Harlan Schilling was raised in his home community of Lower Post, BC, where he has had the honor to serve the Daylu Dena community as a Councilor from 2017 – 2020, and now serves as Deputy Chief. Before his political career, Harlan served in the Canadian Armed Forces as a combat engineer for seven years. Harlan has served on the BCAFN Board of Directors and is now honored to be the recently appointed Chief Executive Officer for the newly launched BC First Nations Center of Excellence.
After over 40 years of effort, in 2021, the Daylu Dena Council successfully demolished the residential school in their community. As Deputy Chief, Harlan cared for his people as they took this important step toward healing. Harlan is passionate about supporting meaningful and sustainable community healing and economic development. In his time on Council, Harlan led initiatives for community growth, including new social programs such as on-the-land healing and wellness spaces and extensive community infrastructure projects including a new water treatment plant, a green-energy Multi-Purpose Centre, and a recent supportive housing initiative.
As a recent Board Member of the BCAFN, Harlan was honored to represent Northern First Nations and be a part of the critical and impactful work the BCAFN is doing for First Nations Peoples. As of Fall 2023, Harlan has begun his work as CEO of the newly launched Center of Excellence (CoE). Harlan’s passion for economic equity and culturally driven economic development informs his goals for the CoE and a future that sees meaningful and lasting economic reconciliation in BC.
