Dr. Joanna Cheek
“While a highly trained professional, Dr. Joanna Cheek does not cloak and armour herself in the white coat of academic expertise without sharing her own vulnerability. This is a guide we can trust. – Dr. Gabor Mate, MD, Author of The Myth of Normal and In the Realm of the Holy Ghosts
Joanna (Jo) Cheek (she/her), M.D., is a Canadian psychiatrist and award-winning clinical professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia. She is a mental health speaker and advocate, meditation teacher, and psychotherapist trained in numerous styles of therapy. She is the author of the Globe and Mail bestselling book IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S THE WORLD: A Mental Health Survival Guide for Us All (HarperCollins Canada).
Jo co-founded Mind Space, a collective of physicians across British Columbia offering publicly-funded mental health groups to tens of thousands of participants as part of her advocacy to improve mental health equity and access to services. She has specific interests in mental health and wellness education, social psychiatry, collective & community care, systems change & quality improvement, group facilitation, trauma, neurodiversity, and cultural humility, equity, diversity, and inclusivity (CHEDI).
Jo sees mental health struggles as symptoms of the imbalances in our wider systems, hoping to decrease the stigma that is too often misplaced on the individuals who suffer rather than the ailing society around them.
Testimonials
“Dr. Joanna Cheek places our mental troubles in the context of the wider world, and her collective view of mental health helps us understand where our thoughts and fears stem from.” – Matt Haig, Author of The Midnight Library & Reasons to Stay Alive
“Joanna faces the personal and the political, bringing her ‘perky optimist’ self and clinical expertise to a stunning range of problems. Her courage and wisdom shine through!” – Jack Kornfield, PhD, Author of A Wise Heart & Bringing Home the Dharma, and Trudy Goodman, PhD, Founding Teacher of Insight LA
“The real reason emotional suffering is skyrocketing isn’t because we’re flawed or broken—it’s because we’re responding to a deeply unwell world. Dr. Joanna Cheek guides us to see the wider ecology driving our distress—the dis-ease of greed, hatred and delusion that infects our societies. With clarity and care, she invites us to face these truths together, to hold hands, and to begin healing the roots of our collective pain.” – Tara Brach, PhD, Author of Radical Acceptance, Radical Compassion, & True Refuge
“Highlighting the inextricably interconnected nature of our existence and the vast web of causes and conditions behind each of our individual experiences, Dr. Cheek emphasizes the need for greater compassion and mutual understanding to best meet the polycrises impacting us all today.” – Sharon Salzberg, Author of Lovingkindness and Real Life
“A powerful antidote to the current geopolitical climate and uncertain times plaguing all of us.” – Dr. Ramneek Dosanjh, MD, Past President of the Federation of Medical Women of Canada & Doctors of British Columbia
Speaking Topics
It’s Not You, It’s the World: Self-Care Needs Collective-Care
This talk explores mental health and well-being from a systems perspective, focusing on how individual distress often reflects broader social and environmental imbalances. We will examine how mental health symptoms can function as signals that point to underlying stressors in our bodies, relationships, communities, and larger global systems.
Mental Health Survival Skills
We will define mental health symptoms as adaptive signals that point to underlying stressors in our internal and external environments. We discuss how ongoing systemic stress can overwhelm these “alarm systems,” and how this can lead to distress, denial, or emotional shutdown. We will then focus on developing a range of practical skills – such as mindfulness, nervous system regulation, and working with thoughts, emotions, body sensations, trauma, and interpersonal conflict – to better understand and respond to these signals.
An Ecological Understanding of Health
We will explore health and well-being through an ecological systems lens – how balance is maintained across both our internal bodies and the wider social and environmental systems we inhabit. We will describe the principles of interdependence, diversity, and feedback regulation in healthy systems, and how changes in any part of a system can deeply impact the whole.
Mental Health 101
We will illustrate how stress affects mental health and how emotional and psychological symptoms can serve as important signals of imbalance. The audience can learn how chronic stress overwhelms the body’s natural ability to regulate itself, contributing to mental health challenges, and how a variety of approaches—including therapy, lifestyle practices, social connection, and meaningful engagement—can support recovery and resilience.
Dysregulated: Understanding and Managing Our Messy Moments
Will dive into how stress and dysregulation affect our ability to think clearly, connect with others, and make decisions aligned with our values. We will explore how the brain and nervous system responds under stress, how to recognize signs of dysregulation in themselves and others, and practical strategies for restoring balance. This talk will focus on building self-awareness, developing regulation skills, and fostering supportive relationships that encourage connection, co-regulation, and collective well-being.
Evolutionary Psychology: We’ve Evolved to Survive, Not To Be Happy or Calm
This talk will explore the purpose and function of emotions as important signals that help us navigate challenges and meet our needs, rooted in neuroscience and evolutionary theory. We will explore how emotions such as fear, grief, shame, resentment, envy, and low mood can provide valuable information about our experiences and environments.
