Workshops & Speaker Bios

Jase Williams (Māori / Iwi - Tribe: Ngāti Tamaterā) is a dynamic TEDx and keynote speaker, award winning educator, and author of Your Trauma Has A Whakapapa. With more than 25 years in education, he is recognised as one of New Zealand’s leading voices in compassionate, equity-centred, trauma-informed and relational neuroscience practice.
Jase is known for bridging cutting-edge relational neuroscience with the depth of Indigenous knowledge systems, creating a culturally grounded model of education and wellbeing that transforms classrooms, communities, and organisations. His influence spans hundreds of early childhood centres, schools, and agencies, where he has supported thousands of educators, leaders, families, and young people toward practices rooted in belonging, connection, and love.

As Principal of Henry Hill School from 2012 to 2022, he led a nationally recognised trauma-informed transformation that earned the 2021 Prime Minister’s Education Excellence Award for Wellbeing. Today, Jase continues to drive change—facilitating professional learning, supporting community mental health and parenting initiatives, and advocating for systems that honour emotional safety, cultural identity, and healing. His work is known for its depth, authenticity, and unwavering commitment to equity.

Alex Thompson, Reg. OT (BC) is the executive director and founder of Power for All, a charity that has been offering nature-based occupational therapy services to clients of all ages and abilities in the Fraser Valley. Alex has a variety of credentials in the areas of early years and school age education, outdoor recreation, adventure therapy, mental health, trauma, yoga and occupational therapy. She shares her passion for an accessible world by teaching at the University of the Fraser Valley in education department. She is a speaker at national and international conferences and offers training at municipal Parks and Recreation departments, private and public-school districts, and community organizations. She has worked in Inuit communities and abroad in a variety of countries as a pediatric consultant. She is a published author and researcher in the Journal of Disability and Rehabilitation. In her spare time, she loves being in nature and volunteering for social justice and inclusive sport causes.

Victoria Lim, ECE, ITE, SNE, has worked in the Early Years sector for more than a decade as an educator, college instructor, and childcare program director. She is passionate about creating environments where young children feel safe to explore their authentic selves and develop healthy nervous system and brain foundations. As a program director, she has seen firsthand the importance of high-quality staff training and strong partnerships with families in creating settings where children truly thrive.

With a commitment to strengthening Early Childhood programs globally, Victoria founded Evolving Minds ECE as a platform to share knowledge, practical tools, and professional insights with educators and leaders in the field.

Her professional journey strongly reflects the conference theme of inclusive pedagogies. Victoria has consistently championed approaches that ensure every child—regardless of background, ability, or circumstance—feels understood, supported, and valued. She emphasizes that inclusion is not only about strategies, but about reshaping environments and mindsets to nurture the full potential of every child.

Alisha Inch, ECE, has been an Early Childhood Educator for more than 25 years. In 2000, she moved to Romania, where she lived and worked with orphaned children for eight years. After returning to Canada, she taught preschool, opened her own center, presented professional development workshops, and now serves as a college instructor. Throughout her career, Alisha’s passion has remained rooted in being fully present with children—getting lost in play, imagining alongside them, and nurturing creativity in ways that stay with them for life. Through Evolving Minds ECE, she aims to share this passion and experience with fellow educators.

Alisha’s journey reflects a deep commitment to inclusive pedagogy. Her international experience with children facing adversity, combined with her work as an educator, leader, and mentor, has shaped her belief that every child deserves to be seen, understood, and supported in ways that honor their individual identities. She emphasizes that inclusion begins with relationships, empathy, curiosity, and responsive environments where children feel a genuine sense of belonging.

Dr. Anita Ewan, RECE, PhD, is a Registered Early Childhood Educator, Social Worker, Full Spectrum Doula, and Childbirth Educator with over 15 years of experience working alongside children and families in Canada. She holds a PhD in Social Work and has completed postdoctoral research in Public Health, with a focus on equitable perinatal mental health. Dr. Ewan is a faculty member in Early Childhood Care and Education at Capilano University, where she teaches leadership, advocacy, and policy. Her research and consulting work center on culturally safe, inclusive, and anti-oppressive practices in child development, child welfare, and family support systems. A mother of seven, including children with disabilities, she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her practice. Dr. Ewan is also the founder of Ani’s Centre for Child, Family & Community Development, a nonprofit advancing advocacy and inclusive practice.

