High Ground 2023: Home

Aaron Pete

Chawathil Council Member

Aaron started from humble beginnings in Downtown Chilliwack. He was raised by an Indigenous single-mother who was born with a disability, where they lived on social assistance in a food unstable household. His mother relied on community resources while Aaron was growing up, this gave him a deep understanding of the value of community.

Today, Aaron Pete is the host of the Bigger Than Me Podcast, a graduate of Peter A. Allard School of Law,  and a Native Courtworker. Mr. Pete sits on the Board of Directors with the Chilliwack Cultural Centre and on the Chawathil Economic Development Committee. He also provides presentations on Indigenous Cultural Awareness, where he aims to bridge the divides and make learning about Indigenous topics accessible. In September 2022, he was elected as a council member for his community Chawathil First Nation, which is within the Stó:lō territory.

• @aaronpete_

Aidan Shirley

CAO & Development Manager, CityState Consulting Group

Aidan is the CAO of CityState Consulting Group, a boutique development consultancy specialized in planning and managing complex development projects. During his time at CityState, the company has intensified social, economic, and environmental innovations in their applications, working with clients to deliver more fully accessible units, access to hyper-local child care, and greener, higher quality buildings. Previous, he served as an Associate with the Columbia Institute and has continued to stay involved at events and through the High Ground forum.

Alex Boston

Executive Director, Renewable Cities and Fellow, Centre for Dialogue, Simon Fraser University

Alex has two decades of policy and planning experience focused on community climate action with unique expertise in land use and multi-criteria analysis, engagement and knowledge mobilization. He has led multiple award-winning community energy plans recognized for innovative carbon modeling and mapping and implementation readiness. Alex is focused on elegant solutions to complex problems, advancing affordability, economic development, civic infrastructure management, public health, farm and forest protection, resilience to climate impacts while driving deep carbon reductions. His work on local, provincial and national scale projects includes: supporting BC Ministry of Environment to generate community energy and emission inventories for all BC municipalities; serving Federation of Canadian Municipalities to develop their best practice guide for GHG target setting and renew their Climate Protection Program; advising Prime Minister Martin’s Task Force on Cities on the federal role in urban climate action.

Alison Gu

Councillor, City of Burnaby

Alison is a 2nd generation Chinese settler living on the unceded and unsurrendered lands of the hən̓qəmin̓əm̓ and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh speaking peoples. Alison is the youngest ever Burnaby City Councillor, and was elected on the mandate of climate, housing, and racial justice. Before being elected as a councillor, she has for an MLA, 2 MPs, and for her student union. In 2017, she cycled from Ottawa to Burnaby against the Trans Mountain Expansion pipeline while fundraising for the legal fees of the First Nations fighting the project in court.

Amina Yasin

SFU, Director of Public Hearings and Planning, Renovate the Public Hearing

Amina Yasin is a Canadian Institute of Planning award winning urban planner and a community advocate who has worked across Canada for ten years in community, land use and affordable housing development and planning.

Amina has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy, and a Master’s of Science (MSc) degree in Planning and Development.  She serves on a number of boards and committees and is the co-chair of the Vancouver City Planning Commission and Urban Design Panel Commissioner and former co-chair of the Canadian Institute of Planning Social Equity Committee. 

Amy Juschka

Director of Communications & Advocacy, YWCA Vancouver

Amy Juschka is a strategic communications leader with more than a decade of experience advocating for social change across the charitable and non-governmental sectors. Her communications background has focused on gender equity and human rights and her experience includes leading digital engagement with organizations like the David Suzuki Foundation. As Director of Communications and Advocacy with YWCA Metro Vancouver, Amy oversees marketing communications for one of BC’s largest and most diversified non-profit organizations. She has a Master’s in Journalism from UBC.

• @AmyJuschka

Amy Lubik

Councillor, City of Port Moody

Amy is a second term City Councillor in Port Moody and brings a focus on health and social/ environmental justice to her work. She helped found the Tri-Cities Food Council and Property Tax Assisted Clean Energy (PACE) BC, and lead the Port Moody Affordable Housing Task Force. She currently serves on the Tri-Cities Homelessness and Housing Task Force and the Port Moody Library Board. As a climate activist, she volunteers as a member of the Climate Caucus. She is also a member of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, and the Public Health Association of BC. 

