Kluane Adamek

Regional Chief Kluane Adamek (whose traditional name is “Aagé”) is a proud citizen of the Kluane First Nation and belongs to the Dakl’aweidi (Killerwhale) Clan. The youngest ever woman to serve as Regional Chief of the National Assembly of First Nations, Kluane leads Yukon First Nations communities in advancing their priorities, while advocating for those whose voices most often go unheard — particularly women and youth. 

She declared 2020 the “Year of the Youth,’ dedicated to visioning, creating, and prioritizing initiatives on women’s leadership, youth empowerment and combating climate change. In February, her leadership made possible the first-ever regional First Nation climate gathering, “Shared Heart”, with a focus on intergenerational conversations between youth and elders. A month later, the Yukon Region held the AFN National First Nations Climate Gathering, hosting over 400 First Nations leaders, women, youth and elders to collaboratively discuss a holistic lens through which they could examine the impacts that climate change has upon First Nations’ self-determination, knowledge systems, self-sufficiency, and capacity to transition towards a sustainable and equitable future. Kluane’s dedication to First Nations’ self-determination, self-sufficiency, and capacity to transition towards a sustainable and equitable future led to the establishment of AFN Yukon Region’s Climate Action Fellowship, providing opportunities to Yukon First Nations youth between 18-30 to participate in digital and land-based training as they collaboratively develop a Climate Action Plan for the entire Yukon region. 

Kluane’s leadership is building upon First Nations’ matriarchal wisdom — a topic she spoke on for a November TED talk — and paving the way for future generations.