental justice movements for all of her adult life. She is particularly passionate about organizing events and gatherings where everyone feels welcome and valued. Throughout her many years of activism, Angela has found herself working on many different campaigns both grassroots and international and is as comfortable in a boardroom as on the front lines. More recently, Angela has become a mother, and now more than ever she wants to be a cog in the wheel of change to create a more fair and just world.