In her day job, Amy is a Health Equity Policy Analyst, specializing in healthy environments and climate change adaptation, at Fraser Health Authority. She has previously worked at the BCCDC on the impact of the built environment on mental well-being. Amy received her Ph.D. in Prostate Cancer Research from Queensland University of Technology.

• @amy_lubik

Arzeena Hamir

Agronomist and farmer

Arzeena Hamir is an agronomist and farmer in the Comox Valley. She obtained her BSc in Crop Science from the University of Guelph and her Master’s Degree in Sustainable Agriculture from the University of London, England. She helped to launch the Richmond Farm School, Mid Island Farmer’s Institute, and is currently launching a new farmers co-operative to support new organic growers in her community. From 2018-2021 was Area B Director with the Comox Valley Regional District. 

• @arzeena

Carmela Allevato

Partner, Allevato Quail & Roy

After founding AQR Law in 2014, Carmela remains connected with the firm as Senior Counsel.

Carmela has been a leader in BC’s labour movement for over thirty years. She has served as a member of the BC Labour Relations Board, a Vancouver School Board Trustee, and Vice-President of the BC Federation of Labour. She was the Secretary-Business Manager and lead negotiator for the Hospital Employees Union in the 1990s, during which time the union achieved groundbreaking advances in pay equity. She was also formerly in-house counsel to the Canadian Union of Public Employees and the BC Teachers’ Federation.

Carmela is a part-time instructor at BCIT where she teaches courses in Employment Law and Business Law. She is a provincially-certified adult educator and brings her passion for adult education to her legal work and union training. Carmela has trained hundreds of union reps, shop stewards, leaders, and activists in topics including disability accommodation, grievance arbitration, the duty of fair representation, and bargaining.

Carmela served as the regional vice-president for the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers, is a member of CUPE Local 50, and an honourary member of HEU. Carmela is also a member of the Passenger Transportation Board.

Carmela enjoys boating, relaxing on Gambier Island, spending time with her grandchildren, and walking in Pacific Spirit Park.

• @allevatoc

Charley Beresford

Public Policy Innovator

Charley is a leader in public interest governance and policy solutions. Charley lead the Columbia Institute for 13 years, establishing the Institute’s Centre for Civic Governance and directing research on public policy issues ranging from K-12 Funding, Understanding Public Private Partnerships, Climate Action, Green Economy and Governance. Most recently, Charley served as Senior Executive Lead at the Province of BC’s Crown Agencies and Board Resourcing Office which provides governance support for Provincial public sector organizations. Charley led the development of the Province’s Governing in the Public Interest Certificate program and brought a strong diversity focus to CABRO’s work. Charley holds a Certificate in Circular Economy from Cambridge Judge School of Business.

Cheeying Ho

Executive Director, Whistler Centre for Sustainability

Cheeying is the Executive Director of the Whistler Centre for Sustainability, and has over 25 years of experience in community planning, engagement, and sustainability. She provides strategy, creative process design, facilitation, and engagement for local and band governments, and non-profit organizations. She created and launched the Social Venture Challenge program, and the Indigenous Tourism Startup Program, designed to inspire and support entrepreneurs with the development of new social enterprises. Prior to her role at the Centre, Cheeying was the Executive Director of Smart Growth BC.

Christine Boyle

Councillor, City of Vancouver

Christine Boyle is a second term Vancouver City Councillor with OneCity Vancouver. She has been a leading voice at the Council table on climate action, rental and non-market housing, reconciliation, active and public transportation, tackling inequality and the drug poisoning crisis, and more. Christine is a community organizer, an ordained United Church Minister, and a parent of a kid and a teen. She has a BSc in Urban Agriculture and First Nations Studies from UBC, and an MA in Religious Leadership for Social Change from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California.

