Ms. Marit Stiles is the MPP for the Ontario riding of Davenport. Marit also serves as the Education Critic for the Official Opposition (NDP).

Marit Stiles recently tabled a motion in the Provincial Legislature calling on the Conservative Government to get serious about "back to school" plans for the Fall in Ontario. In this conversation, we discuss that motion, the importance of advocacy, activism and leveraging the positive energy that has marked this recent period in our history.

Learn more about Marit Stiles at https://www.maritstiles.ca/

Richard Doornink is no stranger to stories. His background in film and video study and production, editing and a love for writing has brought him to the release of his first novel. 1967—A Coming of Age Story will certainly resonate with anyone growing up in Canada in the 60's, but it will also work its way into the hearts and imaginations of those who grew up in a different time.

In this conversation, Rick and I talk about the impetus for the book, the idea of setting as a character, some of the cultural references woven into the book, and the question of what it means to come of age—in any age.

Find out more about the book and Rick's work: https://www.richardwdoornink.com

Harvey Bischof is the president of the Ontario Secondary School Teacher's Federation (OSSTF), and represents over 70 000 secondary school teachers and education workers across the province.

Harvey joins me to talk about the progress being made toward a return to school in the Fall, some of the creative ways that we could be looking at the challenge and some of the elephants that might be hanging around in the discussion room.

Dr. Jewel Amoah is one of 14 Human Rights and Equity Advisors hired to school districts across Ontario. It's part of a pilot program designed to foreground issues related to develop cultures of respect for human rights and equity in public schools.

Dr. Amoah is a Human Rights scholar, advocate and activist and is the newly appointed Human Rights and Equity Advisor (HREA) for the Halton District School Board.

Negin Riazi is a PhD Candidate at UBC's School of Kinesiology in the Faculty of Education. Recently, her article, co-authored with Dr. Guy Faulkner, appeared in The Conversation Canada.

"Free-range kids: Why a child’s freedom to travel and play without adult supervision matters" was the subject of our conversation today. We explored the importance of letting our children explore their surroundings in a way that promotes independent mobility, a sense of responsibility and freedom.

Here's a link to Negin's article:

https://theconversation.com/free-range-kids-why-a-childs-freedom-to-travel-and-play-without-adult-supervision-matters-132243

Dr. Stuart Shanker is a research professor emeritus of Philosophy and Psychology at York University and the Founder/CEO of The MEHRIT Centre. He is also the founder and Science Director of the Self-Regulation Institute. Stuart’s new book Reframed: Self-Reg for A Just Society brings together his deep knowledge of philosophy, political theory and psychology to create the type of multi-disciplinary perspective that so many of us are longing for in this divided and siloed world.

In this conversation we look at our current COVID-19 context from a self-reg lens, not only on the individual and personal level, but on the social and political level as well.

For more information on Stuart Shanker and the work of the MEHRIT Centre, visit self-reg.ca

Ron Canuel is the former CEO of the Canadian Education Association (EdCan) and a former Director General of the Eastern Township School Board in Quebec. He is never at a loss for words or insights into new visions for schools and education.

Ron joins me to talk about the desire to "return to normal" when schools go back in the Fall, but also the types of questions that we need to be asking to preventing us from falling back to default thinking.

Sean Vanderklis is Mississauga from Curve Lake First Nation, a resident of the Niagara Region and one half of the podcast/broadcast team known as One Dish, One Mic.

You can hear them weekly on Sunday mornings at 10 on AM 610 CKTB. Sean and his broadcast partner Carl Doxtdater are the recipients of the 2020 CBC Indigenous Journalism Fellowship.

Sean and I talk about the transition from podcasting to broadcasting, the differences in perspective among Indigenous communities, and the ways in which Indigenous and non-Indigenous people can work together towards greater understanding.

Kalli Anderson is a broadcast journalist, a documentary film-maker and a Director of Audio Journalism at CUNY"s Craig Newmark School of Journalism.

Kalli's article in Today's Parent. "Ontario's back-to-school plan ignores a glaringly obvious problem" has caught the attention of parents and educators alike. Find out what that glaringly obvious problem is—and more—in this episode of In Conversation.

Read the Today's Parent article: https://www.todaysparent.com/kids/school-age/ontario-school-reopening-plan/

Find out more about Kalli's work: http://kallipearl.com/

Nicole and Barbara DeLory have a very unique connection. Not only are they mother and daughter, but Nicole has written a book based on some of her mother's writing.

Nicole's book is Night at the Gardens and it draws inspiration from Barbara's book, Three Centuries of Public Art Historic Halifax Regional Municipality. Find out about both books and this unique collaboration in this special episode of In Conversation.

From Halifax, Nova Scotia, it's Nicole and Barbara DeLory.