OUR TEAM

Our team of economists, policy advisors, negotiators, governance experts, communications and social media professionals, lawyers, graphic designers, digital experts, and land management specialists can advise and assist with virtually any economic, governance, social or communications issue or opportunity.

Collectively, we have more than 60 years of combined consulting experience, bringing together long and successful track records with Indigenous, Crown and municipal governments, Indigenous organizations, universities and regulatory bodies.

Executive

  • Rob is an accomplished indigenous economist and is a member of the Tahltan Nation. Since 2009, he has negotiated over $3b worth of agreements on behalf of our First Nations clients. The agreements Rob negotiates set the standards in the areas of socio-cultural strategy, impact benefits, environmental oversight, and co-management of major resource projects.

  • A recognized business leader with extensive First Nations negotiation and land development experience, Stefan is a Vancouver “Top Forty under 40” and co-founder of the Urban Land Institute of BC. He is recognized as an authority in land negotiations, land valuation, land development on-reserve, and leads Castlemain’s land practice.

  • Alyssa is one of Canada’s leading indigenous governance and policy experts, with direct experience transitioning First Nations to self governance. She has worked for the BC AFN as a key contributor to “A Guide to Nation Building” series, and she has a Master’s degree with Honours in Political Science from the University of Regina.

  • Jasmine has over 15 years experience working to create transformative reconciliation between Indigenous Nations, other governments, and industry. She has deep experience in assisting Nations to protect and implement their title and rights through advancing governance, negotiation, and litigation across multiple sectors.

    She has worked to enact Indigenous rights through self-government legislation, laws, policies, and planning initiatives. She holds a Masters in Conflict Analysis from Royal Roads University.

  • With her Master’s degree in Dispute Resolution, Jessica specializes in tailor-made community-building and governance tools for First Nations. She has a breadth of knowledge and experience in treaty issues, indigenous policy, project management, governance best practices, and leading research methods.

  • Lloyd is a results focus visionary executive with over 25 years experience working for Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments, communities, businesses, and associations to advance Indigenous reconciliation, self-governance, and economic self-determination. With a multi-jurisdictional background and deep lived experience in the lands and resource sectors, Lloyd offers a pragmatic ability to quickly identify opportunities and challenges and develop realistic strategies to achieve meaningful and lasting outcomes.

    Examples of key initiatives led or co-led by Lloyd include: negotiation and transfer of urban, rural, and remote private and provincial crown land to Indigenous nations for the purposes of reconciliation, housing, and economic development; negotiation of Indigenous consent agreements under the Provincial Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act; development and introduction of Provincial legislation to give effect to significant Indigenous initiatives, including the Haida Gwaii Reconciliation Act; negotiation of the surrender and transfer of land and resource tenure rights to achieve Indigenous reconciliation and economic outcomes; ratification and bringing into legal effect of the Tsawwassen First Nation and Maa-nulth First Nations treaty agreements; negotiation of major project Indigenous socio-economic impact benefit agreements; negotiation of government-to-government land use strategies that integrate Indigenous knowledge and decision making into the land use planning process; and, negotiation of settlement agreements to address Indigenous rights and title litigation regarding major resource development projects and cumulative effects.

Team

  • Anthea Darychuk is an accomplished sustainability practitioner with more than a decade working in community engagement, program evaluation and research. Prior to joining Castlemain, she held positions in the public and private sectors within the natural resource industry, working alongside Indigenous communities to build inclusive programming and shared value throughout Canada and Latin America.

    Anthea holds a Bachelor of Arts and Science from the University of Guelph, and a Master of Public Health from the University of Toronto, focused on Health Promotion and Community Resilience. Anthea is an experienced community researcher, with a passion for community outreach and qualitative inquiry based on community engagement and collaboration.

  • Brooke is an Indigenous Designer who brings a variety of experience from her previous work across several sectors including, education, finance, law, medicine, entertainment, and design. These experiences have provided a solid base to successfully collaborate and navigate in varying environmental structures.

    Born and raised in Alberta, Brooke moved to British Columbia in 2000 and maintains a strong connection to her family and Alberta roots. Brooke’s work is guided by her love and respect for her Cree Métis and Celtic ancestry and the rich design tapestries they inspire.

    Brooke graduated with distinction from the Graphic Design Program at BCIT and has been designing for 20+ years. She easily connects with design approaches varying from clean and minimal to loud and vocal, or emotional and influential, delivering creative products that are unique, accessible, and modern.

    Brooke’s passion has been to challenge her design comfort zone, develop new perceptions by working closely in a team or in a solitary environment, expand her design techniques, and sharing a laugh with supportive creative colleagues and clients.

  • Clare Pugh is a communications professional with a diverse background in community-driven work dedicated to amplifying and empowering the voices of marginalized communities. Clare’s work has consisted of creating and implementing communications strategies to increase sector and public awareness of issues affecting vulnerable populations in Canada with a focus on factors of homelessness and affordable housing.

    Prior to joining Castlemain, she held positions in the public, private and non-profit sectors, with experience working alongside Indigenous communities in Yukon and British Columbia. Clare holds a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration and Community Development from the University of Northern British Columbia focused on sustainable planning and Indigenous governance.

  • Fiona Wu is a dedicated and solutions focused financial Controller with over 10 years progressive experience in finance and operations. She has extensive experience in a variety of industries including manufacturing, engineering, trust financial services and non-profit organizations. Skilled in implementing systems and streamlining processes, financial reporting, budgeting, and forecasting.