Shame: It’s Not You, It’s Them
We will explore the role of shame as a natural emotional response to perceived rejection and disconnection. The audience will examine how shame differs from guilt, how it influences the ways we hide or protect parts of ourselves, and how social experiences shape our sense of belonging.
Health is Political: How Inequities Make Everyone Sick
This talk focused on the connection between human health, social systems, and the broader ecosystems we depend on. We will explore how patterns of domination, division, and indifference to realities of our interdependence can create imbalances across communities and societies, and how inequities in areas such as income, education, and healthcare affect collective well-being.
Generative Conflict: The Power of Guilt and Repair
This audience will explore how empathy, accountability, and repair can help heal personal and collective divisions. Dr. Cheek will focus on fostering belonging, strengthening our capacity to engage with challenging social issues, and creating opportunities for growth, healing, and deeper understanding through honest dialogue and shared learning.
Weak Ties, Strong Communities: How to Foster Connection in Your Hectic Schedules
We will dive into the powerful impact of social connection on physical and mental health – how social isolation affects well-being and longevity, and how the quality and diversity of our relationships can influence health outcomes.
Purpose as Medicine
We will explore the connection between individual well-being, social connection, and collective care. Dr. Cheek will examine research showing how living in alignment with personal values, purpose, and meaningful contribution can improve health and resilience, while isolation and excessive individualism can have harmful effects.
We Are Our History: How the Past Hasn’t Passed
This talk illustrates how our personal histories, family experiences, and inherited patterns shape the way we think, feel, and relate to others in the present. The audience will be able to develop awareness of these patterns, recognizing when past adaptations are being activated, and building skills to respond with greater self-compassion, choice, and agency in the present.
The Emergence of Hope in Chaotic Times
We will examine how individuals and communities can help restore balance in times of social and systemic instability – illustrating how meaningful change often emerges from periods of disruption, and how personal actions, relationships, and values can contribute to creating healthier, more just systems.
Press Writing for Academics and Health Professionals
We will explore different genres of journalism and explore tips on how to conceive, report, structure, write, pitch, and publish articles from a journalism perspective, or write and pitch a non-fiction book proposal, find an agent, and submit to publishers.
Dr. Joanna Cheek in the Media:
Telus Talks weekly podcast hosted by Tamara Taggart
Psychology Today article by Dr. Cheek, “Why Self-Care Isn’t Enough”
BBC Science Focus Instant Genius podcast
The Courageous Life podcast: On the Remedy for a World on Fire
To book Angie Abdou, contact Rob Firing at speakers@transatlanticagency.com.
Kate Robson
“I’m thrilled that so many people now have access to her compassion, wisdom, and humour as well to the tools she has honed for many years as a therapist, mother, and friend.”
– Sarah Polley, Academy Award winner and bestselling author of Run Towards the Danger.
“This delightful book offers invaluable tools to readers, featuring the many strategies available for anybody hoping to heal and find connection in their lives.”
– Clara Hughes, Olympian and bestselling author of Open Heart, Open Mind.
Kate Robson is a registered psychotherapist based in Toronto and author of Something to Hold Onto (S&S). Inspired by her own experiences with her children in a neonatal intensive care unit, she has worked with babies, parents, and families for more than twelve years as a NICU family support specialist. She has since travelled internationally to educate parents and clinicians on family-centred and trauma-informed care. Her talks and workshops focus on cultivating secure attachment in relationships and creating emotion-friendly homes, workplaces, and systems.
In her private practice, Kate supports individuals and couples navigating infertility, high-risk pregnancies, NICU hospitalizations, and bereavement – she has led Canada’s largest support community for NICU families for the last 10 years. She holds degrees from McGill University and OISE/UT, completed her psychotherapy training at the Toronto Institute for Relational Psychotherapy, and has trained in modalities including ACT, Internal Family Systems, EMDR, PACT, and somatic approaches.
Drawing on both professional expertise and lived experience, Kate brings a deeply human lens to conversations about trauma, attachment, and resilience. Her speaking style is grounded, compassionate, and practical – offering language and tools people can use immediately in moments that matter.
Attachment & Relationships
Creating emotion-friendly homes, workplaces, and communities
Strong relationships are built not on perfection, but on safety, repair, and emotional attunement. In this talk, Kate explores how attachment patterns shape the way we relate … to partners, children, colleagues, and ourselves … and how small shifts can create environments where people feel seen and supported. With warmth and clarity, she translates attachment theory into practical guidance for fostering trust, connection, and emotional literacy in everyday life.
