Unite to Unlock: Full Schedule

8:00am EST

Mental Health Caucus

When navigating the complexities of development and managing day to day life, mental health is central to our well-being. The Mental Health Caucus is an opportunity for delegates to come together and share their personal experiences with mental health and offer support to one another. There will be space for attendees to share as much or as little as they would like, as well as an opportunity to discuss ways to improve mental health resources and understanding within our communities.

Saturday January 17, 2015 8:00am - 9:00am EST
Mont-Royal 900 de la gauchetière ouest

Social Justice Conversation

10:00am EST

Designing Approaches for Gender Equity

Power inequalities and injustice are present in every social system, as are the actors and ideas required to challenge them. So, how do we design interventions that promote equity or challenge oppression? How can we galvanize change that is both personal and systemic? The Gender Action Fellowship brought together Ghanaian and Canadian leaders to work on collaborative action learning projects to do just that. Come hear about some successes and failures that stemmed from this fellowship, and explore the messiness of social justice work.

Facilitators

Erin Aylward

former Gender Advisor, EWB Canada

Erin Aylward is an international development practitioner & researcher who specializes in gender and sexuality. Drawing on her experiences in working with and learning from women's rights organizations in Nicaragua and Panama, she created, funded, and filled the position of “Gender... Read More →

Saturday January 17, 2015 10:00am - 11:30am EST
Fontaine G 900 de la gauchetière ouest

General Social Justice Conversation

10:00am EST

Transformative Justice and Inclusive Collaboration / Justice transformative et collaboration inclusive

How can we create a truly safe space to collaborate with all including those who are often excluded from our workplaces? How can we manage harm and conflict in a way that deepens our relationships as opposed to divides us? Poverty, exclusion and marginalization are extremely traumatic experiences which can lead to mental health, addictions and harming behaviors. If we intend to collaborate with people that have lived experience of poverty and marginalization, we must develop trauma informed skills and workplaces. Join us for this experiential workshop where we will explore Transformative Justice and Harm Reduction techniques.

Facilitators

Joan Ruzsa

Coordinator, Rittenhouse

Saturday January 17, 2015 10:00am - 11:30am EST
Longueuil 900 de la gauchetière ouest

General Social Justice Conversation

8:00am EST

Women's Caucus

The women’s caucus is a venue for exploration of gender-related issues in international development work, as well as how these issues shape organizational behaviour. It is a space for identifying the underlying issues and sharing personal experience. All levels of familiarity with gender-based issues are welcome!

However, please note that the caucus is restricted to those who identify as women only, in order to create a safest space for discussion, vulnerability and introspection. This decision is also integral to the support-space nature of the conversation we're intending to create.

Sunday January 18, 2015 8:00am - 9:00am EST
Ballroom 900 de la gauchetière ouest

Social Justice Conversation

10:00am EST

What's Gender Got To Do With It?

What does gender have to do with international development work? This workshop provides an interactive, experiential engagement where participants will work through tangible examples of the many ways in which women are impacted differently by development interventions- whether we recognize it or not! Delegates will also leave this session armed with some tools and tactics for thinking about cross-cutting issues of power and injustice.

Facilitators

Erin Aylward

former Gender Advisor, EWB Canada

Sunday January 18, 2015 10:00am - 11:30am EST
Fontaine F 900 de la gauchetière ouest

General Social Justice Conversation

11:30am EST

LGBTQIA Caucus

Participants identifying as LGBTQIA are welcome to attend this caucus to come find support among their peers, share their experience working in social change and international development, and discuss how being part of often marginalized groups impacts their work either positively or negatively. This caucus is primarily intended to be a support space, although allies are welcome.

Sunday January 18, 2015 11:30am - 12:30pm EST
Fontaine D 900 de la gauchetière ouest

Social Justice Conversation

11:30am EST

People of Colour Caucus

This is an open caucus for those of multinational backgrounds and allies - visible minorities & those from 'developing' countries particularly - to discuss what it means to be a person coming from another country to be involved in poverty-reduction. Our organizations encompass individuals from a broad set of nationalities, with rich histories and backgrounds; we want to bring out a diversity of opinion that may not usually be heard with respect to working in international development. We hope this discussion will continue beyond conference and will be used to spark deeper questions and conversations throughout the network.

Sunday January 18, 2015 11:30am - 12:30pm EST
Fontaine C 900 de la gauchetière ouest

Social Justice Conversation

1:30pm EST

Inclusion and Your Organization

How can your organization become more inclusive and diverse? Exeko is an organization which specifically promotes inclusion of the most marginalized populations by creating accessible arts, culture and educational opportunities. How can we partner to create inclusive spaces? Come and build out a practical model of how this could look within your organization or EWB Chapter.

Facilitators

Nadia Duguay

Cofounder and Codirector, Exeko

Social entrepreneur and Ashoka Fellow, Nadia co-founded Exeko, an organisation that she co-directs today and whose mission is "social inclusion through innovation in culture and education." She has created more than 110 projects and is striving to define an approach based on the... Read More →

Agnes Lorgueilleux

Development and Innovation Manager, Exeko

Sunday January 18, 2015 1:30pm - 3:00pm EST
St-Pierre 900 de la gauchetière ouest

General Social Justice Conversation

3:15pm EST

Getting to Know a Greater Diversity of People

Outside of the social labs, office, and facilitated spaces, how do we build community in each moment of our private and public lives? What have you done to step outside of your comfort zone to help others, and what holds you back? In this session we will actively build belonging, and have a conversation around how to bring this to our interactions.

Facilitators

Suzanne Fish

Suzanne is absolutely devoted to a life long journey of bringing together a diversity of people to disrupt systems of oppression and re-create a new kind of community. She began her journey of social change as a development worker, studying African Political Economies at the University... Read More →

Sunday January 18, 2015 3:15pm - 4:45pm EST
Longueuil 900 de la gauchetière ouest

General Social Justice Conversation