Victoria Forum 2026
PROGRAM
1:30 p.m.
Buses depart Parkside Hotel for Songhees Wellness Centre
2:00 p.m.
Collect name tags
2:30 p.m.
Welcomes
Saul Klein
Executive Director, Forum de Victoria Forum
Welcome to the Territory:
Elder
Drummers/Dancers
Featuring:
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada
Her Honour the Honourable Edith Dumont
Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
Wellington Holbrook
CEO, Vancity
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: Dr. 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-McKenzie, 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
Dr. Wilton Littlechild
Former Grand Chief, Six Nations
Moderator:
Jim Munson
Chair, Forum de Victoria Forum
Global Reflection Panel:
Cherie Heatherington
CEO, Anjar (Australia)
Aluki Kotierk
Chair, UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Diego A. Tituaña
Member (Ecuador), UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Moderator:
Lea Nicholas-McKenzie
Member (Americas), UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
4:50 p.m.
Break
5:00 p.m.
The Arts Program: “Calgary on Purpose”
Art is not an intermission; it is a catalyst for deeper connection and bolder thinking. The “Calgary on Purpose” program seamlessly integrates creative expression into the heart of the Forum, transforming passive observation into active, community-driven participation.
Moving beyond traditional introductions, the program weaves community-building storytelling throughout the event to forge genuine connections among attendees. Participants will encounter dynamic “artist provocations” – creative interventions designed to challenge our national narrative and expand our collective sense of what is possible. These experiences will be anchored by a powerful, participatory choral presentation that invites the entire audience to lend their voice to the conversation.
To ensure these insights endure, a dedicated artist will capture the unfolding narrative of the Forum in real time, translating our emerging story and collective insights into a beautifully crafted, commemorative zine.
6:00 p.m.
Reception
7:00 p.m.
Buses return to Parkside Hotel
AUGUST 24 (Royal Roads University)
7:30 a.m.
Buses depart Parkside Hotel for Royal Roads University
8:00 a.m.
Light Breakfast
8:45 a.m.
Welcomes (Dogwood Auditorium, Royal Roads University)
Susan Gee
Vice President External Relations, Royal Roads University
President and Vice Chancellor, 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:
Tad Homer-Dixon
Founder and Executive Director, Cascade Institute
Dr. Courtney Howard
Emergency Physician and President-elect, Canadian Medical Association
Indy Johar
Co-founder, Dark Matter Laboratories
Moderator:
Senator Rosa Galvez
Senate of Canada
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
Dr. James Orbinski
Principal, Massey College
Senator Yuen Pau Woo
Senate of Canada
Moderator:
Dr. Bessma Momani
Professor of Political Science, University of Waterloo
11:05 a.m.
Break
11:10 a.m.
Plenary 3: Philanthropy and Systems Innovation Finance
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 social finance to explore how capital can be deployed to transform underlying systems rather than merely treating symptoms.
Featuring:
Ian Bird
CEO, Victoria Foundation
Arti Freeman
CEO, Definity Foundation
Thomas Marois
Canada Research Chair in Public Banking, McMaster University
Alex Tveit
Executive Director, Foundation for Sustainable Impact
12:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:30 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
1a – Implementing UNDRIP and Advancing Reconciliation in Canada
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:
Dr. Wilton Littlechild
Former Grand Chief, Six Nations
Gina Wilson
Former Deputy Minister of Indigenous Services Canada
Moderator:
Senator Margo Greenwood
Senate of Canada
1b – Land – First Nations Recent/Future Court Decisions
Given the recent Court decision related to land at Cowichan, delegates will hear first-hand from the First Nations of what will happen with the land now. They will also learn about the Six Nations of the Grand River litigation which will re-commence in October 2026.
