Victoria Forum 2026
PROGRAM
Unleashing Democracy – 9/11: Reclaiming Ground Zero Film Screening
At a time when trust in democracy is eroding in many countries comes a documentary about how the city of New York can inspire the rest of the world.
After the 9/11 attacks, once the smoke cleared and the rubble was removed, New Yorkers faced a fundamental question: who gets to decide the future of Ground Zero? Some wanted the towers back, while others believed the site should remain a memorial. So the city decided to do one of the bravest – or stupidest – things in the history of city planning.
They gathered 5,000 representative New Yorkers into the largest town hall in American history. People expected chaos, yelling, maybe even a fistfight. But what happened was democracy. And it was beautiful. It’s the story of power and tragedy and the ultimate victory of average citizens to come together and save their city. It’s an inspiring story of a democracy that worked.
This story is more than an inspiration; it’s an example of what is possible. And it’s a lesson that good democratic outcomes require good democratic processes.
Date: August 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Doors open at 7:00pm, film starts at 7:30pm
Venue: The Vic Theatre
808 Douglas St, Victoria BC
Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/unleashing-democracy-9-11-reclaiming-ground-zero-film-screening-august-22-in-victoria-bc
(Seating is limited so please register in advance.)
8:00 p.m.
Pre-Release Film Screening & Panel about Democratic Innovations
Join us to learn about the participatory democracy process that led to the building of the 9/11 Memorial, and to reflect on what this example offers for today’s context.
This pre-release screening of 9/11: Reclaiming Ground Zero will be followed by a panel discussion and dialogue.
Featuring:
Adam Olsen
Member of the Tsartlip First Nation (W̱JOȽEȽP); Political Commentator, CBC Radio; Former Green Party MLA
Aftab Erfan
Executive Director, SFU Wosk Centre for Dialogue
Susanna Haas Lyons
Civic Engagement Specialist; Formerly with America Speaks
Moderator:
Sonia Furstenau
Co-leader, Community Assembly Network; Former Leader, BC Green Party
Sponsored by: Calgary on Purpose, SFU Wosk Centre for Dialogue; Community Assembly Network
1:15 p.m.
Buses depart Parkside Hotel for Songhees Wellness Centre
2:00 p.m.
Collect name tags
2:30 p.m.
Welcomes
Welcome to the Territory:
Elder
Saul Klein
Executive Director, Forum de Victoria Forum
The Honourable Edith Dumont
Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada
The Honourable Stephanie McLean
MP for Esquimalt, Saanich and Sooke, and Secretary of State (Seniors)
Matt Vickers
Co-Chair, Fulbright Canada Honouring Nations
Wellington Holbrook
CEO, Vancity Credit Union
Dave Kelly
Canadian host and writer
3:10 p.m.
Opening Plenary: Truth and Reconciliation on the Global Stage
The journey of Truth and Reconciliation requires both deep national reflection and broad international solidarity. This expansive opening plenary offers a comprehensive look at the local, national, and global dimensions of Indigenous rights, confronting a critical question: Where are we now, and where do we urgently need to go?
The session begins with a foundational, wide-ranging dialogue between two of Canada’s most distinguished voices on human rights and advocacy: Willie Littlechild and the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, moderated by Jim Munson. Together, they will unpack the current landscape and lived realities of reconciliation within Canada.
Building directly on their insights, the plenary will then seamlessly transition into a dynamic global reflection. Moderated by Lea Nicholas-MacKenzie, an expert panel of international diplomats and Indigenous leaders will expand the conversation outward. By bringing in perspectives from the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, as well as lived experiences from Ecuador, Australia, and New Zealand, this panel connects Canada’s journey to worldwide movements – sharing vital lessons on how we can collectively build a more just and equitable future.
The Keynote Dialogue:
The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean
Former Governor-General of Canada
Moderator:
Jim Munson
Chair, Forum de Victoria Forum
Global Reflection Panel:
Aluki Kotierk
Chair, UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Stephanie Harvey
CEO, Community First Development
Diego A. Tituaña
Member (Ecuador), UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Moderator:
Lea Nicholas-MacKenzie
Member (Americas), UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
4:50 p.m.
Break
5:00 p.m.
Artists
Together Calgary on Purpose (C on P) and the Victoria Forum are seeking ways that the arts can enliven and expand democratic discussion and civic engagement .
C on P is a citizens project dedicated to Calgary being a model for how the peoples of the world may live well together. At the heart of its work are artists as community convenors, bridge builders, expanders of civic imagination and storytellers. C on P is programming artists into the Victoria Forum to share stories and imagine possible futures; to reframe issues, gain new perspectives and build trust leading to collaboration across disciplines. If judged successful Calgary on Purpose will sponsor an expanded artist infused program in the 2027 Forum.
6:00 p.m.
Reception
7:00 p.m.
Buses return to Parkside Hotel
AUGUST 24 (Royal Roads University)
7:15 a.m.
Buses depart Parkside Hotel and Quality Inn for Royal Roads University
7:30 a.m.
Light Breakfast
8:40 a.m.
Welcomes (Dogwood Auditorium, Royal Roads University)
Susan Gee
Vice President External Relations, Royal Roads University
9:00 a.m.
Plenary 1: Pathways to the Hope Attractor: from Modeling to Mobilization
The world is navigating an era of cascading crises – from climate disruption and geopolitical instability to democratic erosion, technological upheaval, and widening inequality. Yet, history reminds us that periods of profound uncertainty can also serve as powerful catalysts for systemic transformation. Drawing on the Cascade Institute’s groundbreaking “Hope Attractor” framework, this plenary explores whether humanity can deliberately pivot toward a future defined by resilience, cooperation, and regenerative development. Moving beyond simply imagining a better future, this session brings together leading systems thinkers, medical professionals, and civic innovators to examine exactly what it will take to engineer the conditions that make a hopeful future possible.
Featuring:
Thomas Homer-Dixon
Founder and Executive Director, Cascade Institute
Dr. Courtney Howard
President-Elect, Canadian Medical Association and Founder of POWER – Planetary Health Organizations for Wellbeing, Equity and Regeneration; Chair of the Global Climate and Health Alliance
Indy Johar
Co-founder, Dark Matter Laboratories
Moderator:
Senator Rosa Galvez
Senate of Canada
9:00 a.m.
Buses depart from Parkside Hotel for Royal Roads University
9:50 a.m.
Break
10:15 a.m.
Plenary 2: Middle Powers and the Power of the Middle
As recently emphasized by Mark Carney at the World Economic Forum, the global rules-based order has experienced a profound rupture, leaving middle powers to navigate an era of unchecked great-power rivalry and economic coercion. In response to this geopolitical realignment, democratic fragility, and climate disruption, this plenary session will convene a candid dialogue on how middle powers can act collectively to forge a unified “third path.” The conversation underscores a vital conviction: we urgently need honest, collaborative spaces where policymakers, civil society, academics, and young leaders can think and act together so that middle powers remain at the table, rather than on the menu.
Opening Remarks:
The Right Honourable Joe Clark
Former Prime Minister of Canada
Featuring:
Lord John Alderdice
House of Lords, UK
James Orbinski
Principal, Massey College
Senator Yuen Pau Woo
Senate of Canada
Moderator:
Bessma Momani
Professor of Political Science, University of Waterloo
11:05 a.m.
Break
11:10 a.m.
Plenary 3: Creating the Conditions for Future Economies: Public Collaboration, Finance, and a Renewed Role for Philanthropy
To address interconnected global crises, philanthropy must evolve from funding isolated projects to financing systemic, long-term change. This discussion brings together leading voices in philanthropic and social finance innovation to explore how capital can be deployed to transform underlying systems rather than merely treating symptoms.
Featuring:
Arti Freeman
CEO, Definity Foundation
Ian Bird
CEO, Victoria Foundation
Thomas Marois
Director Public Banking Project, Canada Research Chair in Public Banking, McMaster University
Jeff Cyr
Founder and Managing Partner, Raven Indigenous Outcomes Funds
Moderator:
Ryan Turnbull
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance
12:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:30 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
1a – Implementing UNDRIP and Advancing Reconciliation in Canada (Sherman Jen 113)
This session explores the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) as a framework for strengthening democratic institutions and advancing reconciliation in Canada and examines how governments and institutions can move beyond symbolic commitments toward structural transformation. Participants will explore how Indigenous jurisdiction, co-governance, land stewardship, education reform and culturally grounded approaches contribute to building trust, fostering justice and promoting collective wellbeing.
Featuring:
Miles Richardson
Past Chief Commissioner, BC Treaty Commission
Moderator:
Senator Margo Greenwood
Senate of Canada
1b – Justice and Law - Indigenous Peoples (Sherman Jen 134)
In Canada, Indigenous Peoples remain the fastest-growing incarcerated population. Indigenous children continue to be removed from their families and communities at rates that echo the residential school era. And Indigenous Nations asserting their own laws over their own children are still met with institutional resistance from the very governments that have committed to implementing UNDRIP.