Resilience & Emotional Wellbeing
Practical tools for navigating adversity and finding calm in uncertainty
This talk explores resilience not as toughness or positivity, but as the capacity to stay present and resourced when life feels unsteady. Drawing on psychology, lived experience, and simple, practical frameworks, Kate offers tools for regulating emotion, reducing overwhelm, and responding to stress in ways that are workable rather than reactive. Participants leave with language and practices they can use immediately — especially in moments when certainty is in short supply.
Grief & Loss
Gentle ways to be with grief and move forward with meaning
Grief shows up in many forms. It appears not only after death, but in illness, infertility, change, and when we notice the lives we didn’t get to live. This talk invites a compassionate, non-pathologizing approach to grief, focusing on how we can honour love and meaning without being crushed by loss. Kate offers steadying perspectives and accessible practices that help people make room for sorrow while staying connected to what sustains them.
Kate Robson in the Media:
- Jann Arden Podcast: Kate Robson and Sarah Polley
- The Tyee Review: Something to Hold Onto
- Kate Robson speaking at Rotman School of Management
Jen Kish
Jen Kish is a three-time Hall of Famer, Olympic bronze medalist, former Captain of Team Canada Rugby 7s, keynote speaker, and mental health advocate. Named one of Canada’s Most Influential Women in Sport in 2016, Jen represented Canada for more than 13 years, leading her team to a historic bronze medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and a gold medal at the 2015 Pan Am Games. From overcoming a difficult childhood to captaining her country on the world’s biggest stage, her story shapes her speaking work today.
Jen specializes in leadership, culture building, women’s empowerment, mental health, and the realities of invisible injuries such as concussion. Through powerful storytelling and practical strategies, she equips audiences with tools they can immediately apply to their lives, teams, and organizations. Her authenticity and lived experience create an inspiring, emotional, and actionable experience for corporate, education, sport, and community audiences.
THE LEADER IN YOU
Unlocking Influence, Culture & Purpose
“Leadership isn’t a position — it’s a behaviour. It’s a skill, not a title.”
• Build influence through trust, example, and accountability
• Adopt a “lead from the back” approach to empower teams
• Transform adversity into purpose-driven performance
• Strengthen culture through clarity, communication, and ownership
UNLOCK THE HIDDEN HER-O IN HER
Elevating Women Through Strength, Representation & Voice
“When we remove barriers for women, everything improves.”
This keynote is designed to empower girls and women to:
- Recognize the impact of representation on confidence and ambition.• Develop strategies to champion women in leadership.
- Understand early gender messaging.
- Build cultures that support equity & belonging.
- Encourage girls and women to take space — and keep it.
THE UNSEEN WOUNDS WE CARRY
Mental Health, Resilience & Healing
“Mental health affects every part of performance and life.”
• Learn how early support changes outcomes.
• Recognize signs of struggle.
• Apply the N.U.R.S.E. model.
• Foster cultures of empathy.
THE INVISIBLE IMPACT
Understanding Concussion & Recovery
“A concussion is an invisible injury with very real consequences.”
• Recognize symptoms & effects.
• Explore emotional identity challenges.
• Learn support strategies.
• Build safe awareness-driven cultures.
Jen Kish in the news:
Cherie Dimaline
Cherie Dimaline is an internationally bestselling author. Her book The Marrow Thieves was named by TIME magazine, one of the Best YA Books of All Time and won the Governor General’s Award and the Kirkus Prize. Her novel Empire of Wild was an instant Canadian bestseller and is being adapted into a full opera for the Canadian Opera Company. Hunting By Stars was a 2022 American Indian Library Association Honor Book and her novel VENCO debuted at #1 on Canadian bestseller lists. Other titles include Funeral Songs for Dying Girls (AILA Honor Book, AURA Award winner, CRIME WRITERS Best Book, Bram Stoker Finalist) and Into the Bright Open (2024 Governor General’s Award Finalist).
Cherie lives in her Georgian Bay Métis Community and has written and produced for MARVEL, FX, HBO, Disney, and is currently adapting two major projects for AMC and Lionsgate. She was a Producer/Writer on Stephen King’s IT television adaptation, WELCOME TO DERRY and is currently working on a horror feature for Pressman Films (AMERICAN PSYCHO, THE CROW) with icon Josh Ruben.
To book Cherie, contact Rob Firing at speakers@transatlanticagency.com
Robin Stevenson
Robin Stevenson is an award-winning queer Canadian author of more than thirty-five books for young readers. She has written non-fiction about queer history, activism, and rights; novels for teens and children; and picture books for the youngest readers. Her recent titles include the critically acclaimed middle grade novel, The Book of Jupiter, and the non-fiction Queer History A-Z. Robin’s next picture book comes out in 2027: Pride Puppy Countdown, illustrated by Julie McLaughlin, is a companion book to the bestselling picture book Pride Puppy. Robin has a master’s degree in social work, and worked as a counselor, group facilitator and social work instructor for ten years before beginning to write while on parental leave
Robin’s books have won the Silver Birch Award, the Sheila A. Egoff award and a Stonewall Honor, and been finalists for the Governor General’s Literary Awards, the Lambda Literary Awards, four BC Book Prizes, and many reader’s choice awards. Her work has received numerous starred reviews, and been translated and published in more than ten countries. In 2023, she was awarded the BC Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence in recognition of her body of work and her contributions to the literary community.
