Glenbow is excited to announce Mackenzie Brown as Executive Advisor, Indigenous Engagement.
In this role, Mackenzie will provide guidance and consultation on the creation of short- and long-term pan-organizational strategies, ensuring Glenbow’s operations are influenced by Indigenous knowledge and practice.
Working collaboratively to engage internal and external communities in decolonization and Indigenization, Mackenzie will build upon existing relationships and create new relationships with Indigenous communities across Canada and internationally. These connections will foster an environment in which Indigenous collaborators and visitors can thrive in a safe and culturally competent space.
Get to know Mackenzie
Mackenzie is a member of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation (Treaty 8) and is well-known across Alberta for her community engagement and advocacy for Indigenous makers and businesses.
Most recently, Mackenzie was the Director of Industry Development for Indigenous Tourism Alberta, where, as the unit’s first employee, she grew the team and led the educational program pipeline for Indigenous entrepreneurs. She used Indigenous ways of knowing, doing, and being in workshops, training, and mentoring for Indigenous and non-Indigenous stakeholders to grow the Indigenous tourism industry. She has also worked for Explore Edmonton and the Government of Alberta in similar capacities.
Mackenzie is a multidisciplinary artist, drummer, and storyteller. She recently served as Artist in Residence at the Calgary Public Library’s Central Library. Mackenzie and her mom perform as the drum group Warrior Women, providing educational and authentic Indigenous experiences around Alberta and internationally.
We could not be more thrilled to have Mackenzie join our team as we work to build a more equitable and more just institution to serve our diverse community.
We spoke with Mackenzie about her vision for the role.
What excites you about your new role?
As an artist myself, I’m excited about imagining new ways we can provide opportunities for artistic engagement and cross-cultural knowledge sharing through the arts.
It excites me that Glenbow has one of the largest Indigenous collections in Canada. To be responsible stewards means Glenbow is responsible for building relationships with the communities whose belongings are in our care.
I’m excited to help build further bridges between Glenbow and Indigenous communities. Our storytelling, experiential development, exhibition creation, and stewarding of collections needs to be done hand in hand with communities. It’s vital that the work we do as a museum is informed by our diverse communities.
Nothing about us, without us.
Tell us more about your approach to community building.
I like to tell people that I’m a professional relationship builder. I believe that building trusting relationships is the foundation of every successful business or endeavour and is a way of being. Through visiting, having tea, and getting to know one another, we better understand the struggles, hopes, and goals of our communities.
Reconciliation is a journey that takes place in relationship with one another. When we learn from and care about each other, we can make more informed decisions for the benefit and growth of our communities.
What are you looking forward to about the future of Glenbow?
The future of Glenbow means balancing and paralleling Indigenous worldviews with western worldviews. It’s exciting to think about how we can incorporate Indigenous knowledge systems into everything we do.
At Glenbow, we’ve taken a stance on radical accessibility, reconciliation, and civic leadership. With Glenbow’s renovation comes an opportunity for reimagining what a museum can be. I’m looking forward to decolonizing past museum processes and ways of being and building a museum that everyone can call home.
The work we do today lays a foundation for the next seven generations. It’s important that we do this with great intention, care, and thought. I’m excited to be a part of building something that will be a welcoming and inclusive space for communities to be inspired by art of all kinds.
