Aspire to Lead

2021 Leaders' Summit - June 18, 19, 25, 26 and 29

A Series of Canada-Wide Virtual Gatherings for Aspiring, Emerging & Established Chinese Canadian Leaders

Speakers

The Honourable Mary Ng
Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade

The Honourable Mary Ng was elected as Member of Parliament for Markham–Thornhill in April 2017. She is the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade.

Minister Ng is a devoted community leader who has always believed in the power of public service. She has 20 years of experience in the areas of education, women’s leadership, job creation, and entrepreneurship. She is the second Chinese Canadian woman to serve in cabinet (after Alice Wong who served as Minister for Seniors from 2011-2015) and third Asian Canadian woman to serve in cabinet (after Bev Oda and Alice Wong).

Minister Ng immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong with her family, and grew up learning about the struggle and eventual success that many new immigrants experience in Canada. Her years working for the Ontario Public Service, Ryerson University, and the Ontario Ministry of Education led to her being recognized as one of Canada’s top-performing public sector leaders. She later served as Director of Appointments for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The Honourable Yuen Pau Woo
Senator

Appointed to the Senate of Canada in November 2016, the Honourable Yuen Pau Woo sits as an independent representing British Columbia and is the leader of largest group in Senate.

Originally from Singapore, Senator Woo has worked on public policy issues related to Canada’s relations with Asian countries for more than 30 years. From 2005-2014, he was President and CEO of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. He is also Senior Fellow at Simon Fraser University’s Graduate School of Business, and at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission and on the board of the Vancouver Academy of Music. He also serves on the Advisory Boards of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, Mosaic Institute, the Canadian Ditchley Foundation, and the York Centre for Asian Research.

Deputy Minister Daniel Quan-Watson
Deputy Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada

Deputy Minister Daniel Quan-Watson is the First federal Deputy Minister of Chinese descent.His appointment at Crown-Indigenous Relations and Indigenous Affairs is his fifth appointment as a Deputy Minister, having been Deputy Minister (and previously Associate Deputy Minister) of Western Economic Diversification, Chief Human Resources Officer for the Government of Canada and Chief Executive Officer, Parks Canada. He wrote an open letter on systemic racism in response to Rex Murphy’s National Post column “Canada is not a racist country, despite what the Liberals say”.

Much of his career has focused on work with Indigenous peoples and issues, having been the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister for Policy and Strategic Direction at the former Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Director General of the Aboriginal Justice Directorate at the federal Department of Justice, and Director of Aboriginal and Territorial Relations at INAC’s Northwest Territories Regional Office. With the Government of British Columbia, he was Director of Treaty Implementation and Settlement Legislation where he led the development of the Nisga’a Final Agreement Act (British Columbia) among other major initiatives and, with the Government of Saskatchewan where he was responsible for first negotiations between provincial Department of Education and what was then the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations.

Tung Chan
Director of Canadian Foundation of Economic Education

Tung Chan is a retired Honorary Captain of the Canadian Navy and the former Chief Executive Officer of S.U.C.C.E.S.S., an immigrant service not-for-profit organization. Tung is a director of the Canadian Foundation of Economic Education, a member of the Community Care and Assisted Living Appeal Board, and the immediate past Chair of the Board of the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Tung has serviced in leadership positions of numerous civic, cultural, business and educational organizations, including City of Vancouver (Councilor), E-Comm Emergency Communications (Board Chair), Richmond Public Library (Board Chair), Fairchild TV (Program Advisory Board Chair), International Financial Center Society of BC (Vice-Chair), BC Premier’s Chinese Community Advisory Committee (Member), Province of BC Equal Opportunity Community Advisory Board (Member), Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Board Member), Asia Pacific Foundation (Board Member), the Immigrant Employment Council of British Columbia (Board Member), the Metropolis BC (Board Member), and the United Way of the Lower Mainland (Board and campaign cabinet member).

In 2002, Tung was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in recognition of his contribution to the community. In 2014, Tung was invested into the Order of BC.

Kathy Cheng
President of WS & Co.