Justice cannot be regenerated without reckoning with who has been most harmed by its absence.
This panel does not accept that gap as inevitable. It convenes three practitioners, who are each, from different vantage points, working to close it.
We will begin by hearing from Kory Wilson, who is the Chair of the BC First Nations Justice Council. Kory will present on the work they are doing to challenge approaches that contribute to the growing over-representation of First Nations children and youth in the care of government and First Nations men and women who are incarceration.
Secondly, we will from Julian Spearchief-Morris, and learn about the work he has been doing with respect to community-driven legal orders that assert what has always been true, which is that Indigenous Peoples hold the authority to govern, protect and nurture their own.
Our final presenter will be Senator Kim Pate who has spent the last 45 plus years working in and around the legal and penal systems of Canada, with a major focus on the federal incarceration of Indigenous women. You can find more about Senator Kim Pate’s work here.
Reading for Participants:
12 Indigenous Women Report (English Report and French Report)
Featuring:
Senator Kim Pate
Senate of Canada
Julian SpearChief-Morris
Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP
Kory Wilson
Executive Director of Indigenous Initiatives and Partnerships, British Columbia Institute of Technology
Moderator:
Ava Hill
Former Chief of Six Nations of the Grand River
1c – Inner Development for Outer Change: Applying the Inner Development Goals to Confront Complex Problems (Sherman Jen 131)
As societies grapple with interconnected crises – climate change, food insecurity, wellbeing economics, and housing shortages – technical solutions and policy interventions alone have proven insufficient. This panel explores how the Inner Development Goals (IDG) framework offers a transformative approach to addressing these complex challenges by cultivating the inner capacities essential for systemic change.
Featuring:
Tzeporah Berman
Co-founder, Stand.earth; Chair and Founder, Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty
Lasse Gustavsson
Strategic Advisor, 1155 Global Consultancy Inc.
Pierre Iachetti
Executive Director, David Suzuki Foundation
Moderator:
Mike Rowlands
Partner & CEO, Junxion Strategy
1d – Variable Geometry: Building Canadian Partnerships (bilateral, multilateral, and regional) in Southeast Asia (Sherman Jen 130)
In his celebrated speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January 2026, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stressed the importance of “variable geometry” in multilateral partnerships among middle powers, with different coalitions of partners for different purposes. Panelists will critically assess the idea of variable geometry as it relates to Canada, Southeast Asia, and likeminded partners, in areas such as trade, security, environment, and academic research and diplomacy.
Featuring:
A.R. Elangovan
Associate Vice-President Global Engagement, University of Victoria
Evan Due
Executive Fellow, School of Public Policy, University of Calgary
Hema Nadarajah
Senior Project Manager (Research), Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada
Ambassador James Nickel
Ambassador of Canada to Vietnam
Thi Be Nguyen
Quebec Delegate to Advisory Board, Canada-ASEAN Business Council
Co-moderators:
Phil Calvert
Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, University of Victoria
Victor V. Ramraj
Professor of Law, and Director, Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, University of Victoria
1e – The Purpose Economy (Sherman Jen 117)
Businesses are being called upon not only to address social and environmental challenges, but to rethink their role in the economy. This session examines what it takes to embed social purpose at the core of a business – shaping how it operates, makes decisions, and creates value for society – and how this approach can influence markets, public policy, and the broader economy.
Featuring:
Senator Rosa Galvez
Senate of Canada
Khushi Makhani
Business Student, University of Victoria
Fransisca Quinn
Director, Canada Nickel Company; Co-founder and President, Quinn + Partners
Ryan Turnbull
Member of Parliament, Whitby (Liberal Party)
Maureen Young
Vice President, Social Purpose, Coast Capital Savings
Moderator:
Coro Strandberg
Chair and Co-founder, Canadian Purpose Economy Project
1f – A Multi-Party Discussion on Energy, Environment, and National Unity in Canada (Dogwood Auditorium)
This panel brings together elected officials from across Vancouver Island and beyond to discuss current issues related to energy development, the natural environment, and national unity in Canada. The discussion will elaborate distinct partisan and regional perspectives while facilitating respectful and constructive dialogue on some of the most pressing – and divisive – issues in Canadian politics.
Featuring:
Will Greaves
Member of Parliament, Victoria (Liberal Party)
Matt Jeneroux
Member of Parliament, Edmonton Riverbend (Liberal Party)
Gord Johns
Member of Parliament, Courtenay-Alberni (New Democratic Party)
Elizabeth May
Member of Parliament, Saanich Gulf Islands (Green Party)
Moderator:
D. Simon Jackson
Co-Founder, Nature Labs
1g – Islamic Finance for Community Impact: Expanding Access, Innovation, Inclusion, and Wellbeing in Canada (Sherman Jen 133)
Across Canada, many Muslim individuals, non-profit organizations, small businesses, and community-based institutions remain underserved by the mainstream financial system because values-aligned investment and financing options are limited or unavailable. This roundtable will explore why expanding access to Islamic finance is not only a matter of financial inclusion, but also an opportunity to strengthen trust, advance justice, and support community wellbeing through responsible, sustainable, and community-centred finance.
Globally, Islamic finance has grown to nearly US$6 trillion in assets and is projected to approach US$10 trillion before 2030, yet it remains largely absent from Canada’s mainstream financial landscape, especially compared to the UK, US, and parts of Europe.
Join the panelists to discuss how Canada can move beyond generic conversations about inclusive finance toward practical innovation that responds to the diverse financial needs of Muslim communities and other values-driven organizations, including halal financing tools for community infrastructure, asset-backed projects, real estate acquisition, and local services.
Featuring:
Suzanne Faiza
Policy and Research Manager, Tapestry Capital
Omar Yaqub
Executive Director, IslamicFamily
Adel Guitouni
Professor, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria; President, BC Muslim Association
Moderator:
Basma Majerbi
Associate Professor, Gustavson School of Business; Director, Impact Investing Hub & ACET Lead Researcher, University of Victoria
1h – The Declaration of Black Parliamentarians, Six Years Later: Building Trust, Restoring Justice (Sherman Jen 116)
Following the death of George Floyd in 2020 the Black Parliamentarians’ Caucus of Canada issued a Declaration calling for justice, the recognition of systemic racism, and lasting structural change. Six years later, in a global context marked by eroding trust, social polarization, and growing challenges to institutional legitimacy, this panel seeks to assess to what extent this Declaration has contributed to expanding the scope of justice, strengthening institutional trust, and advancing meaningful reform.
Featuring:
Michael Coteau
Member of Parliament, Parliamentary Black Caucus Chair
Senator Bernadette Clément
Ontario’s First Black Woman Mayor
The Honourable Greg Fergus
Member of Parliament, Hull-Aylmer; Former House of Commons Speaker
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada
Moderator:
Myrlande Pierre
Vice-President, Commission des droits de la personne et de la jeunesse du Québec
1i – Systems Approaches to Homelessness and Housing – Financing Solutions (Dogwood #2)
Homelessness, housing insecurity and housing unaffordability are symptoms of a profound systems failure, demanding solutions at multiple levels that span sectors, including housing, health, justice, and economic policy. The end of most federal and many provincial public housing programs in the early 1990s created a gap in our housing system that has not been adequately filled. While the development and construction industry has significantly increased housing supply, there is growing recognition that we need targeted supply for lower-income households, many of whom also need supports (e.g., people with mental illness and addictions, people with disabilities, people experiencing intimate partner violence, older adults, etc.).
There is growing interest in the role of non-market housing in filling this gap, a development that is recognized in recent Canadian policies and legislation, like those enabling the establishment of Build Canada Homes. To significantly grow the non-market housing sector (which includes social, non-profit, co-op, and other types of cost-based housing) additional low-cost capital is needed – a gap that could be filled by greater social-purpose lending and philanthropic capital. This session seeks to bring together perspectives from the non-market housing sector and the philanthropic capital and social purpose finance sectors to generate new ideas to grow the stock of non-market housing in Canada.
Featuring:
Bill Cunningham
Executive Vice President, Business and Commercial Banking, Vancity
Andrea Nemtin
CEO, Canadian Alliance for Transit-Connected Housing (CATCH)
Kirsten Wright
Managing Director, Waterloo Institute for Complexity and Innovation
Graham Singh
Director, Relèven
Moderator:
Jim Dunn
Director, Canadian Housing Evidence Collaborative
1j – Farm to Hospital – A multi-solving approach to bring local farm produce to hospitals (Sherman Jen 114)
In the wake of Canada’s recently announced new Food Strategy and continued efforts to emphasize the importance of public procurement as a long-term form of investment in food security, this session will showcase how BC’s Health Authorities are advancing a “farm to hospital” approach to integrate fresh, locally grown produce into healthcare settings.
