Karina LeBlanc is retired Olympic bronze medalist and professional athlete, Karina LeBlanc has the distinguished honor of being one of the longest serving soccer players for Canada. With a prestigious career that spanned almost 18 years at the international level, she participated in 5 FIFA World Cups and two Olympic Games, winning an Olympic medal, and making her and her team household names.
Karina has many accolades that speak to her contributions to sport and society in general. In 2019, Karina’s home city of Maple Ridge, British Columbia, acknowledged her contributions by dedicating and naming a field in her honor, The Karina LeBlanc Field. More recently, in 2020, Karina was inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame. Karina is especially proud of her role as Honorary Captain of the Canadian Navy.
Karina’s career path takes her around the globe both in person and digitally, where she participates in global leadership initiatives and delivers motivational keynote addresses, speaking to diverse audiences. She has spoken at the United Nations General Assembly events on two separate occasions, as well as the United Nations Race Against Climate Change. A dynamic speaker, she has engaged large audiences at major events including Canada’s 150th Celebration, Women Empowerment Conferences as well as several Leadership Conferences and was the Host of TED x Vancouver. Karina’s authenticity and vulnerability makes her relatable and allows her to connect with all audiences, ranging from fortune 500 companies, to small businesses, to 20,000 seat venues filled with adults and kids alike.
In 2018 Karina LeBlanc accepted the position of Head of Women’s Football for CONCACAF and its 41 countries where she works in leading the confederation with developing and growing the women’s game and using football as a means of empowering young women globally.
In March 2020, amid the COVID 19 world crisis, Karina gave birth to her daughter. Shortly after delivery, Karina LeBlanc suffered heart failure and had to be re-admitted to the hospital, separating her from her newborn and her husband. Due to possible COVID exposure, she then had to do a 14-day self-quarantine allowing no contact with her newborn or her husband. It was in this challenging and uncertain time that Karina found herself redefining her purpose.
A positive role model and highly sought-after motivational speaker, Karina is a passionate advocate for inclusion, diversity and humanitarianism. She has spoken on developing the mindset of an Olympian, her experiences traveling to some of the world’s poorest places as a UNICEF ambassador, her transition from and elite athlete to a leader in the corporate world and living in the uncomfortable of change. Her accolades include being an Honorary Captain of the Canadian Navy as well as Karina LeBlanc knows how to create an Olympic Culture in any organization.
Karina LeBlanc inspires and motivates her audience to ask hard questions, to engage in challenging conversations, and ultimately to become a better version of themselves. In Karina’s own words, she truly believes that we all have greatness within us. Sometimes we just need to be reminded that we should live everyday aiming to be the best version of ourselves.
Dr. Mitchell Abrams is a Canadian Radiologist, Guest Speaker, as well as the Founder and CEO of consulting and technology company thatdelivers a multi-disciplinary approach to personal wellbeing and community health. Abrams experienced a remarkable journey through western healthcare, as a physician, division chief and open-heart surgical patient. Through these experiences, he has been afforded an intimate look into our current healthcare model and a unique perspective on life. Combining his passion for the arts and medicine, Abrams initiated a social enterprise delivering innovative health strategies and programs to support mental health and social inclusivity using the power of the medical humanities and technology.
Dr. Abrams completed his medical degree and radiology specialty from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada, holds a subspecialty in Magnetic Resonance Imaging from the University of Toronto and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Dr. Abrams is an Associate Professor at Michael G Degroote School of Medical Sciences and was Department Chair of Diagnostic Imaging at Cambridge Memorial Hospital.
Early in his Radiology career, Dr. Mitchell Abrams was diagnosed with Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy, a disease that can lead to sudden cardiac death in seemingly fit and healthy young people. He required open heart surgery in order to prevent the worst-case scenario. Through his experiences as a patient and department chair, he became acutely aware of the limitations of our current model of care. Disillusioned, Abrams began travelling to India, studying the Eastern holistic approach to healing, encompassing Mind, Body and Spirit, and in particular, the role of ENERGY as it relates to consciousness, the science of mind and overall health. Practicing with masters in the art of spiritual healing, Abrams began studying the intersection of science and spirituality.
Radiology is a unique specialty in the broader field of medicine, exploring the human body using energy rather than a scalpel. Combining his passion for the arts and leveraging his radiology background, Dr. Mitchell Abrams educates audiences discussing a new framework for understanding ENERGY through an East- meets-West perspective, explaining the latest brain health research and how it relates to overall health.