Kathy Cheng is the President of WS & Co., one of Canada’s leading full-service apparel manufacturers. She is also the founder of WS & Co.’s in-stock apparel line, Redwood Classics Apparel, which provides promotional and retail distributors with trending garments that are handcrafted in North America. As a diverse certified supplier of CAMSC, WBE Canada and WEConnect International, Kathy is on the Board of Directors for CAMSC, served on the WBE Canada Supplier Advisory Council Member, and is an Ambassador for CGLCC.

Chan Hon Goh
Director, Goh Ballet Academy and Youth Company Canada

With an illustrious stage career of over 20 years as Principal Dancer with The National Ballet of Canada, Ms. Goh is one of the most prolific artists of her generation. In 2010 upon retiring from her performing career, she became the Director of Goh Ballet to further her passion to inspire dancers of tomorrow, and since 2009 has been the Executive Producer of Goh Ballet’s critically acclaimed production, The Nutcracker.

Always advocating for the arts, Ms. Goh is a founding member of Vancouver’s Arts and Culture Policy Council which assists in giving the creative community a voice. Her accomplishments, with irrepressible devotion to the enhancement of the cultural life of Canada, have garnered several prestigious awards including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. In 2019, Ms. Goh was appointed to the Order of Canada for her excellence in ballet as a Principal Dancer, Artistic Director and cultural ambassador. Most recently, Ms. Goh was recognized with an honorary degree from the University of British Columbia for her significant contributions to society.

Evan Hu
Founding Principal of AltoSante

Evan is a serial entrepreneur and executive coach. He was the founder of several successful startups including OmniLogic, MapleMusic, and Ideaca. A Rainforest AB fellow, a member of the A100 and Engineers Canada Change Lab, he is active in the Canadian startup community as an angel investor, educator, and coach. He currently is a founding principal of the digital health venture studio AltoSante, a founding partner and G7 Associate at Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) and is a general partner of the Mount Rundle venture fund that provides early stage seed investments in CDL ventures.

Lai-King Hum
Founder of Hum Law, Deputy Judge

“Caring is the only daring” defines Lai’s approach to work and life. After 15 years at national firms in Montreal and Toronto, Lai founded a boutique law firm in 2014, focused on workplace law, human rights, professional regulation, and litigation. Her four lawyer team assists individuals, businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and entrepreneurs based in Canada, and internationally, with their legal issues.

In addition, Lai is a part-time Deputy Judge, Toronto Small Claims Court, Superior Court of Justice, and President of the Ontario Deputy Judges’ associations. She is also one of the three Counsel in the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program (a service funded by the Law Society of Ontario), a service that addresses discrimination and harassment by lawyers or paralegals.

Integral to her work and life is Lai’s commitment to the promotion of diversity and inclusion. She has held roles as past-Chair of the Roundtable of Diversity Associations (RODA), a group of legal associations committed to diversity initiatives, and past-President of the Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers (FACL). In recognition of her significant accomplishments in the law and for service to the legal profession, areas of social justice and/or the Asian community, she was awarded the 2020 Distinguished Lawyer Award from FACL. 

As part of her belief that leadership is also about service, Lai is a Director of Up with Women (a not-for-profit organization operating in Ontario and Quebec providing coaching to homeless women), and a Trustee with CPAC Foundation.

Howard R. Jang
Vice President Arts and Leadership of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity

In 2018, Howard joined Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity as Vice President Arts and Leadership where he is responsible for Arts, Leadership and Presenting Programs.
Prior to Banff, Howard was Professor of Professional Practice in the School for the Contemporary Arts at SFU and was the Director of the Woodward’s Cultural Unit. There, he developed a Creative Entrepreneurship Program in the School for the Contemporary Arts and was responsible for the public Cultural and Community Programs at the Goldcorp Centre for the Arts.

Howard has been a member of several volunteer boards and committees, most notably for the Canadian Arts Summit, Orchestras Canada, Manitoba Arts Stabilization, the Canada Council, BC Arts Council Music, City of Vancouver, Vancouver Alliance for Arts and Culture, Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance, and the Vancouver Foundation’s Arts and Cultural Advisory Committee.

Howard is a member of the Board for the Dancer Transition Resource Centre and Chair of the Advisory Board for the Vancouver Chinatown Storytelling Centre.
Trained as a musician, Howard has served as the Executive Director for the Arts Club Theatre Company in Vancouver (2000-2014), Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (1997-2000), and Ballet British Columbia (1993-1997) following work as Orchestra Manager in Vancouver and NYC.