• @christineeboyle

Clara Prager

Campaign Lead, Women Transforming Cities

Clara Prager is privileged to work alongside Women Transforming Cities’ team of intersectional feminists to advocate for communities where everyone can belong and thrive. Her background in community organizing, policy analysis, and communications informs this work, as well as her experience working in government, Indigenous-led non-profits, and sustainability consulting. However, she primarily draws inspiration from and seeks to be in solidarity with those who have confronted and continue to challenge systems of oppression––from both within and outside of institutional power structures.

Clara has an interdisciplinary BA in Canadian and First Nations studies from UBC. She is a settler of English, Scottish, and Irish ancestry raised in stolen Syilx territory and currently living in stolen xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, and səlilwətaɬ territories.

Clint Johnston

President, BC Teachers’ Federation

Clint Johnston started his first term as President of the BC Teachers’ Federation on July 1, 2022. Prior to that, Clint served as a Vice-President for six years. He is currently one of the Federation’s lead negotiators in the current round of collective bargaining and has previous experience bargaining at the local and national levels.

Prior to his provincial union work, Clint served as President of the Chilliwack Teachers’ Association for three years. Nationally, Johnston has served multiple consecutive terms as a Vice-President of the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF) since first elected at the 2017 CTF Annual General Meeting.

Johnston turned to a career in education after losing a hand in a devastating workplace accident at 23-years-old. He holds bachelor’s degrees in Human Kinetics and Education from the University of British Columbia. He spent the first five years of his teaching career in England before returning home to Chilliwack to work in a variety of elementary teaching roles for the next several years before being elected to his local executive.

Johnston and his wife, Holly, are the proud parents of five children—three of whom are still in BC’s K–12 public education system.

One of Johnston’s personal priorities is to continue raising awareness about BC’s critical teacher shortage and taking the necessary steps to address this pervasive issue that disproportionately affects students with diverse learning needs.

Dave Thompson

Councillor, City of Victoria

Dave practiced law in Ontario and BC as an environmental offences prosecutor, and as counsel advising on law reform. He holds Masters degrees in law and in economics, and has worked for governments, non-profits, and the private sector. Dave is currently a small business owner and a community volunteer.

Dave served on the Boards of Directors of several charities and non-profits, and has been a Director, Treasurer and Vice President of the Fairfield Gonzales Community Association. He currently sits on the Community Association Land Use Committee (CALUC) and serves as Chair of his Neighbourhood Improvement Committee.

David Ng

Union Co-Operative Initiative

David is the Co-Artistic Director of Love Intersections, a media arts collective of queer artists of colour. He is an organizer with the Union Co-Operative Initiative, and a founding charter member of the Artist and Cultural Workers Union (IATSE B-778). David has been a filmmaker for 22 years, and more recently through Love Intersections, he has produced over 15 short films, which have screened internationally at over 60 film festivals. He is currently a PhD candidate at the Social Justice Institute at the University of British Columbia.

Dennis Thomas “Whonoak”

Councillor, Tsleil-Waututh Nation

Dennis Thomas “Whonoak” is a member and an elected Councillor of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation (People of the Inlet) in Deep Cove, North Vancouver. Dennis began working for his community in 2007 as the 2010 Coordinator for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Since then, Dennis pursued business with his Nation and managed several band-owned companies, including Takaya Tours, an internationally recognized Indigenous tourism business. This is where he connected with his cultural roots and now is a cultural ambassador in his community. He strives to embed his Nations’s culture in all areas so that the ancestral knowledge is awake and alive. He also led new business ventures, including implementing the largest Solar array project to date in the North Shore, which inspires him to practice and implement green energy. As a consultant, he was TWN Cultural Liaison for MST Development Corporation, where he ensured Tsleil-Waututh Nations’ history and culture are at the forefront and rooted in the building structure, architectural design, and the overall public realm. He holds an MBA from Simon Fraser University specializing in Indigenous Business Leadership. He is also a recipient of Business in Vancouver’s 2021 Top Forty under 40.