Robin is a vocal advocate for reader’s rights and a strong voice in opposing censorship and book bans. She was named as the 2022 Champion of Free Expression by the Book and Periodical Council of Canada. She has faced challenges to many of her books, and in 2025, her picture book Pride Puppy was at the center of a US Supreme Court case, Mahmoud v. Taylor. She regularly speaks about books and writing, about 2SLGBTQ+ inclusion in schools and libraries, and about issues related to censorship and book bans.
SPEAKING TOPICS WITH DESCRIPTION AND AUDIENCE
Robin is available for keynotes, conference sessions, festivals, writing workshops and panels, professional development, and consulting.
For Educators & Librarians
- Getting Kids and Teens Excited about Writing
Drawing on twenty years of experience as a writing instructor, writer-in-residence and school presenter, Robin will share tips for engaging and inspiring young writers—including the reluctant writers—of all ages.
- Protecting Diverse Kid Lit: Books, Bans and Backlash
Amidst anti-LGBTQ+ backlash and book challenges, many authors, publishers, librarians and educators are refusing self-censorship, building networks of support, and advocating for diverse books and readers’ rights. Inclusive books help students see themselves, understand others, and feel a sense of belonging. As anti-LGBTQ+ hate rises, representation is an important part of creating safe and welcoming spaces in classrooms and libraries.
- Pride, Inclusion and Belonging: The Importance of LGBTQ+ Representation
Inclusive books help students see themselves, understand others, and feel a sense of belonging. As anti-LGBTQ+ hate rises, representation is an important part of creating safe and welcoming spaces in classrooms and libraries.
- Writing, Reading, and Resisting: How Stories Help Light the Way Forward
Stories of resistance can be used to inspire reflection and action, to show students the power of words, and to empower young people to tell their own stories and make their voices heard.
For Writing Conferences & Festivals
- Writing as Resistance: Telling the Stories We Need to Tell: Storytelling has the power to ignite change—but in an era of book bans, online hostility, and backlash against diverse stories, writing can be difficult. Author Robin Stevenson knows this firsthand: many of her books have been challenged for their LGBTQ+ content. Join her for a conversation on writing as a form of activism. How do we resist the urge to self-censor? And how do we stay true to our voices and tell the stories we want to tell?
- Co-writing and Creative Collaboration: Drawing on her experience co-authoring novels and collaborating on picture books, Robin will lead the group in writing exercises, discuss potential challenges, and share strategies to keep co-writing enjoyable and rewarding.
- The Magic of Revision: Finishing the first draft of your novel is just the beginning. But revision doesn’t have to be a chore: it can be exciting and rewarding, and when it goes well, it can feel downright magical. Drawing on her experiences as a writer, editor and writing instructor, Robin will discuss techniques to gain distance from your draft, find the emotional heart of your story, identify weak spots in character, plot and pacing, troubleshoot common problems, and increase the narrative tension.
- Writing Queer-Inclusive Books for Young Readers of All Ages: Fiction or non-fiction, from toddlers to adults: all our readers need books that reflect their lives and the world they live in. So how can writers — regardless of their own identities — ensure their writing is inclusive of the diverse LGBTQ+ community?
For Organizations, Employee Events, and Lunch-and-Learns
- The Pride Puppy Case: Lessons Learned
Robin will share the story of what happened when her picture book Pride Puppy found itself at the US Supreme Court—and what she learned about book challenges, fighting back, staying safe, and protecting creativity and resilience. There are lessons for all of us: in an era marked by online hostility, and intense backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion, how do we resist the urge to self-censor? And how do we stay true to our voices and our beliefs?
