Daisee Francour (she/her) joined Chinook Fund in August 2025 as Executive Director. Daisee was raised on the Oneida Reservation in Wisconsin by generations of strong Matriarchs who embodied resistance, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to Indigenous sovereignty. Their example instilled in her the values of truth-telling, collective care, and standing firm in the face of oppression—principles that continue to guide her work. A citizen of the Oneida Nation, Daisee’s Haudenosaunee lineage and lived experience as an Indigenous woman deeply inform her lifelong commitment to social justice, self-determination, and community-led transformation.
With nearly 15 years of experience, Daisee has served Indigenous and frontline communities across Turtle Island and the world in roles spanning direct service, advocacy, nonprofit leadership, grantmaking, organizing, and strategic advising. Prior to joining Chinook Fund, she held leadership roles with Indigenous-led organizations including the Indigenous Environmental Network, Cultural Survival, and The Cultural Conservancy. She has also taught public policy and human rights courses at the College of Menominee Nation and Adler University, bringing real-world experience into the classroom to help shape the next generation of leaders.
Daisee is a natural storyteller who uses media and communications as tools for movement-building and reclaiming narrative power. Her collaborative project with CBS Sports, A Gift from the Haudenosaunee, earned a Sports Emmy nomination, and she has led several viral digital campaigns that uplift Indigenous languages, rights, leadership, and power—while exposing greenwashing and false climate solutions pushed by extractive industries. Driven by a belief in the power of community-led solutions, Daisee works to strengthen the leadership, infrastructure, and resource strategies of grassroots organizations to build lasting systems of resilience and self-determination.
Daisee holds a Master of Public Policy and Administration with a specialization in Human Rights Advocacy from Adler University, and a BA in Sociology and Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin–Parkside. She has also received advanced training in international diplomacy and philanthropy, including through the Justice Funders’ Harmony Initiative. For the past seven years, she has participated in UN climate and human rights convenings to advocate for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, Free, Prior and Informed Consent, protection of land and water, and the recognition of Traditional Knowledge.
Daisee lives in Denver, Colorado, and enjoys road trips with her cocker spaniel Lambeau, writing poetry, painting, and listening to stories told by her mother, aunties, and elders.