    She is a compassionate team leader who leads by example. Her role is to oversee and evaluate the operation of the financial and accounting department, and provide strategic financial analysis and support to the Castlemain team. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Financial Management and is a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia.

  • Georgia is a passionate public policy leader with over 12 years of experience working in the public and private sectors. Georgia has spent much of her career working in Alberta Government departments of Energy and Environment, where she led key policy files related to oil and gas tenure and leasing, responsible and sustainable land-use, and sector regulation. In addition to her extensive experience working in the natural resource sector, Georgia has also held a variety of leadership positions in the Alberta Public Service Commission, where her area of focus was public sector and public agency governance as well as strategic human resource policy and practice.

    Georgia took her undergrad in political science and a graduate diploma in Business Administration from Simon Fraser University. She also pursued a Masters of Arts in Political Studies at the University of Saskatchewan.

  • Hannah Geiser is a policy analyst with experience in the areas of Crown-Indigenous relations, policy development and human security. As a Senior Analyst of Governance and Policy at Castlemain, Hannah focuses on law and policy development, drafting strategic communications products, researching and reviewing existing policy documents, engaging citizens and stakeholders to develop strategic plans, and supporting the development of governance documents for clients.

    Hannah has held positions in the public, private and non-profit sectors in Ontario and British Columbia and has done extensive engagement with First Nations across B.C., working collaboratively with them to advance their relationships with the federal government and support their resiliency during emergencies. She has a certificate in Project Management and has experience managing, overseeing and executing all project activities on both domestic and international policy consulting projects, including communications and written correspondence with diverse stakeholders and Indigenous rights holders. Hannah has a Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies and Legal Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. She moved to Vancouver in 2018 where she completed her Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia before joining the Castlemain team.

  • Natasha is an experienced strategic communications and issues management advisor. Throughout Natasha’s career she has advocated for Indigenous reconciliation and inclusion. Natasha is Cree Métis, born and raised in Treaty 8 territory. Her family has strong ties to the Fort McMurray Métis, Fort McKay First Nation and Willow Lake Métis Nation.

    Much of Natasha’s 18-year career has been spent advising executives and ministers on initiatives that strengthen and diversify Alberta’s workforce and economy. Prior to joining Castlemain, Natasha led communications teams with the Government of Alberta’s ministries of Advanced Education, Labour and Immigration and Immigration and Multiculturalism. During her time with the Government of Alberta she played key roles in successfully communicating policies and programs related to coal transition, energy and natural resource development, climate change, mental health, post-secondary, occupational health and safety and labour legislation. She also provided emergency communications support during the 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfires, and the Alberta COVID-19 pandemic response.

    She has a Bachelor of Communications studies with a focus on Indigenous relations from the University of Calgary. Natasha is based in Edmonton, Alberta.

  • Rita has a diverse and extensive background in advocacy, law, and finance. She is skilled in building relationships, conducting research, community engagement, stakeholder management, and developing strategic initiatives. She is excited to take on exciting projects in support of Indigenous peoples and their goals.

    Rita is originally from Nigeria and lived in the UK before relocating to Canada in 2016. Her experiences have instilled cultural sensibility, and core values such as harmony and community. She believes in utilizing her talents and skills in service of people and community.

  • Rupamjeet Kaur is a dedicated and detail-oriented accounting professional with over 7 years of experience. She has been providing project support to Castlemain team, managing accounts payable cycle, accounts receivable cycle and controlling the project life cycle since June 2019.

    She believes that being part of Castlemain where work projects involve supporting Indigenous Communities has been one of the most rewarding experiences of her career. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance.

  • Anna is a mother, writer, facilitator, and Indigenous Youth advocate. She is a member of the Opaskwayak Cree Nation (Treaty 5) with Scots Métis roots in Cumberland House, Saskatchewan. Anna began her career as a youth worker supporting Indigenous Youth preparing to "age out" of B.C's child welfare system. Prior to re-joining Castlemain, Anna worked as a journalist covering child welfare issues. Her reporting on the practice of “birth alerts” earned her a 2022 Canadian Online Publishing Award for Best Investigative Article and a 2022 CJF Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism. She is also the recent recipient of a 2023 Jack Webster Award for Excellence in Community Reporting.

    Anna holds a B.A in First Nations and Indigenous Studies from the Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies at the University of British Columbia. Leading up to her work as a journalist, Anna worked as a communications specialist leading projects with First Nations across B.C. Her life's work is to protect, honour and uplift Indigenous children, youth and families.

  • Shannon D’Arcy is a strategic advisor with extensive knowledge in the areas of policy development, non-for-profit organizations and public administration. Prior to joining Castlemain, Shannon has held positions in both government and non-profit organizations in Ontario in which she advised senior-level executives on strategic communications, worked cross-functionally to develop strategic solutions to policy and communications projects and specialized in creating compelling stories to achieve measurable results in the natural resources and conservation sectors.

    Shannon has a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature and a Master of Arts in Women’s Studies and Feminist Research, both from Western University in London, Ontario. Shannon is a recent transplant to British Columbia after being born in Alberta, finishing elementary and high school in Nunavut, and spending over a decade in Ontario.

  • Teyem has been working in Aboriginal organizations in BC since 1999. Her office leadership ranges from a grassroots level as Youth Coordinator and Education Assistant in First Nation band offices, to political level as Snuneymuxw’s Chief and Council’s Secretary and as Administrative Assistant at the BC AFN.