ONLINE INTERVIEWS
- A Canadian Picture Book at the U.S. Supreme Court | The Agenda with Steve Paikin on TVO
- Velshi Banned Book Club on MSNBC
- Pride Puppy Author Talks LGBTQ+ Book Bans and SCOTUS case, on Boom! Lawyered podcast:
- As It Happens on CBC
PRINT INTERVIEWS AND ARTICLES
- First person article in Macleans Magazine: How My LGBGQ+ Kids’ Book Ended up at the US Supreme Court
- ‘All kids deserve to see families like their own in the books they read’: Robin Stevenson writes books she wishes she had read growing up, from PEN America
- You Can’t Read That: Banning kids’ books in Canada and the United States, from PEN Canada
- Author Robin Stevenson Resists Organized Challenges to Books About Sexual Minorities, from Freedom to Read
- Interview in Vancouver Sun about Pride: The Celebration and The Struggle
PULL QUOTES FROM REVIEWS, WITH LINKS
Reviews for Queer History A to Z: 100 Years of LGBTQ+ Activism:
“Perfect for middle school and public libraries; an essential collection of LGBTQIA+ history.” – School Library Journal
“Queer History A to Z is a must-buy title from an accomplished veteran of LGBTQ+ children’s and YA literature. Highly Recommended.” – Canadian Materials
Reviews for Pride: The Celebration and the Struggle
“Stevenson’s joyful celebration of self, community, existence, and activism examines Pride parades, how they came to be, and what they celebrate… An indispensable and celebratory primer on the ongoing fight for LGBTQ+ rights. An excellent resource that is as thorough as it is visually appealing.” – Starred review, School Library Journal
Reviews for Pride Puppy
“Highly—and proudly—recommended… The book is sheer delight and will be a welcome addition to shelves everywhere.” – Starred review, Kirkus
“This engaging introduction to Pride parades for the youngest readers successfully testifies to the warmth and power of queer community.” – Starred review, Publisher’s Weekly
TESTIMONIALS
“Robin was the keynote speaker at the Children and Teen Services conference for library staff. She presented on the topic of young people’s right to read and the challenges to this right. The presentation was factual, educational and powerful. In addition to presenting, Robin facilitated a group exercise for staff on how to better support 2SLGBTQ+ youth and families in our communities. Participants were able to openly share and learn from each other because Robin created a positive learning space. I definitely recommend Robin as a speaker and facilitator.”
– ASHLEY MACHUM, Head of Youth Services, Okanagan Regional Library, Kelowna, BC
“Robin was a dynamic and engaging speaker and presenter who connected so well with audiences of all ages. From a host perspective, Robin was also an absolute dream to work with – responsive, flexible and generous with her time and so much fun to be around. She is easy to recommend as an author, as a presenter and as a workshop leader!”
– DEB ISBISTER, Red Deer Library
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Robin as a keynote speaker and a program facilitator, and appreciate her understanding of our roles as educators, and navigating systems to ensure that all students see themselves and their peers reflected through literature. Robin is extremely knowledgeable about the experiences, rights, and histories of Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ humans, and always works to center lived experiences of intersectional identities in all of her work. I highly recommend her as a speaker and facilitator for both students and educators.”
– ELIZA HYNES, Resource Teacher – Indigenous Education, Anti-Racism, Anti-Oppression and Community Partnership, Peel District School Board
“Robin is a dynamic and thoughtful speaker who was part of author events at my university that were engaging and deeply relevant. The events sparked meaningful conversations about writing for young adults and children, censorship issues we face today, queer representation in literature, and the power of inclusive storytelling. She brought warmth, insight, and a strong sense of purpose to our library’s events—an invaluable voice in today’s cultural landscape.”
– Joseph Hafner, Dean of Libraries, York University
“Hosting Robin at the library for an evening discussion about the censorship of LGBTQA2S+ materials was eye-opening for everyone involved. She was knowledgeable, personable, and presented her information in a manner accessible and relatable to everyone in the audience, from teens to seniors.”
– Wendy Wright, Director of Smithers Public Library, BC, senior fellow at the Canadian Center for Free Expression
Danny Ramadan
Danny Ramadan is a Syrian-Canadian author and LGBTQ+ refugees’ advocate. His memoir Crooked Teeth received raving reviews and was nominated for the Governor General’s Award for Non-Fiction. His latest novel, The Foghorn Echoes, won the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction and was nominated for both the BC & Yukon Book Prizes and the City of Vancouver Book Award. His debut novel, The Clothesline Swing, won the Independent Publisher Book Award, was longlisted for Canada Reads, and has been translated into multiple languages.
Ramadan is also the author of the award-winning Salma children’s series, which has received the Nautilus Book Award, the Publishing Triangle Award, the Middle East Book Award, and numerous other accolades.
Since arriving in Canada, he has raised over $300,000 to support LGBTQ+ refugees, securing safe passage for more than two dozen queer and trans individuals. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from UBC and an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Adler University.
He lives in Vancouver with his husband and two dogs — and when he’s not writing, he’s probably playing video games.
Speaking Topics
Exploring Identity, Storytelling, and Social Justice through Lived Experience
The Immigration Journey
Ramadan speaks thoughtfully and with lived experience about the journey of immigration — from the personal realities of leaving Syria and building a new life in Canada, to the broader challenges faced by refugees and newcomers. Blending memoir-style storytelling with current research, he explores the emotional, political, and cultural impact of migration. His tone is candid, compassionate, and often humorous, offering space for honest conversations about belonging, identity, and resilience.