DJ Pohl

Paralegal, Chilliwack Crown Council

DJ Pohl is a community and labour leader as well as lifelong advocate for justice, fairness, and equality. She is currently the 1^st Vice Chairperson of the Administrative Professionals Component 12 of BC General Employees Union (BCGEU) and is appointed to the Climate Solutions Advisory Council to the Premier. She is the current Fraser Valley Labour Council (FVLC) Treasurer and has led the municipal election labour endorsement program for FVLC since the 2014 election. 

DJ has a degree in Criminal Justice from the University of the Fraser Valley and is currently completing her Paralegal Certificate at UFV. She is an employee of the BC Public Service where she is a paralegal with the BC Prosecution Service. Being politically active, she strives to bring positive growth and change while empowering others to do the same and was the Federal NDP Candidate for Chilliwack-Hope in the 201 Election. In her free time, she plays roller derby and enjoys spending time with her family in her home community of Yarrow.  

Dr. Joy Masuhara

Co-Chair, Board of Directors, Women Transforming Cities

Dr. Joy Masuhara is Co-Chair of the Board of Directors of Women Transforming Cities International Society, and has spoken about Women Friendly Cities at UN Habitat III, the World Urban Forum 9, and at the Commission on the Status of Women. She is a physician working in the area of Older Adult Mental Health, and is the Regional Medical Director of Equity Diversity and Inclusion at Vancouver Coastal Health. She/they is a settler, on the lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

Fiona Koza

Climate Accountability Strategist, West Coast Environmental Law

Fiona Koza is the Climate Accountability Strategist at West Coast Environmental Law, where she strives to help BC communities and local governments pay for skyrocketing climate costs while holding polluters accountable for climate damages through the Sue Big Oil campaign. Previously, Fiona has worked at Amnesty International, the International Institute for Sustainable Development, and Greenpeace. Fiona has an MSc in Environmental Management and Policy from the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics at Lund University in Sweden, and a BSc in Environmental Chemistry from Queen’s. She is grateful for the opportunity to live and work on Coast Salish territories.

Jennifer Reddy (Moderator)

Trustee, Board of Education, School District 39 (Vancouver)

Jennifer is working towards an inclusive community where people are engaged as valuable and deserving individuals, who can use their agency to lead the changes they wish to see. Jennifer holds a Masters in Social Policy and Development, a Bachelors in Development Studies, and a Certificate in Curriculum Development and Instructional Design. From SFU, EdMeCo, and the VSB to Kuru Kuru Training Centre in Guyana, Jennifer has been inspired by global leadership in education and social change.

• @ReddyForChange

Karen Ranalletta

President, CUPE BC

Karen Ranalletta was elected President of CUPE BC in May 2021 after serving three terms on the Executive Board as General Vice-President. Karen’s involvement began as a member of CUPE 2950, the local representing clerical, library and theatre workers at the University of British Columbia, where she served as president prior to being elected as a CUPE BC officer. Karen has participated in a number of CUPE BC committees through the course of her involvement, including terms as chair of the Universities and Young Workers Committees.

In addition to her role as CUPE BC President, Karen serves as the Regional Vice President – B.C. on the CUPE National Executive Board (NEB). As a member of the NEB, Karen provides a voice for B.C. members within the National Union’s governance structure, which includes serving on the National Safe Union Spaces Working Group and the CUPE National Post-Secondary Task Force.

Karen represents CUPE BC as an Officer (Vice-President) of the BC Federation of Labour, and chairs the Federation’s Health and Safety Committee. She also sits on the Board of Directors for the BC Labour Heritage Centre, an organization dedicated to preserving and championing working people’s history in British Columbia.

Karen is a strong advocate for public libraries, reading and literacy, and outside of her roles in the labour movement, donates her time to support the arts and theatre community in Vancouver.

Kim Mackenzie

Director of Policy, CMHA BC

Kim Mackenzie (she/her) is the Director of Policy with the Canadian Mental Health Association BC Division. She has had the privilege of working in community, non-profit and government on a variety of intersecting policy issues including mental health and substance use, children and youth, gender equity, income security, access to justice and sex work. She holds a Masters of Public Policy and is grateful to live on the beautiful lands of the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples (Victoria).

