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.
“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
1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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.
9. 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.
10. 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.
11. 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.
12. 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.
13. 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
Hank Idsinga
Hank Idsinga was a member of the Toronto Police Services for thirty years, leading the country’s top homicide unit for five years. Having served as Detective Sergeant and, later, Inspector in charge of Toronto’s Homicide Squad, he has policed just about every kind of case you can imagine, and has stared down some of the hardest criminals the city has ever seen. Idsinga has received numerous awards from the Ontario Homicide Investigator’s Association, and has twice been recognized by Toronto Life magazine as one of Toronto’s 50 Most Influential People. Additionally, he is a regular presenter at policing conferences, including the FBI National Academy Associates Conference and the Ontario Homicide Investigators Conference, among others. Recently retired and now a crime commentary fixture on the Corus radio network (nationally) and Global Television, as well as several true crime series in production, Idsinga speaks widely about policing in the wake of a highly decorated career.
His memoir of policing, THE HIGH ROAD: CONFESSIONS OF A HOMICIDE COP, published in April of 2026 by S&S Canada, instantly became a #1 National Bestseller.
Hank speaks on:
- Leadership
- Institutional racism and corruption
- Holocaust education
- Grass roots policing
- High level investigations
- Serial killer case studies
- Paediatric death case studies
Praise for THE HIGH ROAD
“Confessions of a Homicide Cop is ultimately not about bitterness. It is about conscience.”— BERNIE FARBER, Canadian Jewish News
“He pulls no punches when it comes to exposing major issues with Canada’s largest police force. A scary, searing look behind the badge.” — JULIAN SHER, co-author of Hitman
“The killings on his watch, overwhelmingly solved, required investigative skill, management adeptness and empathy for victims. This was a police officer who spent a lifetime delving into the darkness of horrific crimes and wretched criminals. In The High Road: Confessions of a Homicide Cop, Hank recounts it all with immense humanity.” — ROSIE DiMANNO, Toronto Star
Media Links
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7172163
Hank Idsinga
Hank Idsinga was a member of the Toronto Police Services for thirty years, leading the country’s top homicide unit for five years. Having served as Detective Sergeant and, later, Inspector in charge of Toronto’s Homicide Squad, he has policed just about every kind of case you can imagine, and has stared down some of the hardest criminals the city has ever seen. Idsinga has received numerous awards from the Ontario Homicide Investigator’s Association, and has twice been recognized by Toronto Life magazine as one of Toronto’s 50 Most Influential People. Additionally, he is a regular presenter at policing conferences, including the FBI National Academy Associates Conference and the Ontario Homicide Investigators Conference, among others. Recently retired and now a crime commentary fixture on the Corus radio network (nationally) and Global Television, as well as several true crime series in production, Idsinga speaks widely about policing in the wake of a highly decorated career.
His memoir of policing, THE HIGH ROAD: CONFESSIONS OF A HOMICIDE COP, published in April of 2026 by S&S Canada, instantly became a #1 National Bestseller.
Hank speaks on:
- Leadership
- Institutional racism and corruption
- Holocaust education
- Grass roots policing
- High level investigations
- Serial killer case studies
- Paediatric death case studies
Praise for THE HIGH ROAD
“Confessions of a Homicide Cop is ultimately not about bitterness. It is about conscience.”— BERNIE FARBER, Canadian Jewish News
“He pulls no punches when it comes to exposing major issues with Canada’s largest police force. A scary, searing look behind the badge.” — JULIAN SHER, co-author of Hitman
“The killings on his watch, overwhelmingly solved, required investigative skill, management adeptness and empathy for victims. This was a police officer who spent a lifetime delving into the darkness of horrific crimes and wretched criminals. In The High Road: Confessions of a Homicide Cop, Hank recounts it all with immense humanity.” — ROSIE DiMANNO, Toronto Star
Media Links
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7172163
Gill Deacon
“I can truly say that to hear Gill’s voice filling the theatre—familiar, intelligent, revelatory, comforting—this is the voice I want to hear more of as we all navigate the most tumultuous times on planet earth.”
