Elder Chief Shirell is the former Active Traditional Tribal Chief of the Grand Caillou/Dulac Band of Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw, an Ordained Minister of the Universal Life Church, an Independent Artist/small business owner, becoming the first Native American business owner in the Historic Downtown District of Houma, LA. She is one of the founding members of the First People’s Conservation Council of Louisiana and is currently seated as the Secretary. Elder Chief Shirell was a partnering host of the Idle No More-Gulf Coast gathering in 2013. She was also one of the advisors to LA H.B.660 – Act #102, establishing the Native American Commission and was elected the first Native American Chairwoman of the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs Native American Commission. Doing her part to create equitable opportunities for people of color, she was elected as the Vice-Chair of the Terrebonne Parish Diversity and Inclusion Task Force. And she currently serves as the Indigenous Representative of the Louisiana Governor's Climate Initiatives Task Force, bringing Traditional Ecological Knowledge and the perspective of living for the next generations into decision making. She is an active advocate for coastal restoration and preservation, development and utilization of alternative energy sources, community resiliency, education and human rights.