• Website
• @cmhabc

Lacey Mesley

Manager, AVI Health and Community Services, Community-Led Crisis Response Team

Lacey Mesley (she/her) is an uninvited settler, living on the Unceded Lək̓ʷəŋən-speaking people’s territories. Lacey is originally from the lands of the Anishnaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples, of the Dish with one Spoon Treaty. 

Lacey has been working in harm reduction and mental health care for the last 11years, with extensive experience in both frontline mental health and substance use services, as well as program development and management. Lacey is a former research assistant with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, and a graduate of the Masters of Public Health Program at the University of Victoria. 

Currently, Lacey is the Manager of the Community-Led Crisis Response Team, at AVI Health and Community Services. This team is part of the peer assisted care teams model, developing across BC. Alongside the Canadian Mental Health Association, Lacey is supporting the development of peer assisted care teams and the reform of crisis care across the province. 

Michelle Bonner

Manager, Vancity, Community Investment – Climate

As Manager Community Investment – Climate at Vancity, Canada’s largest community credit union, Michelle leads grant-making and work with community partners in service of the credit union’s climate commitments, in particular to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions across the whole loan portfolio and to finance an equitable climate transition.

Michelle has been working in the fields of environmental sustainability and climate for more than two decades. Prior to joining Vancity, she served as Vice President and Training Manager with Climate Smart, an award-winning certified B Corp, where she led the design and delivery of Climate Smart’s training and certification program to help small and medium-sized enterprises measure and reduce their carbon emissions. In her role at Climate Smart she worked with local governments, Port of Vancouver, Vancouver International Airport, Vancity and other partners to engage their business tenants, members, and communities in reducing their carbon emissions.

Michelle is currently participating as a mentor in the Women4Climate Mentorship Program to support women working on climate issues to create a healthier, more sustainable and resilient urban future. She lives with her family and very large dog in East Vancouver and loves to spend time exploring the nearby coast and mountains, and attempting to knit.

Michelle Laviolette

Director, Vancity, Indigenous Banking Strategy

As Director of Indigenous Banking at Vancity, Canada’s largest credit union, Michelle advances Reconciliation at the organizational level. Michelle oversees a strategy to deliver on Vancity’s commitment to Reconciliation and its goal to become a valued financial partner to Indigenous members, organizations, and communities.

Prior to becoming Indigenous Banking Director, Michelle held several management roles with the Vancity Group including in business development, broker services and as a branch manager.

Michelle’s achievements in building strong relationships with Indigenous communities include her leadership in opening a remote community branch in Alert Bay, in partnership with the ‘Namgis First Nation and the Village of Alert Bay.

With some Métis-Ojibway ancestry and married to a member of the Northwest Territory Métis Nation, Michelle is passionate about advancing Vancity’s work to uphold Reconciliation as a core value.

Michelle is an active member of several boards supporting the environment and cultural harmony in her home of South Delta, where she can be found playing on the Fraser River when she is not watching her children play sports.

Monica Cheema

Researcher, filmmaker, Surrey Shapers alum

Monica Cheema is a researcher, filmmaker and arts facilitator based out of the Unceded Lands of Surrey, BC, and a recent alumni of CityHive’s Surrey Shapers program. She currently works for the South Asian Cultural Redress project with the City of Vancouver, which aims to address historical discrimination and erasure through community-informed research. As a filmmaker, she spends much of her time exploring cultural memory and community archives for her most recent project, which tells the story of a historical mill settlement turned ghost town fighting to stay alive on the East Coast of Vancouver Island. Monica works with youth in various capacities, previously as a mental health & harm reduction facilitator in the Punjabi community; addressing the gaps in equitable access to care within marginalized communities. And now, as an artist-in-residence with the Vancouver School Board. She is passionate about storytelling as a tool for research creation, knowledge mobilization, and community building. Especially when combined with land-based learning, she believes that storytelling can equip youth to feel a greater sense of personal & collective agency; to remain critical of the systems and institutions they exist within, and resilient enough to find joy within this criticality. She is especially interested in how youth can help us move towards a more emergent, less policed, future.