Featuring:
Elaine Chu
Director, Food Service Transformation and Strategic Projects, Fraser Health
Jennifer Eskes
Director, Food Services, Island Health, BC
Hayley Lapalme
Executive Director, Nourish Leadership Canada
Demii Kloster
Support Services Manager, Interior Health
Moderator:
Senator Tracy Muggli
Senate of Canada
2:50 p.m.
Break
3:10 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
2a – Indigenous Health and Wellness: Advancing Indigenous-Led Models of Healing, Prevention, and Community Well-Being (Sherman Jen 130)
Indigenous health and wellness are some of the most important public policy, social justice, and reconciliation priorities facing Canada today. Indigenous-led health institutions have emerged as leading examples of self-determination, innovation, and culturally grounded service delivery. These approaches recognize that health encompasses culture, language, land, housing, education, economic opportunity, mental wellness, family support, and community connection.
This panel will explore how Indigenous-led approaches to health and wellness are transforming outcomes, strengthening communities, and providing lessons for Canada and the international community.
Featuring:
Jennie Pelletier
Chair, Cree Health Board
Sara Pedersen
Chief Program Officer, Rossy Family Foundation
Ron Rice
Executive Director, Victoria Native Friendship Centre
Moderator:
Lisa Coleman
President, Adler University
2b – Language, Culture, and Education - Indigenous Peoples (Sherman Jen 114)
From systemic underfunding of First Nation schools and post-secondary institutes to the search for children at former residential school sites.
Featuring:
Leslee White-Eye
Governance Director, First Nations with Schools Collective
Ngaere Hauiti-Parapara
Strategy and Engagement Lead, J R McKenzie Trust
Evelyn Steinhauer
Associate Dean, Indigenous Teacher Education, University of Alberta
Rosanne Casimir
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nations
Moderator:
2c – The Role of Universities in Building Canada’s Future (Sherman Jen 113)
As Canada confronts a shifting global order – strained U.S. trade and security ties, an economy over-reliant on resource extraction, and mounting pressure to modernize its innovation base – this panel asks what role universities must play in securing Canada’s economic, social, political and climate-impacted future. Panelists will examine international student policy shifts that have destabilized post-secondary funding, the workforce development priorities for an energy transition, refreshed models for shorter duration accreditation, how universities can help Canada improve innovation and industrial productivity, and the climate change issues which intersect with all of this — framing university reform as an act of nation-building tied to social and democratic cohesion, and climate resilience.
Featuring:
Marion Buller
Chancellor, University of Victoria
Patrick Deane
Principal, Queens University
David Finch
Professor, Bissett School of Business, Mount Royal University
Megan Gordon
Manager, Sustainable Workforce, Pembina Institute
Michael Hawes
CEO, Fulbright Canada
Moderator:
Andrew Petter
President Emeritus; Simon Fraser University; former Attorney General of British Columbia
2d – Mobilizing Canada for Leadership Abroad (Dogwood Auditorium)
As global power disperses and the familiar architecture of the world gives way to a new, uncharted era, a powerful truth is emerging: the future will not be written by superpowers alone. It will be shaped by the imagination and ambition of nations that dare to see beyond their size – and Canada is poised to be one of them. Our ability to rise to this moment, to spark new forms of cooperation, and to help design a more connected and compassionate world will depend on the strength we cultivate at home: resilient democratic institutions, a diplomatic and development presence that reaches with purpose, defence capabilities ready for a shifting landscape, an economy built for long‑term stability, and citizens who believe in the promise of collective action. This panel will explore what Canada must build at home to lead with integrity, empathy, and inclusion – and how we can step onto the global stage not just as participants, but as architects of a more just and interconnected future.
Featuring:
Former Ambassador Phil Calvert
Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, University of Victoria
Rebecca Mellet
Development for Peace Specialist, Monkey Puzzle Consulting
Major-General (ret’d) Mike St. Louis
Pedro Marquez
Full Professor of Strategic Management and International Business, Royal Roads University
Moderator:
Reeta Tremblay – CIC Victoria
2e – Steps to a Wellbeing Economy (Sherman Jen 117)
In days leading up to the Forum, Senator Rosa Galvez and Dr. Courtney Howard plan to publish a paper for public consultation on the concrete steps Canada needs to take to introduce a well-being economy. This session is designed to engage participants in active discussion of this paper and the elaboration of next steps to take.
Featuring:
Senator Rosa Galvez
Senate of Canada
Facilitators:
Mike Rowlands
Partner and CEO, Junxion Strategy
Naila Makhani
Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Neurology), Yale School of Medicine
Sharmake Dubow
Public Policy and Governance Professional
Carol Anne Hilton
International Indigenous Business Leader, founder and CEO of Indigenomics Instituten and the Global Centre of Indigenomics
Bonnie Jean Veness
Principal, Veness Consultants Inc.
Kirsten Wright
Managing Director, Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience
Moderator:
Dr. Courtney Howard
President-Elect of the Canadian Medical Association; Founder of POWER–Planetary Health Organizations for Wellbeing, Equity and Regeneration; Chair of the Global Climate and Health Alliance
Marie Studer
Director of Partnerships and Operations, POWER
Closing Remarks:
The Honourable Diana Gibson
Minister of Citizens’ Services, British Columbia
2f – Restorative Justice in Haiti: Repairing Harm, Restoring Dignity, and Rebuilding Social Bonds with Canada’s Support (Sherman Jen 116)
Haiti has experienced a succession of profound crises that have produced several generations of victims. In this context, the traditional criminal justice system is largely paralyzed, leaving little room for acknowledging harm, healing trauma, and rebuilding social cohesion. This panel proposes a rigorous and contextualized dialogue on the conditions under which a Haitian approach to restorative justice could emerge, drawing inspiration from certain international experiences (notably South Africa and Rwanda). It will also examine the role that Canada can play politically, institutionally, academically, and within communities to support a sovereign, inclusive, and sustainable Haitian-led reflection rooted in local realities.
Reading for Participants:
Otis, Louise & Boulanger-Bonnelly Jeremy. « Shelters of Justice in Displaced Persons Settlements: A Proposal for Rohingya Camps » (2022) 73 UNBLJ 42.
Otis, Louise & Reiter, Eric. « Front-Line Justice » (2006) 46 Va. J. Int’l. L. 677
Featuring:
The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean
Former Governor-General of Canada
Myrlande Pierre
Vice-President, Commission des droits de la personne
Louise Otis
Judge, arbitrator and mediator
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada & Co –Founder, Canada-Haiti Parliamentary Group
Moderator:
Senator Manuelle Oudar
Senate of Canada
2g – Land – First Nations Recent/Future Court Decisions (Sherman Jen 131)
For many years, our people have been attempting to seek justice with respect to the theft of our land. Many have gone to court and some have won and some have not.
Today, we have panellists who will speak about recent court decisions and future court decisions.
One of these cases is the Cowichan Nation decision. Chief Cindy Daniels will speak about this decision and what it means for justice, reconciliation, governance, and the future of Indigenous rights in Canada.
Our second panellist is Renee Olson, CEO of Khowutzun Development Corporation, who will speak to the implications of the decision for economic development, including how recognition of rights and title shapes land use, investment, community planning, and Indigenous economic self-determination.
The last presenter will be Phil Monture from Six Nations of the Grand River who will speak about their 30 plus year court case trial which will commence in October 2026 and may be facing some of the same concerns that are being put forth with respect to the Cowichan decision.
The voices of these panellists will be incredibly valuable in this space, especially given the significance of this decision for Cowichan and for Indigenous Nations more broadly.
Featuring:
Chief Cindy Daniels
Cowichan
Renee Olson
CEO, Khowutzun Development Corporation
Phil Monture
Land Rights Consultant, Six Nations
Moderator:
Ava Hill
Former Chief of Six Nations of the Grand River
2h – Building Trust, Accelerating Climate Action: How Government, Academia and Communities Can Deliver Together (Sherman Jen 133)
British Columbia’s climate ambitions face a pivotal moment. With the independent review of CleanBC complete but the Province’s response still to come, what will it take to sustain momentum? If governments alone cannot deliver the pace and scale of change required, who else must step up? This panel brings together members form the B.C. Public Service, New Economy Canada, researchers from Accelerating Community Energy Transformation (ACET), and partners working across communities, finance, communication and innovation to explore how trust and collaboration can turn uncertainty into opportunity. Together, they will examine how local governments, the Province, academia, Indigenous partners, investors, businesses and communities can bridge the gap between policy, research and implementation by accelerating practical climate solutions, regardless of the policy moment. In a time when trust in institutions is being tested, this conversation asks what shared leadership for climate action should look like in British Columbia.