Intersectionality in Activism and the Writing Life
With a deep understanding of layered identities, Ramadan offers insights into how intersectionality can shape both creative work and community advocacy. Whether he’s discussing the role of intersectionality in building inclusive movements or developing fully realized characters on the page, his approach is clear, grounded, and inviting. Ramadan’s background as a writer, activist, and union leader allows him to navigate this topic with nuance, making complex ideas accessible and engaging for a wide range of audiences.
Writing Across Genres: Craft, Editing, and Storytelling Tools
As a writer of novels, memoir, and children’s literature, Ramadan brings a multi-genre perspective to conversations about writing craft. He speaks about narrative structure, editing strategies, voice, and revision, offering practical tools for writers at any stage of their career. His sessions are accessible, flexible, and often shaped by the needs of the audience — whether they’re new writers in classrooms or professionals in literary spaces. Ramadan’s style is friendly, generous, and focused on growth rather than perfection.
Queerness and Identity
Ramadan brings warmth, openness, and clarity to conversations around queerness — both as a lived experience and as a lens through which to view art, culture, and personal growth. He reflects on his own journey as a queer man from the Middle East and how it has shaped his voice, community, and storytelling. His talks offer space for vulnerability, joy, and honest reflection, making them especially resonant in educational and community-focused settings.
Karen van Kampen
Karen van Kampen is an author, creative writing instructor and award-winning journalist who has built a career on writing, sharing and listening to stories. She focuses on the art and science of storytelling to educate, inspire and connect to gain new perspectives and boost well-being.
In The Brain Never Sleeps: Why We Dream and What it Means for our Health (Simon & Schuster Canada, 2026), Karen guides readers on a journey through dreamland to discover why dreams matter and how we can reclaim this alternate realm of experience. Her interest in dreams began at the age of nine when her dad opened one of the first independent sleep laboratories in Canada and she was his first lab assistant, practising electrode hook up and testing. She went on to work on the business side of sleep for more than 15 years.
Karen offers insightful and engaging talks on the power of human story in the age of AI. Karen leads interactive workshops for individuals and companies to learn the essential elements of a compelling story that connects and inspires audiences, taking their ideas from concept to podium. Karen explores how we can harness our natural superpower of sleep to improve our well-being and shares how we can use dreams as a creative brainstorming tool in business and in life. Karen has audiences create their own dreamer toolkit to reveal their concerns, reduce nightmares and benefit from the insights and self-awareness of dreams.
She is the author of The Golden Cell: The Quest for the Next Great Medical Breakthrough (HarperCollins), which garnered extensive media coverage. Her writing has appeared in various publications including The Globe and Mail, National Post, Flare magazine, FASHION magazine and Reader’s Digest. She has worked as a writer and editor at several magazines and newspapers. Karen teaches creative non-fiction and science and public health writing at the University of Toronto.
Speaking Topics
Storytelling
The Power of Human Story in the Digital Age
Discover why human stories have the power to strengthen learning, empathy and well-being. Learn how we are wired to communicate and connect through story, empathizing with characters and gaining personal insights. Discover how storytellers and listeners share similar brain activity as a story unfolds and the “narrative transport” of storytelling that connects people emotionally. Learn the art of strategic storytelling, the essential elements of a compelling story and how to package your story to make it your own. Practical tips on effective communication to build a digital presence, make big ideas resonate and find your voice to influence, inspire and make a meaningful impact.
Storytelling as a Business Tool
Learn the importance and impact of compelling stories to build brands, become a trusted voice and drive change. Hands-on instruction to develop your voice as a leader and communicator, craft your message and shape your story to connect with your target audience and achieve your strategic goals. Learn how meaningful, authentic stories create a dynamic and engaged work culture and build a loyal audience that lives your brand. Tips on creating valuable content that meets customer wants, needs and challenges. Explore the power of story-based advocacy to drive social change.
Sleep, Dreams and Well-being
Build a Work Culture that Prioritizes Sleep and Well-being
Sleep fuels the body and the mind, just like food. Learn how sleep and dreams can improve workplace productivity, job satisfaction and employee retention. Adopt healthy sleep habits and create your own sleep system to gain health and wellness benefits in your personal and professional lives.
The Dream Dimension: Why we Dream and How to Use Dreams to Improve our Waking Lives
Explore the connection between dreams and waking life to reveal your preoccupations, concerns and state of mind. Uncover possible functions and many benefits of dreaming. Investigate dream engineering to guide your dreams, reduce nightmares and harness their creative power to solve problems and gain new insights.
