Robin Lacambra, Project Director (she/her) As a creator, mover, and a feeler, Robin Lacambra, somatic coach and founder of GOODBODYFEEL Movement Studio, believes that if you’re alive, you’re a leader. Her belief in intrinsic leadership is what guides communities, individuals, leaders, and organizations towards an all-hands-on-deck approach, empowering and mobilizing them towards a culture of compassion, collective abundance, and belonging.

Through operating a for-profit small business that prioritizes progressive values, sparking thoughts and conversation as host of the Empowered Embodiment podcast, and sharing her blended practice of pilates, yoga and mindfulness all taught through anti-oppression, trauma awareness, and eating-disorder informed frameworks, Robin works to move, and tend to, all bodies.

With the belief that there is always an intersection worth exploring and sharing, Robin creates and strengthens bridges between various industries and social causes. This has led to the creation of the Sharing Privilege Online Course, which examines how we can sustainably share our individual privilege to create more access and abundance for more people. In addition, she runs a 200 hour Teacher Training Program that explores movement for all bodies via accessible language and sequencing.

 No matter the project, Robin’s work always comes back to the community. It empowers people to believe in the importance of creating a culture filled with compassion so, in turn, it can fuel an environment of belonging for all bodies: the physical body, the body of the collective, and the body of land.

Laura Welch, Project Coordinator (she/her) is a professional theatre artist living and working in Hamilton. She is the Safe Spaces Coordinator for Industry and Artistic Director of Light Echo Theatre. She produced and directed Light Echo Theatre’s inaugural benefit performance of The Vagina Monologues which raised money for SACHA Hamilton and Birthmark. She originated the role of Jenna in Essential Collective Theatre’s premiere of the Voaden Prize winning play The Team by Michael Kras. Laura was a founding members of The Garden Project, an annual fundraiser to raise seed money for creation and mentorship for BIPOC artists, run by Porchlight Theatre and Industry. She co-host/produces an arts podcast called The Why Art Podcast with Rose Hopkins. The podcast centres around why art is valuable and why we make it. This project was born out of Laura’s desire to make arts spaces more safe emotionally and physically after experiencing harm through most of her training and in the industry. She is so excited to be working with Robin, Kit and Maddie, and all the incredible members on the steering committee. Without them, this project would not have been possible. @laura.m.welch

Maddie Krusto, Researcher (she/her) is a theatre artist, researcher, and educator based in Hamilton. She holds a BA in Theatre and Film & English and Cultural Studies, and an MA in Gender Studies and Feminist Research from McMaster University. Her training in devised theatre offers an artistic and educational practice that is community-based, joyful, and rooted in care. She has collaborated on projects such as McMaster’s Transforming Stories Driving Change, Engendering the Stage at the Stratford Festival Laboratory, and produced the Hamilton Theatre Speaks livestream series with Femmepire in 2020. Maddie is the co-founder of McMaster Activist Theatre and the Community Outreach and Policy Coordinator at Hamilton Fringe. She also has a grumpy, old cat named Oscar. She loves him very much.  @maddiekrusto

Kitoko Mai, Researcher (they/them) is a multi-disciplinary performance artist committed to Hamilton, and a graduate of the Theatre & Film / Multimedia programs at McMaster University. Their practice incorporates live performance, poetry, visual art, found art sculpture, photography, video, sound, and theatre/storytelling. Kitoko's work is rooted in social justice, anti-oppression, accessibility, and intersectionality. Their philosophy is to produce work that destabilizes hierarchies of power and embraces fluidity of content, artistic form, and artistic process. Kit recently served as a workshop facilitator and assistant artistic director with the AMY Project in Toronto, and is the founder and co-artistic director of Femmepire.

Karen Ancheta, (she/her) is a multi-disciplinary artist, an original member of Hamilton 7, co-founder @porchlighttheatrehamilton (dedicated to development & support of marginalized Emerging & Professional Theatre Artists/Storytellers), 1/7 founders of : The Garden Project in partnership with Industry, collaborator w/Kwentong Bayan/Myseum T.O. in support of care workers, vocal coach at Humber College, graduate of RTS, and a mentor for The House Key Project’s #TINCANHAM @eyemymagpie

Adrienne Crossman, (they/them) is a queer and non-binary white settler artist, educator and curator currently residing on the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples in so called Hamilton, Ontario. Their art practice is interdisciplinary, including media such as video, sculpture, installation, light-based work, 3D modelling, and photography. Their work is deeply enmeshed with their queer and trans identity and is attentive to the ways that white supremacy and colonization have shaped dominant understandings of gender and sexuality. Their practice seeks to destabilize these systemic ideas and propose more expansive futures. Adrienne has exhibited across Canada and internationally and is an Assistant Professor in the School of the Arts at McMaster University. They are a former co-chair of the board of directors of the Hamilton Artists Inc and currently serve on the Programming Committee. They are a co-founder and co-run off centre, an online arts publication dedicated to writing about contemporary art and artists outside of large metropolitan centres.