Featuring:
Shandell Houlden
Associate Faculty,Royal Roads University
Merran Smith
President, New Economy Canada
Kenneth Porter
Manager, Communities, B.C. Public Service
Parker Muzzerall
PhD Candidate and ACET Research Assistant, WECE
Wes Regan
Senior Policy Lead, Vancouver Coastal Health
Moderator:
Gail Hochachka
Research Manager, Integrated Energy Systems, University of Victoria
2i – A Municipal Infrastructure Bank for Canada: From Concept to Action (Sherman Jen 134)
This roundtable moves the idea of a Municipal Infrastructure Bank for Canada from vision to implementation. At Victoria Forum 2024, we explored the role of public banks in financing climate action through Innovative Financing Mechanisms for Accelerating Decarbonization. In 2025, we asked whether Canadian municipalities could benefit from a national Municipal Development Bank owned by cities, for cities. In 2026, the question is no longer whether such an institution is needed, but how to make it happen.
Canadian municipalities are on the front lines of the infrastructure challenge. Water systems, affordable housing, transportation, energy, and other essential assets require urgent renewal and expansion. While public funding will remain indispensable, innovative public – public financing can unlock greater investment, accelerate delivery, and strengthen local resilience.
What would it take to establish a municipal infrastructure bank that transforms how Canadian communities finance the infrastructure they need? Who are the champions, partners, and institutions required to build momentum? What practical steps can be taken now?
Bringing together leading experts, municipal leaders, financial innovators, and advocates, this roundtable is designed not simply to explore an idea, but to identify the alliances, policy pathways, and next steps needed to turn it into reality. It follows the plenary session Creating the Conditions for Future Economies.
Featuring:
Allison Ashcroft
Director of Sustainability, Municipal Finance Authority of British Columbia
Thomas Marois
Canada Research Chair in Public Banking, McMaster University
Valérie Plante
Co-Chair of Elbows up for Climate & Former Mayor of Montreal
Robert Ramsay
Senior Research Officer, Canadian Union of Public Employees
Moderator:
George Benson
Senior Manager of Economic Development and Market Transformation, Zero Emissions Innovation Centre (ZEIC)
2j – From Crisis to Resilience: Scaling Community Solutions to Homelessness (Dogwood #2)
Ending homelessness requires more than affordable housing and income security. While these remain essential, experience across Canada has shown that lasting solutions also depend on communities capable of coordinating support across housing, health, employment, justice, Indigenous organizations, philanthropy, and local government. A community resilience approach recognizes that homelessness is not simply an individual crisis but a systems challenge that requires sustained collaboration, trusting relationships, and adaptive institutions that enable people to thrive.
Grounded in examples of lived experience, this roundtable explores how communities are successfully preventing homelessness, helping people transition into stable housing, and strengthening the social fabric that makes such gains possible. Speakers will share practical lessons from initiatives ranging from direct cash transfers and Indigenous-led transition programs to collective approaches to preventing youth homelessness and breaking the cycle between homelessness and the criminal legal system. Together, we will examine how community resilience can be both the means of addressing homelessness and one of its most important outcomes. The discussion will consider what governments, funders, and community organizations must do differently to enable such promising models to scale across Canada.
Featuring:
Jiaying Zhao
Professor of Psychology, University of British Columbia
Kari McLay
M.S.W, Victoria Native Friendship Centre
Danya Pastuszek
President and CEO, Tamarack Institute
Colin Tessier
Executive Director, Threshold Housing Society
Julie-Ann Hunter
Executive Director, Victoria Youth Empowerment Society
Manj Toor
Executive Director, John Howard Society of Victoria
Alexandra Flynn
Director, UBC Housing Research Collaborative
Moderator:
Senator Kim Pate
Former Executive Director, Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies
With contributions from people with lived experience and a special musical introduction by Daniel Morel, harmonicist.
4:30 p.m.
Break
5:00 p.m.
Fulbright Canada Honouring Nations Governance and Innovation Awards Ceremony (Dogwood Auditorium)
The Fulbright Canada Honouring Nations Governance and Innovation Awards recognize Indigenous governments, institutions, and organizations that have demonstrated excellence in governance, visionary leadership, institution-building, and innovative approaches to addressing complex challenges and opportunities. The awards celebrate initiatives that have achieved measurable, lasting impact and exemplify the principles of strong governance, accountability, and effective leadership.
Honouring Nations places particular emphasis on initiatives that demonstrate results that are sustainable, scalable, and inclusive—approaches that strengthen institutions, improve outcomes, and create enduring benefits over time. By recognizing proven models of Indigenous governance and innovation, the awards provide a platform for knowledge sharing and inspire the adaptation of successful practices by Indigenous governments and organizations across Canada and internationally.
Opening Remarks:
MC: Robin McLay
Executive Director, Fulbright Canada Honouring Nations
Michael Hawes
CEO and President, Fulbright Canada
Introducing the Co-Chairs of Honouring Nations Circle of Advisors:
Lea Nicholas MacKenzie
Co-Chair, Honouring Nations Circle of Advisors
Matt Vickers
Co-Chair, Honouring Nations Circle of Advisors
Award Recipients:
Member Nations
6:30 p.m.
Walk to Castle
6:45 p.m.
Reception (Hatley Castle)
8:30 p.m.
Buses return to Parkside Hotel
AUGUST 25 (Royal Roads University)
7:30 a.m.
Buses depart Parkside Hotel and Quality Inn for Royal Roads University
7:30 a.m.
Light Breakfast
8:40 a.m.
Welcomes (Dogwood Auditorium, Royal Roads University)
Chris Horbachewski
Vice President External Relations, University of Victoria
9:00 a.m.
Plenary 4: Building the Democracy We Need Now
Across the democratic world, trust in institutions is declining, polarization is deepening, and governments are struggling to address increasingly complex challenges. While issues such as misinformation, declining civic participation, and electoral reform remain important, they point to a deeper question: is our democratic infrastructure still fit for the twenty-first century?
Building on the Victoria Forum’s 2025 plenary, Democracy’s Digital Future, this session brings together leaders in democratic innovation, public policy, civic engagement, philanthropy, and technology to examine the structural challenges facing democracy – and the opportunities to build more resilient, participatory, and adaptive democratic systems.
Speakers will highlight practical pathways toward democratic renewal, drawing on innovations such as citizens’ assemblies, youth engagement, collective intelligence, digital participation, cooperative governance, and democratic technologies.
The discussion will also examine artificial intelligence as one of democracy’s defining challenges and opportunities. AI can undermine democratic institutions through misinformation, manipulation, and the concentration of power. Yet it can also strengthen democracy by expanding participation, improving collective sense-making, and helping societies navigate increasingly complex decisions.
Opening Remarks:
The Honourable, Edith Dumont
Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
Featuring:
John Richardson
Co-founder, Polity Cooperative
Aftab Erfan
Executive Director, Wosk Centre for Dialogue
Sonia Furstenau
Co-founder, Community Assembly Network
Samantha Reusch
Executive Director, Apathy is Boring
Moderator:
Niamh Leonard
Executive Director, Euphrosine Foundation
9:00 a.m.
Buses depart from Parkside Hotel for Royal Roads University
9:50 a.m.
Break
10:15 a.m.
Plenary 5: Building Resilient Communities
Canadian communities are more exposed than ever to shocks — financial, environmental, trade and security fuelled far from home – and to strains on Canadians’ confidence and cohesion sparked much closer. In an era of polycrisis, the resilience of local economies is both Canada’s frontline defence and the bedrock of the solidarity that sovereignty depends on.
This session brings together social economy and civic leaders from Atlantic Canada, Ontario, Quebec and BC to share concrete evidence — successes and hard-won failures — from deep experience in community wealth building, values-driven capacity building and capital deployment for triple-bottom-line outcomes. Panelists will set out a shared proposition for what it will take to connect and amplify these regional efforts into coordinated pan-Canadian investment in place-rooted, community-led economic resilience.
Also Including: A special announcement – Blended Finance Canada Initiative
Featuring:
Zita Cobb
Founder, Shorefast (Fogo Island)
Béatrice Alain
Executive Director, Le chantier de l’économie sociale (Montréal)
Wellington Holbrook
CEO, Vancity Credit Union (Vancouver)
Stephen Huddart
Director, Regenerative Economies Program, The Victoria Forum
Mary Rowe
CEO, Canadian Urban Institute (Toronto)
Respondent:
Ryan Turnbull
Parliamentary Secretary for Finance, Canada
Moderator:
Lauren Dobell
Executive Advisor, Boann Social Impact (Victoria)
11:05 a.m.
