ELLA Thought Leaders Podcast

Dr. Angel Acosta works to bridge the fields of leadership, social justice & mindfulness. His healing-centred work is illuminating ancient wisdom that just might be the guide to human flourishing. Armed with his insights Dr. Clinton, Ojibway Elder and retired educator Elaine Garner and University student and spoken word artist Madiha Syed model the process of healing-centred work. Their honest and profound connection takes our listeners full circle through human connection, to sharing pain and insights, and the path to healing and ultimately flourishing. Our alliance was born out of the idea of cooperation. We host events like the Generator to spark conversations about the fundamental importance of intergenerational learning, language, and sharing stories in service of healthy growth and development. This conversation will touch your mind and your heart.

Response to conversation between Dr. Jean Clinton and Dr. Angel Acosta

Episode Thought leaders:

• Elder Elaine Garner, Retired
• Madiha Syed, University student

Episode Host Adan Imran, Youth Connector on the CYPT backbone team

Dr. Dan Siegel calls them VUCA times (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) and during his conversation with Dr. Jean Clinton he spoke about the freedom and possibility that they held for us as a society. The discussion with local thought leaders that followed explored identity, belonging and so much more. You do not want to miss this conversation it will change the way you see yourself in community. Host Sanjay Govindaraj asks us to reflect on how we might avoid othering as our community works towards belonging for all. We invite everyone to join the conversation. Check out the Discussion Guide with it’s resources and dive in. As you will hear we truly are in this together.

Response to conversation between Dr. Jean Clinton and neurobiologist Dr. Dan Siegel

Thought leaders:

• Dr. Dillon Browne, Professor, Whole Child Lab, University of Waterloo
• TK Pritchard, Executive Director, SHORE Centre

Host Sanjay Govindaraj, Dir of Indigenous Initiatives, Anti-Racism, Accessibility and Equity, City of Waterloo

How We Read Now talks, yes, about screens vs. paper - but so much more. How you read to your children could very well be changed by listening to this discussion. It affected our guests too - Moraa Mochama, a local app developer/writer and Marjorie Knight of the Friendship Centre as they brought their own insights to the table that left them and Dr. Jean Clinton with new ways of thinking - the best kind of discussion. And Host Olga Vigil Letang from the City of Cambridge brought yet another lens to the conversation.

Response to conversation between Dr. Jean Clinton and linguist Dr. Naomi Baron

Thought leaders:

• Moraa Mochama, app developer, writer, mom
• Marjorie Knight, family outreach worker, House of Friendship, mom & grandma

With Host Olga Vigil Letang, Supervisor EDIA for City of Cambridge

Our third episode of the Thought Leaders podcast is inspired by the work of Dr. Bruce Perry. Dr. Perry’s work on trauma and the developing brain was recently captured in the bestselling book ‘What Happened to You?’ coauthored with Oprah Winfrey. Local thought leaders Kimiko Shibata and Sheri Roberts in conversation with Dr. Clinton bring insights gained from personal and professional experience to a conversation that is both illuminating and thought provoking.

Thought leaders:

• Kimiko Shibata. MLL Resource teacher, WRDSB
• Sheri Roberts, Community Resource Coordinator, Independent Living Centre of Waterloo Region

Host Colleen James, CEO & Principal Consultant at Divonify adds another lens to the discussion as she considers adult learners and the business world.

In our 2nd Thought Leaders podcast Dr. Jean Clinton speaks with one of the world’s most pre-emminent cognitive neuroscientists Dr. Adele Diamond about the developing brain. She brings the conversation home to talk about how kids are coping in our region these days - with family physician Dr. Mekalai Kumanan and settlement worker Ana Luz Martinez who have been on the front lines of what stress looks like in our community.

Thought leaders:

• Dr. Mekalai Kumanan, Family Physician, Two Rivers Family Health Team, Chief of Family Medicine, Cambridge Memorial Hospital
• Ana Luz Martinez, Settlement Worker, KW Multicultural Centre

Region of Waterloo's Director of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Fauzia Baig hosts this fascinating conversation

Sparked by a conversation between child psychiatrist, author & knowledge translator Dr. Jean Clinton with Mohawk Elder, wisdom keeper & author Tom Porter ‘The Way of the Human Being’ explores what it means to be human and how Indigenous culture and ways of knowing foster belonging that is fundamental to human wellness.  Episode Thought leaders:  jeewan chanicka, Director of Education from WRDSB  Charity Fleming, CEO of Qualia Counseling Episode Host Olivia Maine, Urban Indigenous Communications Assistant WellbeingWR and Volunteer at O;se LandBack Camp.