Kathleen Wynne, Ontario’s 25^th Premier and MPP for Don Valley West from 2003-2022, has dedicated her professional life to building a better province for the people of Ontario.   Ms Wynne served as Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs, Minister of Transportation, Minister of Education and Minister of Agriculture and Food.  Previously Ms Wynne served as a Public School Trustee in Toronto and led citizens’ groups in a number of grassroots community projects, playing a major role as an organizer and  facilitator.    Now residing in Simcoe County with her partner, Ms Wynne continues to be guided by the principles of fairness, diversity, collaboration and creativity as she forges her post-public office path. We invite you to join us for this dynamic conversation with Ms Wynne as she reflects on her early life, political career, current burning issues and priorities for the future.

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Shanicka Edwards, otherwise known as Shak, flourishes as an aunt, dog mom, founder of passion project Shak’s World Association, owner of Shak’s World Community Centre, philanthropist, keynote speaker, basketball coach, and entrepreneur in Barrie!   She created Shak’s World Association to build respectful and successful athletes with the skillsets and values to develop them into engaged members of our community while bringing awareness to their mental and physical wellbeing, all within the context of basketball. Her mentorship program bridges the gap between mental and physical health by creating a safe space and offering constructive relationships that children can model and where they can learn.  Shak believes that creating safe spaces for at-risk and marginalized groups can help our youth grow and flourish  into the best that Barrie has to offer. This is the Stay. Humble. And. Kind philosophy or the SHAK. And Shak is running as a future member of Barrie City Council in Ward 2—-what an illuminating conversation this will be! 

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Wondering how cities flourish and who advises how best to do that? just ask Bob! Bob graduated as a city planner from the Master of Environmental Studies program at York in 1971.  Working initially for the City of Toronto he became a consultant in 1974, He and Joan established Lehman & Associates in 1980 which grew to 25 staff with offices in Thunder Bay, Toronto and Barrie.

Bob’s has written over 100 Official Plans, zoning by-laws and Secondary Plans.  He has acted as project director for major research and policy studies involving most of the communities in southern Ontario and many of the major infrastructure projects such as highways and transit lines.  

Bob has been involved in over 500 Ontario Municipal Board hearings and for the last eight years has co-taught the final year studio course at the University of Waterloo Graduate School of Planning. He is the author and publisher of the Zoning Trilogy, a standard reference book. Twice awarded with the Canadian Institute of Planners Award for Planning Excellence, he served as the Chair of the College of Fellows for five years.  He has retired three times to date.

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Ever eaten a cricket? Allow Matthew Muzzatti, completing his PhD at Carleton University, entomologist, bug-lover and researcher to  explain why you probably will, and why it’s a good idea. Matt’s research is focused on optimizing production of farmed crickets through nutritional ecology; how can diet be manipulated to enhance yield? Matt is experimenting with ways to fatten up crickets and has designed a Cricket Air BnB. He is already flourishing as a global authority on farming crickets, agricultural entomology, nutritional ecology and pest management as a  means to address global food insecurity. Matt may convince you to become an entomophagist yourself, or how to dazzle your friends when you know what one does. And you will learn how crickets chirp. In his own words, he “enjoys giving thought to something others would swat”. 

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