The Northern Community Land Trust was founded in 2020. We are a dedicated group of people who care about diversity within our communities, and believe that everyone deserves access to sustainable, secure housing.
Meet Our Board
Laird Herbert (MaEd, Ba) owns a small hotel property called Black Spruce, in Whitehorse, Yukon. Black Spruce features four night-to-night rental units and a caretaker suite built in the style of a landscape hotel. Laird has a passion for house design and construction, and enjoys a variety of outdoor pursuits in the Yukon wilderness.
Tyler Heal (M.Eng., P.Eng.) is passionate about the built environment and its impacts on community wellbeing. His day job is as a structural engineer specialized in mass timber, prefabrication and building science. He has been the structural engineer-of-record for over 200 housing units in Yukon and 40 housing units in BC, ranging from single family homes to six-storey condo buildings.
Cian O’Neill-Kizoff (P.Eng., RPP) is a planner and civil engineer. He is dedicated to promoting social and environmental justice through healthy and sustainable community development. Cian grew up in Barrie, Ontario and began his career working on transportation projects in the Toronto region. Since moving to Yukon in 2017, Cian’s experience has included consulting for municipalities and First Nations, coordinating youth outreach through YukonU, and working with the Highways & Public Works and Environment departments at the Government of Yukon.
Duncan Martin (MSc, RPP, MCIP) works as an Urban Planner and Project Manager for the Community Services department at the Government of Yukon, where he is the urban planning lead for the communities of Mayo, Faro, Haines Junction and Whitehorse. Duncan’s previous experience in Local Area Planning, Regional Planning and Indigenous Planning have given him a broad understanding of Yukon’s context. Duncan enjoys spending time in the mountains, gardening and baking in his spare time.
Sarah Newton is a passionate, dedicated advocate for environmental protection and restoration through the advancement of indigenous rights. Their interest in this project is as a social and climate justice opportunity. They are a former Lands Manager for Liard First Nation and a Climate Reality Leader. They currently work as a Research Assistant investigating the potential of ground source heat pumps for heat production and storage. Sarah is also working on a portable solar energy system for hosting on-the-land events and was recently featured as 1 of 100 women working on the Energy Transition through the Pembina Institute and Globe Series.
Sheelah Tolton (BAS, NCIDQ) is an architectural and interior designer with professional experience in Canada, USA and New Zealand. She has over 6 years of Yukon specific project experience, including work on a range of scales of affordable multi-family projects, from tiny house communities to multi-building complexes. She is currently a project manager and space planner with the Yukon Government, and believes everyone should have access to safe, sustainable, and comfortable housing.
Executive Director
Mark Wickham (BA, MA) has completed the business plans and secured financing for multiple affordable housing and land development projects in the Yukon and managed these through to construction and occupancy. These include several multi-million-dollar projects in Dawson City. Mark has worked in Yukon for almost 20 years, with First Nations, municipalities, and many not-for-profit organizations to develop the necessary partnership and management structures that foster collaborative problem-solving.
Trusted Consultants
