Statistics Canada makes great effort to build and maintain relationships with Aboriginal communities and organizations in order to be responsive to their data needs. The presentation explored the evolving nature of data gathering on Aboriginal peoples. A demographic, social and economic portrait of Aboriginal peoples living in Alberta, and more specifically Edmonton, as well as some of the challenges and opportunities in the area of Aboriginal statistics were also outlined.
The presentation was followed by a panel discussion with experts and audience questions.
When: Friday, March 17, 2017, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (noon)
Where: The Sutton Place Hotel Edmonton, 10235-101 Street, Ballroom, Edmonton, Alberta
Cost: Free
Registration is closed.
Presenter
Anil Arora, Chief Statistician of Canada, Statistics Canada
Anil Arora earned a Bachelor's of Science degree at the University of Alberta, then went on to study computer science and received a graduate certificate in public sector management and governance from the University of Ottawa. He joined Statistics Canada in 1988 and moved up the ranks to become Assistant Chief Statistician of the Social, Institutions and Labour Statistics Field in 2008. After a few years spent as Assistant Deputy Minister at Natural Resources Canada and Health Canada, Mr. Arora was appointed Chief Statistician of Canada in September 2016.
Moderator
Johanne Denis, Director General, Census Subject Matter, Social and Demographic Statistics Branch, Statistics Canada
Johanne Denis holds a Bachelor of Mathematics degree from the University of Montreal (1983) and a Master's degree in Applied Science from the l'École Polytechnique de Montréal (1985). She is currently responsible for the Census of Population content development and for the processing and analysis of related data. Ms. Denis also oversees a wide range of social and demographic statistical programs, including Aboriginal statistics, immigration statistics and language statistics, as well as Canadian demographic estimates, analysis and projections.
Panelists
Ali Abdelrahman, Director, Labour Economics and Statistics, Government of Alberta
Dr. Ali Abdelrahman has a Master in Economics and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from Iowa State University, and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Pennsylvania State University. He is the Director of Labour Economic and Statistics of the provincial department of Alberta Labour. In this role, he provides leadership in identifying and analyzing labour market dynamics and conditions, short and long-term trends, and developing statistical tools, models, forecasts and special research reports pertaining to key labour market issues. Mr. Abdelrahman has been associated with the academic teaching and research community for many years, and has taught several courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels at Iowa State University and in Egypt.
Chris Andersen, PhD. Professor and Dean (Interim), Faculty of Native Studies, University of Alberta
Chris Andersen is Métis, originally from the Parkland region of Saskatchewan. He received his PhD in 2005 from the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta and became a faculty member of the Faculty of Native Studies in 2000. In 2014, he was awarded Full Professorship. He is the former Director of the Rupertsland Centre for Métis Research and is currently the Dean (Interim) of the Faculty. Dr. Andersen is the author "Métis": Race, Recognition and the Struggle for Indigenous Peoplehood (UBC Press, 2014). In 2015, the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association awarded "Métis" the "2014 Prize for Best Subsequent Book in Native American and Indigenous Studies" and in 2016, it was shortlisted for the 2015 Canada Prize.
Jacqueline M. Quinless, PhD. CLIR Fellow Program, Washington DC and Digital Scholarship and Strategy, University of Victoria
Jaqueline Quinless works in Digital Scholarship and Strategy at the University of Victoria and is considered a leading expert in the collection and analysis of Indigenous data. She specializes in applied statistics related to socio-economic development and Indigenous health and wellness, and her research is used to inform social policy throughout Canada. She is an award winning sociologist, recognized by the Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) and the Angus Reid Foundation for her applied statistical work and collaborative community based research in the advancement of Indigenous issues and human welfare in Canada. Dr. Quinless is also a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) holder for her doctoral work in Indigenous health outcomes at the University of Victoria where she teaches. She has also spent 10 years with Statistics Canada, where one of her roles was to manage a team of 250 First Nations peoples for the 2011 Census for on reserve data collection activities in the Western region.
Cora Voyageur, PhD. Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Calgary
Dr. Cora Voyageur is a Sociologist at the University of Calgary. She is a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation from Fort Chipewyan, Alberta. Her research focuses on the First Nation, Metis and Inuit experience in Canada, and specializes in women's leadership and community development. She is an award-winning teacher and researcher who has presented her research at the prestigious Oxford Round Tables and the United Nations in New York City, and she has taught at the Golda Meir Centre for International Leadership in Haifa, Israel. Ms. Voyageur has published 7 books and more than 60 academic articles and book chapters, and has been the faculty leader for the Indigenous Women in Leadership program at the Banff Centre for the past 14 years.
Marc Lachance, Director, Social and Aboriginal Statistics Division, Statistics Canada
Marc Lachance earned a Bachelor of Mathematics degree from the University of Ottawa, with a specialization in statistics (1988). He started working at Statistics Canada as a coop student in 1985. He started his career as a methodologist, and then worked in the social statistics field, focusing on education and the labour market. From 2005 to 2010, Mr. Lachance was Director of the Canadian Council on Learning. The holistic learning models for First Nations, Metis and Inuit that were developed under his direction are still used today by many organizations working in that field. Mr. Lachance has been the Director of the Social and Aboriginal Statistics Division for nearly a year, overseeing, among others, the Aboriginal Peoples Survey.