Generous Futures: Protecting Democracy

Tanya is a racialized settler living in Tkaronto. She is a fundraising leader who has raised millions for some of Canada's largest charities including Heart and Stroke Foundation, the Canadian Cancer Society, and McMaster University. Tanya is currently Executive Director, Development for the Faculty of Arts and Yellowhead Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson), and Instructor in the Post-Graduate Fundraising Program at Humber College. As a racialized philanthropy professional Tanya is honoured to share her influence and insights with students, emerging professionals and peers in the sector. Tanya writes articles; generates research and thought leadership; and facilitates learning events on the topics of diversity, inclusion, equity, power, privilege for the fundraising and philanthropic sector regularly.

She graduated with an Hons. B.A. Political Science from McMaster University, earned a Graduate Certificate at NYU in Marketing Communications, and recently graduated from the Master Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership (MPNL) at Carleton University. She has also completed numerous professional certificates including Not-For-Profit Governance Essentials (Rotman School of Management, Institute of Corporate Directors) and Truth and Reconciliation Through Right Relations (Banff Centre). Tanya is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), certified Communications Management Professional (CMP), and Master Financial Advisor - Philanthropy (MFA-PTM).

Additionally, she is an active leadership volunteer in the philanthropy and non-profit sector: Member of the Advisory Committee on the Charitable Sector with the Government of Canada; Board Director and Board Secretary with the Association of Fundraising Professionals Canada; Co-Chair of the Board with FindHelp Information Services — operators of 211 Toronto. In addition to sharing her knowledge, she is committed to lifelong experiential learning - she is a graduate of the 2017 Association of Fundraising Professionals Inclusion and Philanthropy Fellowship, and 2010 DiverseCity Fellowship. Tanya gratefully acknowledges the Anishinaabe, Mississaugas and Haudenosaunee nations, whose traditional territory she is a settler and responsible steward of.

Sabreena Delhon is the Executive Director of the Samara Centre for Democracy, a non-partisan charity that is committed to securing a resilient democratic culture in Canada. The Samara Centre's bold research and programs make it a go-to resource for active citizens, public leaders and journalists. Sabreena frequently provides commentary about political participation in media outlets such as the Globe & Mail, CBC, CTV, Global and the Toronto Star.

Prior to joining the Samara Centre, Sabreena was the Principal of Signal Strategies and managed access to justice initiatives at the Law Society of Ontario. She has directed sociological research studies that examine public perceptions of legal technology and the justice system; results have informed the work of Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General and can be found on law school syllabi. Sabreena is a Fellow with Simon Fraser University’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue and Massey College. She is on the board of the Provocation Ideas Festival.

Noa Mendelsohn Aviv joined the CCLA in 2002 and has directed both CCLA’s Equality and Freedom of Expression programs, writing, appearing and advocating on such issues as refugee protection, 2SLGBTQI+ rights, racial profiling, reproductive justice, freedom of expression, religion, and the intersection of rights. Noa has stewarded litigation for the organization, including CCLA’s Bill 21, abortion access, and solitary confinement challenges, and dozens of interventions in courts across the country. She has appeared before Parliamentary and provincial legislative committees and other public bodies. Noa has also initiated creative advocacy projects to support, engage and empower marginalized communities, and provided guest lectures and workshops through CCLET’s public education project. She frequently engages the public through opinion pieces, blogs, and commentary in the media.

Noa obtained her LL.B. and LL.M. (cum laude) from the Hebrew University in Israel, and her B.A. (with distinction) from York University. She completed her legal articles at the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and was called to the Israeli Bar in 1998. Noa has also practiced litigation, labour, and commercial law in Jerusalem, and served as Acting Administrative Director of Hebrew University Law Faculty’s Center for Human Rights.

Entrepreneurial and innovative, Sharon Avery has been challenging traditional notions of fundraising and philanthropy throughout her thirty-year career.

As President & CEO of Toronto Foundation, Sharon has championed "the new philanthropy," an inclusive, participatory, and power-shifting approach to charitable giving and grant-making. With Sharon at the helm, Toronto Foundation has become a gathering place for diverse new philanthropists, community organizations and grassroots leaders to embark on learning journeys and build partnerships to more effectively fight inequality in the city. 

Under her leadership the Foundation has introduced programs, such as Vision 2020 and Vision Next, aimed at mobilizing next generation philanthropists; the Trust Collective, focused on investing in women and girls; and harnessing the potential of social impact investing. Sharon played an instrumental role in helping secure $300 million in government funding to support global gender equality through the Equality Fund, an innovative multi-sector partnership between the non-profit sector, philanthropists and investors.

Armed with a broadcasting degree Sharon found her real calling in the charitable sector and has held senior roles at UNICEF, SickKids Foundation, Save the Children Canada and Tim Horton Children's Foundation. 

Leslie Woo CRE^® is a respected city leader with over 25 years of experience building sustainable communities and shaping urban development in Canada’s fastest-growing urban region, greater Toronto. Leslie assumed the role of CEO at CivicAction in 2020. CivicAction is a premier civic engagement organization that convenes established and rising leaders from all sectors, backgrounds and experiences, CivicAction catalyzes actions and impactful solutions to address pressing challenges in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and beyond.

Before joining CivicAction, Leslie was Chief Planning and Development Officer.at the Greater Golden Horseshoe regional transit authority, Metrolinx, for over a decade. Leslie is a tri-sector athlete with experience in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors as well she is a seasoned urban planner, architect and tireless community activator. She holds Board Director positions at Womens College Hospital (since 2017), Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care (since 2022), Waterfront Toronto (federal appointment since 2021), Urban Land Institute’s Curtis Infrastructure Global Advisory Board (since 2020). 

An accomplished leader, Leslie was named a Senior Fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy in 2022, Bisnow’s 2019 Toronto Power Women in Commercial Real Estate, one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in 2017 by WXN, Spacing Toronto’s Transit Changemaker in 2016 and Canada’s Women’s Infrastructure Network’s 2015 Outstanding Leader. Founder of shebuildscities.org, Leslie uses her voice and platform to amplify and celebrate other women city builders.