Ashley Oakes (she/her) is a white settler living on the unceded, ancestral and traditional territories of the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw. She is an experienced non-profit executive with nearly 20 years of experience in the sector in progressively more senior leadership roles.

Since 2018, she has served as the Executive Director for PearlSpace Support Services Society (PearlSpace). PearlSpace promotes equality and empowerment of women, Two Spirit, gender-diverse, non-binary, trans people, and children/youth. Working from an intersectional feminist framework, PearlSpace responds to and works for change by honouring the diversity of lives impacted by gender-based violence and meeting the evolving needs of communities throughout the Sea to Sky Corridor and Stl’atl’imx regions including the Skwxwú7mesh, Lilwat7úl, and Stl’atl’imx Nations and the communities of Squamish, Whistler, and Pemberton, British Columbia.

From 2021-2023, Ashley led PearlSpace through a rebranding process that sought to ensure equity denied groups and those historically erased from the feminist anti-violence movement felt safe in accessing services and supports. This rebranding process would see the society name changing from Howe Sound Women’s Centre Society to PearlSpace Support Services Society. The removing of “women” from the society’s name is to further commitments to Two-Spirit, Trans, and Gender Diverse communities. PearlSpace acknowledges and recognizes how harmful white liberal feminism has been for Indigenous, Black, Trans, and Queer communities through much of the first and second wave of feminist activism. This is also inclusive of the programming and analyses of gender-based violence that erased and silenced the needs of these same communities.

Ashley is a collaborative, authentic, and experienced executive director with a talent for transformational change, advancing equity, and values-based leadership. She has overseen the development and execution of several ambitious strategic plans and is eager to share her experience and learning to work with other organizations doing values-based work that advances equity, inclusion, and safety in communities across Canada.