Vivian Kwan
Board Chair, Centre for Race and Culture

Vivian is a coffee connoisseur and a vocal advocate in the greater community. Her passion for health and wellness has inspired her to pursue a Bachelor degree in Biological Sciences and Psychology, and now a Masters in Public Health. Over the years, she has worked with non-profit organizations and public institutions in various capacities. At an international level, she has interned with UN Women, and was also a former member of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community. With a strong interest in policy and health, Vivian has always actively participated in discussions to understand the challenges faced by the ethnic communities in Edmonton. Currently, she works as the Planning and Engagement Coordinator with Homeward Trust Edmonton, collaborating with all levels of government and community agencies to address chronic homelessness, while also serving as the Board Chair with the Centre for Race and Culture.

Carol Lee
Chair and co-founder of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation

Carol Anne Lee is chair and co-founder of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, a registered charity that was founded in 2012. The Foundation is dedicated to building a more resilient and inclusive community while preserving its irreplaceable cultural heritage. Ongoing projects include affordable housing, seniors housing, and cultural and economic development.

She serves on several other boards and organizations including UBC Properties Trust, the Harvard Business School Canadian Advisory Board, the BC Achievement Foundation, and the Rideau Hall Foundation where she is chair of its Innovation Committee. She is also the co-chair of the John McArthur Distinguished Fellowship at the Asia Pacific Foundation. She has received honorary degrees from UBC and BCIT and is the recipient of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal.

Fred Lee
Director of Alumni Engagement at the University of British Columbia

A UBC Grad, Fred is Director of Alumni Engagement. Serving in a leadership role at alumni UBC, Fred and his colleagues lead efforts to meaningfully increase engagement and build influence among UBC’s community of more than 370,000 global alumni. In 2016, the Development and Alumni Engagement portfolio completed its highly successful Start an Evolution campaign, a historic effort that raised more than $1.6 billion in philanthropic support and engaged more than 130,000 alumni.

Off campus, Fred is Vancouver’s ‘Man About Town’. The Social Butterfly and charity champion shares all of Vanhattan’s A-list happenings, red carpet events, must-attend galas and fabulous fundraisers with readers. Fred is a contributor for the Province Newspaper and Boulevard Magazine. He has contributed to the CBC, National Post, Vancouver Magazine and BC Business.

For nearly two decades Fred has consistently demonstrated his dedication to the community devoting his time and efforts to a host of note-worthy charities in our community, as well as bringing an army of supporters to the cause. A tireless volunteer, Fred has held board roles on various organizations, and sits on countless fundraising committees. The community leader is a mentor to many and he continues to give of his time and expertise to many organizations and worthy causes.

Fred founded several major fundraisers; most notably, UBC CampOUT’s An Evening in Support of CampOUT, CLICK Foundation’s Dinner to Make A Difference and Aids Vancouver Celebrity Dim Sum. His contributions have been cited in many arenas, including the National Post’s Worthy 30 list. Fred is recipient of an AccolAIDS Award in Philanthropy, Association of Fundraising Professional’s Charity Champion Award, inductee into the BC Restaurant Hall of Fame as a Friend of the Industry, Arthritis Research Canada’s Champion Award and most recently UBC’s President’s Award for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Dr. Lawrence Loh
Medical Officer of Health at the Region of Peel

On June 25, 2020, Dr. Lawrence Loh became the Medical Officer of Health at the Region of Peel – Public Health. He was previously an Associate Medical Officer of Health and served as the Interim Medical Officer of Health in Peel. Dr. Loh is an Adjunct Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. He completed undergraduate training and medical school at the University of Western Ontario and residency at the University of Toronto, during which he also earned a Master of Public Health at Johns Hopkins. He is board certified in family medicine in Canada and in Public Health and Preventive Medicine in both Canada and the United States.

As the Region of Peel’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Loh reports to Regional Council on all public health matters that are of concern or deemed to be a health hazard. He provides direction to public health staff and acts as the main spokesperson on all public health issues and/or strategies. Under provincial mandate, Public Health programs use a population health approach, which focuses on upstream efforts to prevent diseases, improve health, and address differences in health outcomes among and between groups.

