Educator & Youth Advocate Yolonda Skelton Jackson served for 21 years as a Special Education educator in high school and specialized learning programs across SD50, SD62, and SD35. Throughout her teaching career—spanning subjects from First Nations Studies to Environmental Science—she grounded her classroom in the Circle of Courageethos: cultivating belonging, mastery, independence, and generosity in every student. Yolonda empowered youth to recognize their own inherent strengths, teaching them that they are the change-makers of their generation and encouraging them to use their personal platforms to create positive ripples in the world. This commitment to culturally grounded, strength-based learning remains the foundation of everything she creates.

Gitxsan Design & Wearable Stewardship Transitioning her passion for teaching into the world of fashion and costume design, Yolonda approaches wearable art not as mere decoration, but as a living expression of Indigenous-led reciprocity, story, and ecosystem protection. Her eco-conscious design process actively reframes value through upcycling, transforming discarded textiles and leather into striking pieces that minimize waste and keep resources in circulation. Grounded in her First Nation roots, her collections center water protection and bring deep ecological meaning to life:

• Sacred Animal Symbolism: Honoring keystone species as sacred relatives, her garments feature salmon as ancestral kin and vital ecosystem caretakers, and killer whales as emblems of family, cooperation, and ocean-spirit intelligence.

• Balance & Harmony: Incorporating Thunderbird and Sisiutl symbolism, her pieces represent the union of dualities and living teachings.

• Healing & Remembrance: Designed to evoke care, responsibility, and restoration, each piece carries high-tension narrative depth and contemporary environmental urgency.

Community Trust & Wisdom Keeper A prominent creative force, Yolonda has built sustained community trust through her runway showcases at Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week since 2017 and her annual feature presentations for Red Dress Night since 2019. Beyond the runway, she embraces her role as a "Wisdom Keeper," using collaborative workshops and design teaching to mentor the next generation of makers. By making remembrance, resilience, and land-based values visible and touchable, Yolonda demonstrates how art and design serve as enduring forms of cultural stewardship.