Elder Dr. Albert Marshall and Louise Zimanyi

Indigenous Ways of Knowing

Elder Dr. Albert Marshall and Louise Zimanyi

Elder Albert Marshall: Moose Clan of the Mi’kmaw Nation from Eskasoni in Unama’ki – Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. He is a co-creator of Etuaptmumk/Two-Eyed Seeing, a guiding principle, which serves to integrate traditional Indigenous ways of knowing with other systems of thought for the benefit of all; co-author of Walking Together (Annick Press, 2023) with Louise Zimanyi: French-Canadian and Hungarian descent, living in Tkaronto/Toronto, Treaty 13 territory; Professor, Early Childhood Education, Humber College; Co-Lead, Two-Eyed Land-Based Play and Co-Learning in Early Learning and Care Ecosystems, Outdoor Play Strategy 2.0; co-author of Walking Together

Chad Mills Writer/Founder
Colleen Elep Writer/Founder

Health and Wellbeing

Chad Mills and Colleen Elep – Undoctrin8 writers

Chad Mills and Colleen Elep are freelance writers, long-time middle school educators, and the founders of the award-winning Undoctrin8 blog. As educators, Chad and Colleen experienced difficulty finding a space to share their voice and perspective. Through blogging and writing, they have discovered a pathway to actualize their agency as authors and creators. In their writing, they focus on addressing common misconceptions about diasporic identities while recognizing the limitations of seeing racialized Canadians as a monolithic group. They write about multilingualism, books, critical pedagogy, and expanding the way educators think about Canadian outdoor spaces.

Chad is a yogi, and lifelong vegetarian. In his current educator role, he is focused on mentoring Black and other racialized youth with an emphasis on self-reflection, empowerment and identifying future pathways. He is passionate about maximizing the potential of local outdoor spaces and built an outdoor classroom in his school. Colleen is a city-dweller and audiobook, travel and coffee enthusiast. In her current educator role, she is a board lead and provincial executive member in the area of ESL/ELD pedagogy. Her current professional interests include Learning Experience Design, empowering student voice through writing, and identifying ways for educators to use outdoor spaces for social emotional learning with newcomer students.

Chúk Odenigbo

Environment and Climate Change

Chúk Odenigbo

Proudly Franco-Albertan, Chúk Odenigbo explores the links between the environment, human health and social justice. Currently a doctoral student in medical geography at the University of Ottawa, he holds a master’s degree from the Université de Montréal’s School of Public Health. He has been involved in projects focusing on the health benefits of natural spaces, including Parks Victoria’s Healthy Parks Healthy People initiative. Chúk has also taken part in international conferences, such as the Salzburg Global Seminar and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on the link between environment and health. Outside his work, he is actively involved in initiatives to reimagine and reform our systems for the well-being of all beings – human and non-human.

Megan Zeni

TEDstyle Talks

Megan Zeni

Megan Zeni is a mom of 3, an experienced elementary school teacher, and a master gardener. Megan successfully re-imagined the prep position in her public school and turned it into her dream job of spending her days with children in the garden classroom. She is now employed as the Early Learning and K-7 Curriculum Implementation Teacher Consultant in SD#38. Megan is an advocate for taking children outdoors at school in all kinds of weather to learn, play, and grow. She believes just about anything can be taught in a school garden, and that class time spent in nature develops empathy, resiliency, and self-regulated learning. Megan is a PhD candidate at UBC in curriculum & pedagogy. Her research interests include developing professional learning networks with in-service teachers to weave systems of schooling with emerging pedagogies of place and play. Megan brings over 25 years of K-7 public school teaching experience to her research and consulting, and shares her learning on social media at @roomtoplay and on her blog at meganzeni.com Her dissertation research supported the development of the https://teacher.outsideplay.org digital tool. A FREE online digital mentorship opportunity imagined by teachers, for teachers across Canada.

Karen Lai

TedStyle Talks

Karen Lai

Karen Lai works as an independent consultant in accessibility and inclusion. She works with businesses and organizations to increase the accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities. She holds a Master of Arts in Human Kinetics where she examined the social theories behind social inclusion of people with disabilities. She has more than 20 years of working alongside with individuals with disabilities in the field of recreation, education employment, government, and other community connections.

Devon Karchut

TedStyle Talks

Devon Karchut

Devon is the director of TimberNook of Greater Calgary, and loves nothing more than spending time outdoors with children! She has been a pediatric physiotherapist for 13 years and truly believes that authentic play outdoors is not only the key to optimal gross motor development, but also to overall development of the whole child. In her 5 years providing TimberNook programs, Devon has seen incredible transformation in children, as they gain confidence, resilience, problem-solving skills, physical skills, and interpersonal skills. Devon is an avid outdoors-woman, and spends much of her free time running, hiking, skiing, and camping. She is the proud mom of a 9 year old wild child.

Dr Gillian Judson

TedStyle Talks

Dr Gillian Judson

Dr. Gillian Judson is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University. She gratefully works on unceded traditional Indigenous territories, including those of the Semiahmoo, Katzie, kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem), Kwantlen, Qayqayt and Tsawwassen Nations. She researches the role of imagination in educational leadership, with a specific focus on leadership for social and ecological justice. She also investigates imaginative and ecological teaching practices (PreK through post-secondary) with expertise in a pedagogy called Imaginative Education. Her latest books are entitled Cultivating Imagination in Leadership: Transforming Schools and Communities (Judson & Dougherty, Eds., Teachers College Press, 2023), Imagination and the Engaged Learner: Cognitive Tools for the Classroom. (Egan & Judson, 2016), Engaging Imagination in Ecological Education: Practical Strategies for Teaching (Judson, 2015), and A Walking Curriculum (Judson, 2018/2019).