Dr. Mitchell Abrams founded NexGenHealth Ltd., a social enterprise creating healthy minds and connected communities through the power of the arts and technology. Through inspiring and socially inclusive co-creative programs, we heal, learn and grow together in celebration of a new vision for the future. By aligning with a variety of communities, locally and globally, Abrams is sparking a renaissance approach for improving health and renewing a sense of belonging to something bigger than the self while cultivating an awakening and a deep sense of connection among people and communities.
Sheridan College
Sheridan College
Business Administration, Marketing
Business Administration, Marketing
2008 – 2013
2008 – 2013
Certificate
Mississauga
Mahfuz Chowdhury is a National Award-Winning Brand Manager of one of the fastest-growing companies in the country (ranked on Growth 500 for the last three years in a row).
Over the last 12 years, he has been heavily involved with speaking at conferences and events to help brands, organizations, and changemakers engage their audience, generate leads, and convert them into raving fans through the art and science of creative storytelling. He has spoken to audiences from Microsoft, IBM, KPMG, PwC, EY, along with other notable organizations, and continues to focus on helping individuals amplify their brand voice and build long-lasting relationships with their customers, one story at a time.
Each talk is customized to provide the audience members with the right combination of energy and actionable takeaways. Past conference attendees tend to return for multiple talks because they learn something valuable every single time (their words, not ours)!
Mahfuz continued to demonstrate his storytelling capabilities by publishing his latest book, called “Project Reinvention: The Social Timeline of a Millennial”. This book shares Mahfuz’s personal story of resilience and reinvention, from a coffee-server to a national award-winning Brand Manager.
These personal stories and takeaways have also been shared through Mahfuz’s new podcast, called “Ride With Me”. This is a unique podcast show where you can eavesdrop on Mahfuz’s thoughts, stories, and ramblings in between his long drives (don’t worry, mic is safely attached)! Each week, Mahfuz uses this platform to actively share insights around personal branding, self development and day-to-day thoughts of a motivated millennial.
Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary
Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary
Bachelor of Science – BS, Civil Engineering
Bachelor of Science – BS, Civil Engineering
1995 – 2001
1995 – 2001
Erin is a dynamic, relatable, and engaging speaker inspiring leaders to navigate difficult conversations, build powerful teams, and make an impact using empathy.
Early in her career, people told her, “You’re too emotional! You gotta be tough and get a game face.” After years of unsuccessful attempts to ‘fix’ and ‘get rid of’ her emotions, Erin decided to get curious about what these emotions might be trying to tell her. She found that her leadership superpower was her emotions. In fact, it was her empathy that served as a powerful and effective tool to lead high-performing teams. Emotional intelligence and technical excellence aren’t mutually exclusive — both skills are imperative to becoming a confident, compassionate leader a team will eagerly follow.
Erin has a Civil Engineering Degree from the University of Calgary and is an Associate Certified Coach through Integral Coaching Canada. Her first book, Inside Out Empathy, was published in 2017. Erin is a mother to three teenagers and an active community member. Erin chaired the Suncor Women’s Diversity Initiative in 2016, has served a term on the Advisory Board to WomenIN, an inclusive community supporting today’s women and working to build the women of tomorrow, held various positions on a number of school parent councils and actively participates in the management of her children’s sports teams.
Always up for a challenge, Erin is disrupting the long held belief that there’s no room for emotions in leadership. Erin’s eyes light up when she shares her experience and knowledge on teaching, mentoring, and coaching others to embrace their emotions, connect with empathy, and deeply engage the people they lead. She believes we can only build inclusive and diverse teams when we recognize, celebrate, and leverage our differences.
Winnipeg
Certified Speaking Professional
Certified Speaking Professional
National Speakers Association / Canadian Association of Professional Speakers
National Speakers Association / Canadian Association of Professional Speakers
Issued Jul 2014 · No Expiration Date
Issued Jul 2014 · No Expiration Date
Anders Boulanger
Jennifer Spear is a recovering corporate executive who works with leaders, teams and organizations to help them solve problems, plan strategically and make innovation and creativity a reality in their workplace. Her UnScripted philosophy and approach, which includes being able to challenge assumptions and the status quo, being able to let go of the scripts of the past in order to take advantage of change, allows her to work successfully in organizations currently experiencing change to, not only learn to adapt to change, but to drive change in order to innovate and grow.
Prior to starting her coaching and consulting practice, Jennifer Spear was Vice President of both Human Resources and Marketing for a national retailer and understands the importance of both employee and customer engagement. As a graduate of both Ivey’s Executive MBA program and Second City, Jennifer operates where the business and creative worlds collide. Jennifer is a certified Facilitator and Trainer in Creative Problem Solving and is certified in the Basadur Creative Problem Solving Profile and is a Certified Professional Innovation Advisor. Jennifer Spear has worked with diverse groups including the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, BMO and NASA.
