Research

A National Research Project on Treaty Implementation

Between 2017 and 2025, Stephanie led the Modern Treaty Implementation Research Project as Principal Investigator. Hosted by the Tlicho Government from its Yellowknife office, the project was a partnership between the Land Claim Agreements Coalition and Carleton University School of Public Policy where Stephanie is an Adjunct Professor. The project was supported by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, through its top-tier funding program, Partnership Grants.

Establishing and sustaining this project drew on Stephanie’s experiences establishing partner-based organizations, working closely with Indigenous governments, and her unparalleled experience in self government negotiation and implementation experience as both a practitioner and academic. The project connected academic researchers with Indigenous governments across Canada, for the purpose of researching how modern treaties are implemented in Canada. The project saw thousands of Canadians engaged, supporting over 100 Indigenous and non-Indigenous undergraduate and graduate students through paid research and academic development opportunities, hundreds of community members involved and engaged in research, and over 50 publications, webinars, and general audience publications produced.

Policy Interventions

Through her various roles, Stephanie has researched, written and produced various policy papers on issues facing the Northwest Territories, participated as an expert in public forums, and made appearances on television and radio to contribute to media analysis.

Her policy papers have touched on issues such as creating a new NWT University, fostering the Knowledge Economy in the NWT, NWT education, and NWT Devolution and Resource Revenue Sharing.

Academic Publications

Stephanie has a well-established track record of excellence of academic publications. She is the author of several books and academic articles, including her best-selling academic book Finding Dahshaa: Self Government, Social Suffering, and Aboriginal Policy in Canada, which is now a standard text in Indigenous and Political Studies programs at universities across North America and Europe. It was nominated by both the Canadian Political Science Association and Canadian History Association for academic prizes. More recently, she co-edited the book Kwedoo: Best Practices in Implementing Modern Treaties in Canada with Tlicho Elder Dr. John B. Zoe. In addition, she has served as co-author on numerous peer-reviewed health-related publications in association with her work as Scientific Lead with Hotii ts’eeda.

General Audience Publications

Stephanie has authored various general audience publications, including blog posts and non-refereed articles for outlets such as Northern Affairs, CBC, and Decolonization Journal.

List of Publications

For a full list of publications, including links, click here.