Juan Jaramillo, (he/him) was a former Child and Youth Advocate at the Ontario Advocate’s Office for Children & Youth. He worked to support Ontario’s youth for the last 9 years. He was born in South America, Colombia, he became deaf at birth with Unilateral Microtia (no ears). He then moved to Canada at a very young age. He grew up in the Spanish community surrounded with Latino music and dance. He was formerly a member of the Gallaudet Dance Company in 1993 and used this time to gain experience and knowledge about dance choreography with ASL song interpretation. He co-founded the Dancing Hands Troupe in 1992, and he has performed (Comedy Skits, ASL Poetry, Pop, Hiphop, Reggie, Religious song, Dance group) for over 25 years across Canada and the USA. He was honoured to perform at the World Winter Deaf Athletes Champion’s event in Toronto in 2012. One of his highlights was performing both the Canadian and USA National Anthems, at the Blue Jays game in Toronto Skydome (2002), the NHL 100 Centennial Winter Classic games in both Toronto (2017), and Ottawa (2018). His most rewarding experiences have been teaching and coaching deaf children in ASL song/dance performances during his time at the ECD school for the Deaf as a Child and youth worker. He is recently involved with the Sound Off Theatre Festival (Alberta), Magical of ASL theatre (Manitoba), Festival, Toronto Fringe Festivals and Roseneath Children Theatre as an ASL Deaf Theatre Interpreter. He continues to expand his portfolio through collaboration on various stage productions and online performances. 

Cher Obediah, (she/her) is Ojibway and Mohawk of the Turtle Clan from Six Nations Ontario with roots in Alderville First Nation. Currently living in Stoney Creek, Cher is a filmmaker, a speaker, workshop facilitator and poet. With her company Ceeit Productions Cher works to bridge social barriers by highlighting our similarities rather than our differences. She lends her creativity to projects that focus on healing and transformation, equality and inclusion, Indigenous culture, domestic violence, youth driven projects and content that inspires others to recognize their worth. Cher received the Truly Independent Award from the Hamilton Film Festival, was the 2020 Hamilton Media Arts Award recipient and showcased her Women’s Fancy Shawl powwow dancing to become the 2020 winner of Canfitpro’s Got Talent.  

Talli Osborne, (she/her) Although Talli was born missing her arms and stands at just over three feet tall, she was raised with the belief that she could do anything she set her mind to, and this is exactly how she lives her life. Talli has shared her story with thousands of students across North America, she has been the keynote speaker at many corporate events, and did her first TED Talk in 2015. Talli also received a video endorsement from Sir Richard Branson putting Talli in his Top 10 Most Inspirational People, Talli has shared her personal experiences with bullying on the CBC with hopes to truly make a difference.

While Talli feels that being an inspirational speaker was something she was born to do, she also loves music and is recognizable in many punk scenes around the world, fronting her own melodic-punk band. Talli’s positivity is infectious! She loves changing perceptions and attitudes, and sharing her stories with others. As Talli says, she wants to spread inspiration, love and punk rock, across the globe, one talk at a time.

Josh Taylor, (he/him) A dancer, a choreographer and an artist-educator/mentor, Josh is the Owner and Artistic Director of Hamilton's Hip-Hop and Street Dance studio, Defining Movement Dance (@steelcityDMD). In his artistic practice, Josh incorporates strong narratives and themes, exploring Hip-Hop culture, Pop culture, sociopolitical and social justice issues. In the past year, Josh was awarded the 2020 Hamilton Arts Award for Dance and Performing Arts, has appeared as a dancer/choreographer in music videos by LTTHEMONK, Raquel Kiara, and was featured in Witch Prophet's  SXSW nominated "Tesfay".  He also was a part of the Dusk Dances equity focus group, created pieces for Hamilton Winterfest, Sidewalk Sounds and also served as host for the 2020 Telling Tales Literary festival, returning this year to host for 2021. Josh is well sought after when it comes to Hip-Hop and Street Dance for his joyous teaching style, engaging energy, as well as his practice of highlighting the ideals, pioneers and historical roots of the culture, unafraid to gloss over the details of oppression and subsequent appropriation that is often ignored. @josh.g.taylor