Senator Yvonne Boyer is a member of the Métis Nation with her ancestral roots in the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Red River. With a background in nursing, she has over 26 years of experience practicing law and publishing extensively on the topics of Indigenous health and how Aboriginal rights and treaty law intersects on the health of First Nations, Metis and Inuit people. She is a former Canada Research Chair in Aboriginal Health and Wellness at Brandon University. At the University of Ottawa, she was the Associate Director for the Centre for Health Law, Policy and Ethics.

Among many others, Senator Boyer has served on the boards of the Champlain Local Integrated Health Network and Save the Children Canada. She is a former Canadian Human Rights Commissioner and an appointed Member of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, First Nations Appeal Tribunal. Senator Boyer is one of eight people from across Canada chosen to be a holographic narrator in the Turning Points for Humanity Gallery at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg. Her ongoing work has been recognized with numerous awards including a 2018 Honorary Doctorate in Education from Nipissing University.