The Early Childhood Pedagogy Network (ECPN) creates space for vibrant public conversations about pedagogical projects and processes that matter to early childhood communities in British Columbia. Pedagogists from the government-funded Early Childhood Pedagogist Program, hosted by the ECPN, transform early childhood centres by working alongside educators and children in curricular projects that engage with the vision put forth in the B.C. Early Learning Framework.

ECPN pedagogist Kelly Boca Santa Gesser holds a master's degree in education and over a decade of experience in early childhood education. Her work is grounded in pedagogies of inclusion, environmental education, and collaborative curriculum-making, and reflects a commitment to strengthening early learning communities, where pedagogical choices are lived as relational and ethical acts.

Delena Hills M.Sc., R-SLP(C), is a registered and certified Speech-Language Pathologist with over a decade of experience supporting children and youth with complex communication needs, including fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). She values caring for others, respecting different ways cultures approach learning, and believing that every child deserves to be seen, heard, and included—especially those who are easily misunderstood. She cares deeply about making big changes to the way systems work and is hopeful that even small changes can increase access for all children in early childhood education.

Allison Wong, MAL, BEd, has over 20 years of experience in the field of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and other complex needs and has had the privilege of working across clinical, education, nonprofit, justice, government, and business sectors. She is committed to helping elevate the voices of individuals and families with living experience, and to advocating to reduce systemic barriers for neurodiverse children, youth and adults.

Dr. Kim Kinnear’s academic work intersects across wide, but interconnective spaces. Kim is an Associate Director for Research and an Indigenous Knowledges Senior Lecturer at the National Indigenous Knowledges Education Research Innovation (NIKERI) Institute at Deakin University on Wadawurrung Country in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. She is a proud descendant of the Adnyamathanha and Nukunu Peoples and Country in South Australia and actively works to speak to past and current colonizing harms experienced upon and to First Nations People and their Indigenous Communities in Australia. Kim is an early childhood educator with vast experience in a wide range of services, actively bringing Indigenous knowledges to the foreground with all children, families and colleagues as part of challenging, reflective, inclusive and just pedagogical practices. She also lives as a legally blind person alongside her assistance dog Raya. Kim completed her PhD by working as an early childhood teacher and actively writing autoethnographic accounts about her lived experiences and how it is to live with disability and work as a teacher.

Julia Black, ECE, MBA, has been a certified Early Childhood Educator in British Columbia since 1994. She has taught in the Early Childhood Care and Education program at Capilano University since 2007 and served as program coordinator from 2019 to 2025. Julia is currently pursuing graduate studies in Educational Neuroscience at Butler University, with a focus on adversity, trauma, and neurodevelopment, and a Doctor of Education at Western University.

Julia actively contributes to the early childhood sector through leadership roles in policy and governance, including service on the Provincial Child Care Advisory Council, co-chairing the BC Post-Secondary ECE Articulation Committee, and serving on the boards of the BC Association for Child Development and Intervention and Sea to Sky Community Services Society. Her work is guided by a commitment to the ethics of care, equity, and felt belonging, informed by her experiences as a parent of a neurodivergent teen. She focuses on trauma-responsive, neurodiversity-affirming, and relational pedagogies that foster co-regulation and the cultivation of kind, inclusive early childhood environments that advance the agency, rights and wellbeing of children, families, and educators alike.

The Aboriginal Child Care Resource and Referral (ACCRR) (A BCACCS program) program provides culturally based services and resources to support early childhood educators, families, and communities. BCACCS’ ACCRR team partnered with ECEBC and SRDC in developing and implementing the Learning Outside Together program.

Mekdes Gete, ECE, is an Early Childhood Educator, Certified Montessori Teacher, BCRPA Certified Group Fitness Instructor, Fit Flow Yoga and Children’s Yoga Teacher, and Storyteller. With over 24 years of experience in early childhood education across licensed childcare centres in the Greater Vancouver area, Mekdes’ career reflects a deep and enduring commitment to teaching, nurturing and inspiring children. In addition to her extensive classroom experience, she has mentored student teachers for many years, supporting the next generation of educators with care, guidance and professional insight.

