Ska-Hiish Manuel’s Success as an Engineer is all Thanks to His Indigenous Upbringing

Ska-Hiish Manuel is unabashedly excited when it comes to solving mathematic problems. Not just any math problem, but unsolved equations that could ultimately lead to powering communities around the province. So the thrill Ska-Hiish gets is totally understandable.

It was Ska-Hiish’s pure love for math that drew him to engineering. Growing up on a reserve, his dad instilled in him the importance of engineers and how vital their role was in building the family business. And while his dad and grandfather were both distinguished First Nations political leaders, Ska-Hiish decided to pave his own path as an engineer. He went into it with the understanding that engineering would be the best way to study technology, and technology would be the best way to boost the standard of living on reserves.

Today, Ska-Hiish is an electrical engineer for BC Hydro. A brilliant mind, he understands the physical world through mathematical equations. He has an intuitive understanding of how all things are related, which he attributes to his Indigenous upbringing. Ska-Hiish’s success as an engineer is still continuing the cause of his ancestors by helping remote Indigenous communities, as well as clearing a path for future Indigenous engineers.

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