Break
11:10 a.m.
Plenary 6: Regeneration and the Circular Economy
Canada’s economy is only 6.1% circular. Most of the materials we extract, manufacture, and consume still follow a linear path from resource to waste, creating economic vulnerability, ecological degradation, and missed opportunities for innovation.The circular economy offers an evidence-based alternative: designing out waste and pollution, keeping materials in use at their highest value, and regenerating natural systems. Increasingly viewed not only as an industrial strategy but as a pathway to collective well-being, circularity strengthens economic resilience, restores ecosystems, supports healthier communities, and advances planetary health.As Canada confronts geopolitical uncertainty, resource constraints, fragile supply chains, and the transition to a low-carbon economy, the case for circularity has never been stronger. Trade realignment, sustainable procurement, regenerative investment, and innovation in sectors such as construction and critical minerals are creating new opportunities for systemic change.This plenary brings together leaders from business, government, finance, and civil society to ask: What would it take to make circularity the default in Canada-and how can we design an economy that actively restores the conditions for long-term prosperity?
Featuring:
Natacha Beauchesne
Economic Development Commissioner, Circular Economy, City of Montréal
Eli Enns
CEO, Lisaak Olam
Shawna Peddle
Associate Vice-President, Sustainability at Co-operators
Moderator:
Tima Bansal
Canada Research Chair in Business Sustainability, Ivey Business School
12:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:20 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
3a – Honouring Nations: Governance, Institution Building, Leadership, and Resilience (Dogwood Auditorium)
This session brings together some of Fulbright Canada’s Honouring Nations award recipients alongside distinguished Indigenous leaders, practitioners, scholars, and partners to explore the principles and practices of successful Indigenous nation building. Building on more than three decades of research and practice by the Harvard Project on Indigenous Governance and Development, Fulbright Canada’s Honouring Nations initiative was developed in partnership with the Harvard Project to recognize and celebrate excellence in Indigenous governance and nation building within Canada’s unique constitutional, legal, and cultural context. The conversation is grounded in the understanding that lasting progress is achieved when Indigenous Nations exercise genuine self-determination, build capable and culturally legitimate institutions, cultivate principled leadership, and draw strength from Indigenous laws, knowledge systems, languages, and Indigenous ways of knowing.
While every Nation’s journey is unique, the discussion will also recognize the important role of Indigenous Nations, Indigenous-led organizations, programs, and initiatives that are driving meaningful change. Together, these experiences will illuminate the shared principles that underpin strong governance, institution building, economic development, resilience, and community well-being, while demonstrating how Indigenous-led development offers practical models for sustainable, scalable, and inclusive change. The conversation will also explore the importance of forging respectful and enduring partnerships among Indigenous Nations, Indigenous-led organizations, governments, philanthropy, business, academia, and civil society to advance shared goals. Rather than simply celebrating individual achievements, the roundtable will examine what Indigenous Nations, Indigenous-led organizations, programs, and initiatives can teach governments, philanthropy, business, academia, and civil society about creating the conditions in which Indigenous Peoples, and ultimately all communities, can flourish.
Featuring:
Matt Vickers
Co-Chair, Honouring Nations Canada
Clint Davis
CEO, Cedar Leaf Capital
Warren Miller
CEO, Spinfex Foundation SA
Ron Rice
Executive Director, Victoria Native Friendship Centre
Kelly Lendsay
CEO, Indigenous Works and the Luminary Network
Mindy Wight
CEO, Nch’ḵay̓ Development Corporation
Jeff Cyr
Raven Indigenous Outcome
Wahiakatste Diome Deer
Raven Indigenous Outcome
Diane Redsky
Shoal Lake 40 First Nation
Christine Smith-Martin
Coast Funds – Great Bear Sea Project Finance for Permanence
Dallas Smith
Coast Funds – Great Bear Sea Project Finance for Permanence
Breanna Tait
Visitor Services Department Head, Wanuskewin Heritage Park
Co-moderators:
Robin McLay
Executive Director, Fulbright Canada Honouring Nations
Darcy Gray
Executive Director, Centre for First Nations Governance
3b – Reimagining Public Consultation (Sherman Jen 133)
Across Canada, governments are recognizing that meaningful public participation leads to stronger, more inclusive decisions. A pillar of Canada’s 2025–2029 National Action Plan on Open Government is “inclusive and meaningful public participation.” In British Columbia, the Special Committee on Democratic and Electoral Reform has called on government to “enhance public consultation processes” while “leveraging technology” and “empowering youth”.
The impact is profound. When people feel they have a real voice, trust in government rises dramatically—strengthening social cohesion at a time when it’s needed most.
Yet many consultation practices remain rooted in outdated approaches. This moment calls for fresh thinking and bold ideas.
Join SFU’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue for a hands-on session to reimagine how governments and communities work together. Come ready to challenge assumptions, co-create solutions, and help shape the future of public participation.
Participants in this workshop will hear a series of rapid-fire 2-minute presentations from “provocateurs” who will introduce them to innovative and inspiring methods for consultation. Participants will then work in groups to imagine and design the consultation processes we need right now.
Provocateurs:
Louise Adongo
Principal Consultant, Caprivian Strip Inc.
Patti Pon
President & CEO, Calgary Arts Development
Rowan Gentleman-Sylvester
Executive Director, CityHive
Sarah Wiebe
Associate Professor, University of Victoria
Shauna Sylvester
Founder and Lead Convenor, Urban Climate Leadership
Susanna Haas Lyons
Public Engagement Specialist, Susanna Haas Lyons Consulting
Facilitators:
Robin Prest
Senior Director of Democratic Participation and Innovation, SFU Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue
Phil Chalk
Senior Dialogue & Engagement Analyst, SFU Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue
SFU’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue is grateful for the support received from the Max Bell Foundation to make this session possible.
3c – Universities as Agents of Change in a Climate-Changed Canada (Sherman Jen 130)
Building on momentum through two recent conferences (Universities Canada Building Resilient Futures in March ‘26, at University of Calgary and McGill University; and SFU Public Universities and the Polycrisis in April ‘26), this panel will discuss the intersection of climate action research, academic programming, the greening of university infrastructure, community engagement, and the mobilization of practical just-get-on-with-it actions.
Where are we, as wildfires burn in Summer 2026, on so many tough and urgent realities? How do we advance hope, to fuel climate action, while confronting the acceleration of atmospheric science-and-human systems urgencies, climate impacts preparedness events, critical intersections with human and planetary health, energy and economic transformations, and regenerative practices informed by Indigenous knowhow? How do we assure a “whole of university approach” on these themes?
These panelists, all working at ground zero on these issues, will discuss how universities can help navigate the intellectual, civic, and moral infrastructures needed for an uncertain future, and lead institutionally towards resilient and equitable futures.
Featuring:
Teri Balser
Professor, University of Calgary
George Patrick Benson
Senior Manager, Economic Development and Market Transformation, Zero Emissions Innovation Centre
Janica Kritsky
Environmental Studies Student, University of Victoria – Law
Deborah Harford
Director of Strategy and Operations, Climate Innovation, Simon Fraser University
Philip Steenkamp
President, Royal Roads University
Moderator:
Brian Stevenson
Senior Advisory Fellow, Fulbright Canada West; Past President and Vice-Chancellor, Lakehead University
3d – What Kind of Neighbour? Civil Society’s Role in a Shifting Canada-US Relationship (Dogwood #2)
While the state of Canada-U.S. government-to-government relations dominate headlines, the strength of the cross-border relationship has been quietly shaped for generations by nonprofits, universities, civic institutions, Indigenous nations, media, professional associations, philanthropic organizations – and the cross-sector partnerships that bring them together. This session explores the history, status, and impacts of Canada-U.S. partnerships initiated and maintained outside of government. Using a format that invites contributions not just from the panelists but from everyone in the room, we’ll ask: how can civil society act as a stabilizing force during periods of political volatility? What’s types of Canada-U.S. partnerships have benefitted Canadians and our democracy? How do we preserve – and improve – what’s helped us? Our goal is a spacious conversation where we all benefit from hearing multiple points of view.
