John Walker T’exelc (Williams Lake) First Nation

RPF, Stewardship Forester, Williams Lake First Nation

John is originally from Nova Scotia and graduated from UNB in 1996. He worked in Terrace doing silviculture surveys as a summer student and moved to BC upon graduation. He has lived in Williams Lake for 28 years and worked as a consultant until 2019. During this time he has worked on mountain pine beetle and Douglas-fir bark beetle infested stands, and helped fight the 2017 megafires. In 2019 he transitioned his career and started his employment with Williams Lake First Nation. With this position he has developed a deeper understanding of Indigenous management in the stands of Williams Lake First Nation’s stewardship area. This knowledge gathering continues and allows him to manage and advocate, on behalf of the community, for holistic land management that improves the stewardship area for wildlife, fire mitigation, hydrology, carbon sequestration, and culturally important plants while considering climate change.