Avenue Calgary Magazine November 2021 by RedPoint Media

26 YEARS OF CITY | LIFE | STYLE | CALGARY

NOVEMBER 2021 | $4.95 | AVENUECALGARY.COM

TOP 4 UNDER 4 The annual list of Calgarians making waves in our city and beyond, all before their 40th birthdays MICHELLE FOURNIE member of Métis Nation Region 3 and manager of Iniikokaan Centre at Bow Valley College

GLOBAL V E G E TA R I A N Discover a world of meatless cuisine right here in the city

INDIGENOUS TOURISM Outdoor adventures with connection to the land

An Adventure? e

Alpaca my bags! Come to the Calgary Zoo and visit nearly 1,000 creatures across 119 species. Visit calgaryzoo.com for more information calgaryzoo.com

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50 YEARS AGO, IT ALL BEGAN WITH AN IDEA. In 1971, a group of forward-thinking, courageous leaders and educators broke ground on a new campus in a remote rural area just south of Calgary, Alberta. Little did they know that this tiny school with big ideas would go on to become the gold standard of independent private education in Canada − and around the world.

STS is looking for future leaders and advocates.

APPLY TODAY! ST RAT H CO N AT W E E DS M U I R .CO M

YOUR NEXT HAPPENS IN CALGARY. Top 40 under 40, you’re already crushing your goals. So what’s next? From promotions to deals, research and patents, new ventures or Series A, the possibilities are endless. Calgary has your back. Whether it’s fueling, feeding, healing or moving, this city is home to innovators like yourself solving some of the world’s greatest challenges. Calgary is a city both changing with the world and helping to change the world. Your next adventure happens here. What’s it going to be?

Get inspired at livetechlovelife.com/stories

C ONT E N TS 14

EDITOR’S NOTE

WORK OF ART

Nove m b e r 2 0 2 1

ON THE COVER P H OTO G R A P H B Y J A R E D SY C H

Michelle Fournie, one of this year’s Top 40, a member of Métis Nation Region 3 and manager of the Iniikokaan Centre at Bow Valley College. Her skirt, which Fournie made with her Auntie, references the Every Child Matters orange shirt to raise awareness of the legacy of the residential school system. “The handprints are my children’s and it reminds me of the work we still need to do to reform education systems for healing and reconciliation,” she says.

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DEPAR T M E N TS

F E ATU R E S

19 DETOURS

88 MOUNTAINS

The Calgary Ghostbusters are who you’re gonna call if you’re looking for a crew of dedicated volunteers. Plus, a chat with the owner of Canyon Meadows Cinemas, a movie-going institution in town, and a dive into Diwali, the most festive holiday on the South Asian calendar.

Indigenous tourism experiences go beyond adventure to offer a deeper understanding of the land. Learn about three Indigenous outfitters that operate through the winter months in the regional mountains and foothills.

24 THE TOP 40 UNDER 40 CLASS OF 2021

83 DINING Plant-based eating may be a new trend, but vegetarian and vegan diets are ages old in many cultures. Here’s how to meatlessly eat your way around the world without leaving Calgary.

92 DECOR A look inside the home of interior designer Louis Duncan-He, who created a peaceful and restorative sanctuary, with dual home offices for himself and his husband.

The big reveal of this year’s class of exceptional Calgarians, who are all making waves in their various fields and industries before their 40th birthdays and making our city all the better for it. By Tsering Asha, Jazmine Canfield, Derek Clouthier, Christina Frangou, Colin Gallant, Travis Klemp, Nathan Kunz, Michelle McIvor, Amber McLinden, Ado Nkemka, Karin Olafson, Michaela Ream and Colleen Seto

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JARED SYCH, EYMERIC WIDLING

No child should experience abuse

Each year, Luna serves almost 2,000 children and youth who have been impacted by abuse. Our team of experts from health, children’s services, justice, law enforcement, and victim services, provide the support children and families need along their path to healing. With the help of the community, we’re working towards a day when every child is safe.

Light when you need it most Learn more at lunacentre.ca

Congratulations to this year’s Top 40 Under 40 honourees, especially Dr. Sarah MacDonald, Luna’s Forensic Interview Specialist.

