2024 Consultation Speakers | Canadian Council for Refugees

Meet this year's presenters

(Information subject to changes and will be updated as new details become available)

Plenary speakers

Anat Shenker Osorio

Host of the Words to Win By podcast and Principal and Founder of ASO Communications, Anat Shenker-Osorio examines why certain messages falter where others deliver.

She has led research for new messaging on issues ranging from freedom to join together in union to clean energy and from immigrant rights to reforming criminal justice. Anat's original approach through priming experiments, task-based testing and online dial surveys has led to progressive electoral and policy victories across the globe.

Anat delivers her findings packed in snark at venues such as the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Centre for Australian Progress, Irish Migrant Centre, Open Society Foundations, Ford Foundation and LUSH International.

Her writing and research is profiled in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Boston Globe, Salon, The Guardian and Grist among others. She is the author of Don't Buy It: The Trouble with Talking Nonsense About the Economy.

Speaker at:
Plenary #3 – Wednesday, November 27, 7:30pm-9pm

Toula Drimonis

Toula Drimonis is a Montreal-based journalist, opinion columnist, and news producer. A former news director for TC Media, her byline has appeared in national and international publications, with a focus on politics, social justice, immigration, and women’s issues.

Drimonis has worked in television, radio, and print in all three of her languages, and has appeared on TV as both panelist and contributor to English and French-language current-affairs and cultural news shows. She was also on the advisory board for Use the Right Words, a national media guide on how to report on sexual violence.

In 2022 she published her first book, We, the Others: Allophones, Immigrants, and Belonging in Canada. It was later translated into French as Nous, les autres. Her second book, Seeking Asylum: Building a Shareable World about the plight of refugees and asylum seekers and the politics of Roxham Road was published in 2024.

Drimonis currently writes a weekly opinion column for the Montreal Gazette and Cult MTL, as well as a monthly column for national magazine, for The Walrus.

Speaker at:
Plenary #4 – Thursday, November 28, 9:30am-11:30am

Stephen Brown

Stephen Brown is the CEO of the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM). He is a well-known leader and community organizer with decades of experience in the private sector, in organized labour, and in human rights advocacy.

Stephen started his career as a continual improvement professional in the manufacturing sector. He returned to university to earn his Commerce degree in business technology management at Concordia University in Montreal, where he joined the student movement and became the director of the Concordia Student Union Advocacy Centre. There he founded the office for graduate students, managed operations, and advised student leaders on student rights and academic issues.

After starting his own tech start-up that he ran for a number of years, Stephen went on to become an organizer for one of the largest labour unions in Canada, where he dealt with accreditation cases and organized tens of thousands of workers where he managed labour relations, negotiated collective agreements, and took on grievances and health & safety cases. Stephen held consecutive mandates as the head labour representative for large locals in the healthcare and municipal sectors where he led teams of litigators, lawyers, and pension fund specialists.

Stephen comes from an Afro-Canadian family that was active during the civil rights movement.

Stephen has been a long-standing leader within the Quebec Muslim community, working to promote human rights, interfaith dialogue, and Muslim youth initiatives as well as helping community groups to develop various advocacy initiatives and implement best practices. A prolific speaker, his writings have been published in various news media and he has been a commentator on public policy matters including Bill 21, civil liberties and Islamophobia, and Muslims in Quebec.

Speaker at:
Opening Plenary - Building Power across Sectors: Reclaiming support for refugees and newcomers – Tuesday, November 26, 10:30am-12:30pm

JP Hornick

JP Hornick is the President of OPSEU/SEFPO, one of Canada’s largest provincial public sector unions, representing more than 180,000 members across Ontario.

OPSEU/SEFPO members work for the Ontario government, inside community colleges, for the LCBO, in health care, and in workplaces and community agencies across the broader public service.