Driven by a lifelong passion for cultivating curiosity, compassion, and cultural connection in young learners, she founded the Hibert Cultural School Society, a charitable organization where she now serves as Executive Director and teacher. Mekdes’ work continues to be rooted in a belief in the transformative power of responsive, heart-centred education.

Marlo Humiska, (she/they), is an enthusiastic educator with over a decade of experience developing inclusive education programs that center family engagement, social-emotional learning, and neurodiversity. Her work is grounded in creating affirming spaces where all learners feel seen, supported, and empowered.

Marlo is the Senior Manager of Early Years Programs at LDS - Learn. Develop. Succeed. She oversees Early RISErs, a unique learning program with parent or guardian participation that brings families and early childhood specialists together to play, connect, and learn. The program emphasizes social-emotional learning, sensory regulation, and communication support to foster meaningful engagement and supportive relationships. She also oversees the RISE One-to-One learning support program for school-aged children.

Marlo collaborates with other educators and organizations to design professional development workshops that promote inclusive, trauma-informed, and strengths-based practices. Her facilitation style is rooted in curiosity and radical care, and she brings a deep belief in the power of connection and honouring each learner’s identity and unique journey.

Sara Sutherland, ECE is the Director at the Capilano University Children’s Centre. Sara is inspired by the challenges of pedagogical leadership and what this form of leadership might open up in terms of possibilities for the collective life of a child care centre. She feels privileged to work alongside a pedagogist and an atelierista and is passionate about inclusion and dismantling the barriers between managerial and pedagogical practices.

Adrienne Argent, MEd., ECE, holds roles as an instructor in Early Childhood Care and Education at Capilano University and pedagogist at The Children’s Centre, which serves as a lab school setting. In her work with ECCE students, teachers, and children she is concerned with the co-creation of vibrant cultures of collectivity and relational pedagogical projects. She holds a special interest in cultivating pedagogical dispositions and conditions that generate new ways of thinking and enacting situated and responsive early childhood practices.

Kelly Pickford, B.ECCE, ECE/SN/IT is a mother and early childhood educator, and manager at the Fulmer Family  Children’s Centre. She is keenly interested in social justice, pedagogical practice, and sustainable life-worlds. As a manager, she is committed to disrupting hegemonic practices and universal understandings that marginalize children, families, and communities.

Julia Tevelle, B.ECCE is an early childhood educator at the Capilano University Children’s Centres and a graduate of Capilano University’s Bachelor of Early Childhood Care and Education program. As an educator, she is deeply committed to cultivating practices that place community, diversity and belonging at the heart of pedagogical work. She is passionate about reimagining inclusion collaboratively through open, thoughtful, and truthful conversations that hold space for both its transformative possibilities and its lived complexities.

Tessy Vanderhaeghe is a sexual health educator through Options for Sexual Health with a Master’s degree in Gender Studies. For years, she has been working across the Province, leading workshops for children from kindergarten through grade 12 to help them understand body autonomy, consent, and healthy relationships in positive, inclusive ways. Tessy has also offered presentations for teachers, early childhood educators, and parents of children aged 0-5, providing them with the confidence to discuss these important topics with young children. She has contributed segments on sexual health education for Radio Canada, sharing her passion for inclusive and accessible learning. Earlier this year, Tessy published a book for parents and caregivers on inclusive an positive sexuality education for children ages 0-12. At the heart of her work is a deep commitment to creating environments where every child feels respected, included and supported.

Dr. Ame Christiansen, EdD, is an Autistic senior lecturer and early career researcher at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Education and Global Childhoods Research Hub. Ame's writing, teaching and research reconceptualises inclusion - activating relational ways of knowing and being which centre people and place to amplify the lived experiences of disabled and neurodivergent children and teachers. Her doctoral research was awarded the John Smyth Award for research excellence in the Doctor of Education in 2024. Ame’s current research is a neurodivergent-led a/r/tography project exploring the lived experiences of neurodivergent early childhood teachers and educators in Australia.