Featuring:
Chief Cindy Daniels
Cowichan
Renee Olson
Khowutzun Development Corporation
Phil Monture
Six Nations
Moderator:
Ava Hill
Six Nations
1c – Inner Development for Outer Change: Applying the Inner Development Goals to Confront Complex Problems
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
President and CEO, Ocean Wise
Moderator:
Mike Rowlands
Partner & CEO, Junxion Strategy
1d – Variable Geometry: Building Canadian Partnerships (bilateral, multilateral, and regional) in Southeast Asia
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
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 – Philanthropy and Social Finance
As Canada diversifies its trading relationships, it should not overlook the opportunity to strengthen ties with developing countries, especially as they simultaneously advance the SDGs. This session will highlight a unique Canadian initiative in Latin America, administered by the Social Venture Exchange (SVX) in collaboration with Global Affairs Canada, private investors, and Colombian and Mexican partners.
Featuring:
Arti Freeman
CEO, Definity Foundation
Indy Johar
Co-founder, Dark Matter Laboratories
Louise Pulford
Senior Advisor, EdelGive with SIX
1f – A Multi-Party Discussion on Energy, Environment, and National Unity in Canada
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)
Tamara Kronis
Member of Parliament, Nanaimo-Ladysmith (Conservative Party)
Elizabeth May
Member of Parliament, Saanich Gulf Islands (Green Party)
Moderator:
D. Simon Jackson
Co-Founder, Nature Labs
1g – Climate Disaster Narratives
Across Canada and around the world, a growing number of people and communities are contending with floods, droughts, fires, heat domes and other extremes of climate-related weather.
This session will introduce several climate disaster survivors from across Canada, whose stories constitute a call to develop survivor-centred approaches to adaptation, mitigation and recovery.
Moderator:
Sean Holman
Executive Director, Climate Disaster Project
1h – The Declaration of Black Parliamentarians, Six Years Later: Building Trust, Restoring Justice
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
Senate of Canada
The Honourable Greg Fergus
Member of Parliament, Hull-Aylmer; Former House of Commons Speaker
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada
Moderator:
Senator Rosemary Moodie
Senate of Canada
1i – Planetary Health
Coming soon…
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
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:
Monica McAlduff
CEO, First Nations Health Authority
Jennie Pelletier
Chair, Cree Health Board
Jean Sara Pedersen
Rossy Family Foundation
Ron Rice
Executive Director, Victoria Native Friendship Centre
2b – Language, Culture, and Education - Indigenous Peoples
From systemic underfunding of First Nation schools and post-secondary institutes to the search for children at former residential school sites.
Featuring:
Leslee Whiteye
Governance Director, First Nations with Schools Collective
Dr. Evelyn Steinhauer
University of Alberta
Kukpi7 Roseanne Casimir
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nations
Moderator:
Dr. Wilton Littlechild
Former Grand Chief, Six Nations
2c – The Role of Universities in Canada’s Future
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
Bissett School of Business, Mount Royal University
Janica Gooding
Law Student, University of Victoria
Megan Gordon
Manager, Sustainable Workforce, Pembina Institute
Deborah Harford
Director of Strategy and Operations, Climate Innovation, Simon Fraser University
Michael Hawes
CEO, Fulbright Canada
Philip Steenkamp
President, Royal Roads University
Brian Stevenson
Former President, University Partnerships, Navitas’ North America
Moderator:
Andrew Petter
Former Simon Fraser University President; former Minister of Advanced Education, Government of British Coloumbia
2d – Mobilizing Canada for Leadership Abroad
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. 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.
Featuring:
Former Ambassador Ken Macartney
Ms. Rebecca Mellet
Dr. Chris Ragan
Major-General (ret’d) Mike St. Louis
Moderator:
Dr. Reeta Tremblay
Professor Emerita, Comparative Politics and Global South, University of Victoria
2e – Building An Abundance Agenda for Canada
In their bestselling book Abundance, journalists Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson argue that In Abundance, US journalists Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson argue that excessive bureaucracy and regulatory barriers are creating manufactured scarcity in housing, energy, and innovation. Their solution: a new “abundance agenda” that removes obstacles to building while maintaining important protections. This session will explore whether this premise also applies in Canada, and if so, what we might do about it.