Hornick is a long-time labour activist and believes the power of the labour movement is in working with social justice movements for deep change. Hornick’s organizing and activism centres in anti-racism and anti-oppression frameworks and is rooted in a deep belief that we as workers are most powerful when we are part of a bigger struggle for justice.

Speaker at:
Opening Plenary - Building Power across Sectors: Reclaiming support for refugees and newcomers – Tuesday, November 26, 10:30am-12:30pm

Debbie Owusu-Akyeeah

Debbie is the Co-Director of Policy and Advocacy at Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights. Before joining Action Canada, she was the Executive Director of the Canadian Centre for Gender & Sexual Diversity (CCGSD) and has been instrumental in advancing the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ youth and communities.

She has spoken at Parliamentary and Senate standing committees, and has appeared in numerous media outlets. She has held several advocacy and policy-oriented positions in government and non-profit organizations, including Oxfam Canada and Global Affairs Canada.

Debbie is an accomplished community educator, feminist activist, and social justice advocate driven by the mission of creating a more inclusive, equitable, and safe world. She has continued to dedicate her time to local progressive organizing, including most recently, as a commissioner for the Ottawa People's Commission on the Convoy Occupation.

Speaker at:
Opening Plenary - Building Power across Sectors: Reclaiming support for refugees and newcomers – Tuesday, November 26, 10:30am-12:30pm

Catherine Lussier

A human rights activist for 20 years, Catherine is coordinator of the Front d'action populaire en réaménagement urbain. She has also worked on housing committees in Montreal.

Speaker at:
Opening Plenary - Building Power across Sectors: Reclaiming support for refugees and newcomers – Tuesday, November 26, 10:30am-12:30pm

Workshop speakers

Paola Carmagnani

Paola Carmagnani is an international human rights and social justice practitioner with nearly twenty years of experience with international non-governmental organizations in Central and South-East Asia and Europe engaged in peaceful conflict resolution, international advocacy, human rights defender protection and social justice program delivery.

In 2019, Paola joined the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking as Hotline Response Advocate, worked as Senior Executive Advisor before joining the stakeholder engagement and partnership department.

Speaker at:
Workshop A2: International Students: Commodification and systemic issues setting the ground for exploitation and abuse – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Stefan Enrique Joseph Kallikaden

Stefan Enrique Joseph Kallikaden is the Youth & Access To Education Coordinator at FCJ Refugee Centre in Toronto, Ontario, and is a graduate from the Community Worker Program at George Brown College.

They have worked in the sector since 2018 in various capacities, are the 2024 recipient of the Ontario Human Rights Commission Daniel G. Hill Human Rights Award as a Young Leader, and have a strong passion in youth rights and access to education. They work with an intersectional and anti-racist/anti-oppressive framework and emphasize an equity rooted approach to integration and invitation while working in and with community. As a former International Student and precarious migrant, their work is centered around giving people the tools to facilitate the process of informing their futures by themselves and avoid being at the mercy of gatekept system navigation information.

Speaker at:
Workshop A2: International Students: Commodification and systemic issues setting the ground for exploitation and abuse – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Jennifer Stone

Speaker at:
Workshop A3: CCR’s Legal Affairs Committee – Public Interest Litigation and Standing – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Imtenan Abd-El-Razik

Speaker at:
Workshop A3: CCR’s Legal Affairs Committee – Public Interest Litigation and Standing – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Jamie Liew

Speaker at:
Workshop A3: CCR’s Legal Affairs Committee – Public Interest Litigation and Standing – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Maryse Poisson

Speaker at:
Workshop A4: Mobilizing Our Communities: Service Providers, Advocacy, and Allyship – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Camille Bonenfant

Speaker at:
Workshop A4: Mobilizing Our Communities: Service Providers, Advocacy, and Allyship – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Damhat Zagros

Speaker at:
Workshop A4: Mobilizing Our Communities: Service Providers, Advocacy, and Allyship – Tuesday, November 26, 1:30pm-3pm

Laïla Demirdache

Speaker at:
Workshop B1: Emerging Issues in Immigration Detention – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Julia Sande

Speaker at:
Workshop B1: Emerging Issues in Immigration Detention – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Gabriel Allahdua

Gabriel Allahdua is a former migrant farm worker from St Lucia, an island in the Eastern Caribbean. He is an organizer with the collective, Justice for Migrant Workers (J4MW) for almost a decade. He is currently an Education and Mobilization Officer with the Association for the Rights of Household and farm Workers (RHFW) and an Outreach Worker working with migrant workers across Ontario.

