Presenter Biographies

Dr. Alex Wilson, University of Winnipeg, is an acclaimed educator, scholar, and researcher whose commitment to building and sharing knowledge about land-based learning and Two Spirit identity, history and teachings has influenced educational policy at regional, national, and international levels. Wilson is from and lives in the Opaskwayak Cree Nation. She has published and presented extensively on issues of sexuality, gender, culture, community, and spirituality.

The first Canadian First Nations woman to receive a doctorate from Harvard, her experience as a teaching fellow led to the formation of two Harvard courses that now serve as a foundation for training curriculum in communities throughout Canada and the United States. She has published and presented extensively on issues of sexuality, gender, culture, community, and spirituality. Her efforts to revitalize Cree culture and her dedication to supporting LGBTQ2S+ people and First Nations people have earned her recognition from the Legislature of Manitoba.

Becky Pritchard (she/her) is a middle school teacher and Master of Education graduate student at the University of Manitoba. Her research focuses on 2SLGBTQIA+ policy in Manitoba public schools, with particular attention to how educational institutions respond to shifting social and political pressures surrounding equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Drawing on both her classroom experience and academic work, Becky is committed to advancing safer, more inclusive learning environments for all students. In addition to her teaching and research, Becky is actively involved in union leadership at both local and provincial levels, where she advocates for increased funding, equitable resources, and supportive policies within public education. Her work reflects a strong commitment to educational equity, teacher advocacy, and strengthening institutional responses to the needs of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.

Bruno de Oliveira Jayme is a Brazilian artist, art educator, and Associate Professor of Art Education at the University of Manitoba, where he coordinates the Master’s in Art Education program.

A gay man and queer activist, his artistic and scholarly work is grounded in questions of identity, embodiment, relationality, and social justice. Bruno maintains a multidisciplinary studio practice spanning ceramics, drawing, painting, and large-scale community-based mosaics and murals. His collaborative projects, including work with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, reflect his commitment to art as a participatory and socially engaged practice.

As an artist-educator, he bridges studio practice and community engagement, creating accessible artistic experiences that foster dialogue, connection, and collective meaning-making. His work highlights the transformative potential of art across personal, social, and political contexts.

Dr. Cameron Smith (he/they) is an adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa, and the Executive Director of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education.

Drawing on his experience as an elementary French teacher in Ontario, Cam works with language teachers using collaborative methods to support innovation in the classroom.

Dr. Casey Burkholder (she/her) is a bi femme Canada Research Chair in Social Justice in Youth & Child Studies at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. As a community-engaged scholar, Casey’s work bridges gender and sexuality studies, queer joy, and participatory visual research.

At the JOYLab, Casey focuses on cultivating DIY spaces that foster belonging and collective resilience in the face of anti-queer, anti-trans, and white supremacist rhetorics (inside and outside of schools). Casey’s work brings together creative methods, and joy-centered facilitation to support communities navigating polarization and institutional constraint (including teachers!).

Committed to building spaces that are both politically grounded and playful, Casey integrates art and relational practices into workshops, research, and teaching. Through teaching, research, mentoring, and community partnerships, Casey aims to support queer and trans thriving and leadership across the lifespan while nurturing solidarity and shared possibilities.

Charlie Eau (they/them) is the Executive Director of the 
non-profit Trans Manitoba and a volunteer organizer in 
Treaty 1. They are a genderqueer settler, a partner, 
parent, and artist. Gender is Charlie’s area of scholarly 
focus, with a Bachelor’s in Women’s and Gender Studies 
from the University of Winnipeg, and lifelong special 
interest.
Their work at Trans Manitoba brings visibility
to the lived experience of gender diverse Manitobans. 
Charlie advocates for employment and medical equity for Two Spirit, trans, nonbinary, and gender diverse 
people in Manitoba and across Turtle Island.

Darren Stehle is a writer, philosopher-guide, and leadership coach who has spent nearly a decade supporting queer change-makers, creatives, advocates, and leaders.

He is the author of Queering the Way: Navigating Leadership Ethics from the Margins (2026), a virtue ethics for queer leadership grounded in the Tao Te Ching. He also serves as Director of Development at Lambda Scholarship Foundation Canada and lives in Montreal.

Debbie is the former Co-Director of Policy and Advocacy at Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights. Before joining Action Canada, she was the Executive Director of The Canadian Centre for Gender & Sexual Diversity (CCGSD) and has been instrumental in advancing the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ youth and communities. She has spoken at Parliamentary and Senate standing committees and has appeared in numerous media outlets.

She has held several advocacy and policy-oriented positions in government and non-profit organizations, including Oxfam Canada and Global Affairs Canada. Debbie is an accomplished community educator, feminist activist, and social justice advocate driven by the mission of creating a more inclusive, equitable, and safe world. She has continued to dedicate her time to local progressive organizing, including, most recently, as a commissioner for the Ottawa People’s Commission on the Convoy Occupation. 

Graham Robertson (he/him) is a practitioner-scholar in queer diplomacy from Toronto. His experience advancing 2SLGBTQI+ rights spans work in policy development, research, and advocacy, both in Canada and internationally.

