Feature
Chief Sophie Pierre, a respected leader of the Ktunaxa Nation, has been named the Inaugural Senior Fellow in Indigenous Governance and Development at Harvard Kennedy School, starting in Spring 2025. Known for her groundbreaking work in governance, economic development, and cultural preservation, Pierre’s career has spanned over three decades, with significant contributions to Indigenous rights and self-determination. Her appointment to Harvard is a testament to her decades of leadership, resilience, and dedication to empowering future generations of Indigenous leaders.
When Chief Sophie Pierre walks into a room, you know that she is there.
Pierre is a mighty force that became one of the newest members of the Ash Center team, being named Inaugural Senior Fellow in Indigenous Governance and Development at Harvard Kennedy School, starting Spring 2025.
The Senior Fellow in Indigenous Governance and Development offers highly accomplished leaders an opportunity to reflect on their careers in public service and share their insights on nation-building with the next generation of world leaders.
A respected elder, visionary, and leader of the Ktunaxa Nation, Pierre brings a wealth of knowledge to Harvard, with extensive experience in governance, economic development, and the unique challenges and opportunities facing Indigenous communities today.
“I am the first one that’s been invited here, and I feel very honored by that, I recognize that it is a huge honor. A result of many years of hard work,” Pierre shared.
Her tireless work in reconciliation, economic development, and community empowerment has earned Pierre several prestigious honors, including the Order of Canada (2016), the Order of British Columbia (2002), and the National Aboriginal Achievement Award in Business (2003). From 2009 to 2015, she served as Chief Commissioner of the BC Treaty Commission, playing a key role in facilitating treaty negotiations between the governments of Canada, British Columbia, and Indigenous nations.
However, her journey began in a much different place—as a single mother of two. Pierre always acknowledging how crucial her family’s support on the reservation was in shaping her career.
“I was young, you have a lot of energy, and you figure the world is your oyster,” Pierre recalled. “You can pretty much do whatever you set your mind to do and fortunately I had a support system around me, that I was able to do that. Because if I had been in a situation where I had no family support that would’ve been really difficult. But I had my mom there… along with other family members and that’s how I was able to do it. It was never really any question. The enthusiasm of youth when you are given an opportunity or a challenge you go for it and give it your best.”
Fluent in Ktunaxa and a lifelong advocate for Indigenous rights, Pierre has dedicated over three decades to public service, including 26 years as the elected chief of ʔAq̓am (St. Mary’s Indian Band) and 25 years as the administrator of the Ktunaxa/Kinbasket Tribal Council.
Her leadership has been instrumental in reshaping her community as well as advancing Indigenous self-determination.
“I think everyone would have a different opinion about what’s critical right now, but I think self-determination has to be the #1 issue because if we don’t have self-determination, if we don’t have self-governance. You are always behind the eight ball,” Pierre emphasized. “You’re always having to fight for everything that you get instead of determining it for yourself, what kind of services your people are going to get, as supposed to waiting for government to determine where they are going to put funding resources and you have to fight with everybody else to get it.”
As Chief Commissioner of the BC Treaty Commission, Pierre also played a pivotal role in advancing treaty negotiations and strengthening agreements between First Nations and the Province of British Columbia.
One of her proudest achievements, however, was leading the transformation of the former Kootenay Indian Residential School—where she herself spent nine years—into the St. Eugene Resort, a thriving hotel, golf course, casino, and RV park. This transformation turned a painful symbol of trauma into a beacon of resilience and economic prosperity for the Ktunaxa Nation.
“I know this to be the thing I am most proud of, and I don’t say that lightly,” added Pierre. “I am very, very proud of the decision our people made of turning what is the former Indian residential school into the hotel that it is not. All of that is just taking back that building and not letting it determine what our future is to be. We could’ve let it continue to deteriorate, and it could’ve been really ugly for our people to be looking at all the time, instead now when you drive by you see this beautiful building..its alive.”
Beyond her governance roles, Pierre played a key role in turning the Ktunaxa language, once only spoken, into a written form, ensuring that it can be passed down to future generations.
“Until the 1960s our language had been written periodically by the missionaries,” she explained. “There were some words written down but there was no rhyme or reason to it, it wasn’t until the 1960s that there was a very deliberate piece of work that was done to create an alphabet for the Ktunaxa language. We had a linguist from California, and he moved in with different families in our communities, and he got as much of our language documented as possible. And he created this alphabet that we have. It was created by the linguist Larry Morgan and others working with the culture committee in Montana. They put together the dictionary and it kept going from there.”
Looking forward, Pierre sees the passing down of cultural knowledge as her greatest priority. Her work bridging traditional knowledge with modern governance reflects her commitment to sustaining the Ktunaxa culture for generations to come.
In addition to her leadership roles, Pierre has mentored young people through the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and served on the boards of both the BC Achievement Foundation and the Vancouver Foundation. She continues to guide her community as an elder advisor and remains deeply committed to mentoring the next generation-but says that responsibility is twofold.
“It’s the responsibility that one has as a Ktunaxa young person. They have the responsibility to open themselves up to receiving this information, to learning the language, to going into the classes, to help and just be there as a young person with a lot of energy to help..help an elder,” she said. “You’re going to be taught things you may read in a book, and it doesn’t really have the same influence, the same impact as when you are doing it hands on. Like learning how to make the fire for the sweat lodge. You are going to learn a lot while you’re doing that.”
A fundamental value practiced by Ktunaxa is the responsibility of passing on traditional knowledge along with life experience lessons that support one’s culture. She says it is what is most important to her going forward.
“You make it a priority, as one gets to my age you start to continue to recognize there is a huge responsibility that each and every one of us, no matter what age we are at in our age, there is always someone younger that is looking to you,” emphasized Pierre. “You pass on good examples through the work that you’re doing, and as one gets to be grandparents you realize you have this huge responsibility of passing on the knowledge, that all knowledge that is given, what good is that if you keep your head buried and don’t share that? The reason you are learning all of that is to be able to share it and bring good into our society. We always have that responsibility.”
Media Release
The Harvard Project on Indigenous Governance and Development’s Honoring Nations program is pleased to announce the selection of 18 semifinalists for the prestigious 2025 Honoring Nations awards.
Media Release
The Harvard Kennedy School’s Project on Indigenous Governance and Development is pleased to announce Chief Sophie Pierre as its inaugural Senior Fellow in Indigenous Governance and Development for Spring 2025.
Policy Brief
This policy brief analyzes the likely effects of newly Proposed Rules by the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service. These Rules would (1) expand the governmental authority of federally recognized American Indian nations to design programs for the general welfare of their citizens, and (2) clarify the federal tax status of tribal government-owned enterprises. The study finds that adoption of the Proposed Rules would greatly strengthen the capacities of tribal governments, to the benefit of tribes and the United States as a whole.
Media Release
The Harvard Project on Indigenous Governance and Development’s Honoring Nations program is pleased to announce the selection of 18 semifinalists for the prestigious 2025 Honoring Nations awards.
Policy Brief
This policy brief analyzes the likely effects of newly Proposed Rules by the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service. These Rules would (1) expand the governmental authority of federally recognized American Indian nations to design programs for the general welfare of their citizens, and (2) clarify the federal tax status of tribal government-owned enterprises. The study finds that adoption of the Proposed Rules would greatly strengthen the capacities of tribal governments, to the benefit of tribes and the United States as a whole.
Feature
From a fictional thriller to a leading report on Native children, the HKS Project on Indigenous Governance and Development shares recommendations for must-reads this summer.
