Sabreena Delhon (she/her) is the CEO of the Samara Centre for Democracy, a non-partisan registered charity with a mission to realize a resilient democracy with an engaged public and responsive institutions. For over a decade she has directed multi-stakeholder research and outreach initiatives that have made an impact across justice, academic, and non-profit sectors. Sabreena has appeared as an expert witness before Parliamentary committees on matters relating to political participation and frequently provides commentary about democratic engagement for various media outlets such as the Globe & Mail, CBC Radio and the Toronto Star. She is the host of Humans of the House, an award winning podcast that explores the lived experience of former Members of Parliament. Sabreena is a Senior Fellow at Massey College and is a recipient of the Coronation Medal for service to Canada. She holds a BA in Sociology from the University of Alberta and an MA in Sociology from Dalhousie University. 

Beatrice is an award-winning researcher, teacher and passionate advocate for participatory democracy. She has taught popular courses on youth democratic activism at Harvard University, the University of Sydney and New York University. She holds an PhD from New York University and a Masters degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and has received major grants to conduct research across Canada, the United States and Ethiopia.

In addition to her academic research and teaching, she has served on steering committees and provided her research and pedagogical expertise to a variety of non-profit organizations and educational publishers, including Students Learn Students Vote, Scholastic Books, and the Faculty Network for Student Voting Rights. She is one of the founders of the Student Vote Research Network. She is frequently asked to provide commentary on democratic engagement and civic participation for diverse media outlets.

beatrice@samaracentre.ca

Andrea Mariko Grant is the Senior Research Associate for the Samara Centre for Democracy. For the past decade, her research and teaching has focused on youth civic engagement and the relationship between art and democracy. A Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Victoria, she holds a PhD in social anthropology from the University of Oxford and was previously a Research Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Cambridge. 

Andrea also works as a community-engaged curator, leading public history and public art projects that explore Japanese Canadian experience and identity. 

Alex is the Project Coordinator for the SAMbot initiative, which examines how online toxicity affects civic engagement during Canadian elections. He was drawn to the SAMbot project due to his personal and academic interests on how discourse within Canadian politics has changed during the digital age.

Alex is a recent graduate of McMaster University’s Master of Public Policy in Digital Society program, where his research focused on digital privacy law, digital democracy, and the spread of dis- and misinformation online, all within a Canadian context. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Communications, Leadership, and Culture from the University of Prince Edward Island. Through holding previous working roles in research, communications, public affairs, and municipal government, Alex has had experience working within both the non-profit sector and public service.

Beyond online discourse, Alex is passionate about issues surrounding equity within public education, digital literacy, and youth engagement.

alex@samaracentre.ca

Chloë Hill is a bilingual program and policy advisor with a keen focus on modernizing service delivery models to better meet the needs of diverse communities. She has extensive experience leading strategy, supporting large-scale research projects and drafting policy recommendations across government, regulatory and not-for-profit sectors. Chloë is the host of Les Personnages de la Chambre, the Samara Centre’s French language podcast that explores the lived experience of former Members of Parliament. She holds a Master of Public Policy, Administration and Law from York University and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Political Science from Carleton University.

Farha Akhtar is a former CBC Radio Producer with the award winning show The Current in Toronto, Canada. Over the years she has worked as a freelance producer and contributor for a variety of other CBC programs including the Canadian national politics and current affairs show The House. Farha is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University as well as the University of Regina School of Journalism.

Ruhee Baig has spent more than a decade supporting both large national companies and small, independent start-ups with their daily operational needs. Her career path has included working for Rogers where she held a variety of positions including Sales Agent, Corporate Sales Team Member and Field Sales Analyst. Her time at Rogers also includes working in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.  

At San Francisco-based Credit Sesame, Ruhee served as a People Operations Specialist and was instrumental in creating an official Disconnect from Workplace policy for the financial technology start-up.

Sommer Pesikan works as a Research Assistant for the Samara Centre. Currently, she is a graduate student at the University of Toronto (U of T) where she is pursuing an MA in Political Science. Her research concentrates on Indigenous feminist politics, focusing on strategies to decolonize Canada's justice system. Prior to grad school, Sommer completed her HBA at U of T, where she double majored in Ethics, Society, and Law, Political Science, and minored in French. Going forward, Sommer plans on attending law school.

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