Ame's professional experience spans inclusion support, community development, local government, early childhood and tertiary education. Skilled in building, facilitating and coordinating professional communities of practice, Ame is a co-founding member of the Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Network (ECOLN). Since 2014 ECOLN - a practitioner-led, Not for Profit organisation - has grown from 7 strangers interested in outdoor learning to a professional association connecting over 200 educators, researchers and service providers through an annual conference and professional training program. ECOLN’s advocacy and partnerships have resulted in Bush Kinder being included in the School Readiness Funding Menu and the Victorian Bush Kinder grants program.

Dr. Tatiana Zakharova-Goodman, PhD, (she/her) is an instructor and atelierista at the School of Education and Childhood Studies, Capilano University. Atelierista, as described in BC Early Learning Framework (B.C. Ministry of Education, 2019), is an educator working with children and early childhood educators facilitating artistic engagements and studio interventions, often alongside a pedagogist. The work of atelierista focuses on fostering the responsive practices of attending to and sustaining, through artistic processes and materials, engagement with ideas vital to curricular inquiries and pedagogical orientations. The curricular and arts-based research practices are not carried out by atelierista alone but are taken up as a collective inquiry between children, atelierista, and educators.

Mirae Pinpin, ECE, ITE, SNE (she/her) is the Child Care Program Coordinator at Britannia Childcare and a graduating student at Capilano University. Mirae's career is centered around authentic care, well-being and inclusion of all children. At Britannia, she manages several centers which includes mentorship of educators, supervisors and strives to cultivate a culture of thoughtful, intentional and enlivened pedagogical practice in collaboration with children, atelierista and a pedagogist.

Dr. Patrick Makokoro PhD) is an Assistant Professor (Jan-2026) for Early Childhood Development in the School of Child and Youth Care at the University of Victoria. An experienced social entrepreneur, he has practiced as a development consultant with interests in community development, social justice, early childhood education, child protection, advocacy and government relations.

With a career spanning over 23 years, Patrick has provided extensive consulting support to international non-profits working globally including UNESCO, Detroit Champions for Hope, Global Health &Education Strategies LLC among others. He also has previously served as Regional Director for Africa at Childhood Education International in Washington D.C. Among other social entrepreneurship initiatives, he founded the Nhaka Foundation, a charitable organization that increases access to early childhood development, meals, health care, psycho-social support, and other essential services to orphaned and vulnerable children in Southern Africa.

Patrick holds a BA in Community Development from the University of South Africa, a Post Graduate Diploma in International Youth and Child Care from the University of Victoria, an MSc in Development Studies from the Women’s University of Africa and a Ph.D in Educational Studies (Curriculum and Instruction) from the University of Victoria, Canada.

Carmen Hartle is a dedicated manager, early childhood educator, and community advocate with the Ayas Lam Family Program, and a proud member of the Squamish Nation. She brings a deep commitment to Indigenous ways of knowing, weaving traditional practices into every aspect of her work. Guided by the Circle of Care philosophy, Carmen, and the staff, champions inclusive environments, land-based learning, and family empowerment—ensuring that every child is welcomed, celebrated, and supported. Through meaningful collaboration with Elders, Knowledge Keepers, and community partners, she helps integrate traditional teachings with holistic, community-driven approaches to early learning.

Tanya Brown brings 30 years of experience in the early childhood education field with a focus on child development and implementing inclusive early years services. She has a strong background in supporting Indigenous communities in creating inclusive environments and reducing barriers to increasing access to services. Tanya is currently the Director of Ayás Mén̓men Child & Family Services and is honored to be welcomed into the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw and values the teachings and experiences that have fostered her growth in this field.

Roseanne George is a respected Elder of the Squamish Nation and Mount Currie, and the founding program coordinator of the Ayas Lam Family Program. Over 25 years ago, Roseanne stood at the heart of its humble beginnings—welcoming families in borrowed spaces across Squamish and nurturing a vision rooted in inclusion, cultural pride, and parenting advocacy. Her unwavering commitment helped shape Ayas Lam into the vibrant, community-driven program it is today. As attendance grew, so did the need for a permanent home, and Roseanne’s leadership was instrumental in securing a dedicated space where families and children continue to thrive.

