Clayton Thomas-Muller, of the Mathais Colomb Cree Nation (Pukatawagan) in Northern Manitoba, Canada, is an activist for Indigenous Rights and Environmental Justice.
For ten years as organizer Clayton has gained vast experience in grassroots movement building, organizational development (fund raising), and strategic campaign planning and policy development. With his roots in the inner city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Clayton’s humble beginnings came from fighting against disparities in the Aboriginal community as a result of poverty and Winnipeg's youth gang epidemic. He co-founded the youth organization known as Aboriginal Youth with Initiative (AYII) and served as the organizations executive director for two years. The Manitoba Aboriginal Youth Achievement Awards recognized Clayton’s leadership skills and his devotion to community development in 1997, when he was presented with the Senior Community Volunteer Award.
Clayton went on to achieve many accomplishments as a youth leader in the Aboriginal community. He was cofounder of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Youth council as well as the architect behind the National Assembly of First Nations National Youth Advisory Council. As youth spokes person for the Assembly of First Nations he chaired the AFN National Youth Conference in Ottawa, Ontario Canada in 1999, were the first elections of the National First Nation Youth Council were held. As national youth spokes person of the Assembly of First Nations, Clayton was instrumental in the development and design of initiatives such as the Urban Aboriginal Youth Multi Purpose Center Initiative (UMAYC), a fund that to this day is sponsoring hundreds of Aboriginal youth initiatives across Canada.
Clayton’s work has taken him to five continents across our Mother Earth. Some highlights are:
UN ministers responsible for youth conference, Lisbon, Portugal First Nations youth representative on Canadian youth delegation with Minister Pettigrew and Minister Blondin (8-12 August, 1998)
5th World Indigenous Youth Conference in Waitangi, New Zealand; Coordinator of national Aboriginal delegation of Indigenous youth of Canada. (1999)
International training for Indigenous activists, Taos, New Mexico, USA Non-Indigenous Youth Alliance Network. (INIYA) Coordinator (2002)
International training for Indigenous activists, Rio Bronco, Acre, Brazil. Non-Indigenous Youth Alliance Network. (INIYA) Coordinator (2002)
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2003) New York City, New York, USA Delegate (2003)
3rd prep-com of the WSSD in New York City, New York, USA Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples Delegation (2003)
4th Prep-com of the WSSD in Bali, Indonesia, Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples delegation (2004)
World Indigenous Peoples Pre-Summit on Sustainable Development, Kimberly, South Africa Coordinator of North American Indigenous Peoples delegation (2004)
World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa. Coordinator of North American Indigenous Peoples Delegation (2004)
Social Forum of the Americas Quito, Ecuador, Delegate (2005)
COP/MOP 11 UN Framework on Climate Change, Montreal, Canada, Coordinator of North American IEN delegation, Indigenous Peoples Caucus and World Indigenous Peoples day celebration. (2005)
Until recently, he served as the Native Energy organizer for the Indigenous Environmental Network. Clayton has been on the front lines of stopping industrial society's assault on Indigenous Peoples lands to extract resources and to dump toxic wastes. He has worked across Canada, Alaska and the lower 48 states with grassroots indigenous communities to defend their Inherit, Treaty and environmental rights against unsustainable energy policies and transnational energy corporations.
Clayton is also a gifted poet and spoken-word performer. He is happily married and has recently become a father. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Clayton is that he’s just getting going. He’s been recognized by Utne magazine as one of the Top 30 under-30 young activists in the United State
