2026 Trailblazer Award Winners
Prix Pionnières
Ana Gabriela Juárez is an environmental consultant, board director, entrepreneur, and mining sector leader, with more than 18 years of international experience in sustainability, natural resource management, and technical advisory services for projects worldwide. She currently leads CTA Environmental Consultants’ operations in Canada, a firm with presence in four countries and a track record spanning more than 24 nations.
She is the founder of Women in Mining Central America, through which she has advanced mentorship programs, technical training, and the promotion of female leadership in mining, with a practical, results-oriented approach. Her vision of a modern and responsible mining industry has positioned her in key decision-making roles, including her recent appointment as Non-Executive Director of the Development Partner Institute (DPI), an international organization dedicated to advancing sustainable development in mining.
Ana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Sciences in Natural Resource Management from Humboldt University of Berlin and a Master’s degree in Environmental Water Management from Cranfield University in the United Kingdom. She further strengthened her professional background with a Certification in Sustainable Finance from the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.
Her leadership has received global recognition through awards such as Top 10 Most Influential Hispanic Canadians, the prestigious Eira Thomas Award, and most recently, Woman of the Year 2025 by Mining Magazine. Ana combines strong technical expertise with strategic vision, delivering tangible value to companies, communities, and multilateral organizations committed to ethical, efficient, and future-focused mining.
Ana was nominated by Chafika Eddine.
Prix Pionnières autochtones
Winter Bailey (Standing Black Bear Woman, Bear Clan) is a proud Dene and Cree woman, born and raised in Akaitcho Territory in the Northwest Territories, Canada. She is a member of the Deninu Kųę́ First Nation (Treaty 8) and her patriarchal family is from Peguis First Nation (Treaty 1). She is a daughter, wife and mother who lives in Treaty 7 Territory in Alberta.
Winter is a second-generation miner with nearly two decades of experience. Most recently she was the Senior Manager, Communities & Social Performance Americas for Minerals at Rio Tinto, working internationally from Montreal, Quebec. She started her career on the front lines in a remote fly-in, fly-out diamond mine and rose through various positions to become the first Indigenous woman on Diavik’s management team in 2018 to a senior global role where she is recognized as a trusted advisor, caring leader, and empowering mentor by her peers.
Winter is a life-long learner and recently obtained her First Nations & Indigenous Director designation. Her achievements include courageously stepping up for numerous Indigenous cultural initiatives for the company; negotiating and implementing long-term impact benefit agreements while building respectful partnerships with Indigenous Government organizations; and sharing her broad technical expertise in mining across Canada, USA, South America, and Australia.
Winter helped shape the Women in Mining chapter in the Northwest Territories, is a recipient of the Northwest Territories Premier’s Award for Collaboration and a Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference alum. She is a repeat Yellowknife Golf Club Women’s Champion and a traditional Dene artist.
Winter was nominated by Victoria Gatehouse.
Prix Pionnières étudiantes autochtones
Commandité par Sprott
Mia Arsenault-Vassiliou
Innu, Mineral Technology Student, Sept-Îles CÉGEP
Mia Arsenault Vassiliou is studying Mineral Technology, specializing in mineral processing. It’s a field she’s passionate about, both for its scientific aspects and its tangible impact on mining operations. Through her studies, she has developed an interest in all aspects of the environmental side of mining operations. Originally from the North Shore, she grew up in an environment where the mining industry plays a central role. This has inspired her to contribute to a modern and responsible vision of the sector. Later, she would like to work in the environmental field, helping to reduce the ecological footprint of mining activities and promoting more sustainable, safe, and environmentally responsible practices. Receiving the Women in Mining scholarship is a great source of pride for her. This recognition encourages her to continue her journey in a field where women are gaining visibility and leadership. She hopes, in turn, to inspire other female students to pursue careers in mining and contribute to a more inclusive, innovative, and sustainable industry.
Mia was nominated by Annie Levesque.
Prix Pionnières étudiantes
Commandité par Dundee Precious Metals
Mikayla McKenna Pettit is a final year civil engineering co-op student at the University of Alberta, and the president/co-founder of the Women in Mining University of Alberta Student Chapter. She founded WIM UofA with fellow engineering and geosciences students after noticing a gap in supports for female students wishing to enter the mining industry, and she is so proud of the progress the group has made so far.
Mikayla first developed a passion for mining and the advancement of women in the industry while doing her first 8 month co-op in the Alberta Oil Sands, and she’s since done her last two co-ops in a tailings and mine waste research lab at the UofA. While in the oil sands, she gained a breadth of field, lab, and office experience, while supporting the on-site geotechnical engineering team. Since receiving experience with construction of both in-pit and ex-pit tailings containment structures, she decided that’s where she aims to build her career. Her goals upon graduation are to seek work as a consultant and build her mining geotechnical skills, while getting a variety of experience, especially in the field.
She would like to acknowledge that she would not have been able to accomplish what she has without her mentors along the way, and the support of her friends and teammates in WIM UofA.
Prix de mentorat Rick Hutson
Alison Solmes is an accomplished trades professional and respected leader in the mining industry, bringing more than two decades of experience in welding, manufacturing, and workforce development. After completing a pre-employment welding program in 1998, she earned her Red Seal Welding certification and went on to build deep expertise in training, quality systems, and continuous improvement.
In 2018, Alison transitioned to the mining industry with Nutrien as an underground operator, later returning to her welding roots in 2022 as an underground welder. Today, she serves as the Frontline Supervisor for BHP’s Potash Academy, where she leads the development of new-to-industry miners and industrial mechanics. Her approach emphasizes practical leadership, safety excellence, and building confident, capable teams across a diverse workforce.
Alison’s contributions to the trades and her community have been widely recognized. She received the 2025 YWCA Woman of Distinction award for Women in Trades and the 2024 Director of the Year Award from the Saskatchewan Air Cadet League, where she volunteers to mentor young leaders. She is also a committed supporter of SaskPolytech’s Women in Trades and Technology program, helping inspire the next generation of women to pursue careers in skilled trades.
Known for her authenticity, collaborative leadership style, and passion for continuous improvement, Alison is dedicated to strengthening her industry and uplifting the communities she serves.
Alison was nominated by Shelby Lawn.
FR 
EN