Career Pathways in Emergency Management and Public Safety

Métis in British Columbia can listen and chat with Métis with experience working in emergency management and public safety service careers.
About this Event

Join us on November 7th at 5pm (PST) for an opportunity to talk and learn from Métis who have pursued careers in the public service, including roles in emergency management, responders, and more!

Speakers will feature Tina Neale, Tarina Colledge, Amanda Symchych, and Trish McOrmond.

Tina Neale is the Executive Director of the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Branch at the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. Tina has extensive experience in the climate change and adaptation space, having previously worked with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy and the Ministry of Forests with climate change impacts in areas such as water resources and sea level rise.

Tarina Colledge is a proud MNBC Citizen and Board Director of the British Columbia Association of Emergency Managers with over 15 years of experience working on public safety within local government. She was heavily involved in the response operations and early recovery planning of the 2016 Horse River Wildfire in Fort McMurray and helped with the evacuation of over 88,000 people. While responding, she and her family were also evacuated from those fires and eventually returned to B.C. where she is currently the Manager of Emergency Management with the Fraser Valley Regional District.
Amanda is originally from the Treaty 6 Territory, known as Saskatoon. She currently resides in the milder climate and breathtaking landscapes of the traditional territory of the Katzie (q̓ic̓əy̓) and Kwantlen (qʼʷa:n̓ƛʼən̓) First Nations. She works as a manager at BC Emergency Health Services, specializing in preparedness within the Disaster Risk, Reduction and Resilience department. From 2021 to 2022, Amanda worked as an Emergency Coordinator with Health Emergency Management BC (HEMBC), providing guidance and support to Fraser Health Authority healthcare professionals in the New Westminster and Burnaby areas. During this time, she was part of a provincial working group that developed an intra- and inter-health authority relocation process, and was led the air operations tactical response during the 2021 Atmospheric River event, which cut off the eastern Fraser Valley from the rest of the region. Currently, Amanda is pursuing a Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies at Athabasca University, with focuses on global change, and work, organization and leadership. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Emergency and Security Management.

A trauma-informed sociologist, apocalyptic optimist, decolonial practitioner and Métis founder of magpie inc, Trish McOrmond has spent over 20 years working for 6 different governments in three provinces and three Nations, including 8 years with Alberta Emergency Management Agency, four years in the UK, and a year with the Métis Nation of Alberta. She has excellent pattern recognition and provides that sober second thought in a world that moves too quickly. While she is known to take on questionable side quests, her commitment is working toward a livable future for all our relations. You can follow her on social media @magpieTrisha.