Gillian Deacon is an award-winning broadcaster and bestselling author who spent over 10 years as host of Here & Now, Toronto’s afternoon drive show on CBC Radio One. She is a regular guest host on CBC radio’s flagship network arts program Q. She currently hosts the popular Apple-Featured podcast A Love Affair with the Unknown.
Gill is the author of the national bestsellers There’s Lead in Your Lipstick: Toxins in Everyday Bodycare and How to Avoid Them(Penguin, 2011), and Green For Life (Penguin, 2008) and the memoir Naked Imperfection (Penguin, 2014). Her latest book A Love Affair With The Unknown: Leaning into the Uncertainty of Modern Life was published by House of Anansi in January 2026.
She has written for the Globe and Mail, CBC.ca and Chatelaine magazine. She was awarded a one-month paid residency in the Literary Journalism program of the Banff Centre for the Arts.
Gill worked for many years on television, as host of CBC’s The Gill Deacon Show, and before that as co-host of @discovery.ca for five years on Discovery Channel Canada and Discoveries This Week for Discovery Science Channel in the U.S. Her work as a broadcaster has earned Gill a Gold medal at the New York Film and Television awards and a Canadian Screen Award nomination.
A former director with WWF Canada, Evergreen Foundation and Writers’ Trust, Gill lives in Toronto with her family. You can learn more about Gill and her outstanding career on her website here.
Speaking Topics:
Learning to Love the Question more than the Answer
What if uncertainty isn’t something to fear, but something to embrace? How can we reframe the way we think about not knowing all the answers and grow more comfortable with—even enthusiastic about—the liminal? Gill’s talk encourages a new relationship to fear, a greater tolerance for ambiguity, and a renewed capacity for wonder. Her personal story of resilience is the starting point for an invigorating, inspiring keynote that leaves audiences filled with hope, invigorated by the surprising strength that can emerge when we stop trying to outrun the unknown and learn, instead, to see it as the birthplace of possibility.
Curiosity Is a Competitive Advantage: Why Innovation Depends on Not Knowing
From art to science to leadership, nothing original emerges from certainty. Gill’s talk makes a compelling case that creativity, insight, and ethical decision-making all require a tolerance for not knowing. Clinging too closely to hard data is a path to peril. When we cling to our certainties, we become closed-minded; assumptions shut us off from learning and observing other possibilities. By reframing our relationship with the unknown, Gill’s talk leaves audiences motivated to be resourceful, innovative and courageous.
Leading in the Liminal: How to Make Better Decisions When the Future Is Unclear
No matter how much we may wish it were otherwise, uncertainty and upheaval are the reality of our times. Individuals and organizations alike are operating in an “in-between” state—between old models and new, certainty and ambiguity, stability and disruption. But a rush toward control, tantalizing though it may seem, is shortsighted. Gill’s talk helps leaders stay grounded, present and effective when there’s no clear roadmap, as she reframes uncertainty not as a failure of planning, but as a prerequisite for growth and meaningful change. Audiences will come to see uncertainty as productive terrain, not a problem to eliminate
“Gillian Deacon has hosted and emceed numerous events for Scotiabank, particularly within our arts and culture sponsorship portfolio, and she is exceptional at what she does. Gill is an utter professional—she quickly understands the brief, brings genuine warmth and charisma to the stage, and has an impressive ability to adapt seamlessly in the moment. Her presence consistently elevates the guest experience and adds credibility and energy to every event she touches. I would highly recommend Gillian for hosting, emceeing, and public speaking engagements of any scale.” — Ryan Burella, Director of Global Sponsorships, Scotiabank
“Having recently shared the stage with the incomparable Gill Deacon, I can truly say that to hear Gill’s voice filling the theatre—familiar, intelligent, revelatory, comforting—this is the voice I want to hear more of as we all navigate the most tumultuous times on planet earth.” — Melanie Doane, Juno-award winning musician and artistic director, Doane Music School
Gill Deacon in the Media:
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
Jessica Barrett
Jessica Barrett is an award-winning journalist and author of No Place Like Home: The Missing Key To Our Housing Crisis. Jessica got her start as a community newspaper reporter in Vancouver, B.C., where she fell in love with covering municipal issues and urban affairs. Over the years she worked her way up to reporting for the Vancouver Sun, B.C. Business Magazine and eventually became Senior Editor of Vancouver Magazine. Jessica has also appeared regularly as a columnist in print and on the radio. Her writing has won multiple awards, including Postmedia’s prestigious Michelle Lang Fellowship and the Jack Webster Foundation’s City Mike award for her columns about Vancouver’s housing affordability crisis.