Landa Fox, MA, MACP, BCBA, (she/her) is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA), Registered Behaviour Analyst (Ontario) and Certified Sexual Health Educator living and working in lək^ʷəŋən
Territory (Victoria, British Columbia). She has worked in the field of autism and disability support since 2003. She holds two Master’s degrees, one in Special Education and one in Counselling Psychology.

Landa’s work focuses on sexual health, relationship, and safety education for autistic and neurodivergent people. Her work centers around creating and modifying sexual health and relationship education to be meaningful, accessible, and inclusive. She also works to create behaviour support plans to address contextually inappropriate sexual behaviour. Her work is rights-based, grounded in principles of inclusivity, harm reduction, and supporting neurodivergent experiences. She trains caregivers, teachers, staff, and communities about sexual health development and inclusive sex ed. Her special interests within the area of sexual health education include how to promote a culture of consent and body autonomy for autistic children and youth, developing affirming and rights-based sex education, and advocating for access to sexuality and sexual health for everyone.

Charmaine Francis is a Program Coordinator with the BC Family Hearing Resource Society (BCFHRS) and has been a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) for 15 years. She is passionate about fostering inclusive environments where Deaf and hard of hearing children and their families feel empowered and supported. Charmaine has extensive experience providing individualized, family-centered services from birth to kindergarten-entry. At BCFHRS, she has facilitated a wide range of workshops and programs, including parent-child language groups, parent and professional workshops, and conference presentations. She is also committed to shaping the next generation of early childhood practitioners through her role as a clinical educator in the University of British Columbia’s SLP graduate program. Charmaine’s advocacy for inclusive early intervention is reflected in her involvement with the BC Early Hearing Program Sign Language Advisory Group and her involvement in the creation and oversight of Communication Stars Specialized Childcare, BCFHRS’s bilingual-bimodal (ASL and English) childcare program. She lives in Coquitlam with her husband and two young children. In her spare time, she enjoys game nights, baking, crafting, and recently started dragon boating.

Shanna O’Coin, first began her journey with the Deaf community when she took an ASL course in university, so when her third child was born with hearing loss, she was eager to continue learning ASL and to join the Deaf community to support their development. As a parent who has been on this journey with her child, she witnessed the need for qualified educators who could sign and began her ECE journey. She has many years of experience working with children in various roles, from being a nanny to a summer camp counselor, an after-school program coordinator, an assistant preschool teacher, and of course, raising her own three children. Her years of experience with children as well as her administrative and event coordinating experience gives her a unique skill set to organize and plan curriculum too. Shanna is the ECE team lead at Communication Stars Specialized Childcare. In her free time, you can find her watching movies with her family, sewing, practicing her photography skills, baking, and playing video games.

Julia Szefer is Deaf and bilingual, with ASL as her first language. Her journey in the Deaf community began early at Deaf Children’s Society of BC, The Elks Family Hearing Resource Centre (now BCFHRS), and later the BC School for the Deaf. She went on to earn her Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Gallaudet University. The only Deaf person in her family, Julia has built a vibrant life with her Deaf husband and their two CODA (Child of Deaf Adult) children. Over the years, she has volunteered and worked in a variety of roles with children and families – d/Deaf, hard of hearing, hearing, CODA, and SODA (Sibling of Deaf Adult) – through BCFHRS, Deaf Youth Today, Deaf Children’s Society of BC, and other organizations. Today, she brings her passion for language and learning to her roles as an Early Childhood Educator in the Communication Stars Specialized Childcare program and as a Sign Language Consultant with BCFHRS, where she teaches ASL to families. When she’s not working, Julia loves getting creative with arts and crafts, playing games with her family, cooking and baking, and spending time outdoors camping and exploring.

Karen LeSage, ECE, ITE, SNE is a neurodivergent woman with over 30 years of experience working with children from birth to nineteen years of age in childcare and community settings. She is passionate about creating spaces where all people are welcome. She uses yoga, mindfulness and gratitude practices as a platform to help people connect with themselves and others and find their place in the world.

Karen is a licensed Early Childhood Educator, Infant/Toddler Educator and Special Needs Educator, a certified Community Resiliency Model® Teacher, a registered 200-hour Yoga Teacher, a 95-hour Children's Yoga Teacher and a certified Prenatal Yoga Teacher.

