Dr. Melanie Goodchild, Anishinaabe (Ojibway), moose clan, is a design and innovation strategist with over 30 years of experience working with First Nations communities. Her practice has transitioned from applied sociology to Anishinaabe, decolonial, and participatory approaches to better understand how to tackle complex systems challenges. With a Ph.D. in Social and Ecological Sustainability from the University of Waterloo, she has worked on transformative systems initiatives with other practitioners and scholars around the world.

Melanie is a contributing faculty member with the Presencing Institute’s u-school for Transformation at MIT and the Wolf Willow Institute for Systems Learning. She is passionate about utilizing complexity-aware tools together with Anishinaabe gikendaasowin (our original ways of knowing) to support innovation at scale. She is a Systems Changer in Residence with the Canadian Association of Science Centres (CASC); the Academic Director of Makwa Waakaa’igan at Algoma University; and a research associate at NORDIK Institute.

Melanie is a certified 3 Horizons facilitator and a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Awareness-Based Systems Change. She is currently an advisor to the Edge Finance Accelerator at Solvable; a member of the Measuring Systems Practice Development Group with the Social Impact Exchange in New York City; a Systems Coach with the Center for Care Innovations in California; and she serves as a member of Policy Horizons Canada’s Deputy Minister Steering Committee.

Melanie holds an MA and HBA in Sociology from Lakehead University and she was a university finalist for the Alumni Gold Medal at the doctoral level in the Faculty of Environment, 2023 recipient. She is an alumna of the International Women’s Forum Leadership Foundation’s Fellows Program (2015/16) sponsored by Harvard Business School and INSEAD. Melanie is from Biigtigong Nishnaabeg, Aroland, Couchiching and Ketegaunseebee First Nations and she resides in Bawating with her family.