Jessica now lives in Calgary, where she continues to write and think about how to bring about systemic change for a more just, joyful and functional society. When not writing, Jessica spends her time gardening, devouring podcasts and attempting to wrangle her young son into bed.
Topics:
- Urban Planning and Housing Policy
- Community Connections and social isolation
- Writing and Writing Craft
Talks
Housing Vs. Home
After living in Vancouver for her entire adult life, Jessica Barrett packed up her apartment, quit her dream job as a magazine editor, and headed for Calgary in search of a more affordable place to call home. In the years since Barrett was priced out of Vancouver, the issue of housing affordability has become a national crisis, fanning the flames of social inequality and setting us up for financial ruin. But our obsession with rising housing prices obscures a more complex and pressing issue: we have lost our reverence for, and our understanding of, home. In this talk, Jessica introduces audiences to her research on the fundamental elements of home and explores how these elements are, or are not, prioritized in our current housing system. She then goes on to present examples from around the world and locally on how to get back to the fundamentals of home, and produce better, more affordable housing for all.
C is for Community
When it comes to our housing crisis, most of the proposed solutions come from one of two places: the market, or the government. Both are problematic, though for different reasons. Private developers don’t always build homes that people can afford — or homes that people want. And governments are famously fickle. All it takes is a shift in political ideologies or a change in ruling parties to decimate systems and organizations that rely on public funding. But there is a third option. A vast middle ground between public and private on which we can build housing that is affordable, desirable and socially and environmentally sustainable. And there is an overlooked stakeholder group that is inherently motivated and perfectly capable of leading this charge. Us. In this talk, Jessica introduces audiences to the concept of Community-Led housing, offering examples from all over Canada, and all over the world, that show how the housing crisis can be solved by regular people coming together in pursuit of a better way to live.
The Hidden Power of Neighbourliness
Canadians spend significantly less time with our neighbours now than we did just a few decades ago. In the era of Amazon and Instacart, our lack of neighbourly connections might seem a little sad, but largely inconsequential to our lives—we no longer need our neighbours to provide that proverbial cup of sugar. But we do need our neighbours, and we need them more than ever. In this talk, Jessica dives into the astounding research on the role neighbourliness plays in our health, safety and social fabric, explaining how reclaiming neighbourliness is one of the biggest untapped solutions to some of most pressing issues of our time — everything from the loneliness epidemic, to political polarization, to surviving climate change. She then points the way toward some surprising, and surprisingly simple, actions we can take to nurture neighbourliness at every level of our lives, from the personal to political.
She can be found on Instagram at @thewrightlight
Selected works:
https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/
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.
To book Cherie, contact Rob Firing at rob@transatlanticagency.com
Dr. Cathy Miyata
Whether collecting, mining, researching, writing, or telling, Dr. Cathy Miyata is passionate about story. As a master storyteller she has performed, conducted workshops, lectured, and delivered keynote presentations for educational, corporate, and student audiences in Germany, Sweden, Serbia, Egypt, Japan, Malaysia, Portugal, Mexico, the United States, and all across Canada. Her presentation style is vibrant, emotionally charged, and deeply meaningful, transforming you from tears of laughter to tears of sadness and back again. She also maintains a wide repertoire of folklore (folktales, legends, myths, parables, sacred stories) from many cultures which she weaves into her presentations depending on the needs and requests of her audience.
As an award-winning author, Cathy has published in a variety of genres: novels, teacher education books, academic chapters, research studies, and journal articles. Her writing styles are eclectic, poignant, and powerful.
As a life-long learner, at the age of 52 she decided to pursue an educational dream by beginning her doctorate at U of T. Even before she defended, she was offered an Assistant Professorship in the Faculty of Education and Global Education Departments at Wilfrid Laurier University. Her uncanny ability to transform a dry lecture into a compelling story event made her extremely popular on campus in both the undergraduate and graduate programs.
