INNOVATOR PROFILE

Gisele Maria Martin is a citizen of the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation. She is a Nuu-chah-nulth language and culture activist, educator, storyteller singer and composer. Through the Raincost Education Society, Gisele runs Yucḥap Panač, which includes cultural outdoor field trips, ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ / Tla-o-qui-aht Language classes, cultural workshops, and traditional food security workshops in ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ / Tla-o-qui-aht and Ahousaht. A passionate advocate for the preservation, revitalization and transmission of traditional knowledge and languages, Gisele embodies the philosophy that land is the best university and one should never stop learning.