EDITOR’S NOTE

A BETTER WORLD

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Shelley Arnusch Editor in Chief sarnusch@redpointmedia.ca

accessibility. They are challenging the paradigms that have previously prevented success among certain demographics. They are fostering safe and inclusive communities for more people to be their most healthy and fulfilled selves. They are doing what needs to be done to give everyone a chance. As is typically the case, this year’s Top 40 list has a healthy contingency of medical doctors. Among them is one who works with the elderly, one who works with and advocates for those experiencing homelessness, one who is creating innovative new treatments for those with severe depression and one who helps those with type-2 diabetes retain their limbs. A sign of these times, there’s also a respirologist working on the front lines of the pandemic while conducting research to better understand the effects of COVID-19. And of course, it wouldn’t be a Top 40 Under 40 list without entrepreneurs. But perhaps it’s another sign of the times that many of the entrepreneurial members of the 2021 class are finding success through non-traditional avenues, such as social media, and in non-traditional industries like green energy and the still new frontier of craft brewing. In certain instances, the mark of success for members of this year’s class was simply the ability to survive, to bear down, to ride out the tough times and still come up swinging. Reading about the Top 40 Under 40 class of 2021, I’ve got a sense that our city and our world will be a better one because these people are in it. And that’s the kind of optimism we could all use a dose of right now.

UNDER40 If you know someone who should be on next year’s Top 40 Under 40 list, nominate them today at top40under40.com P H O T O G R A P H B Y H E AT H E R S A I T Z

ovember is Top 40 Under 40 month at Avenue, the big reveal of our annual list of 40 individuals, all under the age of 40, who are not only achieving and innovating within their chosen fields, sectors and industries, but also advancing our expectations of what is possible. The Top 40 Under 40 list is, arguably, the magazine’s marquee project and its reach, across our home city especially, is broad. For over a decade now, I’ve worked on the Top 40 project in various editorial capacities. A few years in, I began to notice some consistencies among the general feedback that the issue tends to receive. Statement number one is that we should expand the age criteria and do a Top 50 Under 50 list, usually delivered with a hint of self-deprecation by those in their mid-40s. Statement number two, usually delivered in earnest, is that we should flip the project on its head and celebrate late-in-life success with a Top 40 Over 40 list. Or a Top 40 Under 80 list. Or a Top 80 Under 80 list. The list goes on. The third statement, usually delivered with a heap of self-deprecation, is that in reading the Top 40 profiles, you start to realize how little you’ve achieved in your own life. And while I suppose that’s one way to look at it, the eternal optimist in me has always seen it another way — that reading about young, driven, successful people doing amazing things in my city makes me feel hopeful about the future. This year’s class seems to bolster that feeling in me. Following two extraordinary and anxiety-inducing pandemic years, the idea of what it is to be a “successful” person has become more fragmented than ever. But what this year’s group exemplifies on the whole is a focus on building capacity for others to succeed. They are addressing deeply rooted inequities in areas such as education, justice and

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info@redpointmedia.ca AvenueCalgary.com Facebook: Avenue Magazine — Calgary Twitter: @AvenueMagazine Instagram: @AvenueMagazine

Contributing Editors Jennifer Hamilton, Meredith Bailey Editorial Assistant Tsering Asha

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Elladj Baldé The figure skating star of social media and master of the backflip on blades opens up about his Calgary connection and gets real about his role in creating more

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you can be chairman of the board this season. Plus, how to stock your pantry so you can create a charcuterie platter on the fly.

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Jared Blustein, The Allium. Jason Curry, Calgary Firefighters Association. Allison Dunne, Pink Flamingo. Michelle Fournie, Bow Valley College. Carmen Morin, Morin Music Studio. Trevor Solway, Solway Entertainment. Change makers, ground breakers, status-quo shakers. Our alumni do it all. Congratulations to an inspiring group of MRU alumni for making this year’s Top 40 under 40. Here’s to you, your accomplishments and all that’s still to come. We can’t wait to see what’s next. You always belong here. mru.ca/Alumni

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DETOURS WHO YOU GONNA CALL?