She recently left her role at Laurier in order to write full-time. Her third novel, co-written with her husband Kaz, is awaiting publication. Cathy considers this work to be the most significant writing of her career so far. It captures the heart wrenching and desperate plight of a Japanese Canadian family incarcerated in a German prisoner of war camp in Northern Ontario after the second world war has ended. Sadly, there is almost no public knowledge of this camp and most of the events in the novel are true. The scenes were woven together from interviews with survivors who graciously shared their memories, recollections, and nightmares about this devastating time in Canada’s history. Cathy’s husband was imprisoned in this camp.
Speaking Topics
Dr. Cathy Miyata is a dynamic speaker whose expertise spans leadership, inspiration, and the art of masterful storytelling. With a deep commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI), she empowers audiences to embrace diverse perspectives while cultivating authentic leadership. Renowned for her engaging public speaking, Dr. Miyata seamlessly blends insight, personal experience, and compelling narratives to inspire action and foster meaningful connections. Her presentations leave audiences motivated, enlightened, and equipped with practical tools to lead with impact.
Outsider on the Inside
As a white middle class woman, I had a lot to learn about raising BIPOC children, handling discriminatory snipes, and supporting my partner’s challenges. Hard lessons. Life-changing but worthwhile lessons. EDI are gifts worth fighting for.
Successful Leadership
If a leader wants to be authentic, make an impact, drive their team forward, embed a vision, transform an image, or rescue a failure, they need the right story, for the right audience, told the right way. And they need it now. In this interactive presentation we will explore several narrative structures and techniques that will help you achieve your leadership goals.
Community Building
Solidify your group by exploring the three C’s of Community Building: Collaboration, Connection, and Communication. In this interactive presentation, you will learn strategies and techniques that bring people together.
Speak and Be Heard!
If you want to be heard, really heard, then learn to tell well. This interactive presentation will provide you with the techniques you need to motivate, persuade or inspire your team, class, or audience.
YOUR Life, YOUR Story
In this interactive presentation explore techniques of mining and writing, empowering you to capture those crucial life moments that make thrilling and impactful stories for sharing.
Cathy will create presentations uniquely for your group upon request. She is also available for workshops and residencies. Presentations can be in person or virtual.
Testimonials
“Cathy is an exceptional speaker. She is captivating, insightful, and profoundly authentic. Her ability to blend academic knowledge with real-world experience brought the topic to life in a way that was both intellectually stimulating and emotionally resonant. I was fully engaged throughout her presentation and the conversations she inspired continued long after our session had ended. What impacted me most was her call to move from awareness to meaningful action, a message that continues to shape my leadership today. Cathy doesn’t just talk about equity; she lives it, breathes it, and empowers others to do the same. She is articulate, genuine, and truly inspirational.”
– Josée Landriault: Directrice, École Secondaire Gaétan Gervais
“Cathy brings the perfect blend of humour, heart, and intellectual engagement in her professional speaking sessions, and I would highly recommend her to any organization or team looking to drive transformational change centered around an ethic of love.”
– Betsy Enriquez: Instructional Program Leader, Halton District School Board
“Cathy’s impact on our faculty was immediate and lasting. Whether speaking to a small group in a workshop or a packed auditorium, Cathy connected with her audience through a powerful blend of storytelling, research, visuals, and real classroom practice. Her sessions were both informative and inspiring.”
– Mr. Chuck Reid: Director and Ms. Suzanne Tsuchida: Associate Director of Academics: Dover International School, Cairo, Egypt
“Dr. Cathy Miyata is a brilliant storyteller. She reads a room with the sensitivity of a true artist- chooses stories that meet her audience exactly where they are- and then lifts them to someplace more expansive. She can make you laugh and cry in the same breath. More than that, she consistently moves her audience into a deeper sense of understanding themselves. Her keynote addresses are not only masterclasses in communication—they’re unforgettable experiences that leave people feeling seen, connected, and inspired.”
– Nicole Fougere: Executive Director, Rotary Arts Centre, Corner Brook, NL
“It’s obvious from the moment you meet Cathy that she has a passion for storytelling and is eager to share that passion with others. Cathy was part of our Inspiring Success Speaker Series, where she led us through the art of storytelling. Not only did she share her own stories, we learned to engage, persuade and motivate others through storytelling and the practical ways we can build collaboration, connection, and community.”
