Nicole Jones-Abad
"It's important to honour people's pronouns, have physically accessible all-gender washrooms at events, and talk about gender in less binary terms. It's also important to check in on your trans and non-binary friends, and make room for them." -Nicole Jones-Abad
Hometown: Quito, Ecuador
Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta
Affiliations: Shades of Colour, RAYE (Rainbow Alliance for Youth of Edmonton), QWTF (Queer Women and Trans-folk Fest), The Edmonton Shift Lab
While I've lived in Canada virtually my whole life, I was adopted from Ecuador at seven weeks old, which is something that has influenced the way that I directly, and indirectly, navigate the world. I entered university dreaming of becoming either a doctor or a clinical psychologist, but realized that academia just wasn't what I was meant to do. I found other things that got me excited, like public speaking, making videos, navigating governance, planning festivals, managing campaigns, and administrative work. But most of all, I have realized how important community is. I think when we have bodies that are politicized in particular ways, it becomes an act of survival to care about politics, and to care about, and hold space for each other.
I wear many hats within the queer and trans communities, but I would say that my main focus of work would be with Shades of Colour (SOC). SOC is a community in Edmonton for people that are QTIBPOC (queer and/or trans, Indigenous, Black, and/or People of Colour). This kind of space is needed because often queer spaces are white-centred and dominated, while spaces that aren't white-centred may not always feel queer- or trans-friendly. In SOC, we acknowledge that our existence is political; however, we also acknowledge that it's political to sit with each other, laugh sometimes, eat food together, build community, and hold space. The group has seen a lot of growth and community support in the past half year, and my amazing co-organizers and I are excited for what this could mean for outreach and becoming a self-sustaining group.
I feel much of the work in the trans community (especially for QTIBPOC) surrounds survival and basic needs, so it would be nice to move beyond that. Trans rights have become a highly politicized issue and currently there's a lot of backlash. It makes so many of us feel hyper-visible and unsafe whenever we see the news or social media. With a provincial election this year, many of us fear what will happen to our rights that we were granted only recently, and we're preparing for the worst.
Vivian Kwan
"Everyone can be a change-maker for gender equality by educating themselves about the prominent issues and showing respect for diversity." -Vivian Kwan Age: 26 Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Centre for Race and Culture, UN Women, Edmonton Mental Health Awareness Committee, World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community, Lieutenant Governor's Circle for Mental Health and Addiction Growing up in a traditional Chinese family, I was never...
Sara Kardash
"Listen to the stories of the women and gender-diverse people in our communities and take the time to unpack your unconscious biases." -Sara Kardash Age: 22 Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Engineers Without Borders Canada (ACGC Member) I am in my final year of civil environmental engineering at the University of Alberta, where I have been involved with the on-campus Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Canada chapter as co-president. I went into...
"Become informed and be aware of how gender inequality manifests itself in your own circles and your own experiences." -Ashley Anderson Age: 23 Hometown: Olds, Alberta Currently Residing In: Calgary, Alberta Affiliations: Mama na Mtoto I was raised in a rural community in Central Alberta. Although I love my hometown, I also really love travelling and learning about other cultures. During my undergraduate degree, I spent two semesters abroad, studying in both Sweden and in Singapore. For my...
Gideon Mentie
"Stories can multiply the impact of a good initiative, so let's learn how to be captivating storytellers!" -Gideon Mentie Age: 22 Hometown: Brooks, Alberta Currently Residing In: Calgary, Alberta Affiliations: SPECT, FullSoul Uganda, CAWST (ACGC Member), Canadian Foodgrains Bank I am a 22-year-old Ethiopian-Canadian civil engineering student, born and raised in the little prairie town of Brooks, Alberta. Growing up in Brooks, where over 100 different languages are spoken, I was always...
"It's important to honour people's pronouns, have physically accessible all-gender washrooms at events, and talk about gender in less binary terms. It's also important to check in on your trans and non-binary friends, and make room for them." -Nicole Jones-Abad Age: 23 Hometown: Quito, Ecuador Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Shades of Colour, RAYE (Rainbow Alliance for Youth of Edmonton), QWTF (Queer Women and Trans-folk Fest), The Edmonton Shift Lab While I've lived...
Peter Anto Johnson
"People become change-makers when they work towards a mutually benefiting outcome, one based on tolerance and respect." -Peter Anto Johnson Age: 22 Hometown: Angadical, Kerala, India Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Run for Support and Health (RuSH), University Infant Toddler Centre – University of Alberta, Student Health Committee, Health & Wellness Movement, Obesity Canada - Students & New Professional I'm a women and children's health researcher, community...
Elizabeth Roden
"You don't have to do something on a grand scale; just live your values and stand up for what you believe in." -Elizabeth Roden Age: 29 Hometown: Glendon, Alberta Currently Residing In: Calgary, Alberta Affiliations: Operation Eyesight (ACGC Member) From an early age, I've always believed that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. I helped form a leadership group at my high school and was eager to learn more about world issues. In 2007, I moved to Calgary to pursue a degree...