Patti Pon

Calgary Arts Development President & CEO Patti Pon is a veteran community and arts champion with an extensive track record of leadership and service in Calgary and beyond.

Patti has deep and diverse experience in the arts sector, having served in senior leadership positions at the EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts (now Arts Commons), Alberta Performing Arts Stabilization Fund, and Alberta Theatre Projects, among others. She has been President & CEO of Calgary Arts Development since 2013 and led the organization through the process of doubling its budget in 2019.

In the community, she just completed her full term on the board of The Calgary Foundation, serves as a board member with Toronto based Agora Foundation (publisher of the online journal The Philanthropist,) and recently was elected as the first woman of colour to the board of the Calgary Stampede. She was a founding board member of the Asian Heritage Foundation (Southern Alberta) and served on the steering committee for imagineCalgary as well as on the Board Chair of Canada’s oldest public radio station, CKUA Radio Network. She also served as a board member for the Calgary Bid Exploration Committee and related entities who explored the potential for Calgary to submit a bid for the 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Patti has been awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and was the 2013 Harry and Martha Cohen Award, recognizing significant contribution to Calgary’s theatre community.

Tesicca Truong
Ministerial Advisor for the BC Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery, and Innovation

Tesicca Truong is a community engagement innovator, a dialogue facilitator, and a serial changemaker. Her passions lie at the intersection of youth empowerment, citizen engagement and resilience building. She co-founded CityHive, a non-profit on a mission to transform the way young people shape their cities and the civic processes that engage them. She also co-created the Vancouver Youth4Tap Coalition, a youth-led campaign led to the installation of new water fountains in every public high school in Vancouver as well as the inaugural Vancouver School Board Sustainability Conference. She currently serves as a Ministerial Advisor for the BC Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery, and Innovation as well as a Dialogue Associate at SFU’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue.

Tesicca has served on the Mayor’s Engaged City Task Force, BC’s Climate Solutions and Clean Growth Advisory Council, SFU Senate, and as board chair of Sustainable SFU (now Embark SFU). For her work, she was awarded the President’s Leadership in Sustainability Award from SFU and Vancouver’s Greenest City Leadership Award. Tesicca has also been named on Top 30 under 30 and Top 25 under 25 lists by Corporate Knights, North American Association for Environmental Education, and Starfish Canada.

Adrienne Wong
Artistic Director, Spiderwebshow Performance

Adrienne Wong is Artistic Director of SpiderWebShow Performance, a company that interrogates the impact of digital disruption through art. She co-curates the Festival of Live Digital Art (FOLDA) with Michael Wheeler and Sarah Garton Stanley. Adrienne’s theatre creation work straddles in-person and digital spaces. Particular interests are in developing new work and using theatre and engagement as a strategy to promote progressive change. She was the inaugural artist in residence for CBC Radio’s q. Landline (co-created with Dustin Harvey) toured nationally and internationally in French and English. Me On The Map (co-created with JD Derbyshire) continues to be adapted for young citizen designers. Adrienne lives in Treaty 7 territory (Banff, AB) with her family.

Albert Wong
Citizenship Judge

Albert was appointed Citizenship Judge by the Government of Canada in June 2014. As an independent decision-maker, Judge Wong conducts hearings and presides over citizenship ceremonies in the Greater Toronto Area.

Judge Wong had over thirty-nine years of service in the Canadian Armed Forces. He served in various public affairs positions with the military across Canada; on a UN peacekeeping mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia; with a multi-national headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark; and with a Strategic Advisory Team in Afghanistan. He attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander.
He also served as the Chief Aide-de-Camp to the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from April 2013 to December 2020. He was awarded the Vice-Regal commendation in 2014.
Judge Wong is a 2012 recipient of the Chinese Canadian Legend Award, the 2015 Transformation Award for Public Service, the 2015 NAAAP 100 Award by the North American Association of Asian Professionals, and the 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award by the Cambridge Food & Wine Society.

He was named the 2016 Person of the Year by the Transformation Magazine.
Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Judge Wong emigrated to Canada in 1971.
An active community volunteer, Albert has made valuable leadership contribution to several organizations including as Chair of the Mississauga Board of Chinese Professionals and Businesses (CPB) and currently supports various other community boards and organizations.