He was Activist in Residence (AIR) at the University of Guelph, the first person to hold that position, which brought activists and researchers together.

He is the author of the recently published award winning book Harvesting Freedom by publisher "Between the Lines".

Speaker at:
Workshop B2: Building Stronger Support Systems for Migrant Workers in Canada – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Hannah Deegan

Hannah is responsible for RHFW’s advocacy and education initiatives. In this role, she conducts research, prepares submissions to legislative bodies and government departments, and coordinates RHFW’s participation in coalitions and committees with other migrant justice and workers' rights organizations.

Most notably, she has been actively involved in RHFW’s End Migrant Worker Unfreedom constitutional class action, a legal challenge of state measures restricting migrant workers’ right to change employers freely.

Speaker at:
Workshop B2: Building Stronger Support Systems for Migrant Workers in Canada – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Clarizze Truscott

Clarizze Truscott has been an activist in support of the needs of Filipinos and other migrants almost since the day she arrived in Canada in 1991.

A business leader in her new home, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, she helped organize a response to the first wave of temporary foreign workers, helping find accommodation, basic furniture and even transportation in the form of bicycles. In 2006 she was part of a protest held in Edmonton City Centre calling for better treatment of Temporary Foreign Workers.

She helped found Fort Saskatchewan’s first Filipino organization, Kabisig Society of Fort Saskatchewan in 2013, and joined Migrante Alberta that same year. This led to her being part of an even larger protest against then Federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenny’s temporary foreign worker program moratorium in 2014. From 2021 through 2024, Clarizze was the Vice Chair of Migrante Canada, and she remains an active member of Migrante Alberta as well as President of Kabisig Society.

Clarizze strongly believes in forging alliances. In her own community she works with the local library, the family & community support services within the City of Fort Saskatchewan, the Fort Saskatchewan Boys & Girls Club, and the local RCMP on anti-racism initiatives and consultations.

Speaker at:
Workshop B2: Building Stronger Support Systems for Migrant Workers in Canada – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Rosa Arteaga

Speaker at:
Workshop C1: Untold stories: combating sexual violence against women and LGBTQ+ migrants – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Deepa Mattoo

Deepa Mattoo is a dedicated lawyer and intersectional feminist recognized for her commitment to advancing equity, anti-oppression, and anti-racism. Her extensive career spans various legal and leadership roles.

Since 2019, Deepa has served as the Executive Director of the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic, overseeing multiple departments and directing the Clinic’s intervention and advocacy efforts. She has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada, Parliamentary committees, and UN civil society meetings, advocating on a broad spectrum of social justice and human rights issues. In 2023, Deepa was appointed to the Domestic Violence Death Review Committee (DVDRC).

Deepa has trained thousands of service providers to support forced marriage survivors, racialized non-status women, and clients navigating immigration law. Since 2017, she has shared her expertise as an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School through numerous speaking engagements and interviews. Deepa's contributions have been recognized with several awards, including the Spirit of Schlifer Award in 2015 and the Law Society Medal and Women of Distinction Award in 2022 for her advocacy and access to justice efforts. In 2023, she received the Ontario Bar Association Award for Excellence in the Promotion of Women's Equality and the Desi Achiever’s Award for her exceptional contributions to human rights and access to justice. In 2024, Deepa was honoured with an Honorary Degree from Humber College in recognition of her contributions to social justice and equity.

