Elyse Schipper, MPNL is a values-driven and strategic leader with a 15+ year track record of excellence in the non-profit sector. She has dedicated much of her career to initiatives that expect and enable a high quality of life for all, and particularly through the lens of family and community. Her commitment to raising the bar for mental health care was driven by family experience, which led to her role as co-founder of Pine River Institute and Foundation, a first-of-its kind wilderness and live-in treatment centre for youth struggling with mental health and addictive behaviours. As a consultant, she helped develop a culturally relevant mental health and addiction treatment program for First Nations youth, a post-secondary diploma program in Nature-based Therapy, and she has advised both private and non-profit organizations on growth, fundraising, and strategy. Prior to joining FSO, she served as the Executive Director of Pleo, a family peer support organization helping families of children struggling with mental health challenges, and a recipient of Best Non-Profit Employer – Workplace Mental Health in 2022. Throughout her career she has engaged stakeholders with a common vision, bridged partnerships, and built resilient teams and organizations with compassion, teamwork, gumption, kindness, and finding other ways up the mountain.
