Fisheries centre has new manager

By Maureen Peltier

NORTH BAY– At June’s  Annual Grand Council Assembly of the Anishinabek Nation in Munsee-Delaware,  Anishinabek/Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre chairperson Cliff Meness introduced new General Manager Peter Meisenheimer  to Chiefs-in-Assembly.

Meness said the organization would benefit from the new manager’s experience in government, industry and non-governmental organizations in Canada and internationally.  Meisenheimer has been involved with fisheries and aquatic resource management projects in diverse settings such as the Laurentian Great Lakes, the interior of Africa, the Russian arctic and international fisheries in the Pacific and North Atlantic oceans.  Prior to joining the A/OFRC as General Manager, he spent nine years as Executive Director of the Ontario Commercial Fisheries’ Association, serving on the A/OFRC Board of Directors as a representative of the commercial fishery.

An A/OFRC jacket was presented to Grand Council Chief Patrick Madahbee, who served as the board chairperson from 1996-2009.

In 1995, the Anishinabek/Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre was established to serve as an independent source of information on fisheries assessment, conservation and management, promoting the value of both western science and traditional ecological knowledge.  The A/OFRC is a not for profit corporation controlled by a board with equal representation from Native and non-Native Directors.

Maureen Peltier is Community Liaison with the A/OFRC.