Featuring:
Andrew Chunilall
CEO, Community Foundations of Canada
Erica Key
CEO, Future Earth Global
Andrew Parkin
Executive Director, Environics Institute
Danya Pastuszek
Executive Director, Tamarack Institute
Esther Pan Sloane
Managing Director, Eyre Street Capital
Moderator:
Melanie Walker
Executive Director, Canadian International Council
3e – Living in a Materials World: Opportunities for a Circular Built Environment (Sherman Jen 113)
This session builds on the morning plenary “Regeneration and the Circular Economy”, exploring that challenges and opportunities to grow a circular economy in the context of the built environment. Construction, renovation and demolition materials make up 1/3 of Canada’s landfills. Diverting and recirculating these materials through the manufacturing of new products made from reclaimed materials at scale could contribute significantly to the nation’s economy while addressing the trifecta of crises (waste, climate and housing) at the same time. This session brings together a group of experts in the circular built environment to explore the various dimensions of the challenge before us followed by facilitated table discussions with session participants. The session will connect to the upcoming CE Magazine issue on built environment circularity
Rhiannon Moore
Circular Economy Specialist, City of Victoria
Paul Shorthouse
Managing Director, Circular Construction Canada
Katie Motta
Director, Circular Procurement, Circular Innovation Council
Moderator:
Gil Yaron
Managing Director, Circular Innovation, Light House
3f – Regenerating Wellbeing in Canadian Communities: Nature, Health, and Equity (Sherman Jen 134)
This session brings together three perspectives on how nature-based solutions, community wellbeing, and inclusive governance can help Canada respond to climate change while strengthening trust, justice, and collective health. These nature-based solutions embody regeneration: restoring ecological function while improving human health focus; regenerating systems rather than symptoms and include interventions like nature prescriptions.
Featuring:
Trevor Hancock
Retired Professor and Senior Scholar, School of Public Health and Social Policy, University of Victoria; Interim Convenor, Canadian Coalition for Planetary Health and a Wellbeing Society
Dr. Melissa Lem
Co-Founder of PaRx, Canada’s National Nature Prescription Program
Dr. Myles Sergeant
Executive Director, Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care
Moderator:
Senator Joan Kingston
Senate of Canada
3g – New Tools for Social Purpose Organizations (Sherman Jen 117)
This workshop will explore how LEAP’s model of intensive scaling support helps social purpose organizations (SPOs) access innovative financing to increase their impact and long-term sustainability. This interactive session will draw on LEAP’s experience and the expertise of our private sector partners to examine practical approaches to financing impact and scale across a range of social issues.
Featuring:
Steve Cumming
VP Portfolio, LEAP – Pecaut Centre for Social Impact
Yash Mehta
Senior Manager, Portfolio at LEAP – Pecaut Centre for Social Impact
Moderator:
David Hughes
CEO, Generate Canada
3h – Whose Canada? Inheriting a Defaulted Contract (Sherman Jen 116)
Four students, four different relationships to this country, talking about a promise none of them wrote but all of them inherited. What’s worth keeping, what’s going unused, what needs to go, across politics, the Trump relationship, defence, trade, and climate. Nobody’s summarizing here. Everyone walks in with a verdict.
Featuring:
Cathy Hu
Masters Student, Public Administration, University of Ottawa (Ottawa)
Nkiko Michel
Eelam Tamil-Canadian Researcher, Writer and Community Organizer (Toronto)
Oliver Stokes
Student, History and Political Science, University of Victoria (Victoria)
Madelyn Rawlyk
Climate and Sustainable Development Professional (Vietnam)
Oliver Stokes
Student, History and Political Science, University of Victoria (Victoria)
Moderator:
Gilbert Imoesi
Founder and Convener, The Lyceum; Honours Student, University of Victoria
3i – How can we build strong local place-based economies? (Sherman Jen 114)
Featuring:
Eoin Callan
Managing Director, Bloom Impact Capital
Dallas Gislason
Executive Director, Regional Economic Development, South Island Prosperity Partnership
Tamara Krawchenko
Associate Professor, Public Administration, University of Victoria
Moderator:
Adi Datta
Economic Development Associate, Shorefast Institute
3j – Indigenous Youth Leadership - Offering a Vision of Canada (Sherman Jen 131)
Every framework discussed at this Forum — every policy reformed, every institution rebuilt, every legal order asserted — will be inherited by young people who are already here, already leading, and already carrying a vision of Canada that most institutions have yet to earn the right to share.
This panel does not ask youth to represent a problem. It asks them to articulate a future. These Indigenous youth leaders are being asked to build their futures inside systems — educational, economic, political, and social — that were not designed with them in mind, and in many cases were designed to erase them. They are doing it anyway. One a First Nation language advocate and learner, the other a governance system challenger have something to say to the leaders in this room about what help would actually look like.
This session is one of the Forum’s most important. Not because youth are the future — a phrase that has become a way of deferring their authority — but because they are already making decisions, taking risks, and holding visions of Canada that the rest of this Forum should be orienting toward.
Featuring:
Sydney Kechego
Chippewas of the Thames
Koda Tootoosis
Student, University of British Coloumbia; Community leader, Wahpeton Dakota Nation
Moderator:
Leslee Whiteye
Governance Director, First Nations with Schools Collective
2:40 p.m.
Break
2:55 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
4a – International Indigenous Panel (Dogwood Auditorium)
Indigenous leaders from different countries and regions will come together to discuss pressing economic, governance and social challenges facing Indigenous nations, and the institutional pathways being pursued to strengthen sovereignty and long-term development.
Featuring:
Leslie Varley
Vice-President, Indigenous Partnerships, Interior Health
Carol Anne Hilton
Founder and CEO, Indigenomics Institute
Kristen Rivers
Squamish Nation Council
4b – Civic Assembly Workshop (Sherman Jen 117)
Local governments face a public engagement crisis. Many elected officials experience hostility with traditional engagement approaches. Town halls and public hearings can fail to capture meaningful input from the wider community. The question is no longer whether to change – it’s how.
This hands-on workshop introduces participatory democratic methods that lead to genuine community input for the common good. Community Assembly Network co-founders Sonia Furstenau and Maeve Maguire offer real-world examples of status quo and innovative public engagement approaches from inside politics. Workshop participants will go through a deliberative experience to demonstrate how this approach can build greater connection and public trust. Participants leave with a clear sense of how to apply these methods in their home communities.
Moderator:
Sonia Furstenau
Former MLA, Cowichan Valley; Former Leader, BC Green Party
Maeve Maguire
Former North Cowichan Councilor; Chief of Staff, BC Green Caucus
4c – Leveraging Global Networks for Greater Impact (Sherman Jen 113)
Individual organizations, often embedded in local contexts, face similar constraints in attempting to address global issues. This session explores how collaboration and the development of global networks facilitates greater collective impact.
Featuring:
Ian Fenwick
Dean, Sasin Business School, Bangkok, Thailand
Thami Ghorfi
Dean, ESCA Casablanca, Morocco
Raffaele Oriani
Dean, Luiss Business School, Rome, Italy
Fernando Burgos Pimentel dos Santos
Professor, Fundação Getulio Vargas, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Rebecca Taylor
Vice-Chair, European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), Brussels, Belgium
Alba Tiley
Sustainability and Public Affairs Advisor
Moderator:
Arti Freeman
CEO, Definity Foundation
4d – From Polycrisis to Polysolution: Getting into the Circular Groove (Sherman Jen 130)
Supply chain disruption, resource scarcity, climate pressure, trade realignment: the crises are multiple and interconnected. The circular economy has the potential to address many of them simultaneously, but that potential is largely unrealised. This roundtable opens with an orientation to what circularity really means beyond recycling (encompassing design, reuse, repair, reduction, and a fundamental shift in how we value materials) and then confronts the operational reality: procurement is the single most powerful lever available to governments and organisations, yet most bid documents across the country contain no meaningful sustainability criteria. Through practitioner presentations, a moderated exchange, and audience discussion, participants will leave with a deeper understanding of the circular economy’s potential as a poly solution and concrete steps they can take immediately.
Featuring:
Hamish Khamisa
CEO, Sparx Publishing Group
Frances Edmonds
VP, HP Canada
4e – What Will it Take to Regenerate Cascadia? Bioregional Financing Facilities as Part Of The Critical Infrastructure (Sherman Jen 114)
Cascadia BioFi is the bioregional finance program of Regenerate Cascadia, advancing the financial infrastructure needed for regenerative outcomes across the Cascadia bioregion. BioFi convenes funders, investors, and place-based leaders to co-design community-aligned, trust-based funding mechanisms that support landscape-scale regeneration. The program is grounded in a core insight: finance does not flow effectively without social infrastructure.
Featuring:
Clare Attwell
Co-administrator, Regenerate Cascadia
Brandon Letsinger
Co-administrator, Regenerate Cascadia
Moderator:
Cordell Jacks
CEO and General Partner, Regenerative Capital Group (RCG)
Donna Morton
An artist, activist and entrepreneur; Co-Founder, Salmon Returns
4f – Beyond Profit: The Role of Business in Building Just and Sustainable Societies (Sherman Jen 133)
Traditionally, governments have been viewed as the primary stewards of public welfare and social progress. Yet the scale and complexity of today’s challenges make it increasingly clear that governments cannot act alone. Businesses influence nearly every dimension of society through the products they create, the jobs they provide, the resources they consume, the technologies they develop, and the communities they affect. As economic actors with significant resources and reach, businesses are uniquely positioned to contribute to solutions that advance sustainable development while creating long-term value.
