Raised in the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island, Ontario, Peltier first became aware of the need to advocate for water when he was just eight years old. When she visited a neighboring indigenous community, she found that they could not drink their tap water due to pollution. This began her career as an activist.
“I believe no matter what race or color, (or) how rich or poor we are, everyone deserves clean drinking water,” she says. “You don’t have to be Aboriginal to respect (water) or raise awareness about it.”
At the age of 12, Peltier made headlines for berating Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for his failure to enact clean water policies. Since then, she has addressed world leaders at the UN General Assembly and the UN Secretary-General’s climate summit. She has also been nominated three times for the International Children’s Peace Prize.
“You wouldn’t generally think that a child or young person would speak about world issues or political issues,” says Peltier. “That’s why it’s so much stronger — because that’s how you know something’s wrong.”
Watch the video above to find out how Peltier highlights the pivotal role of water in indigenous communities.