The webinar highlighted the ways in which the global pandemic has encouraged non-profit organizations in Canada’s international cooperation sector to adapt their public engagement and global citizenship education programs and activities to the online world. What are the associated strengths and challenges with this change? To what extent are these programs effective in targeting diverse groups?
The webinar also facilitated dialogue and reflections on ways in which non-profit organizations can strengthen effective, online public engagement and global citizenship activities for the communities they serve.
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Speakers:
Joel Simpson is the Founder and Co-Chairperson of the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) in Guyana. He holds a Bachelor of Laws Degree from the University of Guyana. He is a Chevening scholar with a Master of Laws Degree in Human Rights Law from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. His research interests include homophobia, human rights, gender, vulnerability, sexual health, stigma, and discrimination. He has extensive experience in these areas, having worked as the UNESCO Human Rights Researcher at the HIV Education Unit at the University of the West Indies (UWI) St. Augustine and Human Rights Associate at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) country office in Guyana. He is the co-founder of the Trinidad and Tobago Anti Violence Project (TTAVP). He also sits on the Advisory Committee to the LGBT Rights Programme at Human Rights Watch (HRW) and is a member of the International Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Intersex Law Association (ILGLaw), among many other regional and international affiliations.
Lesley Korlekie Tetteh (she/her) is a current Youth Advocate with the Ontario Council for International Cooperation’s Youth Policy-Makers’ Hub. Lesley is part of the Class of 2020 at Brock University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Women and Gender Studies, with a minor in Sociology. During her time in the Niagara Region, Lesley has spent a generous amount of time engaging in initiatives using an anti-oppressive and intersectional framework to spread awareness to issues she is passionate about. Born and raised in Toronto, Lesley has always been passionate about mental health advocacy, youth & gender empowerment and equality, and anti-racism work in her communities. Her involvement with the OCIC-YPH upon her return from Niagara is giving her many opportunities to expand her capacity in various spaces.
Shaelyn Wabegijijg (she/her) is an Algonquin youth, Caribou Clan, and her family is from Timiskaming First Nation and of European descent. Separated from her family on the reservation caused by the legacy of residential schools, she grew up in Rama First Nation. She currently resides in Nogojiwanong/Peterborough, where she studied at Trent University and received her BAH in Indigenous Studies and Philosophy in 2018. Learning her Indigenous history, culture and a bit of the language has led her into the nonprofit sector where she feels she can really make a difference and help amplify the voices of Indigenous peoples for social and environmental justice, which are inextricably linked. She currently holds two positions at the Kawartha World Issues Centre (KWIC), as the office and outreach coordinator and the project coordinator for a KWIC project called Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 Agenda. For this project, she will be working across sectors and closely with local Michi Saagiig communities to take Climate Action and build Partnerships for the goals with the priorities of leaving no one behind and centering Indigenous perspectives/knowledge. KWIC is an OCIC member, and Shaelyn also took part in OCIC’s Transformations Project in 2019.
Sydney Piggott is a civil society leader, researcher, and advocate for gender equity and inclusion on a global scale. At YWCA Canada she leads impact-driven initiatives with a vision to see women and girls empowered in a safe and equitable society. Passionate about the power of young people, Sydney also works with several youth organizations locally, nationally, and globally including the Ontario Council for International Cooperation’s (OCIC) Youth Policy-Maker’s Hub, Apathy is Boring’s RISE program, and Cohort X – Community Knowledge Exchange’s (CKX) gender and climate justice initiative. She brings an intersectional feminist lens to all of her work informed by her proud Afro-Caribbean heritage. She holds a Master of Global Affairs from the University of Toronto – Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy where she co-founded the Intersectional Feminist Collective, was a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee scholar, and a research fellow with the Reach Alliance. Sydney also holds a bachelor’s degree in international development studies from McGill University.
Moderator:
Sinethemba Dlamini is a broadcast journalist from the Kingdom of Eswatini. She has a rich background in public relations having worked as a stakeholder relations officer for two advertising agencies which sparked her love for corporate communications. However, as a firm believer in equality and information as a tool for positive change, she joined the NGO sector where her love and fire for women and children led her to lead the first national campaign on the 16 days against gender-based violence where she learned about the rights of women and children and the glaring reality of gender-based violence across the board. That led her to her current job as a reporter and news anchor for the national broadcaster, her heart however remains rooted in issues of women, children, HIV/ AIDS, and education.
