Jessica Penney (she/her) is a Research Associate at Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre; in this role she works on primary and secondary research and analysis, writing research reports, and serves on several research review committees related to research in Inuit Nunangat. Jessica is also a doctoral student in Sociology at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, and has a MA(Social Science) in Sociology and Public Policy, and an MSc in Global Health

Dr. Gwen Healey Akearok was born and raised in Iqaluit, Nunavut and it is in this community that she continues to live, work and raise her family. Gwen is co-founder and Executive and Scientific Director of the Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre (AHRN-NU) in Iqaluit, NU. She holds a Master’s degree in Epidemiology & Community Health Sciences from the University of Calgary and a Ph.D. in Public Health from the University of Toronto. Dr. Healey Akearok co-founded the Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre in 2006 with the late Andrew Tagak Sr.

Maria Cherba is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Communication, University of Ottawa. She joined Qaujigiartiit in 2017 and has worked on several research projects including cancer and end-of-life care, health care provider recruitment and retention, and land-based mental wellness programs. She has also participated in several projects conducted in partnership with universities and health care organizations in Montréal and in Ottawa to improve services to the community, covering topics such as patient-provider communication, psychosocial support, and telemedicine.

Moriah Sallaffie (she/her) is a Research Associate at Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre in Iqaluit, NU, an independent, non-profit community research institute. In her work she focuses on research projects and program delivery that center around youth mental health and wellness, including education determinants in Nunavut. Moriah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Human Services.

Mike Boyes is a developmental psychologist who was previously an associate professor in the psychology department at the University of Calgary and has since semi-retired. He currently keeps busy teaching online dual credit courses for Calgary high schools, university students, and in partnership with Carolyn. He is an active blogger and textbook author and has recently launched a website focussed on identity building and pathfinding for emerging adults. His research interests have involved the development of young person’s understanding of the social world from the pre-school years through young adulthood. He has investigated the implications of adolescent changes in young people’s epistemic assumptions for their efforts to establish a coherent sense of personal identity. Mike has also worked with Indigenous groups on the development and telling the stories of programs that try to build and ensure cultural continuity for urban Indigenous children, youth, adults, and families.

Located at the intersections of race, gender, and settler colonialism, Dr. Laura Landertinger’s research examines how power and inequality are reproduced and resisted in institutional contexts. Of particular interest to her are the fields of education and child welfare. Currently, Dr. Landertinger is a Senior Researcher at the Indigenous Advanced Education and Skills Council (IAESC). She holds a PhD in the Sociology of Education from the University of Toronto.

Located at the intersections of race, gender, and settler colonialism, Dr. Laura Landertinger’s research examines how power and inequality are reproduced and resisted in institutional contexts. Of particular interest to her are the fields of education and child welfare. Currently, Dr. Landertinger is a Senior Researcher at the Indigenous Advanced Education and Skills Council (IAESC). She holds a PhD in the Sociology of Education from the University of Toronto.

Danielle Tessaro completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship with the Department of Indigenous Education at the University of Victoria. Her PhD is from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, where she graduated from the Adult Education and Community Development program. She is currently a part time, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream in the Department of Human Geography at the University of Toronto Scarborough, where she teaches courses on social-environmental topics, as well as a Senior Researcher at the Indigenous Advanced Education & Skills Council. Her cross-disciplinary research focuses on environmental policy and Indigenous education.

Amelia Thorpe (she/her) is a doctoral candidate at the University of New Brunswick and Executive Director of ConneQT NB. Her research is centred on grassroots development within gender and sexual minority communities and queering concepts of identity, space, and education. Amelia has extensive experience as an educator and activist and has worked with numerous not-for-profit and advocacy groups both locally and nationally.