Meet the Regional Chief

Joanna Bernard has been an integral part of Madawaska Maliseet First Nation’s growth, First serving as Councillor, then as Chief from 2003-2013, before becoming the CEO of the Madawaska Maliseet Economic Development Corporation (MMEDC) in 2013.

As a certified Economic Development Officer, she has focused much of her vision for the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation community as being a successful, self-governing and financially stable First Nation. She is also a successful member of the business community, having owned and operated her own excavation business.

Her dedication to economic development in her community has led to great successes, such as the development of the Grey Rock Power Centre.

Before being elected as Regional Chief for New Brunswick, Bernard was a member of the First Nations and Business Liaison Group of New Brunswick, the Assembly of First Nations’ Chiefs’ Committee on Economic Development and the Union of New Brunswick Indians’ Aboriginal Natural Resources Committee. She has also served as the President of the Maliseet Nation Conservation Council as well as Co-Chair of the Assembly of First Nations’ Chiefs in New Brunswick.

In 2013, Chief Bernard received the Order of New Brunswick for her tireless efforts to ensure the well-being and economic prosperity of the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation as well as all First Nations communities in New Brunswick.

Chief Bernard is an Honorary Colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces and a recipient of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for her outstanding contributions to the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation and New Brunswick. 

Joanna Bernard was elected Regional Chief for New Brunswick in 2021. Bernard succeeds Roger Augustine who had been regional chief for N.B. and P.E.I. since 2008.