Spirit River Striped Wolf is your 2020/2021 SAMRU President. Spirit River is in his final year of the Policy Studies program.

Spirit River is from the Piikani Nation (Aapatohsipikani) which helps make up the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksikaitsitapi). His Blackfoot name is Iyimakoyiomahka which describes an enduring running wolf. Spirit River, in his own journey, has learned from his own experience of colonial trauma. Spirit River has dedicated his life to improving the conditions of Indigenous Peoples through advocacy, activism, volunteering, and leadership initiatives since his adolescence. He, along with a professor, co-founded a social enterprise called Otahpiaaki which focuses on supporting and empowering Indigenous entrepreneurs and realizing the National Aboriginal Economic Development Board’s report, Reconciliation: Growing Canada’s Economy by $27.7 Billion. Spirit River is a public speaker, a workshop facilitator for Indigenization & Decolonization, as well as for Anti-Racism training.

Key points of advocacy for Spirit River is mental health, student financial wellness, and indigenization and reconciliation efforts.

For more information, please read the REC President’s job description.