Jennifer Spear is a guest lecturer at the Ted Rogers School of Management and is a member of the International Association of Facilitators, the Global Speakers Federation, the Canadian Society for Association Executives, the Human Resources Professional Association, and the Applied Improvisation Network. Jennifer sits on the Board of Directors for Meetings Mean Business Canada and on the National Board of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Jennifer is a contributor to Forbes and is the Author of the upcoming book “UnScripted”.
While employed as a police officer, Kelly Donovan did what she thought was her obligation and made a disclosure to the board that there were unethical practices within the police force’s internal affairs division. As a result, she faced retaliation. Kelly resigned from policing and published her first book titled The Systemic Misfeasance in Ontario Policing and the Coordinated Suppression of Whistleblowers to expose the problems facing modern day policing.
Kelly Donovan advocated for better protections for police whistleblowers in Ontario and effectively influenced law changes so that officers can now anonymously report internal misconduct. Throughout Kelly’s journey she has been recovering from post-traumatic stress disorder and she educates audiences about moral injury and sanctuary trauma. Kelly has become an expert on all issues relating to whistleblowing and suppressive workplace cultures. Even after resigning from the profession, Kelly continued to face reprisal for crossing the “thin blue line.”
Kelly Donovan was the 2019 Ontario Civil Liberties Award recipient and succeeded before the Ontario Court of Appeal as a self-represented litigant. Kelly published her second book in 2020, Police Line: Do Not Cross, Silencing a Canadian Police Whistleblower. Kelly Donovan now conducts workplace investigations to improve the ethical standard of workplaces across Canada. She holds a degree in statistics from the University of Western Ontario where she was also a varsity rugby player. Kelly’s story of staying true to one’s internal set of ethics and morals has inspired front-line workers to senior management on topics such as workplace courage, and the effects of trauma in the workplace.
Teddy Syrette (Ozhawa Anung Kwe/Yellow Star Woman) is a 2-Spirit Anishnabe from Rankin Reserve of Batchewana First Nation of the Anishnabek. Teddy has a background in social justice for First Nation and 2Spirit and LGBTQ+ people and communities. Their background also includes community theatre and bingo. Teddy has a diploma in Social Service Work – Indigenous Specialization from Sault College. Teddy Syrette uses they/them as their pronouns. As a brown, First Nation queer person, there were many barriers and challenges that Teddy faced growin up on Rankin Reserve and Sault Ste. Marie. These acts of discrimination and bullying, led Teddy Syrette to a path of self destruction and isolation. However, they did manage to find support in a high school guidance counsellor, an LGBT+ youth group of Algoma and affirming family and friends.
This didn’t stop Teddy from experiencing different forms of addiction, mental illness and ultimately dropping out of high school several times. At a young age, Teddy showed a creative imagination, brought on by their love of reading, writing and television and film. Not knowing what being First Nation entirely meant, Teddy did understand they were different after developing a crush on Zach Morris, from the television show Saved by the Bell. Teddy would become involved in theatre in elementary school, musical theatre in their later teen years, then Indigenous and community theatre in their 20’s.
While studying Indigenous theatre and storytelling at Debajehmujig Storytellers in Manitowaning ON, on Manitoulin Island, Teddy Syrette discovered that his grandmother was a residential school survivor from St. Joseph Residential School in Spanish, Ontario. Teddy also discovered that his uncle and aunt also attended residential school, but unfortunately, Teddy’s aunty would die of Tuberculous at residential school. This would set Teddy on a healing journey for their mental health and addiction. Teddy is now 4 years sober from alcohol. Their fondness for news and media, shifted their journey in their mid twenties, from being a performing artist to social justice and social advocacy.
At 24, they dropped out of theatre school in Manitoulin Island, and returned to Sault Ste. Marie enrolled and graduated from the Sault College Social Service Worker – Indigenous Specialization program. Teddy Syrette would then get involved with an LGBTQ+ youth committee with the former Provincial Advocates Office of Ontario, and assist with revamping the Sault Pride movement in Sault Ste. Marie, ON. Teddy has received the following awards for their work in advocacy, which include the Mark S. Bonham Award for Sexuality, Planned Parenthood Toronto LGBTQ+ Person of the year, the Sault Ste. Marie YMCA Peace Medal, the Community Driven Award for Leadership and the Grade 8 Graduate Award for Geography and History. Teddy currently lives back in Sault Ste. Marie, their home territory of Baawaating with their pug Hortus.