Dr. Kim Kinnear’s academic work intersects across wide, but interconnective spaces. Kim is an Associate Director for Research and an Indigenous Knowledges Senior Lecturer at the National Indigenous Knowledges Education Research Innovation (NIKERI) Institute at Deakin University on Wadawurrung Country in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. She is a proud descendant of the Adnyamathanha and Nukunu Peoples and Country in South Australia and actively works to speak to past and current colonizing harms experienced upon and to First Nations People and their Indigenous Communities in Australia. Kim is an early childhood educator with vast experience in a wide range of services, actively bringing Indigenous knowledges to the foreground with all children, families and colleagues as part of challenging, reflective, inclusive and just pedagogical practices. She also lives as a legally blind person alongside her assistance dog Raya. Kim completed her PhD by working as an early childhood teacher and actively writing autoethnographic accounts about her lived experiences and how it is to live with disability and work as a teacher.

Lauren Baldwin is a Waldorf early years educator, craniosacral therapist, and parent coach who supports families of neurodivergent learners. Grounded in nervous system awareness and relational pedagogy, her work helps adults—parents and educators—become sources of co-regulation and felt safety for children. She emphasizes seeing behaviour as communication and nurturing connection, belonging, and understanding for children with vulnerable nervous systems.

As an adoptive parent of children who have experienced early trauma, Lauren has deepened her commitment to attachment, regulation, and embodied awareness as pathways to healing relationships. She co-facilitates a support group for parents of PDA children, providing guidance, reflection, and community connection.

Her background facilitating Indigenous-focused community workshops—honouring hands-on learning, identity, and connection—further informs her experiential and relational approach. Lauren has co-presented at the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Early Years Conference on PDA and the nervous system and continues to support adults in developing reflective, responsive practices that help children feel safe, seen, and empowered.

Maeve Slattery is an inclusion education teacher with Traditional Learning Academy, a
provincial online learning school in BC. She holds a Master in Applied Linguistics, and is
currently studying a BA Honours Psychology at Vancouver Island University where she is a
lab coordinator of the Fear & Anxiety Research Lab.

Maeve has a wide range of professional development trainings including Stuart Shanker’s Self-Reg Foundations Certificate, Ross Greene’s CPS Advanced Training, Kelly Mahler interoception trainings, and Shelley Moore’s training for Inclusive and Competency Based IEPs. She has attended conferences with organizations like BCEdAccess, Autism Awareness Centre, and the Child Institute of Psychology. She has lived experience with both inherited and acquired neurodiversity as an
autistic survivor of traumatic brain injury. Maeve lives in Nanaimo, BC with her partner (AuDHD-PDA) and two children (AuDHD-PDA and AuDHD).

Ana Valle Rivera, ECE, MEd, is a proud mother of three, a consultant, and the founder of Early Years Thriving. Since 2007, Ana has worked in various capacities in the early years field to support children, families, and educators. Ana has a background in ECE, a Bachelor’s Degree in Child & Youth Care, and a Master’s of Professional Education in Early Childhood Education.

Kayla Papalia, ECE, is an Early Childhood Educator, a College Instructor, the host of the ECE Honestly podcast, and the owner of Blossoming Niños Multi-Age Child Care program. Kayla has been in the field for over a decade, and she uses her voice and platform to advocate for Educators.

Ilam Muralidharan, ECE, B.ECCE, is an Early Childhood Educator, working in the Tri-Cities for nearly 15 years, a workshop facilitator, and has taught ECE and supervised practicums at post-secondary institutions. Ilam holds a bachelor's degree in ECE and is currently pursuing a Master's of Professional Education at Western University. She is passionate about creating and cultivating spaces for educators to engage in dialogue and reflection about the critical work we do with children and families.

Anita Ewan (RECE, PhD) is a Registered Early Childhood Educator, Social Worker, Full Spectrum Doula, and Childbirth Educator with over 15 years of experience working alongside children and families in Canada. She holds a PhD in Social Work and has completed postdoctoral research in Public Health, with a focus on equitable perinatal mental health. Dr. Ewan is a faculty member in Early Childhood Care and Education at Capilano University, where she teaches leadership, advocacy, and policy.