TedStyle Talks

Launa Payne and Sherrelle Anderson

Launa Payne is a member of Douglas First Nation. She is an Indigenous Educator with a focus on outdoor education. Launa teaches yoga and mindfulness in addition to Indigenous outdoor camps. Launa is the proud mother of two adult children.

Sherrelle Anderson is a member of the Saddle Lake First Nation. She is a Social Worker with a focus on Indigenous wellness. Sherrelle is an Indigenous outreach Worker who also teaches a number of Indigenous programs throughout BC. Sherrelle is the proud mother of three school aged daughters.

Larissa Crawford

Youth and Changemakers Panel

Larissa Crawford

Larissa Crawford proudly passes on Métis and Jamaican ancestry to her daughter, Zyra, and is a published Indigenous, anti-racism, and climate justice researcher, policy advisor, and restorative circle keeper with over 15 years of experience.

Larissa’s lived experience as an Indigenous and Black woman; a survivor of sexual violence and poverty; a person living with chronic pain disabilities and brain damage; having lived in both rural and urban settings; and as a young mother positions her to carry out her responsibilities as a future ancestor with unique insight and consideration.

Larissa is also the Founder of Future Ancestors Services, an Indigenous and Black-owned, youth-led professional services social enterprise that advances climate justice and systemic barrier removal with lenses of anti-racism and ancestral accountability. Through an intergenerational, disabled, and queer team of professionals and advisors, they provide speaking, training, research and consulting services, and influencer and interview services to +400 diverse clients. They do this while centering decolonized and Indigenized practices, and are constantly reimagining how we can learn, relate, and work together in healthy ways.

Larissa finds healing, direction, and belongingness on the Land and is an avid rock climber, boulderer, and hiker.

Judith Kasiama

Youth/Changemakers Panel

Judith Kasiama

Judith is an athlete, community activist, disruptor, and content creator who resides on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded Indigenous territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations.

Through her work Judy highlights her experience as a black woman that skis, rides mountain bikes, hikes, camps, climbs, and explores. Judith’s active participation in the outdoors brings to light the importance of representation. Through conversation and grace her work draws attention to underrepresented minorities by changing the narrative that people of colour are not active participants in the outdoors. In 2017 Judith founded Colour the Trails Advocacy Inc. a national Black woman owned business, focused on improving access to outdoor activities for BIPoC (including those who lay within the intersection of BIPoC and 2SLGBTQAI+ community) adventurers. Colour the Trails prides itself on not only hosting events that break barriers for BIPoC to enter outdoor sports, but also for creating media that showcases BIPoC stories in the outdoors – because representation matters, role models define what is possible. Through Colour the Trails programming and initiatives, the aim is to build awareness, dismantle barriers and create accessible opportunities for participation in outdoor recreation. Judith also sits on the board of the Trans Canada Trails working to ensure trails are accessible to all Canadians.

Alyssa Trick

Youth/Changemakers Panel

Alyssa Trick

Alyssa Trick (she/her), also known as Asinawe-Asimook, is a passionate advocate for the intersection of outdoor education and youth life promotion. She currently resides on the traditional lands of the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation, serving as a certified educator in British Columbia and the Youth and Engagement Lead for We Matter. Alyssa’s mission is to bridge the gap between culture and curriculum.

Maya Carr

Youth/Changemakers Panel

Maya Carr

Maya Carr (she/her) grew up in Mohkinstsis (Calgary). With the Rocky Mountains close by, Maya is grateful to have been able to grow up hiking and skiing in these mountains.

During high school, Maya took an Energy and Environmental Innovations class which kick-started her environmental advocacy journey. Throughout highschool, she founded and led an Environmental Club, attended Girls on Ice and Outward Bound backpacking trips, directed the Canadian Rockies Youth Network, was a Youth delegate for the Nature Education Collective in Winnipeg, and was the recipient of the 2022 Mountain Spirit Award.

Maya is now at the University of Alberta and working towards an Environmental Studies degree. She has volunteered with her University’s Energy and Climate Action office and is a member of Edmonton Youth for Climate. In February of this year, Maya was selected as a youth delegate to represent Canada at the 6th United Nations Environmental Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya. At this assembly, Maya met with Canadian Government leaders including the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, Steven Guibeault, to ask questions and bring her perspective to the table.

Maya believes that youth advocacy plays a vital role in the fight towards climate justice and urges all youth to get involved.

Leanne Sweeney

Youth/Changemakers Panel

Leanne Sweeney

Leanne Sweeney (she/her) is a dedicated teacher and outdoor educator with a passion for integrating land-based learning with curriculum. She created and implemented an Outdoor Education program at Aaste Davie School, where she focused on blending outdoor learning seamlessly into the regular school week. Currently, Leanne is teaching on the traditional territory of the Seabird Island, Shxw’owhamel, Sq’ewá:lxw, Sts’ailes, and Cheam First Nations, where she continues to cultivate an educational environment for her students that extends beyond the walls of a classroom.