– Jill Reiner: Director, Talent – Human Resources, Wilfrid Laurier University
“Dr. Miyata is a dynamic speaker and master storyteller who draws on drama, literacy, and creativity to engage and inspire. Her warmth, energy, and deep understanding of learning combined with her practical and powerful use of storytelling strategies, leave a lasting impression on audiences.”
– Dr. Kari-Lynn Winters: Professor, Brock University
“Cathy has a unique talent for engaging diverse groups, ensuring that each presentation is memorable and that it resonates deeply with the audience. She manages to captivate everyone in the room and keep them engaged. Her presentations are experiences that stick with you long afterwards, and I have found the messages to be both enlightening and profoundly moving.”
– Laurie Reid: System Principal, HDSB
“Dr. Miyata’s gift for beautifully expressive and moving oratory stands out for her natural conveyance of personal insight, based on vast intercultural dialogue and the uncanny ability to peer into the hearts of others. Audiences respond to her deep empathy and quick mind.”
– Paulus Linnaeus: Graphic Artist
“During her keynote address, Dr. Miyata shared her insights on public speaking and the transformative potential of storytelling as a powerful creative tool for connection and inspirational impact. I left the keynote stimulated by the practical tips on how to better engage an audience and with a beautiful parable that I later shared while emceeing another event. Dr. Miyata inspired me to embrace the opportunity to share stories with others. Thank you, Cathy, for reminding us of the power of words and the importance on how we deliver them.”
– Suzanne Luke: University Art Curator, Robert Langen Art Gallery
Robin Stevenson
Robin Stevenson is an award-winning queer Canadian author of more than thirty 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 Queer History A-Z; Pride: The Celebration and the Struggle; Pride Puppy; and A Hug on the Wind. 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
- Who’s Afraid of Pride Puppy!? Books, Bans and Backlash
In the current landscape of anti-LGBTQ+ backlash and book challenges, both authors and educators who are committed to inclusion face new challenges — but despite the risks, many are refusing self-censorship, building networks of support, and advocate for diverse books and readers’ rights.
- Pride, Inclusion and Belonging: The Importance of LGBTQ+ Representation in Books
Inclusive books help students see themselves, understand others, and feel a sense of belonging. As anti-LGBTQ+ hate rises, representation is more important than ever. - Why Book Banners (and the US Supreme Court) Are So Afraid of Queer Joy
LGBGTQ+ children’s books show people being themselves and being loved and celebrated for who they are. Queer joy is powerful — and we need to keep celebrating it and sharing it. - Readers, Leaders, Disruptors
Knowing where we have come from helps 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. - Creating Inclusive Spaces
Practical strategies for supporting 2SLGBTQ+ students and creating safer and more welcoming spaces in classrooms and libraries. - Talking to Young People About Challenging Topics
How books can spark necessary conversations about identity, belonging, and social justice.
For Writing Conferences & Festivals
- My Book Was Banned: Now What?
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. - Writing as Resistance
In an era marked by rising book bans, online hostility, and backlash against diverse stories, writing can be difficult for writers whose stories — and identities — are targeted. How do we resist the urge to self-censor? And how do we stay true to our voices, tell the stories we want to tell, and write the books our readers need? - Writing Queer Books for 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? - Craft-Focused Workshops on a Range of Topics
Co-writing a novel; character development; trouble-shooting a manuscript; dealing with writer’s block; sparking new ideas; the magic of revision; writing children’s non-fiction about challenging topics, etc.
For Organizations, Employee Events, and Lunch-and-Learns
- Stories Can’t Be Silenced: Lessons from the Pride Puppy Case
What happened when a picture book about a lost puppy at a Pride parade became the target of the conservative legal movement in the United States—and ended up at the US Supreme Court. - Books Change — and Save — Lives
The social impact of diverse literature and why representation matters. - 2SLGBTQ+ Inclusion 101
Practical ways workplaces, schools, and libraries can foster belonging for 2SLGBTQ+ people. - Censorship and Free Expression
What rising book bans reveal about our culture, and how to respond with courage and integrity. - The Power of Stories
How sharing our stories builds empathy and connection and leads to social change.
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