Moderator:
Scott Baker
Project Lead, Minor Projects Office
2f – Community and Islamic Finance: Leveraging Sukuk for Social Value
Traditional financing often falls short of meeting localized community needs. This roundtable explores how ethical financing models – rooted in Islamic financial principles – can bridge this gap to foster inclusive economic growth and social justice across Canada. The discussion centers on Sukuk (Islamic trust certificates) as a practical, asset-backed vehicle to unlock new streams of non-extractive capital. By prioritizing risk-sharing and direct social utility over conventional debt, panelists will examine how municipalities and community organizers can deploy Sukuk frameworks to directly fund affordable housing, senior care facilities, community hubs, and values-aligned social entrepreneurs.
Featuring:
Basma Majerbi
Associate Professor, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria
Moderator:
Adel Guitouni
Professor, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria
2g – Restorative Justice in Haiti: Repairing Harm, Restoring Dignity, and Rebuilding Social Bonds with Canada’s Support
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.
Featuring:
The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean
Former Governor-General of Canada
Louise Otis
Judge, arbitrator and mediator
Moderator:
Senator Suze Youance
Senate of Canada
2h – Democracy and Philanthropy
This roundtable will focus on philanthropy’s role in strengthening democracy – not simply as grantors, but as active participants and infrastructure builders.
New coalitions of funders are coming together around democratic participation and community resilience. With the rapid erosion of democratic institutions in the US, the health of our democracy is a national security concern too.
By strengthening and building systems for democratic participation, from community assemblies to participatory grantmaking processes, philanthropic funders can achieve a double victory; solve challenging social problems and build democratic resilience at the same time.
Featuring:
John Richardson
CEO, Ethelo Decisions
2i – Building Trust, Accelerating Climate Action: How Government, Academia and Communities Can Deliver Together
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
Research Fellow, Cascade Institute
Jen Grebeldinger
Director of Communications & Engagement, Community Energy Association
Merran Smith
President, New Economy Canada
Kenneth Porter
Manager, Communities, B.C. Public Service
Christy Pham
Business Case and Community Economic Development Lead, Impact Investing Hub, University of Victoria
Wes Regan
Senior Policy Lead, Vancouver Coastal Health
Moderator:
Gail Hochachka
Research Manager, Integrated Energy Systems, University of Victoria
2j – A Municipal Infrastructure Bank for Canada: From Concept to Action
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:
Thomas Marois
Canada Research Chair in Public Banking, McMaster University
Allison Ashcroft
Director of Sustainability, Municipal Finance Authority of British Columbia
Robert Ramsey
Senior Research Officer, Canadian Union of Public Employees
Kenneth Porter
Manager, Communities, B.C. Public Service
4:30 p.m.
Break
5:00 p.m.
Honouring Nations Awards (Dogwood Auditorium)
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 for Royal Roads University
8:00 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: Democratic Renewal
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:
Her Honour, 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
9:50 a.m.
Break
10:15 a.m.
Plenary 5: Mainstreeting Economic Resilience
There is a growing consensus that in the context of a polycrisis, greater community resilience is now Canada’s frontline defence against financial, environmental, social and security shocks. The task is to ‘mainstreet’ momentum for triple-bottom line investment (people, planet, profit) at the local, regional and national scales.
In this session, social economy and civic leaders from Atlantic Canada, Ontario, Quebec and BC will share their experience and evidence of what works – and what doesn’t – in community wealth building, social economy stewardship, and values-driven capital deployment, while setting out a proposition to accelerate this work.
Featuring:
Zita Cobb
Founder, Shorefast (Fogo Island)
Béatrice Alain
Executive Director, Le chantier de l’économie sociale (Montréal)
Mary Rowe
CEO, Canadian Urban Institute (Toronto)
Lauren Dobell
Executive Advisor, Boann Funds (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. The remaining materials we extract, manufacture, and consume follow a linear path from resource to waste, generating economic fragility, ecological degradation, and missed opportunity along the way. The circular economy offers an evidence-based alternative: designing out waste, keeping materials at their highest value, and regenerating natural systems. Increasingly understood not only as an industrial strategy but as a framework for advancing collective wellbeing, circularity sits at the intersection of economic resilience and planetary health. This plenary brings together leaders from business, government, finance, and civil society to explore what it would take to make circularity the default for Canada, and what stands in the way.
12:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:20 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
3a – High Impact Initiatives
Honouring Nations Award Recipients share their stories.
3b – Justice and Law - Indigenous Peoples
From the federal incarceration of Indigenous women to community-built Indigenous Legal Orders.
Featuring:
Senator Kim Pate
Senate of Canada
Julian SpearChief-Morris
Lawyer, Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP
Moderator:
Ava Hill
Six Nations
3c – The Purpose Economy
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
Co-founder and President, Quinn + Partners
Ryan Turnbull
Member of Parliament, Whitby (Liberal Party)
Maureen Young
Vice President, Social Purpose, Coast Capital
Moderator:
Coro Strandberg
Chair and Co-founder, Canadian Purpose Economy Project
3d – Civil Society as a Source of Resilience in Times of Tension
While government-to-government relations often dominate headlines, the strength of the Canada-U.S. relationship is sustained daily by a powerful network of universities, civic institutions, Indigenous nations, media, professional associations and philanthropic organizations. This session explores how civil society acts as a stabilizing force during periods of political volatility – preserving cross-border collaboration in research, labor mobility, cultural exchange, climate adaptation and democratic resilience.
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 – From Polycrisis to Polysolution: Getting into the Circular Groove
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.
3f – Regenerating Wellbeing in Canadian Communities: Nature, Health, and Equity
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
Dr. Melissa Lem
CEO, Future Earth Global
Dr. Myles Sergeant
Sustainable Healthcare Lead, Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University
Moderator:
Senator Joan Kingston
Senate of Canada
3g – New Tools for Social Purpose Organizations
As governments and philanthropy seek to address complex social challenges, new financial tools like blended finance, repayable capital and outcomes-based funding offer promising opportunities to expand the impact and sustainability of social purpose organizations.
Featuring:
Lorna Read
Executive Director, LEAP
3h – Whose Canada? Inheriting a Defaulted Contract
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.
3i – Shorenet: Connecting Communities from Shore to Shore to Shore
Across Canada, communities are discovering that the strength of their local economy depends on their capacity to organize and steward it. This panel brings together practitioners working at the intersection of place, economy, and connection to explore Shorenet, the national learning network built by the Shorefast Institute for Place-Based Economies.
Featuring:
Natasha Freidus
Director, Education and Entrepreneurship, Shorefast Institute
Dallas Gislason
Executive Director, Regional Economic Development, South Island Prosperity Project
Basma Majerbi
Associate Professor, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria
2:40 p.m.
Break
2:55 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
4a – International Indigenous Panel
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
4b – Indigenous Youth Leadership
Young Indigenous leaders speak to the barriers they navigate – and offer a vision of Canada that the rest of the Forum should be orienting toward.
Featuring:
Koda Tootoosis
Student, University of British Coloumbia; Community leader, Wahpeton Dakota Nation
Moderator:
Leslee Whiteye
Governance Director, First Nations with Schools Collective
4c – Civic Assembly Workshop
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
4d – Leveraging Global Networks for Greater Impact
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
4e – Living in a Materials World: Opportunities for a Circular Built Environment
Takes the plenary’s identification of construction as a significant source of Canada’s material use and goes deeper, with presentations and facilitated table discussions. The session will connect to the upcoming CE Magazine issue on built environment circularity.
Moderator:
Gil Yaron
Managing Director, Circular Innovation
4f – What Will it Take to Regenerate Cascadia? Bioregional Financing Facilities as Part Of The Critical Infrastructure
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:
Gaya Herrington
Strategic Co-Director, Cascadia BioFi Program (US)
Mehul Sangham
Strategic Co-Director, Cascadia BioFi Program (Canada)
Taya Seidler
Strategic Co-Director, Cascadia BioFi & BioRegen Program (US-Canada)
4g – Beyond Profit: The Role of Business in Building Just and Sustainable Societies
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
Moderator:
Rumina Dhalla
Board Chair, UN Global Compact Network Canada (GCNC)
4h – Steps to a Wellbeing Economy
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
Dr. Courtney Howard
Emergency Physician and President-elect, Canadian Medical Association
4i – Systems Approaches to Ending Homelessness
Homelessness is a profound systems failure, demanding solutions that span housing, health, justice, and economic policy. This plenary investigates integrated, rights-based approaches to ending homelessness, challenging policymakers to look beyond temporary shelters toward permanent, systemic resilience.