Dr. Joseph Wong
Physician and Founder of Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care

Dr. Joseph Yu Kai Wong is a Canadian physician and philanthropist. He founded the Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care in 1987. He served as the chairman for the United Way of Greater Toronto from 1990 to 1992 and has been honorary chair since 1994. He led the protests in response to the CTV’s W5 report “Campus Giveaway” and advocated for the Head Tax redress and for the history of the Second World War in Asia to be taught to Ontario high school students.

He was named Man of the Year in 1986 by the Toronto Star, and one of Toronto’s most influential people in 1991 and 1992 by Toronto Life magazine. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 1993. Wong was the winner of the 2005 Power of Humanity award, presented to him by former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev. Most recently, he was named one of the 180 most influential people in Toronto’s history by the Toronto Star for the city’s 180th birthday, under the Community Builders category.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam has an extensive career investing in the City of Toronto through both the public and private sectors. Her contributions have led to the development and support of numerous social planning programs, business ventures, art endeavours and successful community initiatives.

Prior to being elected to City Council in 2010, Councillor Wong-Tam was an accomplished real estate professional and supporter of the arts. She has curated art installations for Scotiabank’s Nuit Blanche and is the principal of a Toronto-based contemporary fine art gallery. As a founding member of the Church-Wellesley Village Business Improvement Association, her business advocacy and entrepreneurship focusing on urban economic development, earned her a seat on Mayor David Miller’s Economic Competitiveness Advisory Committee which produced the Agenda for Prosperity in 2008.

Councillor Wong-Tam has a distinguished track record of human rights advocacy and was a co-founder of Asian Canadians For Equal Marriage, and the past president of the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter which helped successfully lobbied the federal government for the head tax apology and redress. She has led efforts to defend the rights of tenants to obtain affordable and decent standards of rental housing and helped create a neighbourhood association to preserve and protect heritage buildings and historical landscapes in the ward.

Teresa Woo-Paw
Chair of Action, Chinese Canadians Together

Teresa is a tireless advocate for diversity, social inclusion and active civic participation. She is known for her ability in bringing diverse people together to joint efforts, break new grounds and create bigger impacts in society.

She is the first Canadian woman of Asian descent elected to the Calgary Board of Education (1995-2000), the Alberta Legislature and Cabinet Minister in Alberta (2008-2015).

Teresa holds a bachelor of arts degree in social work from the University of Calgary. She founded and built eight non-profit entities over a span of 40 plus years including the ACCT Foundation & Asian Canadians Together-ACT2EndRacism National Network; Asian Heritage Foundation, the Ethnocultural Council of Calgary (Action Dignity) and the Calgary Chinese Community Service Association. She has worked with almost 100 organizations in Canada.

Teresa received appointment as the Chair of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation by the Governor in Council in 2018 and is currently Chair of ACCT Foundation and created the Inspire to Lead Leaders’ Summit and the Aspire to Act Leadership Training Program; Convener of ACT2EndRacism Network; Co-Chair of Asian Heritage Foundation; Board member of Calgary Arts Foundation; City of Calgary-Tomorrow’s Chinatown and Lougheed House Advisory Committees.

Teresa loves the arts, gardening, travelling and spending time with her grandchildren.

Awards:

  • Chinese Canadian Legend 2016
  • YWCA Women of Distinction Award, 1998
  • Immigrants of Distinction Award, 1998
  • Queen Elizabeth’s 60th Jubilee Award, 2012
  • Queen’s Jubilee Award – Multiculturalism & Community Services 2002
  • Alberta Centennial Medal & Medallion, 2005
  • Canada 125th Commemorative Award for Community Services

Yung Wu
CEO of MaRS Discovery District

Yung Wu is the CEO of MaRS Discovery District, one of the world’s largest innovation hubs. Since 2008, MaRS-supported companies have raised over $8.2B in capital, generated over $5.6B in revenue and currently employ over 20,400 people in health, cleantech, fintech and other sectors.

