Douglas A. Yahn, MES, CAHP is currently the Manager of Strategic Advisory and Sustainability for Matawa First Nations Management (MFNM). For more than a decade prior to this, he was the Director of Indigenous Relations and Social Sciences at WSP with both national and global mandates. He has been active in management for more than 30 years. He holds a master’s degree in environmental studies from Lakehead University with a focus on Northern Environments and Cultures.
Mr. Yahn speaks on Indigenous issues and inclusivity in both national and international forums and is an active proponent of relationship building.
He has led and participated in Traditional Land Use studies. As a consultant, he has led roundtable discussions with Indigenous community members and industry representatives to facilitate a mutual understanding of projects and processes.
Mr. Yahn is a specialist in archaeological assessment, excavation project management and archaeological, historical and heritage research. His experience includes Archaeological Overview, Archaeological Survey, Archaeological Assessments, Archaeological Impact Mitigation and Monitoring carried out in accordance with provincial standards and federal guidelines in association with First Nations groups, Metis groups, municipal, industrial and government agencies. He has also performed historical research for various organizations and individuals. He has experience with both precontact archaeology and urban historical archaeology. He has experience in the development of heritage resources mitigation measures and the documentation of heritage buildings and cultural heritage landscapes. He has completed assessments which support the Ontario Heritage Act (2005) and has a working knowledge of the Municipal Heritage Bridges Cultural, Heritage and Archaeological Resources Assessment Checklist (2014), the Reference Guide on Physical and Cultural Heritage Resources (1996), the Ontario Heritage Toolkit (2006), and the Guidelines for Preparing the Cultural Heritage Resources Component of Environmental Assessments (1992) and other key documents.
Mr. Yahn currently sits on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for The Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society as Past President and is the Chair of the City of Thunder Bay Heritage Advisory Committee. He is also proud to be an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Anthropology and a member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies at Lakehead University.