He recently completed a Master’s in Diplomatic Studies at the University of Oxford, where his research focused on South African polylateral diplomacy on queer rights.
He also holds a Master’s in Human Rights and Politics from the London School of Economics

Jamie Anderson is a trans educator and doctoral candidate at UCalgary. He is an experienced educator and consultant in the Alberta K-12 system, and his research examines anti-trans education policymaking.

Dr. JJ Wright (she/they) is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies at MacEwan University, located on Treaty 6 Territory in Edmonton, Alberta. She holds a PhD in Social Justice Education from the University of Toronto and previously completed a postdoctoral fellowship at McGill University.

As a community-engaged scholar, Dr. Wright works collaboratively with regional, national, and international organizations to advance gender justice and 2SLGBTQ+ wellbeing. Her research focuses on gender-based violence, consent education, queer and trans epistemologies, and the emerging field of queer joy studies.

She is the Director of the Queer Joy Research Lab and leads projects that use participatory and arts-based methods to explore how queer and trans communities resist oppression and cultivate care, connection, and resilience. Her work bridges research, education, and community practice, contributing to innovative, trauma-informed, and anti-oppressive approaches to social change.

Jordan Sophasath is a queer Public Health Nurse based in Brandon, Manitoba, specializing in sexual health and harm reduction. Their work focuses on improving access to care and advancing health equity for marginalized populations, particularly within rural and under-resourced communities. Through a combination of clinical practice, community organizing, and policy development, Jordan is committed to creating more responsive, inclusive, and trauma-informed health systems.

Jordan actively builds and sustains community partnerships to enhance service accessibility and support networks. They currently serve as Co-Chair of the local Manitoba Harm Reduction Network site and sit on the Advisory Board for the Brandon location of the Sexuality Education Resource Centre (SERC). Their leadership reflects a strong commitment to collaborative, community-driven approaches that centre dignity, care, and equity in public health practice.

Keith Anthony Griffin is a PhD candidate in Education at the University of Colorado Boulder specializing in Teacher Learning, Research, and Practice. With experience spanning elementary through higher education, including Peace Corps service in Thailand, university teaching, and instructional coaching.

Keith studies queer and trans identities, family, and justice-oriented pedagogies in K-12 and teacher education. His research uses critical theories to support liberatory educational practices affirming 2SLGBTQIA+ communities globally.

Dr. Lee Airton is an Associate Professor of Gender and Sexuality Studies in Education at Queen’s University. Dr. Airton has created resources that have changed the Canadian conversation about transgender people and gender diversity, such as www.gegi.ca, a widely-used self-advocacy resource for K-12 students. Most recently, Dr. Airton and colleagues released a white paper titled “No for Now: Guidance for School Staff on Supporting Transgender Students and Parent-Child Relationships” which is informing policy and educator practice across Canada.

Their popular press book, Gender: Your Guide (second ed. 2024) has been adopted as a professional development text in teacher education, schools, the public sector and private sector organizations. Dr. Airton has been interviewed 97 times, and received the 2025 Award of Distinction from Ophea which recognizes them as a leader in the meaningful advancement of inclusive healthy, active living opportunities for children and youth in Ontario school communities.

Lou Lamari is a Winnipeg-based lawyer practicing family law across Manitoba and Nunavut. Lou is one of few openly transgender lawyers in Manitoba, and works with a focus on trauma-informed practice and access to justice.

Lou is co-chair of the Manitoba Bar Association Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Community section, volunteers as a group facilitator with the Rainbow Resource Centre, and is active in delivering public legal education to historically marginalized groups.

Dr. Lucy Delgado is a Two-Spirit Métis woman from Winnipeg, Manitoba, and a citizen of the Manitoba Métis Federation. She is a Canada Research Chair in Michif and Two-Spirit/Indigiqueer Education as Wellness and an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba.

Her research examines how Michif and Two Spirit/Indigiqueer identities, histories, and perspectives are represented in educational systems, with a focus on transforming K–12 and postsecondary spaces through community-driven, anti-oppressive approaches.

Grounded in Métis frameworks such as wahkotowin (kinship) and kiyokewin (visiting), Dr. Delgado’s work centres joy, relationality, and cultural resurgence. She is widely recognized for her leadership in Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer education, as well as her extensive community engagement, including work with Métis organizations and grassroots initiatives that support youth, identity development, and collective wellbeing.

Rebecca Holm is a queer and trans educator and a graduate student at UCalgary.

She is a recent graduate and works as a substitute teacher in Calgary. Her research is shaped by concerns about the exclusion of transgender people from education systems.

Robert Grant (il/he) is a lecturer and coordinator of the
Parcours français au B.Ed. at UBC Okanagan. Rob
completed his PhD at the University of Ottawa, and was
a high school teacher with the Toronto District School
Board.

Sydney Brouillard-Coyle (pronouns ney/nem/nir) is a current second-year PhD student in Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies at Western University, where nir research explores the importance of creative arts within trans and gender diverse communities. Previously, ney obtained a Masters of Arts in Social Justice and Community Engagement from Wilfrid Laurier University, completing a Major Research Project that examined queer representation in young adult fiction.

Ney also hold a Bachelor of Arts in Women and Gender Studies, and a Bachelor of Music, both from the University of Windsor. Ney are a published author (A Pocket Guide to Pronouns) and dedicated queer and trans activist and community educator.