Featuring:
Holly McHugh
VP, Sustainability & Social Impact, Mejuri
Geoff Pegg
Senior manager, UN Global Compact Network Canada (GCNC)
Lisa Prime
Director of Sustainability, Diamond Schmidtt Architects
Rita Parikh
Chair of the Board, Vancity Credit Union
Moderator:
Rumina Dhalla
Former Board Chair, UN Global Compact Network Canada (GCNC)
4g – The Climate Disaster Survivor Constituency (Sherman Jen 134)
Climate disaster survivors aren’t just witnesses to a warming world. They’re building the response. The panelists in this session, convened by the University of Victoria’s Climate Disaster Project, have lived through and lost as a result of Canada and Australia’s worst fires, floods, storms, and heat waves. In the aftermath, they brought communities together to recover, adapted their homes and lives for a changing climate, and advocated for measures that will protect our neighbours and neighbourhoods now and tomorrow. The panelists will explore how lived experience and expertise can change the climate conversation, potentially creating an emerging new constituency with the power to help us secure our future together.
Featuring:
Louise Andogo
Hurricane Fiona (2022), Halifax, NS, Social Innovation Consultant
John Gaudaur Savage
Eastern Canada floods (2017 and 2019), Pointe Gatineau, QC, Historian
Arzeena Hamir
Western North America heat wave (2021), Comox Valley, BC, Organic Farmer
Sam Henderson
New South Wales floods (2022), Lismore, NSW, Foundation Leader
Edith Loring-Kuhanga
Lytton Creek complex fire (2021), Lytton, BC, Education Consultant
Moderator:
Sean Holman
Wayne Crookes Professor in Environmental and Climate Journalism, University of Victoria; Founding Director, Climate Disaster Project
4h – Structural Reform to Accelerate Social and Economic Innovation (Sherman Jen 116)
The cost of the status quo is not hidden. It is visible everywhere: housing people cannot afford, the wellbeing toll of isolation and disconnection, non-profit providers with their hands out to a government that no longer has the money to answer. The structure is failing in plain sight.
What is less visible is that a new ecosystem is already responding: purpose-driven ventures, social purpose real estate, ownership models that keep wealth in community instead of extracting it, and enterprises built around repair and belonging rather than profit alone.
Featuring:
Kira Gerwing
Chief Investment Officer, Sacha Investments
Shannon Price
Strategic Advisor
Anne White
Founder, The Good Governance Project
Moderator:
Katie Maslechko
Housing Sector Specialist
4i – Blended Finance: Catalyzing Capital for Impact and Communities (Dogwood #2)
Many projects capable of generating lasting social, economic, and environmental value struggle to access capital on terms that reflect their risks, timelines, and community benefits. Blended finance brings together public, philanthropic, community, and private capital, using catalytic funding to share risk, improve bankability, and mobilize investment where conventional finance falls short.
This session will examine what impedes capital deployment in Canada, how blended finance can be structured transparently and equitably, and what is needed to build trust among communities, governments, funders, and investors. Drawing on examples of community-led energy transformation and other impact sectors, participants will explore how innovative financing can widen access to capital, support a more just transition, and strengthen community resilience and wellbeing. The discussion will also consider how Canada’s blended finance ecosystem must evolve to move promising ideas into scalable, community-centered action, and will unveil a new initiative designed to help strengthen and connect that ecosystem.
Featuring:
Basma Majerbi
Associate Professor, Gustavson School of Business; Director, Impact Investing Hub; ACET Lead Researcher, University of Victoria
Kristi Fairholm Mader
Managing Director, Scale Institute Society; Managing Director, Thrive Impact Fund
Keith Ippel
Co-founder and Co-CEO, Spring Activator; Co-founder and Head of Growth, Spring Impact Capital
Moderator:
Laurel Sabur
Research Manager, Impact Investing Hub, Accelerating Community Energy Transformation, University of Victoria
4:15 p.m.
Break
4:30 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
5a – The Role of Industry in Implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (Dogwood #2)
With the current focus on advancing major projects and the leadership Justice Canada provides to the implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, this session explores the role of industry in relation to implementation of the UN Declaration. Panelists will speak to the challenges and opportunities of turning the rights into action (thereby fostering justice), shifting power and process (i.e. through the recognition of Indigenous governance, legal traditions and jurisdiction and thereby promoting well-being), and how this ultimately invigorates the democratic process itself through renewed confidence in implementation of the Declaration.
Featuring:
Rob Van Walleghem
Vice President, Indigenous Affairs & General Counsel, Major Projects Office, Government of Canada
John Jack
Chief-Councilor, Huu-ay-aht First Nations
Merle Alexander
Legal Council, BC Assembly of First Nations
Genevieve Carr
Executive Vice President, Transparency and Strategic Engagement, Canada Energy Regulator
Moderator:
Loretta Landmesser
Director General, UN Declaration Act Implementation Secretariat, Justice Canada
5b – Beyond Cultural Inspiration: Indigenous Art, Appropriation, and Protecting Sacred Expression (Sherman Jen 113)
For generations, Indigenous artistic expressions, including carving, painting, weaving, knitting, and fashion design, have been inseparable from governance, history, lineage, and territorial sovereignty. Historically, colonial frameworks imposed policies aimed at the systematic suppression and attempted erasure of these artistic practices, creating deep barriers that disrupted the connection between cultural production and economic independence. Yet, through profound community resilience, these traditions survived. Today, as Indigenous contemporary art and design command unprecedented global visibility, the challenges have evolved from historical suppression to modern structural exploitation and cultural appropriation.
This session examines the macro-level challenges of protecting the intellectual property of Indigenous creators across all artistic mediums. Moving beyond superficial notions of “inspiration,” the panel explores the historical context of artistic marginalization, the legal deficiencies within western copyright systems, and the systemic models needed to ensure economic justice, cultural preservation, and true sovereignty for Indigenous artisans.
Featuring:
Tasha Brooks
Indigenous Business Scholar & Assistant Professor, School of Business, Royal Roads University
Richard Hunt CM, OBC, RCA
Master Carver & Public Advocate
Camille Irvine
Senior Law Student & Researcher, University of Ottawa
Kari McLay
Social Worker, Director Community Engagement/ Fund Development, Victoria Native Friendship Centre
Matt Vickers
CEO, NorthernNations Co-operative & Principal, Vickers & Associates
Moderator:
Tarrin Sam
Executive Director, Indigenous Prosperity Centre
5c – From City Hall to the Hill: Navigating the Municipal-Federal Relationship and Supporting Women Along the Way (Sherman Jen 117)
This session will dive into the role of municipal governments and their capacity to assist in making impacts at the federal level. The relationship between municipalities and the federal government is fundamental to the success of nation-building projects with particular attention to environmental projects. Most importantly, at the center of all decision-making is who is at the table. The panel will focus on the necessity and value in encouraging women not only to run for office, but also the continued support once elected.
Featuring:
Marianne Alto
Mayor of Victoria, British Columbia
Senator Dawn Arnold
Senate of Canada
Senator Bernadette Clement
Former Mayor of Cornwall, Ontario
Valerie Plante
Former Mayor, Montréal
Moderator:
Kim Stanton
Senior Fellow, Massey College, University of Toronto
5d – Defence and the Militarization of Democracies: The Military Turn in Canada (Sherman Jen 133)
As Canada embarks (as has several of the G7 countries) on a spending spree on defence, we witness the militarization of our democracies not seen since the end of WWII (the US aside). In Canada, the discourse of “need,” “resiliency,” “realism,” “pragmatism,” has meant a transformational commitment (as part of a National Defence Industrial Strategy linking defence security with economic benefit), increased recruitment into the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and the reorienting of our established priorities. Yet this has all taken place without a national discussion on what this dramatic social, cultural and economic turn might mean for Canadian society: the militarization of our democracy.
This roundtable is co-sponsored with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and the Centre for Global Studies, University of Victoria.
Featuring:
Chris Kilford
Fellow, Centre for International and Defence Policy, Queens University
Fannie LaFontaine
Full Professor, Faculty of Law, Université de Laval
Erin Mooney
Chief of Civil Affairs for the UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2024-2025)
Marie-Joëlle Zahar
Professor and Director of the Research Network on Peace Operations, Université de Montréal
Moderator:
Cynthia Milton
Director, Centre for Global Studies, University of Victoria
5e – Does Canada Need a Commission for Transition Governance? (Sherman Jen 114)
Canada is trying to manage a 21st-century transition with 20th-century institutions.