Night Shift: What Our Work Dreams are Trying to Tell Us
Explore common work dreams, their impact on productivity and happiness, and what happens to our sleep and dreams if we try to suppress work anxieties. Gain strategies on how to combat and manage work stress dreams. Create your own dreamer’s toolkit of high-tech and low-tech dream tools to harness the benefits of your dreams for your health and well-being.
To learn more about Karen’s business storytelling and consulting work, visit her consulting website. Through Daring and Kind, Karen partners with organizations and individuals to craft authentic narratives that connect, influence and drive meaningful change. The site offers insight into her consulting approach, client collaborations, and how story can be used as a powerful tool for leadership, innovation and impact.
Liz Renzetti
Elizabeth Renzetti is a bestselling author and journalist. She is the author of five books, most recently the national bestseller What She Said: Conversations About Equality. She’s also the author, alongside Kate Hilton, of the Quill & Packet mystery series. Their first novel, Bury the Lead, was published in 2024, and Widows and Orphans followed in 2025.
As a journalist, Elizabeth reported from London, Los Angeles, Toronto, and Berlin, and wrote a popular column on current affairs in The Globe and Mail. In 2025, she was awarded a King Charles III Coronation Medal for her work on gender equality, and she has twice won the Landsberg Prize for reporting on gender issues. She lives in Toronto with her family and two very bad cats.
Praise for What She Said:
“What She Said is frank, funny, and unfailingly honest …. Should be mandatory reading!” – Lisa LaFlamme, journalist
“What She Said is as honest as it is painful and smart …. It made me weep, laugh, and ultimately helped me exhale.” Kathleen Wynne, former premier of Ontario
Liz is an experienced public speaker and can lecture on numerous topics including:
Women in Leadership
Women are underrepresented at all levels of leadership in every field. And it’s getting worse. At a time when companies are rolling back their diversity policies, what does the future hold for women in leadership roles? Drawing upon years of reporting, interviews with leaders in politics and business, and her own story as a woman in management, Liz speaks to this fraught moment – and the future ahead.
Gender Inequality & Why It Harms Us All
We know that we are facing an unprecedented backlash to the rights of women and non-binary people, not just in North America, but around the world. Young women and young men grow farther apart in their political beliefs. How did we get to this place, and how do we find a way out that heals rather than harms?
Teamwork is Dreamwork
As the co-author of a fictional mystery series, and as a journalist who participated in many group projects, Liz can reveal the secrets of what makes for a fruitful partnership. How to choose the right collaborator, best ways of working that will not lead to divorce, and how to successfully play to a team’s strengths and weaknesses are all part of the discussion.
The Misinformation Crisis & The Power of Journalism
How do we move forward as a society if we can even agree on facts? As a journalist with decades of newsroom experience, Liz can talk about how journalism is facing this crisis, and what we can do to understand each other better.
Liz also hosts panel discussions, conducts public interviews, and gives workshops on interviewing techniques.
Karl Subban
KARL SUBBAN is the bestselling author of How We Did It: The Subban Plan for Success in Hockey, School and Life, speaker and award-winning educator. A school principal for many years, he is also a director of the Greater Toronto Hockey League and the Herbert H. Carnegie Future Aces Foundation. Subban was awarded an honorary doctorate of education by Lakehead University in 2022. He is a certified Maxwell speaker, coach and a trainer. His second book, The Hockey Skates was published in September 2023. Karl’s latest book, Raise Your Roof: The Hidden Power of Potential, will be published in April 2025. He lives in Toronto.
Speaking Topics
The Power of Potential
For more than three decades, Karl Subban has been honing his proven approach to building resilience, increasing perseverance, mastering goal setting—and bringing out the best in everyone. Every year we get bigger, but not necessarily better. Older, but not necessarily wiser. We’re not always set up for success, and despite our best efforts, we can get stuck in a place where we don’t think it’s possible to dream, let alone dream big. As a coach, educator, author and father, Subban knows that understanding and believing in our own potential are key to making changes that matter and bringing purpose to our lives and the lives of those around us. Packed with proven strategies including “raise their roof ” playbooks for leaders, parents and educators, Raise Your Roof is an inspiring and practical guide to creating meaningful change, realizing goals and finding fulfillment. The power of potential is at your starting line, not your finish line.
Developing Potential (Talk for educators)
Teachers plant seeds in the minds, bodies, and souls of young people and they don’t often see the fruits of their efforts. An example for me was Mr. Kangas, my very first teacher in Canada. He was the primary reason why I wanted to go to school. He pulled me up when I was feeling down and wasn’t aware of it until I wrote about him in my first book, How We Did It. He saw me, valued me and made me feel special. His impact on me helped me to identify the three vital qualities of effective teachers: know your students, care about your students, and inspire your students.
This keynote will explore two primary ways to empower growth in our student leaders:
- Creating a growth empowering environment
- Developing as a growth empowering leader
Potential is having the capacity to develop into something in the future. The potential of the school is directly related to the potential of the students and the staff. If we want better results, we must invest in young people.