Nadine Nakagawa

Councillor, City of New Westminster

Nadine Nakagawa is a community organizer and local activist. Prior to and during her time on council, Nadine has focused on issues relating to housing, public spaces, Reconciliation, and public engagement. She was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022.

For her work in the community, Nadine was named the 2017 Citizen of the Year at the Chamber of Commerce Platinum Awards. She works as an Equity and Inclusion Strategist, runs a campaign school for underrepresented people, is a researcher on representation in local government, and has a Master’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. When not working on community projects, Nadine is a creative writer, gardener, and avid reader. She is a renter in the Brow of the Hill neighbourhood.

• @nadinenakagawa

Neil Gaudreault

Executive Director, Winch Institute

Neil is the Executive Director of the Winch Institute and has over 25 years of experience volunteering on, and managing campaigns at the Federal, Provincial and Local Government level. The Winch Institute is a non-profit that provides training and campaign services for local government candidates. Over the last 8 years Winch has provided campaign services to over a hundred candidates and training to over 200 campaign volunteers. In the 2022 BC Local Government elections Winch provided services to 41 candidates, of which 33 were elected, including four new mayors.

• @NeilGaudreault

Nikki Hill

Principal, Earnscliffe Strategy Group

Nikki Hill is a public policy and campaign expert with over 20 years of experience in politics, strategic communications and government relations. As a Principal and Partner at Earnscliffe Strategies, a national public affairs firm, Nikki works with a diverse portfolio of clients in the business, labour and non-profit sectors. Having worked to address period poverty policy issues in BC since 2016 through United Way Period Promise, Nikki is now the Chair of the Government of BC Period Poverty Task Force.

• @hillnikki

Njeri Kontulahti

Senior Manager, Vancity, Financial Resilience and Inclusion

Njeri (Jeri) Kontulahti is a Senior Manager Financial Resilience and Inclusion with Vancity, Canada’s largest credit union, where she has worked for over 25 years. Her work involves developing and deepening connections with Not-for-profit organizations to build their capacity and create impact.

Njeri has led Vancity’s leadership in financial health and inclusion, including overseeing work serving refugees and newcomers and supporting our low barrier Pigeon Park branch in the Downtown Eastside. Njeri has developed and managed financial products, services and policies that support the Financial Inclusion of people in Indigenous, Racialized and Equity-deserving communities to build assets, including home ownership and access to credit.

Njeri has a deep commitment to the cooperative movement in Canada and has served as a volunteer facilitator for the Cooperative Development Foundation’s Women’s Mentorship Program in Ottawa since 2007. This program brings women from credit unions all over the developing world to learn about credit union operations in Canada. Njeri has served in many NPO boards and is a founding Director of a non-profit known as Daughters of Hope, whose main aim is to support racialized individuals and families at risk of homelessness in British Columbia Canada.

Robyn Burek

Program Manager, Portland Street Response

Robyn brings her experience from both the mental health industry and local government to the role of Portland Street Response Program Manager. She has over a decade of experience as a Licensed Therapist and Clinical Supervisor and holds licenses to practice in two states. Her experience as a therapist is diverse and includes work in the areas of domestic violence, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, poverty, LGBTQ+, and family counseling.

In addition to her mental health career, her professional experience includes serving two Tulsa Mayors in the Office of Performance Strategy and Innovation in which she built programs designed to improve City workplace culture and innovate delivery of City services to the public. While employed with the City of Tulsa, Robyn was also asked to serve as the Mayor’s designee on Tulsa’s Human Right’s Compassion Committee and the City/County Jail Sales Tax Oversight Committee.

Robyn moved from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Portland, Oregon in 2017 and has been employed with Portland Fire & Rescue since 2018. She has been a key participant in the design and launch of the Portland Street Response program and is deeply committed to its mission and to seeing this program succeed.

Robyn holds a Bachelors in Psychology, a Masters in Counseling, a Masters in Business Administration, and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Organizational Leadership.