Sonia Funk is an Employee Wellness Analyst & Strategist, Corporate Keynote Speaker and Nutritional Therapist, with over 15 years of international experience in the wellness industry. She understands that employees are overwhelmed with their own day-to-day lives as it is, and that it can become a challenge to keep up with personal and professional lives, while maintaining health.
She has travelled the world as both student and teacher. Her super-powers include outrageous common sense and a willingness to ask the hard questions, which allow for easier answers. Sonia’s questions cut through all the misinformation, fads and clichés around wellness and mental health. She gives her audience courage to find a better question that can help them understand the real reasons why they are struggling. With this awareness and the tools she provides, real change for wellbeing becomes possible.
Sonia is a regular consultant, facilitator and regular guest on radio talk-shows and podcasts. Her unique collaborative healthcare events in her community, and her partnership with the local Co-op Grocery stores, have seen her in the media regularly. Over the years she naturally evolved into a corporate speaker, keynoting the City of Morden’s Mental Health Week in 2019 and speaking on brain health and nutritional psychiatry at Manitoba Safety Service’s conference in early 2020.
Her genius lies in her insightful and strategic telling of the human story behind the issue at hand. Funk understands that your employees are overwhelmed with their own day- to-day lives as it is. They are not interested in feel-good challenges for their nutrition, walking, or drinking more water, which have only about a 10% participation rate. She also knows that a one-time “lunch-and-learn,” which doesn’t offer employees a perception shift nor immediately usable tools, doesn’t even get in the first ear anymore.
Sonia Funk is a heart centered and funny professional that always brings the big picture to the table. Effortlessly flooding the room with the feeling of empathy and non-judgement, she invites a perception shift in the participants. To her, this is the fundamental first step to lift the apathy and fear that keeps people stuck. Sonia’s presentations are psychologically crafted in a way that allow her to effectively communicate life changing information and awareness. Her experience as an effective coach and therapist translates into her ability to relay useful tools and tips, that are relevant to everyone.
Sonia Funk provides employees powerful insights into the ‘Why’ and the ‘How’ of improving all aspects of their nutrition and wellbeing. Combining keen observational skills with an unusual and uplifting common sense, Sonia Funk has an extraordinary talent for identifying and explaining the root causes of productivity-draining ailments such as fatigue, digestive issues, chronic illness, stress, anxiety and depression. What’s more? Her approach is heart-centred and her calls to action are full of empathy and realism.
Gayathri Shukla is a dynamic, thought-provoking speaker who inspires individuals to rise to their personal and collective potential. She is the Founder of a social enterprise, where she masterfully harnesses the power of storytelling to help diverse teams discover their unique strengths, while building skills in empathy. She is known for her keen ability to see issues from different perspectives, and unearth creative solutions for business leaders and professionals.
A Professional Engineer with over 17 years experience in the energy sector, Gayathri Shulka started her career in Fort McMurray, Alberta. As one of the few Indo-Canadian women working in an industrial environment, she honed the practice of navigating diversity early-on. She stood-out not only for her exceptional technical contributions, but also for re-inventing her skills multiple times throughout her career. After building hands-on experience in her technology discipline, she pivoted into project management and led the schedule integration efforts for Fort Hills, a $17B greenfield oil sands facility. The safe and timely start-up of this facility was seen as an industry first.
Gayathri Shulka also obtained an Executive MBA program at Queen’s University, while simultaneously balancing her duties as a full-time employee and a parent of young kids. In her MBA project, she focused on how to unleash innovation by tapping into the wisdom of stakeholders’ lived experiences and stories. This work was recognized at Suncor’s executive levels and informed the creation of a new transformation department. Gayathri most recently spearheaded digital strategy and innovation programs within this department, which has resulted in game-changing operational improvements for the Mining workforce.
In her personal life, Gayathri is a proud mom to two school-aged kids and an active volunteer in the community. She serves on the Board of Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association. An accomplished Toastmaster, she presents regularly at community and campus events. She has also led Suncor’s Diversity and Inclusion Initiative as Co-Chair, curating networking and educational opportunities for over 150 members. Gayathri is passionate about championing women in STEAM professions and building cross-cultural connections. Having lived in 3 countries by the age of 15, and traveling extensively to many others, she has developed a deeply personal sense of global citizenship and interconnectedness.
In essence, Gayathri Shulka doesn’t just speak about resilience – she is its genuine embodiment. Her unique blend of skills and story is sure to delight anyone seeking to make bold, positive change.