30 METIS NA TION Of ONT ARIO Annu A l Repo R t 20122013 tor in talks with the Ontario gover nment to implement the Powley decision These negotiations r esulted in an agr eement on Metis har vesting rights between the MNO and the Ontario Ministr y for Natural Resour ces in July 2004 This was the frst agr eement of its kind in Canada Shortly after being elected pr esident in 2008 Pr esident Lipinski successfully negotiated the MNO On tario Framework Agr eement This agr eement r epr esented a notable tur ning point in OntarioMetis r elations as it r ecognizes the unique identity histor y cultur e and rights of Ontario Metis communities in stark contrast to generations of gover nment policy that denied the ver y existence of Ontario Metis The Framework Agr eement led to similar agr eements with other gover nment ministries agencies and postsecondar y institutions Among other highlights of Pr esident Lipinski s frst term was pr ogr ess in the ar ea of the Duty of the Cr own to Consult and Accommodate This led to r egional pr otocols being signed that permitted r egional rightsbearing Metis communities to be consulted on pr ojects and plans that will impact their collective rights and inter ests It also led to agr eements with private sector companies such as Detour Gold Osisko and Union Gas Under Pr esident Lipinski the MNO secur ed funding thr ough the Ontario New Relationship Fund which allowed the MNO to advance pr ojects on both the pr ovincial and local levels In 2011 Pr esident Lipinski secur ed a 30 million commitment fr om the Ontario gover nment for the Metis V oyageur Development Fund MVDF Ontario will pr ovide 3 million a year for ten years to allow the MVDF Metis entr epr eneurs and businesses During Pr esident Lipinski s tenur e the MNO s pr ofle has incr eased As a r esult in 2010 the Ontario Legis latur e declar ed that year the year of the Metis and Pr esident Lipinski has been asked to speak at inter national national and pr ovincial confer ences and participate in panels with r enowned speakers such as Don Drummond and appear on television pr ograms such as The Agenda with Steve Paikin In May of 2012 Pr esident Lipinski was r eelected with 872 per cent of the vote and carr ying the majority in ever y polling station F rance Picotte succeeded Pr esident Lipinski as the chair of the MNO in 2008 She frst became involved in Metis politics when she ser ved as pr esident of the MNO T immins Metis Commu nity Council and then later became PCMNO vicechair Chair Picotte is a str ong woman and pr oud Metis citizen fuent in Michif English and Fr ench Curr ently she is the PCMNO pr ovincial secr etar y for Education and T raining and Healing and W ellness Besides taking an active r ole in the oversight of these branches Chair Picotte travels acr oss the countr y and thr oughout the pr ovince raising awar eness about the Metis and Metis cultur e in Ontario In Januar y 2010 she told the Fifth Annual Ontario Aboriginal W omen in Leadership Forum in Ot tawa that success lies in having confdence in who you ar e confdence in your ability and not being stopped at not knowing something Y ou have to ask you have to know and you have to move for war d Chair Picotte s pr ofessional training is as a lab technician and as a r esult she has taken a str ong inter est in pr omoting and advancing health f r A nc E pIC otte c HAI r Chair p icot te pr esents part icipant in mno cul tural camp wit h a m et is sash mno p r esident l ipinski being interviewed by t he med ia fol lowing t he historic s upr eme Court r ul ing of t he m anitoba m et is f ederat ion Case on m ar ch 8 2013