Rowan Gentleman-Sylvester

Programs Manager, CityHive

Rowan is a talented facilitator, organizer and overall ‘do-er.’ She is deeply passionate about experiential education, civic engagement, dialogue, and democracy in action. During BA in Communication from Simon Fraser University, she spent over a year and a half researching the role of youth (ages 13-30) within our democratic processes — navigating the tensions between intense activism and lack of voter turnout. Rowan loves being reminded of the innovative and inspiring ways that young people shape our communities and develop solutions to seemingly impossible problems. Born and raised in what is commonly known as East Vancouver, Rowan has lived most of her life on these unceded lands. As a sixth-generation Canadian settler she is constantly navigating and deepening her understanding of power, privilege, land and place. Rowan enjoys combing through the racks at local thrift stores, at-home yoga, and getting absorbed by good books.

Seth Klein

Director, Climate Emergency Unit, Climate Emergency Strategy and Team Lead

Seth served for 22 years as the founding director of the British Columbia office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA), Canada’s foremost social justice think tank. He is now a policy consultant, speaker, writer and author of A Good War: Mobilizing Canada for the Climate Emergency. Seth is an adjunct professor with Simon Fraser University’s Urban Studies program, and remains a research associate with the CCPA’s BC Office. He writes a regular column for Canada’s National Observer. For more about Seth, visit his website here.

• @SethDKlein

Sharon Gregson

Provincial Spokesperson, $10aDay Child Care Campaign

Sharon is the provincial spokesperson for the successful $10aDay Child Care campaign in BC, building a public system of quality, affordable child care. She works with the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC and travels extensively speaking with local governments, school boards, communities, labour, and businesses about current child care chaos and the solution – the $10aDay plan. She was twice elected as a Trustee to the Vancouver Board of Education and is well-known to be a feminist and relentless advocate, skilled in campaign strategy and campaigning, government, and stakeholder relations.

• @sharongregson

Shauna Shortt

City Shift Project Lead, YWCA Vancouver

Shauna Shortt leads YWCA Metro Vancouver’s City Shift project, advocating to make our region more equitable, prosperous and just by supporting Metro Vancouver cities to challenge assumptions, incorporate diverse perspectives and support actions that serve the entire community. She draws endless inspiration from her 7-year old to advocate for transformational social change. She believes wholeheartedly in serving the community and is a board member with the Sharing Farm Society.

Sussanne Skidmore

President, BC Federation of Labour

Sussanne chairs the Columbia Institute’s board of directors and is a well-known social justice advocate and queer-and-human-rights activist. She was elected BCFED president in 2022 after being elected as the federation’s secretary-treasurer in 2018 and 2020. She served as executive vice-president of BCGEU for 5 years. She has co-chaired the BCFED’s Human Rights Committee and is active in the federation’s Women and Gender Rights Committee. Skidmore is the national treasurer for the New Democratic Party of Canada and a vice president of the BC NDP.

• @SussanneRS

Tara Marsden/Naxginkw 

Hlimoo Sustainable Solutions

Tara is from the Lax Ganeda (Frog) Clan of Gitanyow Huwilp of the Gitksan peoples. For more than two decades, Tara has been dedicated to advancing sustainable development and operationalizing free, prior and informed consent for Indigenous peoples. Drawing on her Master’s degree in Political Science and her upbringing in Gitksan Ayookxw (laws), Tara has worked for a number of First Nations governments, academia, the provincial government, philanthropic organizations, and most recently for her own nation Gitanyow as Wilp Sustainability Director. In 2021, Tara established Hlimoo Sustainable Solutions to continue her life’s work as an independent consultant in her homelands of the Gitksan people.

Tariq Tyab

Co-Founder, Foundation for a Path Forward

Tariq Tyab is a renowned non-profit leader and philanthropist with 25 years’ experience championing interfaith collaboration and empowering IBPOC communities. Co-founder of British Columbia’s Foundation for a Path Forward, Tariq focuses on breaking down barriers and promoting equality. His accomplishments include co-founding the Muslim Food Bank, Muslim Care Centre, and Islam Unravelled. A former BC Muslim Association executive, Tariq’s expertise and passion have left a lasting impact in the non-profit sector.

