About

Michael lives in the Commercial Drive neighbourhood of Vancouver, with his wife Jennifer, their children Olivia and Maxwell, and their dog Star, a living muppet.

Born in Lethbridge, Michael grew up (more or less) in Winnipeg and Thunder Bay before moving to Victoria. After obtaining a B.A. in Economics and an LL.B. at UVic, Michael was called to the bar in 1996. As a young lawyer he devoted himself to his love of the arts, working with nonprofit music and theatre organizations in Vancouver. One day a phone call drew him back to Victoria to join the B.C. government's Land Service division. There, he worked on land-use policy and land tenure agreements before becoming the manager of indigenous relations, consulting with first nations and supporting treaty talks.

Another call drew him to join Dogwood Initiative, where he worked as director of operations for several years before returning to Vancouver as a graduate student at UBC Law. Michael then began teaching law in Capilano University's paralegal program, which he continues to do today.

Damion Briscoe studied Engineering Design in Toronto and has more than 25 years of diverse international experience. During his career, he has worked with major multi-national / Fortune 500 corporations managing and implementing multi-million dollar projects globally in a variety of business sectors and industries. After working in Canada, Hong Kong, the United States and Luxembourg over a period of 15 years, Damion moved with his family to the Middle East working with a major regional Investment Bank for 7 years as an Investment Analyst Consultant responsible for providing detailed risk assessments, analysis and recommendations for major capital projects in a variety of industrial sectors. After moving back to Canada in 2016, he worked with a technology startup based in Victoria, BC in a Senior Executive role responsible for the development and implementation of key leading edge virtual reality technology for ride attractions. Damion is a hands-on Executive that understands the value of people and how to build strong collaborative relationships within teams and stakeholders.

Peter has been a conservation leader in government, academia, private industry, not-for-profit organizations, and as a consultant. His career has focused on improving sustainable land management in Alberta and nationally, throughout Canada, and internationally. Peter has negotiated conservation positions within Alberta, within Canada and internationally. He has experience working with and for First Nations, extensive experience in Alberta’s oil sands and foothills regions and throughout Canada’s boreal forest, and has published numerous ground-breaking reports and science papers. Peter is recognized as a highly effective leader, networker, communicator, and manager.