Speaker at:
Workshop C1: Untold stories: combating sexual violence against women and LGBTQ+ migrants – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Vicky Zois

Vicky Zois is a Montreal-based Coordinator and Psychosocial intervention worker at the Movement Against Rape and Incest (MCVI).

Her role at the center is to support survivors and to accompany them through various legal systems, to raise awareness on sexual violence, and to engage in solidarity work with organizations focused on advancing women and migrant rights. With over thirteen years of experience in the community sector, a global feminist, anti-oppressive and human rights-based approach guides her work with survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, including migrant women with a precarious immigration status.

Speaker at:
Workshop C1: Untold stories: combating sexual violence against women and LGBTQ+ migrants – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Victor Setibo

Victor graduated in 2017 from the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University (California, USA) with a master’s degree in theology focusing on sexual and Gender-Based Violence in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Based in Goma, he has been serving as JRS Country Director in DRC since February 2023. Victor has previously served as Project Director and Assistant programs officer for the JRS West Africa Region in the Central Africa Republic (CAR).

Speaker at:
Workshop C3: Extractive industries and forced displacement in the Democratic Republic of Congo – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Catherine Coumans

Speaker at:
Workshop C3: Extractive industries and forced displacement in the Democratic Republic of Congo – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Mustafa Abbas

Almustafa Abbas is a social policy advocate with expertise in refugee rights, environmental sustainability, youth engagement, and politics. He wore multiple hats through his journey since 2018. And worked for many organizations such as Nature Canada, Climate Vulnerable Forum, and YOUNGO, and served as a UN Youth Delegate for Sudan. His ongoing work focuses on creating impactful policies for social justice.

Speaker at
Workshop D2: Current Immigration Policies and their Effects on Young Newcomers – Wednesday, November 27, 11am-12:30pm

Yankish Chahar

Yankish, an engineer by profession, is a member of the CCR Youth Network Core Team. Drawing from her own understanding of the challenges faced by newcomers in navigating a new country, she is committed to the role of community in fostering social justice and has actively supported newcomers through various initiatives over the years. Passionate about creating inclusive spaces, she is dedicated to fostering dialogue and collective action and looks forward to leading discussions in the upcoming workshop on current immigration policies and their impact.

Speaker at
Workshop D2: Current Immigration Policies and their Effects on Young Newcomers – Wednesday, November 27, 11am-12:30pm

Ekat Barrios

Speaker at
Workshop D2: Current Immigration Policies and their Effects on Young Newcomers – Wednesday, November 27, 11am-12:30pm

Moderators

Melissa Claisse

Moderator at:
Workshop A4: Mobilizing Our Communities: Service Providers, Advocacy, and Allyship – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Harrold Babon

Moderator at:
Workshop A4: Mobilizing Our Communities: Service Providers, Advocacy, and Allyship – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Louis-Philippe Jannard

Moderator at:
Workshop B1: Emerging Issues in Immigration Detention – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Tenzin Khentse

Tenzin Khentse is a dedicated human rights advocate and the Youth Anti-Human Trafficking Coordinator at the FCJ Refugee Centre, where he specializes in supporting migrant workers. As a third-generation stateless Tibetan refugee shaped by the experience of forced displacement, he brings a unique perspective to his work. With an MA in Migration Studies from the Université de Lille, France, Tenzin has gained expertise in navigating complex Canadian immigration processes. His research focuses on the systemic barriers faced by migrant workers in Canada, with a particular emphasis on improving their protection and rights.

Moderator at:
Workshop B2: Building Stronger Support Systems for Migrant Workers in Canada – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Edwin Silang

Edwin is a certified Settlement Practitioner in Alberta, committed to serving his community as a member of the Community Support Services Program also known as the TFW program of Catholic Social Services. Edwin holds a degree in Information Technology from the Philippines but has directed his passion for social services and newcomer advocacy in the Settlement Sector where he has been working for ten (10) years. Edwin draws his strength and passion from his work as well as his own life experiences, having come to Canada as a Temporary Foreign worker himself.

