Operations Manager

Marlee (they/she) is a Two-Spirit, Indigiqueer Métis and mixed-European youth, born in northern Manitoba near Athapa’puskow Saka’higan (“rock on both sides of the lake”) and later raised in the Selkirk area of the Red River Métis homeland. Their Métis family names include Begg, Spence, Calder, Fidler, Pruden, and Chastellaine. Marlee moved to Metro Vancouver in 2013 and currently lives on the unceded lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm, Skwxwú7mesh, and səlilwətaɬ Nations in East Vancouver.

A proud policy nerd with a background in urban Indigenous health, Marlee is driven to explore the ongoing relationships between colonialism, capitalism, city planning, and community wellness. In their previous work at Vancouver Aboriginal Health Society, they developed programs and policy frameworks to support thriving Indigenous health systems in urban primary care.

As CityHive’s Operations Manager, Marlee’s work is rooted in their values of tapwewin (truth), kwayskastasowin (setting things right), wâhkôhtowin (kinship and responsibility to all our relations), and kaa-wiichihitoyaahk (taking care of each other).

Marlee has been part of the grassroots Métis youth collective Red River Echoes, has sat on the City of Vancouver’s Urban Indigenous Peoples’ Advisory Committee, and has advised on urban and Métis-specific UNDRIP implementation at local and regional levels. Out of office, you may find Marlee at a hockey game, at the movies, or on a bus just for fun.