And as a government geek, he’s helped advance policy within 3 government space agencies, 2 divisions of the UN, the Canadian Urban Institute, Banff Forum, and the Yukon Government. Thrilled to be a new dad, Ben and his family live together in an off-grid home (100% solar) near Whitehorse.

Since joining the Public Service of Canada in 2011, Émily has had the opportunity to play strategic roles and work on key files, including governance for the Department of National Defence, Global Affairs Canada’s consular policies and, more recently, the delivery of essential programs and services to Canadians for Employment and Social Development Canada.

In July 2019, Émily left her job with the Government of Canada in order to seek out new experiences in the private sector and a new life on Canada’s West Coast. For nearly three years, she lived in Vancouver and had the privilege of working for Navitas, a growing Canadian company and leading global education provider.

The COVID-19 pandemic gave Emily the space to self-reflect, re-examine her own values and priorities, and rethink her future. Seeing the plight worsening for the most vulnerable Canadians during the pandemic, Émily understood that she wanted to dedicate her career to building a richer, more inclusive Canada. This is why she seized the opportunity to return to her roots and resume her career in the federal public service.

Émily firmly believes that the Government of Canada has a key role to play in developing bold, innovative, hands-on solutions to today’s major social, economic and political issues, such as the labour shortage, care for seniors, support for individuals with mental health issues, systemic racism and youth disengagement.

Émily is fluent in English and French and has a basic knowledge of Arabic. She grew up in Gatineau and has a bachelor’s degree in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from the University of Ottawa. She now lives in the Greater Montréal area.

Originally from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Scott is a graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. Immediately after graduating from Georgetown, Scott worked at Goldman Sachs Inc. in New York City. Scott was recognized as the 2018 Telus LGBTQ Innovator of The Year by The Inspire Awards, a 2019 Young Impact Leader by Future of Good, and a 2022 Changemaker by The Globe and Mail. Scott has contributed to or been featured in The Washington Post, The Globe and Mail, The National Post, Forbes, Future of Good, The Chronicle Herald, and The Georgia Straight. He has also appeared as a commentator on CBC News Network and BNN Bloomberg.

His work has roots in where he grew up, supporting underserved rural and remote communities, building teams, and connecting groups to focus on a common purpose through intersecting community partnerships, population health, and business efficiencies.

Trevor holds a Master’s in Business Administration and a Diploma in Respiratory Therapy from Thompson Rivers University and a Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry with a Minor in Kinesiology from the University of Regina. Additionally, he is a Certified Health Executive with the Canadian College of Health Leaders and has recently completed his Certificate in Population Health Management through Johns Hopkins.

As the Vice-Chair of Southeast College, the co-chair of the Policy and Bylaw Committee, and previous chair of the professional conduct committee for the Saskatchewan College of Respiratory Therapy, as well as the co-founder of the Dr. Mulder Health foundation; he strives to bring teams together in health and education. Born in Saskatchewan, he is proud to continually share knowledge in presentations and support the community he serves through purposeful partnerships.

Throughout his postgraduate studies, Anh-Khoi’s commitment to drive positive impact through science remained undaunted as he engaged in science communication, science education, and science policy initiatives. With a focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion, his work aimed to make science and research more accessible by inspiring the next generation to pursue science careers, improving physics educational curriculums, and improving policies in support of the next generation of researchers.

Anh-Khoi is a recipient of McGill’s Clark Science Executive Leadership Fund in 2020 which financed his enrollment in McGill’s mini-MBA program, and he is a past-President (2021) and current member of the Board of Directors for the student-led non-profit Science & Policy Exchange. In his spare time, he enjoys playing sports and exercising.

Recently, Sakariya has worked to shift educational pipelines and inclusion efforts with his alma-mater, Ivey School of Business as a member of the EDI Council and a founder of BSIC (Black Students at Ivey Collective). He’s been able to help Ivey revamp their EDI strategy and partner with the private sector to implement transformative programming to Black students and advocate on their behalf to administration.

Sakariya is passionate about distributing opportunity and access to disenfranchised communities, especially those experiencing housing. Previously, he’s been part of a group of 10 young people across Toronto who worked on a Youth Engagement Strategy to help the city of Toronto how it can engage with disenfranchised and disinterested youth in their 20-year plan.

Additionally, he’s been involved as a Youth Fellow in the City of Toronto and has been featured on CBC Radio on numerous occasions regarding his work representing his community at various levels in Toronto.

Ian grew up in a farming community in central Alberta: for the first ten years of his life his parents had a dairy farm and since then they have farmed bison. His grandparents immigrated to Alberta from the Netherlands.

Ian now lives in Montreal. In addition to his overseas experience, he has also lived, worked and studied in Moncton, New Brunswick; Gatineau, Quebec; and in Ottawa and Toronto. He is a board member at Citizens for Public Justice, a faith-based public policy and advocacy organization, and has also been involved in refugee sponsorship initiatives in Ontario and Quebec.

