Indigenous B.C. professor appointed to prestigious United Nations position Meet Sheryl Lightfoot UBC professor Sheryl Lightfoot is also the Canada Research Chair of Global Indigenous Rights and Politics.University of British Columbia Sheryl Lightfoot has been named the North American member on the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The announcement was made March 24 in Geneva, Switzerland. Lightfoot, 53, is the first Indigenous woman from Canada to be appointed to the UN’s prestigious position. The UN Expert Mechanism consists of just seven people in the world. Members provide the UN’s Human Rights Council with their expertise and advise on the rights of Indigenous peoples as set out in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.