Thom Armstrong

Chief Executive Officer, Co-operative Housing Federation

Thom Armstrong has more than 30 years experience in the co-operative housing movement, holding leadership positions in Saskatchewan, Ontario, and British Columbia. Since September 2000, Armstrong has been the Chief Executive Officer of the Co-operative Housing Federation of BC, and currently serves in the same capacity for the Community Land Trust Foundation of BC and COHO Management Services Society, all headquartered in Vancouver. He also serves on the board of Encasa Financial Inc., an investment fund manager for the social housing sector in Canada with more than $520 million in assets under management. CHF BC represents 260 non-profit housing co-ops with more than 14,000 co-op homes. CHF BC’s group of community land trusts currently holds assets in housing and land worth more than $364 million and is developing or acquiring additional housing assets worth almost $800 million.

Tiffany Ottahal

Community Investment Portfolio Manager, Labour Partners at Vancity

Bio forthcoming

Vaidehi Gupta

SFU student, Surrey Shapers alum

Vaidehi is a 3rd year Human Geography and Urban Studies student at SFU and a recent alumni of CityHive’s Surrey Shapers program. Recently, she has developed a love for urbanism, planning, and cities, and is interested in how we can shape our cities for a more sustainable future. Vaidehi is passionate about policy, research, and urban design to create cities that are inclusive and incorporate multi-modal forms of transportation. Additionally, she cares about getting involved in her local community, and has engaged through volunteering activities on and off campus through non-profit organizations. In Vaidehi’s free time, she enjoys swimming, taking film photos, and going on long walks while listening to jazz. 

Veronika Bylicki

Executive Director and Co-Founder, CityHive

Veronika is an engagement innovator, community builder and sustainability strategist. A lifelong Vancouverite, she is passionate about creating more sustainable, liveable cities and amplifying the meaningful engagement of citizens, particularly youth, in addressing urban challenges.
Veronika completed her BSc in Global Resource Systems at UBC, with a specialization in Urban Sustainability, Policy and Planning. Her experience includes working in Sustainability Education Facilitation with Metro Vancouver, Student Sustainability Engagement at UBC, and in Environmental Assessment with Environment and Climate Change Canada, and as a Director at Co-Design Engage, which leads participatory design processes in city planning. She was awarded as a Top 25 Under 25 Environmentalist in Canada in 2015, has delivered a TEDxYouth talk on Urban Sustainability and was a Social Innovation Fellow at RADIUS SFU. Veronika is currently a Commissioner on the Vancouver City Planning Commission and Board Member for CityStudio Vancouver. Veronika is an outdoor enthusiast and can often be found zipping around the city on her bike.

• @veronikabyl

Victor Smith

Mayor, District of Hope

Victor was born and raised in Hope, BC. He enjoys travel but always comes back to his roots in Hope. Following a four-year term as District Councillor, Smith successfully ran for Mayor. Since taking on the role, his approach is focused on forming, maintaining and expanding relationships and mutual partnerships. Smith’s common-sense approach along with fiscally responsible manner, inclusivity and timeliness have served well in his volunteer positions in the past.  Smith carried this approach forward into his council roles and is now the foundation of his approach as Mayor.

As part of his commitment to the District of Hope, tax payers, residents and businesses Smith uses his broad knowledge and experience.  He has significant goals related to dyking, river health and safety leading to overall community safety; infrastructure upgrades throughout the district and region; and planning and budgeting for the future to allow for infrastructure improvements, replacements and growth.

Relationship building and teamwork are foundations in Smith’s volunteering history. He was the President and Director for the Hope & District Chamber of Commerce (10 years), the Coordinator for Hope Communities in Bloom (12 years), and the Chair, Vice-Chair and Director for Communities Future Sun Country (10 years).

Yusuf Siraj

Co-Founder, Foundation for a Path Forward

Yusuf Siraj is a dedicated non-profit leader and award-winning public speaker with a decade of experience supporting IBPOC organizations. Co-founder of British Columbia’s Foundation for a Path Forward, Yusuf demonstrates commitment to social justice and empowering marginalized communities. His extensive background includes roles at the BC Muslim Association, Muslim Care Centre, and numerous non-profit organizations. With a background in psychology and business management, Yusuf develops innovative solutions to pressing social issues.