Veronica Fynn Bruey is a multi-award winner and a passionate academic-advocate. Holding six academic degrees from four continents, she has researched, taught, consulted, and presented at conferences in over 30 countries.

She’s authored five books, several book chapters, and journal articles. She is the founder/editor-in-chief of the Journal of Internal Displacement; the co-lead of Law and Society’s Collaborative Research Network (CRN-11): “Displaced Peoples”; the lead of Law and Society Association’s International Research Collaborative (IRC-10): “Disrupting Patriarchy and Masculinity in Africa”; the founder the Voice of West African Refugees in Ghana at the Buduburam Refugee Settlement in Ghana. She is also the Australian National University International Alumna of the Year, 2021, the president of the International Association for the Study of Forced Migration, and a Co-Chair, Africa Interest Group, American Society of International Law.

Currently, she is the Director of Flowers School of Global Health Sciences, and an assistant professor in Legal Studies at Athabasca University. Veronica is a born and bred Indigenous Liberian war survivor.

Outside of work, Jessie is an avid volunteer. She is currently one of the Executive Directors of the LEADER Project, an Ivey-affiliated non-profit that provides business education and mentorship to entrepreneurs in emerging regions. Through the LEADER Project, Jessie taught a two-week business bootcamp for entrepreneurs in Belgrade, Serbia. Previously, she also served as the President and a Board Member of the Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers – Western Chapter.

Jessie was born in Calgary, Alberta, and has had the opportunity to live in three different provinces and three different countries. Her most recent adventure was living in Mexico City with her husband and daughter. In addition to her MBA, Jessie holds an Honours Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto and a Juris Doctor from the University of British Columbia.

In her current role, Jas has spearheaded projects ranging from mapping the infrastructure gap in Canada’s North, to examining the role of artificial intelligence tech on children’s privacy rights, to researching career guidance as a policy tool for those with barriers to work. Before joining Springboard, Jas worked as a Policy Advisor and Press Secretary to Ontario’s Deputy Premier, where she worked on key policies like the transformation of Ontario’s Student Assistance Program. She began her career working in post-secondary student advocacy, creating province-wide campaigns on issues like tuition affordability and pay equity.

Raised in London, Ontario, Jas has a B.A. in Media and the Public Interest from Western University, and an M.A. in Political and Legal Thought from Queens University. At Queens, her research focus was on corrections policy in Canada and the overrepresentation of Indigenous women in high-security settings.

Jas also enjoys reading, lightly interrogating friends and strangers about the things they are interested in, and performing live comedy.

Prior to joining Teach For Canada, Deanna worked as a Policy Analyst in the Privy Council Office, providing briefings for the Prime Minister and senior government officials on key Indigenous priorities, and has also worked within Health Canada’s Climate Change and Health Adaptation Program.

Often having her feet ‘in two different canoes’ – one eager to advance Indigenous policy in Canada, and another striving to center Indigenous methodologies and experiences in research and practice – Deanna brings an interdisciplinary perspective to her work.

Deanna received her Bachelor of Education with distinction from Western University, and is concurrently a SSHRC Doctoral Scholar studying First Nations education governance. She is also undertaking a Master of Public Health in Indigenous Health at the University of Toronto.

Catherine Maurice is a communications specialist based in the Greater Montréal area. She currently works as Director of Media Relations and Operational Communications for exo, a public transit authority that oversees the north and south shores’ bus and paratransit services, as well as commuter rail services throughout the Greater Montréal area. Exo serves over 82 municipalities and the Kahnawake community.

Before working for exo, Catherine held various positions at the local, provincial and federal levels for nearly 13 years. From 2014 to 2017, she acted as press secretary and communications director for the offices of the mayor and executive committee at the Ville de Montréal.

In 2010, Catherine had the opportunity to work as an election observer for the Organization of American States (OAS) during the first round of the presidential elections in Haiti.

Catherine has a law degree and spent a few years working as a lawyer in the Estrie region. During that time, Catherine was active in her community and even served as president of the Young Bar of Bedford in 2005.

While alpine skiing is Catherine’s true passion, she is also a Pilates enthusiast. In summer, you will almost certainly find her working in her garden or riding her bike.

Merryn’s career has been focused on alleviating food insecurity in Canada through work in public, academic and non-profit organizations, including the national youth charity Meal Exchange. She currently serves on the board of directors of Community Share Food Bank in the Don Mills neighbourhood. She is a believer in cross-sectoral collaboration to address complex problems and public policy as a key lever for change.

Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Merryn currently lives in Toronto with her partner and their dog, Joni. She holds a Master of Science degree from the School of Public Health and Health Systems at the University of Waterloo and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Psychology from McMaster University.

