Dr. Sheryl Lightfoot

Biography

Sheryl Lightfoot is a professor in the Department of Political Science and the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy. She holds the Tier II Canada Research Chair in Global Indigenous Rights Politics and serves as a Senior Advisor on Indigenous Affairs to the President of the University of British Columbia. As one of the world’s leading experts in global Indigenous politics, her research focuses on complex questions regarding Indigenous peoples’ rights and their claimed, negotiated political spaces. She explores both the practical and theoretical aspects of the implementation of Indigenous rights in global, comparative, domestic, and regional contexts. She is the author of 'Global Indigenous Politics: Subtle Revolution', co-editor of 'Indigenous Peoples Borders' (2024), and the 'Handbook of Indigenous Public Policy' (2024), alongside numerous journal articles and book chapters. Lightfoot is also a member of the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, where she provides objective expertise and advice to the UN Human Rights Council on the implementation of the rights of Indigenous Peoples. This body assists UN Member States in achieving the goals set forth in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Research Interests