Featuring:
Jim Dunn
Associate Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, McMaster University
Thomas Marois
Canada Research Chair in Public Banking, McMaster University
Moderator:
Senator Kim Pate
Senate of Canada
4:15 p.m.
Break
4:30 p.m.
Parallel Sessions (Sherman Jen Building)
5a – Challenges & Opportunities in Implementation of the UN Declaration: Justice Perspectives
Given Justice’s responsibilities for Shared Priority 14 and promoting public knowledge about the UN Declaration, it is important that Justice Canada be seen to be doing the work of implementation. In this context, we propose to convene a panel to support a deeper dive into the role of industry in implementing the UN Declaration, tentatively sketched out as follows: With the current focus on advancing major projects and the leadership Justice Canada provides to the implementation of the UNDA, the proposed parallel session would explore the role of industry in relation to implementation of the UN Declaration. Panelists would 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.
5b – Cultural Appropriation and Ownership Rights
In an interconnected global marketplace, Indigenous art, traditional knowledge, and cultural expressions are highly sought-after. Yet, for generations, these sacred elements have frequently been treated by mainstream retail as resources to be extracted and commodified, resulting in widespread cultural appropriation stripped of legal, community, and economic contexts. True reconciliation demands a structural shift. Moving away from tokenistic inclusion, this session brings together regional stewards, legal experts, and global market change-makers to build an authentic blueprint for design sovereignty, legal respect, and economic equity.
Featuring:
Kari McLay
Social Worker, Social Entrepreneur, Fundraiser, and Community Engagement Leader
Matt Vickers
Management Consultant & Financial Broker; Owner, Vickers and Associates
5c – From City Hall to the Hill: Navigating the Municipal-Federal Relationship and Supporting Women Along the Way
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
Senate of Canada
Valerie Plante
Former Mayor, Montréal
5d – Defence and the Militarization of Democracies
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.
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)
Scott Watson
Professor, Undergraduate Director and Honours Adviser, Political Science, University of Victoria
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?
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:
Alex Tveit
Executive Director, Foundation for Sustainable Impact
Kirsten Wright
Managing Director, Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience
5f – Reimagining Public Consultation in BC
In November 2025, the BC Special Committee on Democratic and Electoral Reform recommended that the provincial government should “enhance public consultation processes” through “proactive and early engagement with the public using diverse consultation methods”, while also “leveraging technology” and “empowering youth”.
This recommendation comes at a time where the need for quality democratic engagement has never been greater. During this moment of fiscal constraint, understanding the real-world needs of British Columbians is critical for spending tax dollars wisely. When facing down a rupture with our largest trading partner, building social consensus is foundational for making difficult policy decisions that endure. Yet what successful public consultation looks like remains largely undefined, providing an opportunity for civil society to help shape a vision for the types of democratic engagement that should sustain the relationships between British Columbians and their representatives between elections.
Join SFU’s Wosk Centre for Dialogue and special guests for this special interactive session, where we will work collectively to imagine new ways for British Columbians to share their perspectives, understand the constraints of government and co-create our shared future. Focus areas will include youth engagement, under-heard voices, digital engagement and deliberative democracy.
5g – Strong Growth vs. Shared Growth: Putting Women at the Centre of Canada’s Economic Future
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
Selena Zhang
Executive Officer Advocacy and Engagement, Atkinson Foundation
Moderator:
Mitzie Hunter
CEO, Canadian Women’s Foundation
5h – Farm to Hospital – A multi-solving approach to bring local farm produce to hospitals
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
Moderator:
Hayley Lapalme
Executive Director, Nourish Healthcare
5i – Capital for Whose Future?
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
Director, Impact Investing, Propel Impact
Moderator:
Cheralyn Chok
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Propel Impact
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