Dr Aliza Moledina is a General Internal Medicine physician with a passion for health equity, human rights and social accountability. She is currently completing a Masters in Science in Epidemiology at the University of Ottawa, motivated by her strong belief in the value of evidence and science in addressing complex social determinants of health. She was recently a lead author on a comprehensive 136-page Campbell Collaboration Review, examining interventions to improve the health and wellbeing of persons with lived experience of homelessness.

Aliza is also actively engaged in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and health advocacy initiatives at the University of Ottawa and The Ottawa Hospital, promoting the advancement of EDI policies and supporting efforts to reform undergraduate and postgraduate medical education curricula to embrace social accountability principles. As one of the national Internal Medicine co-leads of the Global Health Portfolio of the Aga Khan Health Board Canada, she liaisons with physicians in Afghanistan to provide monthly Internal Medicine educational sessions and enable case-based collaboration with Canadian sub-specialists.

At the local level, Aliza serves as one of the co-leads of the Serious Illness Care Program at The Ottawa Hospital, delivering training to physicians and other allied health professionals on how to deliver advance care planning (ACP) and goals of care discussions to critically ill patients and their families, with a particular focus on identifying individual patients’ goals, wishes and values. In recognizing the reduced uptake of ACP within diverse communities, she co-organized innovative virtual ACP sessions for the Ismaili Muslim community, which was attended by over 1000 participants nationally.

Kate also works with the WRHA Palliative Care Program in Winnipeg, and volunteers at Saul Sair Health Center, as a walk-in physician serving Winnipeg’s homeless population. Her work with underserved populations has led to an interest in public policy.

Prior to joining PCO, she held various policy positions in the Federal Public Service in the departments of Employment and Social Development Canada, Infrastructure Canada and Elections Canada.

She is also known for co-founding the inaugural 2019 Toronto Black Policy Conference; a policy-driven forum aimed to provide unique opportunities to collaborate, innovate and find sustainable solutions for policy issues affecting Toronto’s Black communities. The success of the conference led her to co-found the Canadian Black Policy Network (CBPN) in 2020, a non-profit organization dedicated to enhance the engagement of Canada’s Black communities in the public policy process. She is currently the Co-Executive Director at CBPN.
Sharnelle Morgan holds a Masters of Public Policy from the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, in addition to a Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management with a specialization in Development studies from Carleton University’s Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs.

Sandra has lectured at McGill University and was recruited in 2021 by Canada World Youth to act as a mentor to the finalists of the Innovation-Challenge. Sandra has a deep desire to be part of Reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, a page of history that she hopes is finally being shaped like never before.

She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Concordia + UNGE of Equatorial Guinea + University of Ottawa combined program), a Graduate Diploma in International Business (McGill) and an MBA (University of Ottawa).

Originally from La Montérégie in Quebec, Sandra proudly lives in Montreal, an inclusive urban city, where francophones, anglophones and allophones live as neighbors. With her partner, an Acadian from New-Brunswick, she is the mother of two. She is avid for the Hispanic culture and has made the choice to raise her children by speaking to them in Spanish as well.

His goals are to support the implementation of UNDRIP, the revitalization of Indigenous legal orders, and the braiding of Indigenous laws into Canada’s legal system.

Before entering law school, Josh worked for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities supporting inclusive economic development partnerships between First Nations and local governments across Canada. He has supported collaborative initiatives in investor attraction, renewable energy, infrastructure development, land planning, and emergency management. He has also held legislative and policy roles on Parliament Hill and for the British Consulate-General in Jerusalem.

Josh is an active volunteer in his community as a Big Brother and supporting new refugee families. True to his northern roots, he loves all four seasons, being outside, and playing music with friends.

As a consultant, Jenni supports community-led initiatives and communication strategies in BC, Canada, and beyond. She is an instructor of anthropology at the University of Victoria, specialising in sound, creative practices, and feminist teaching models. A big fan of public engagement, she also likes to connect artists with scientists and produce radio and soundscape compositions.

Jenni currently serves as the SoundWorks Associate Editor of the BC Studies Journal, an Advisory Member of Sea to Cedar, and a Board Member of the Western Front artist-run-centre. Previously, she was a Director of the Salmon Coast Field Station and the Pacific Community Lead at MakeWay. She holds a MA in Communication from Simon Fraser University and a BA in Anthropology from the University of Victoria, and is certified with the International Association of Public Participation BC (IAP2) and San’yas: Indigenous Cultural Safety Training Program. Jenni is a keen collaborator, ocean swimmer, and beginner gardener.

Torekore is a multinational health, insurance and technology company, consisting of its own portfolio companies operating in 4 continents with nearly 200 network partners globally. Prior to this, he worked in public health and completed a Masters in Public Health from Queens University where learning about social determinants and inequities led to an interest in the use of data and technology to help close these gaps. His early influences included working under Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, where projects focused on systems health usage through a social determinants of health lens.

He is a Vector AI award recipient 2019, Mitacs Award Winner 2020, Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference Co-Chair 2020, and continues to work as a Panel Physician with the Federal Government.