Edwin also volunteers with the Rights and Welfare Action Committee, a service assistance committee of Alberta Workers Association for Research and Education and Migrante Alberta that provides support and assistance for vulnerable community members including non-status migrants.

Moderator at:
Workshop B2: Building Stronger Support Systems for Migrant Workers in Canada – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Nasreen Khadimi

Moderator at:
Workshop B3: Refugee Resettlement Process from Africa under PSR: Challenges with IRCC and IOM – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Michelle Ndizeye

Moderator at:
Workshop B3: Refugee Resettlement Process from Africa under PSR: Challenges with IRCC and IOM – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Lena Awwad

Lena was born and raised in Palestine. She is a third generation Palestinian refugee, and her refugee roots precede the existence of the UNHCR. Her grandparents were expelled from their home in Lifta, a village near Jerusalem in 1948. Intimately aware of the challenges refugees face, Lena spent the majority of her life working and studying with and in refugee communities in various capacities.

Lena is currently the Research and Program’s Director at IslamicFamily, a social service agency based in Edmonton. She built the organization’s refugee sponsorship program from the ground up, and developed digital tools to scale the program and enhance oversight and documentation. She played a leading role in developing Rootson6, a digital storytelling platform that explores settler and indigenous experiences on treaty 6. Lena oversees a number of research initiatives, livelihood programs for newcomers, as well as prison programming and reentry support at IslamicFamily.

Moderator at:
Workshop B4: Root Causes of Palestinian Displacement and Anti-Palestinian Racism: from 1948 to Today – Tuesday, November 26, 3:30pm-5pm

Basel Abou Hamrah

Basel is a Settlement Practitioner specializing in LGBTQ+ complex cases at the Newcomer Centre. His journey to Canada began in 2015 when he arrived as a refugee from Syria. He led the creation of the Rainbow Refuge Program, the first program of its kind in Edmonton to support LGBTQ+ newcomers community members with immigration and settlement.

He is also a co-leader of the LGBTQ+ Newcomer Edmonton Group. Basel’s combination of personal and professional experience provides him with unique insight that has contributed to shaping the creation of very specialized LGBTQ+ newcomers services in Edmonton. As the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal and the Stonewall 2021 Newcomers and Refugees Award, he is a strong advocate for the needs of the LGBTQ+ newcomer community. Helping others be their authentic selves able to thrive in their new home.

Moderator at:
Workshop C1: Untold stories: combating sexual violence against women and LGBTQ+ migrants – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Claudia Limoli Cubria

Claudia has a BSc in Criminology from University of Montreal and an MSc in International Crimes and Conflict from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Her academic work focused on conflict, migration, humanitarian work, human trafficking and migrant smuggling, with a thesis researching these issues in the Colombian-Venezuelan borderlands. Claudia worked as a legal support caseworker at a shelter for women victims of violence before joining MCM in 2024 as a legal caseworker, where she assists migrants with legal procedures and improves their access to justice. She is fluent in English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Mandarin.

Moderator at:
Workshop C1: Untold stories: combating sexual violence against women and LGBTQ+ migrants – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Jacques Bertrand

Moderator at:
Caucus 2: Is your work threatened by intimidation and organized crime? – Tuesday, November 26, 5:15pm-6:15pm
Workshop C2: Unpacking collective care and trauma-informed organizations in the sector – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Hugo Ducharme

Moderator at:
Workshop C3: Extractive industries and forced displacement in the Democratic Republic of Congo – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am

Brian Dyck

Brian has worked in refugee sponsorship at Mennonite Central Committee for 17 years, first at the Manitoba office and in the MCC Canada office since 2015. For seven years he was chair of the Sponsorship Agreement Holder Association.

Moderator at:
Workshop C3: Extractive industries and forced displacement in the Democratic Republic of Congo – Wednesday, November 27, 9am-10:30am