Anita’s research and consulting work center on culturally safe, inclusive, and anti-oppressive practices in child development, child welfare, and family support systems. A mother of seven, including children with disabilities, she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her practice. Dr. Ewan is also the founder of Ani’s Centre for Child, Family & Community Development, a nonprofit advancing advocacy and inclusive practice.

Oshrat Zemel, ECE, B.ECCE, is an Early Childhood Education instructor at North Island College and Train Alberta, bringing over 20 years of experience across diverse ECE roles, including educator, program coordinator, and early years wellness consultant. She recently completed her Bachelor of Early Childhood Care and Education at Capilano University with distinction.

Drawing on her lived experience as a Jewish immigrant who has navigated systemic bias and antisemitism, Oshrat is passionate about transforming ECE from a service-provider model to a recognized educational profession. She specializes in working with English as an Additional Language learners and implementing decolonized, Indigenous-informed curriculum. Her teaching practice emphasizes making complex theoretical concepts accessible while centering the voices and experiences of marginalized communities.

Oshrat is currently pursuing graduate studies focused on ECE policy reform and anti-oppression practices, continuing her commitment to systemic change within the field.

Karen LeSage, ECE, ITE, SNE, is a neurodivergent woman with over 30 years of experience working with children from birth to nineteen years of age in childcare and community settings. Throughout her career, her focus has been on inclusion for all children. In addition to her early childhood certifications, Karen is a certified Community Resiliency Model® Teacher and a MEHRIT Centre Shanker Self Reg® Facilitator.

Karen is passionate about creating safe spaces where all children are welcome and uses her skills and personal experiences in the field to shed light on children’s rights and how to nurture and support children to find their voice.

Kinza Pirzada, EdD, is an Inclusive Learning Helping Teacher at Surrey Schools and a faculty member in Capilano University’s Faculty of Education, where she teaches in the Education Assistant and Early Childhood Care and Education programs. She recently completed her Doctorate in Educational Leadership, with research focused on equity-oriented and inclusive pedagogies.

Kinza has extensive expertise in supporting educators to design classrooms that affirm and celebrate diversity. Her work shifts lenses from deficit-based approaches toward strength-based, neurodiversity-affirming practice.

In her district role with Surrey Schools, Kinza collaborates with multidisciplinary teams, including educators, therapists, families, and community organizations, to dismantle systemic barriers and co-create inclusive policies and practices. This collaborative approach allows her to bridge classroom practice with broader systems change, ensuring that inclusion is not only a pedagogical commitment but also a structural one.

Committed to modeling inquiry and care, she supports educators in moving from awareness into sustainable action, ensuring every child is recognized as a valued citizen with the right to thrive as their authentic self.

Dr. Ame Christiansen (EdD) is an Autistic senior lecturer and early career researcher at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Education and Global Childhoods Research Hub. Ame's writing, teaching and research reconceptualises inclusion - activating relational ways of knowing and being which centre people and place to amplify the lived experiences of disabled and neurodivergent children and teachers. Her doctoral research was awarded the John Smyth Award for research excellence in the Doctor of Education in 2024. Ame’s current research is a neurodivergent-led a/r/tography project exploring the lived experiences of neurodivergent early childhood teachers and educators in Australia.

Ame's professional experience spans inclusion support, community development, local government, early childhood and tertiary education. Skilled in building, facilitating and coordinating professional communities of practice, Ame is a co-founding member of the Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Network (ECOLN). Since 2014 ECOLN - a practitioner-led, Not for Profit organisation - has grown from 7 strangers interested in outdoor learning to a professional association connecting over 200 educators, researchers and service providers through an annual conference and professional training program. ECOLN’s advocacy and partnerships have resulted in Bush Kinder being included in the School Readiness Funding Menu and the Victorian Bush Kinder grants program.

Carol Veri has been an early childhood educator in Squamish since 2022–and an educator at heart since 2007. Along the way, she became a neuropsychopedagogist, art therapist, and play therapist, always guided by her passion for human development and creativity.

Mandalas are at the heart of Carol’s art. In art therapy, mandalas symbolize harmony, balance, and self-discovery. Each mandala is a space to pause, reflect, and connect with our inner world. Through colour and symmetry, Carol’s hope is to share moments of calm, joy, and inspiration with the community.