As a serial entrepreneur and investor, Yung has built breakthrough scale-stage companies in enterprise software, mobile analytics and big data, media and entertainment, technology services and pharma drug development. He is co-founder of two not-for-profit organizations, the Coalition of Innovation Leaders Against Racism (CILAR) and DifferentIsCool (DiSC).
Yung currently serves on the boards of OMERS, the Toronto Region Board of Trade and Antibe Therapeutics Inc. (TSE:ATE). He is a member of Green Shield Canada and was recently appointed to Canada’s Net-Zero Advisory Body.

Yung has been recognized as one of Canada’s ‘Top 40 under 40’ and for leading one of the “50 Best Managed Private Companies” in the nation. Yung has a B.Sc. Computer Science, Economics and Mathematics from the University of Toronto and is a graduate of the Entrepreneurial Masters Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D).

Charles Xu
Internal Operations Manager of Montreal Chinatown Working Group

Charles Cong Xu was born in Wuhan, China, and grew up in the midwestern U.S. (Iowa, Minnesota, and Indiana). Through his studies, he also lived in Boston, Hong Kong, Netherlands, France, California, Sweden, and now Canada. He did my undergrad in Environmental Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, masters in Evolutionary Biology through the Erasmus Mundus Masters Programme in Europe at the University of Groningen, the University of Montpellier, and Uppsala University, and currently doing his Ph.D. at the Redpath Museum and Department of Biology at McGill University in Montreal.

His research lies at the intersection between genetics and the environment where he uses DNA to discover, study, and protect biodiversity from small microbes to big endangered animals. He is also the founder of STEMM Diversity at McGill, a student-led initiative to promote greater equity, inclusion, and diversity within the fields of science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine.

He has recently become heavily involved with anti-Asian racism activism after a hate incident experienced earlier this year. Since then, he became the internal operations manager of the Montreal Chinatown Working Group, an active member of ACT2ENDRACISM, and a founding member of the McGill Asian Student Council.

Georgia Yee
Student Senator and Board Governor

Georgia Yee is a fourth year student studying Biology in the Faculty of Science, on UBC Vancouver’s campus. She was elected to the UBC Board of Governors and UBC Senate in 2021.

Georgia served as the Vice President Academic and University Affairs of the Alma Mater Society of UBC during the COVID-19 pandemic. As AMS VP Academic, she has been an advocate for culturally responsive mental health resources, supporting students in accessible and equitable online learning, securing funding for the UBC Climate Emergency recommendations, spearheaded student academic integrity initiatives, and has led critical work on immediate food security at UBC.

Georgia also has extensive experience in residence life at UBC, including previously serving as the Place Vanier Residence Association president, National Residence Hall Honorary President, and as a Residence Advisor in Totem Park. She has worked as a emergency shelter support worker at the Mustard Seed, a mental health research assistant, and is also involved with ACT2ENDRACISM and ACCT.

Councillor Sandra Yeung Racco

Councillor Sandra Yeung Racco was first elected in 2003 and is currently the longest serving Asian female politician in the City of Vaughan and York Region. Now into her fifth term on Vaughan Council, she continues to be a driving force in bringing vital services to her constituents. Born in Hong Kong and raised in Ontario, Sandra obtained her A.R.C.T. at the Royal Conservatory of Music and graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Music Education degree. Following graduation, the Councillor ventured into the world of international business relations, complimented with extensive volunteer work with local non-profit and diverse community organizations.

Dr. Henry Yu
Department of History, UBC and Principal, St. John’s College, UBC

As a history professor, Dr. Yu’s research and teaching has been built around collaborations with local community organizations, civic institutions such as museums, and multiple levels of government. He is passionate about helping Canadians unlearn the cultural and historical legacies of colonialism and to be inspired by the often hidden and untold stories of those who struggled against racism and made Canadian society more inclusive and just. He was the Co-Chair of the City of Vancouver’s Dialogues between First Nations, Urban Aboriginal, and Immigrant Communities, and has served on advisory committees for formal apologies acknowledging historical discrimination and for the implementation of substantive legacy projects at all three levels of government.

Prof. Yu received his BA in Honours History from UBC and an MA and PhD in History from Princeton University. He was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 and the Province of BC’s Multicultural Award in 2015 in recognition of his research and community leadership.

... and more speakers to come!