Speakers and Facilitators

How-Sen Chong

How-Sen Chong is the Climate Campaigner at Toronto Environmental Alliance. He has been working in the climate and climate justice movements for over twenty years.

Before coming to TEA, How-Sen was a Digital Campaigner at Stand.earth, where he worked under Indigenous leadership alongside environmentalists and citizens to oppose the Trans Mountain Pipeline on Coast Salish territory. He’s also worked with many other environmental organizations and groups, including the United Nations Development Fund, Greenpeace, Environmental Defence, and Indigenous Climate Action.

How-Sen was born and raised in Etobicoke. He holds environmental studies degrees from McGill and Yale and is certified in greenhouse gas accounting. He lives in downtown Toronto.

Catherine McKenney

Catherine McKenney is a Canadian politician who served on the Ottawa City Council from 2014 to 2022, representing Somerset Ward. Before running for office, they worked as an advisor and political staffer. They launched CitySHAPES in 2023, a national nonprofit that leads groundbreaking advocacy, policy, and community engagement work to spark change and build better cities in Canada

Julius Lindsay

Julius Lindsay is a leader in the environmental field with 15 years of experience in the areas of sustainability, climate change, and leading policy and strategy development and implementation. He is passionate about the intersection of climate justice, and ensuring the needs of equity-deserving communities are heard and centred in the transition to a low-carbon and resilient future.

Shelley Crabtree

Shelley Crabtree joined Forêt Capitale Forest in November 2023. She is a professional communicator with a mission to promote the green power of trees for a healthier world. Inspired by walks and rides in the forests of the Gatineau Hills, she aims to empower organizations with tools and strategies to fulfill their environmental commitments. By partnering with community groups, Shelley organizes events to plant and protect green spaces, encourage collective action through education, and tell impactful stories. Together, she believes we can apply the amazing green tech of trees to build a sustainable future for both people and the planet.

Julia Hunter

Julia (She/Her) is a values-driven nonprofit leader who is passionate about organizational development, sustainability, and social impact. She is currently the executive director of EcoEquitable, a charity with a twofold purpose focused on women's empowerment and textile waste reduction that intersect through the art of sewing. She obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition and Dietietics from Acadia University in Nova Scotia in 2015 and has worked as a dietitian across various nonprofit sectors including health promotion, affordable housing, food waste, and food security during her time living in Vancouver, British Columbia. Over the last 4 years, Julia has worked as an executive director in the non-profit space before relocating to Ottawa in 2021.

Dodie LeGassick

Dodie LeGassick is the Nuclear Lead for Environment North and a member of an alliance group ,We the Nuclear Free North. Dodie is a retired high school teacher. Her goal during the last decade has been to inform the public that the Nuclear Waste Management’s Organization, NWMO, has a proposed project which is to transport and store ALL of Canada’s High Level Wastes (hlw), into a deep geological repository in either Northwestern Ontario or Southern Ontario and that their plans raise serious concerns about transportation and the safety of a deep geological repository. Dodie’s focus is primarily on transportation, its related issues and its impact on communities along the transportation routes.

Ma Myriah Peace

Myriah is an Inuk, L’nu, and Scottish mother and poet who was raised on unceded and unsurrendered Anishnaabe Algonquin traditional territory.

Myriah has had a lifelong love of the natural world. Learning about organic vegetable gardening with her mother from an early age, Myriah has journeyed deeper into her passionate curiosity and respect for plants and our Earth.

Myriah's dedication to community and culture have led her through many natural expressions of these passions, from grassroots activism and artistry to seeking higher education and work experience that aligns with her generous nature and community-minded spirit. Further inspired by her belief that all humans deserve food security and food sovereignty; Myriah is continuing to live her values by studying Therapeutic Horticulture; a means to work within community by facilitating workshops through the social enterprise, “Root In Nature.” There, Myriah is holding space with youth, vulnerable peoples, and elders as a certified Indigenous Community Service Worker.
She is providing a space to learn about and to connect with nature, to grow food, and to remember our place within the web of life.

Myriah is approaching 11 years of practical experience with a variety of Indigenous healing modalities. She holds value in her spirituality and traditional teachings. She is a Drum Carrier, a Pipe Carrier, and a Helper within some Indigenous communities here in Ottawa.

Rosaline Hill

Rosaline trained as an architect at the University of Waterloo from 1991-98 and worked as a junior architect in Toronto, Ottawa and London England. In 2001 she began working as an architect at Hobin Architecture in Ottawa, where she enjoyed an informal internship as a planning consultant. In 2011 she began her own architectural practice, continuing to provide planning consultancy; assisting infill housing developers in site assessments for highest and best use, and engaging in extensive community consultation. Since then, she has won multiple awards for infill housing projects, and 'Designer of the Year' in 2021. In 2019 she began research of infill housing patterns and neighbourhood change. In 2020 she initiated the ION Mapping Project, and developed ground breaking new approaches to plan the evolution of urban neighbourhoods. Her office has been hired by the City of Ottawa's Planning Department to assist in neighbourhood analyses, and has been instrumental in the City's shift toward form based zoning. In 2020 she founded Walkable Ottawa to collaboratively advance walkability in urban neighbourhoods. Rosaline became a certified professional planner in 2023.

Kassandra Drodge

Kassandra (she/her) is a biracial woman from a St. John’s fishing family (on her mother's side). She is the first (and only) person to hold a degree in her family. Kassie holds a criminology certificate and degree in humanities and social sciences from Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador and is a master's candidate at the University of Ottawa focusing on environmental and economic strategies for coastal/inshore fishing communities across the province. Kassie specializes in diverse leadership strategies, research, and community engagement. Since 14 years old, Kassie has worked in the service industry until she had her first career switch after graduating from MUNL at 22. Since 2016, Kassie has worked with LGBTQIA2IA+, newcomers, youth, and racialized communities to help develop policies and actions around social economic, and environmental advancement. Kassie has conducted research with progressive health clinics, newcomer services, environmental groups, and international businesses. Just recently, Kassie traveled to Norway to represent Canada in the discussion around transitioning oil and gas and providing sustainable training opportunities to locals. Kassie is open to speaking to all who are interested in making a difference in their community whether it is social, economic, or environmental justice. Coming from a single-parent home, she acknowledges the different capacities and opportunities afforded to everyone, and so she has devoted a lot of her time in the past, and in the future to mentor, empower, and support.

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