It Always Seems Impossible Until It is Done (Talk for students)
This keynote, aimed at students, will focus on my journey, sharing stories and lessons learned working in my three worlds as an educator, hockey dad, and coach working with youth in several sports including coaching the men’s basketball team at George Brown College and being a hockey coach in the Greater Toronto Hockey League for approximately ten years.
My aim is to provide students with tools and framework to inspire them reach their unlimited potential.
Topics:
*Is your dream your dream?
*The power in your beliefs
*Facing and working through challenges and adversities
*Focusing on possibility not performance
*Using the 4 Ts to take effective action (Time, Task, Training, and Team)
*Navigating distractions
*Building confidence and overcoming fear and failure
*Are you teachable, coachable, and likable?
*Do you want to be good, or do you want to excel?
*You must FOCUS to make it.
Dr. Jean Marmoreo
Dr. Jean Marmoreo is a doctor, writer, athlete, advocate and adventurer.
For 45 years she was a family physician practising in downtown Toronto, and in 2016 became one of Canada’s first practitioners of MAiD, to provide Medical Assistance in Dying. In 2022, she also began practising family medicine in the High Arctic.
Jean is a Fellow of the Canadian College of Family Physicians; is affiliated with Women’s College Hospital; and is a Lecturer in the Family Practice Department of the Temerty School of Medicine at the University of Toronto.
Graduating in 1964 from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario with a degree in nursing, Jean became Head Nurse at the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry in Toronto, the predecessor to CAMH, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. She then decided to pursue a career in medicine and in 1974 graduated with the highest marks in her class in clinical practice from the Temerty School of Medicine, one of the top handful of medical schools in North America.
For many years, Jean was a specialist in mid-life medicine and now in end-of-life issues, and was also a regular columnist for the Globe and Mail, the National Post, and Zoomer. Her Zoomer series, “This is what 70 looks like”, won a Silver Award in the 2014 National Magazine Awards.
The popularity of her columns led to her writing a book, The New Middle Ages: Women in Midlife which was published in 2002 by Prentice Hall. In the fall of 2022, Penguin Random House published a book by Jean and co-author Johanna Schneller titled The Last Doctor: Lessons in Living from the Front Lines of Medical Assistance in Dying, which was short-listed for the Balsillie Prize in Public Policy and is a national best-seller.
But it has been in the storied Boston Marathon that Jean Marmoreo has broken records. In seven different years, she placed first in her age group, and her 2013 time set a course record for her age group. In her final Boston Marathon in 2019, she finished first among women 75-79 with a time of 4:18.
Jean is a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and has hiked 1,000 miles of the Appalachian Trail. She has also undertaken numerous treks in New Zealand, Australia, Spitsbergen, Patagonia, Bhutan, Tanzania, and to the Base Camp of Mt. Everest, and in 2019, she circumnavigated Manhattan by kayak.
In 2023, Jean was inducted into the Order of Canada, and in 2024, she was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award for the Sciences from McMaster University.
Speaking Topics
Jean is frequently called on to speak to women as a media commentator or directly to women’s audiences. In 2005, Jean was chosen as one of the “100 Most Powerful Women in Canada.” Her keynotes cover a range of topics for audiences both male and female, from aging meaningfully, to menopause, to medical assistance in dying.
Live long. Die well.
Our attitudes to life and death have changed dramatically: we all want to live long and happy lives, but when it’s time to go, we want the best for ourselves and our families as well. Dr. Jean Marmoreo, the noted family physician and MAiD doctor, discusses what to do now to give yourself the best chance at a longer, happier life — and a good end.
What are you doing in the second half of your life?
Being over 50 doesn’t have to feel like a waiting room; it can be a supermarket. The trick is to do some very simple things to give yourself the best chance to stay healthy, functional and happy in your next 30 years. Dr. Jean Marmoreo says you get old when you slow down – and she shows the life-enhancing benefits of exercise, adventure and most of all, connecting widely and deeply with your world.
Finally, you can do something about your menopause.
For most women in midlife, menopause was something to be endured in frustrating silence. Yet its symptoms (there are many more than medicine thought before) can make your life and work miserable. While menopause isn’t a disease it can feel like you have a crippling one. Dr. Jean Marmoreo was on the front lines of menopause 30 years ago when she was a midlife women’s specialist and is again today as the medical advisor to an AI-driven online menopause service.
Dying on the day you choose.
The legalization of Medical Assistance in Dying has given Canadians the opportunity for something they never before: A Good Death. But how do you qualify for MAiD? What are the rules, the myths, the trends? Renowned MAiD doctor Jean Marmoreo explains it all.
To book Jean for an event, contact Rob Firing at rob@transatlanticagency.com