Climate change, housing affordability, health system strain, artificial intelligence and global economic fragmentation are often treated as separate policy challenges. In practice, they are interconnected. Housing affordability affects labour mobility and productivity. Climate policy reshapes regional economies and investment flows. Health outcomes are increasingly tied to environmental and social conditions. Artificial intelligence is beginning to transform labour markets, public services and competitiveness.
Yet governments still approach these challenges ministry by ministry, file by file and budget by budget. The result is well-intentioned policies that fail to add up to system-level change.
Canada needs a Commission for Transition Governance: a time-limited, independent body designed to help governments coordinate across interconnected transitions.
Featuring:
Stephen Jackson
CEO, Anishnabeg Outreach
Dr. Courtney Howard
President-Elect of the Canadian Medical Association; Founder of POWER–Planetary Health Organizations for Wellbeing, Equity and Regeneration; Chair of the Global Climate and Health Alliance
Moderator:
Kirsten Wright
Managing Director, Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience
5f – Growing Canada's Nature Finance Ecosystem (Dogwood Auditorium)
Despite being home to 20% of the world’s fresh water, 25% of its wetlands, and vast carbon-rich forests, peatlands, and grasslands, Canada has been slow to develop nature finance. The federal government’s renewed commitment to protecting 30% of lands and waters by 2030 underscores the need to build new pathways for investing in nature and biodiversity.
Unlike social impact investing, nature finance raises complex questions of land jurisdiction, Indigenous rights, and reconciliation. Building ethical nature omarkets requires approaches that strengthen Indigenous leadership, support community capacity, and develop the intermediaries and institutions needed to scale investment while respecting Indigenous knowledge.
This dialogue will explore the emerging nature finance ecosystem in Canada, introduce a new ecosystem map of the sector, and bring together Indigenous leaders, investors, governments, NGOs, and the private sector to identify the policies, financing mechanisms, and partnerships needed to build a thriving, equitable, and decolonized nature finance system.
Featuring:
Dani Warren
Executive Director, RAD Network (Restore, Assert, Defend)
Liz Simmie
Co-founder, Honeytree Investment Management
Steven Nitah
Executive Vice President, First 30X30 Global, Nature For Justice
Darcy Gray
Executive Director, Center for First Nations Governance
Moderator:
Darcy Riddell
Strategy and Partnership Director, RAD Network
5g – Strong Growth vs. Shared Growth: Putting Women at the Centre of Canada’s Economic Future (Sherman Jen 130)
Canada is at a defining moment. As governments respond to economic uncertainty, shifting trade relationships, and geopolitical instability, Canada is working to strengthen its economic independence and resilience. The federal government has placed increasing emphasis on productivity, competitiveness, investment, and growth as central drivers of economic strategy in a turbulent global environment.
In this context, the real question is not simply how to drive growth, but whose economic participation is assumed, whose labour is counted, and whose contributions remain outside the design of economic policy.
Featuring:
Kris Archie
CEO, The Circle on Philanthropy
Armine Yalnizyan
Economist & Atkinson Fellow on the Future of Workers
Selena Zhang
Executive Officer Advocacy and Engagement, Atkinson Foundation
Moderator:
Mitzie Hunter
CEO, Canadian Women’s Foundation
5h – Capital for Whose Future? (Sherman Jen 116)
There is nearly $26 billion sitting in Canadian university endowments – patient, values-aligned capital held in trust for the benefit of future generations. Most of it is still flowing in the wrong direction. This discussion won’t ask young people what they want from a future economy; it inquires what they would do with the billions already held in their name. Join an intergenerational group of thinkers and doers to explore how capital can be redirected, from catalytic investment to long-term systems change.
Featuring:
Keshiv Kaushal
Chief Investment Officer, Propel Impact Capital
Skye Noh
Associate, Private Investment Research, Rally Assets
Erin Oldford
Dean, Hill and Levene School of Business, University of Regina
Raymond Aoki
Treasurer, University of Victoria
Moderator:
Tristan Smyth
Founding Partner, Propel Impact Capital; CEO, Deshkan Ziibiing Investment Corporation
5i – Local and Global Perspectives on Philanthropy's Next Horizon (Sherman Jen 134)
As philanthropy adapts to a rapidly changing social, economic, and political landscape, foundations are rethinking not only what they fund, but how they work. Building on the previous day’s panel on philanthropy’s evolving role in society, this session examines the practical implications of emerging funding trends and strategic priorities. How is philanthropy responding to growing uncertainty, constrained public finances, rising demand for collaboration, and the need for more durable forms of social investment?
The conversation will consider shifts toward unrestricted and trust-based funding, place-based collaboration, systems stewardship, innovative financing, and partnerships that align philanthropic, public, and private capital. Participants will examine how foundations can balance responsiveness with long-term ambition while strengthening the capacity of communities and institutions to navigate an era of accelerating change.”
Featuring:
Irene Gannitsos
Interim Executive Director, Vancity Community Foundation
Mebrat Beyene
VP Grants & Community Initiatives, Vancouver Foundation
Cassie Robinson
Strategic Advisor to Philanthropic Foundations
Dylan Smith
CEO, Community Foundations of Australia
Andrew Chunilall
CEO, Community Foundations of Canada
Jean-Marc Mangin
President & CEO, Philanthropic Foundations Canada
Moderator:
Vinod Rajasekaran
Executive Lead, SE Health
5j – From Ideas to Action: Digital Democracy for Wildfire Resilience (Sherman Jen 131)
Featuring:
Lisa Schirch
Professor, University of Notre Dame
Victoria Stanski
Managing Director, Common Good AI
Peter Salmon
Software Lead, Polity Coop
Mary Quandt
Workshop Facilitator, Polity Coop
Moderator:
John Richardson
Director, Polity Coop
5:50 p.m.
Break
6:00 p.m.
Closing plenary
Rather than delivering a standard closing address, featured artists will be embedded in the sessions throughout the entire Forum, actively listening and synthesizing the ongoing dialogues. At the close of the event, they will present a vibrant, multidisciplinary reflection of our shared journey, interweaving spoken word, visual media, and live music.
7:00 PM
Buses return to Parkside Hotel
Harvest Studio
Take a moment to pause, reflect, and connect in the Harvest Studio, located in the Sherman Jen Building across from the main entrance. Throughout the Forum, this creative space invites you to explore the question you brought with you through conversation, reflection, art, writing, and visual harvesting.
At the heart of the Studio is a growing Harvest Wall, where participants can contribute questions, insights, stories, drawings, and connections that capture the collective learning of the Forum. Three facilitated gatherings will explore the questions: What are we hearing? What does it mean? What becomes possible?
Whether you stop in for five minutes or an hour, your perspective will help shape a living picture of the ideas, relationships, and possibilities emerging throughout the Victoria Forum. Everyone is welcome.
Join facilitated conversations and an interactive collage to build connections and deepen your learning:
Lunch | Aug 24
Breakfast | Aug 25
Lunch | Aug 25
Add your voice to the collective harvest.
Public Policy Labs: Turning Ideas into Action
Two non-partisan Public Policy Labs will run alongside the Victoria Forum on August 24–25, creating an opportunity for participants to help shape policy proposals ahead of the federal government’s September 8 budget consultation deadline.
The labs will focus on strengthening community resilience, mobilizing capital in the public interest, and building a more effective, ongoing relationship between the social impact sector and government.
They were designed by a public policy working group at the Impact United Academy, including representatives of Social Capital Partners, Victoria Forum, Philanthropic Foundations Canada, McConnell Foundation, Definity Foundation and SVX, in consultation with MP Ryan Turnbull, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and Ministry staff, who will be in attendance for parts of the labs.
August 24 | Early-win Policy Opportunities, 1:30–4:30 pm PT
A working session will explore policy priorities emerging from approximately 35 federal budget submissions from the social impact sector. Participants will identify gaps, questions and promising opportunities, while creating space for new ideas to emerge.
August 25 | Policy Infrastructure, 1:20–4:15 pm PT
This session will explore four—and possibly five—proposals for creating lasting collaborative infrastructure connecting philanthropy, impact finance and government, moving beyond engagement around individual budgets toward a more permanent relationship.
Forum registrants are welcome to participate as space permits, including joining a lab already underway. Pre-reading is strongly recommended (see below).
A digital platform provided by Polity Coop will enable Forum participants and members of the public who cannot attend to review and comment on the materials. It will remain open for one week after the Forum to capture outcomes and further input.
More information available here:
Pre-Read Materials:
For both labs:
Community Resilience Framing – 1 pager – here
Community Resilience Framing – full paper – here
Canada as an Experimenting Society – here
For Lab #1
Pre-Budget Synthesis for Impact Finance Submissions – here
For Lab #2
Four Policy Briefs – here
Polity Cooperative is happy to assist Impact United Academy and Victoria Forum in supporting this consultation process.