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JARED SYCH

AHEAD OF THE RELEASE OF GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE, CANDACE SCHNEIDER, CO-FOUNDER OF THE CALGARY GHOSTBUSTERS, TALKS ABOUT HER TEAM’S PASSION FOR THE FRANCHISE AND THEIR VOLUNTEER WORK.

he Calgary Ghostbusters are a team of about 30 volunteers, co-founded by Candace Schneider and Sean Nicholson. In iconic Ghostbusters uniforms, they appear at conventions, movie showings and other events. And as Schnieder confirmed, this month is set to be a big one for her crew with the release of

the Alberta-shot Ghostbusters: Afterlife. As a child, Schneider loved the animated series The Real Ghostbusters. The 2016 release of Answer the Call, a reboot with an all-female Ghostbusters cast, renewed her passion for the franchise. “I still had all of my toys from when I was a kid, but when the new movie came out I decided that for Halloween I was going to go as Holtzmann [the character avenuecalgary.com

DETOURS

ODE TO THE SECOND RUN OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES, THE FAMILY-OWNED-ANDOPERATED CANYON MEADOWS CINEMAS HAS REMAINED A STAPLE OF CALGARY’S MOVIE-GOING LANDSCAPE.

N AT H A L I E H U N T E R CANDACE SCHNEIDER

“I LIKE TO DO NICE THINGS FOR THE COMMUNITY. [GHOSTBUSTING] JUST PUTS A FUN TWIST ON IT.”

To learn more about the Calgary Ghostbusters, visit calgaryghostbusters.com. Ghostbusters: Afterlife comes out November 11. 20

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anyon Meadows Cinemas has Over the past two decades, Hunter says she been a cornerstone of the city’s has seen the industry change, with national south side for the past 20 years. chains representing all but a handful of cinFrom contagious-laughter comemas in the city, and on-demand or streaming edies to not-a-dry-eye dramas, owner options sometimes being released simultaneNathalie Hunter says it’s the communal ously with second runs. A switch from film nature of movie-going that keeps Calgarians reels to digital hard drives in 2011 represented coming to the theatre. another financial challenge as Hunter had to “Often, it’s not even what you’re watchacquire new projectors. ing,” says Hunter, “it’s the experience that Still, both the Canyon Meadows team and you’re having with the people that audiences have found ways to keep “I’m overare sitting around you.” the Cinemas rolling. Canyon Meadows Cinemas is one whelmed every When theatres closed over the day by the of the last of its kind, both in Calgary pandemic, Hunter and her staff people that and beyond — an independent wanted to see organized several drive-in screentheatre specializing in second-run ings of classic films, from The Rocky us survive” screenings. NATHALIE HUNTER Horror Picture Show to Shrek. TickThe location just off Macleod Trail ets for the events consistently sold originally operated as a Cineplex until closing out in a matter of hours. Hunter says regulars in 2001. Hunter, who owned the two-screen also stopped in weekly to pick up popcorn and Okotoks Cinemas at the time, decided to buy asked for other avenues to help out through the space and reopen it as the discount movie the shutdowns, eager to find other ways to suphouse it is today. port the business. The multiplex has since become an insti“I’m overwhelmed every day by the people tution in the city’s south. Five-dollar tickets that wanted to see us survive,” Hunter says. make it an affordable night out, and count—Nathan Kunz less birthday parties, first dates and other For info and showtimes at Canyon Meadows milestones have taken place within Canyon Cinemas, visit canyonmeadowscinemas.ca Meadows’ 10 theatres.

PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE COLLINS

played by Kate McKinnon in the 2016 film].” Ghostbuster groups all over the world create their own “ecto” vehicles based on “Ecto-1a,” the iconic Ghostbusters’ vehicle. These groups connect in an annual social media contest where fans vote for their favourite vehicle. The most popular photos are included in the Calgary Ghostbusters’ annual Ecto calendar that they sell to raise money for the Alberta Children’s Hospital. The Calgary Ghostbusters also held a food drive for the Airdrie Food Bank during the pandemic. Donors filled their “ecto truck” with more than 1,300 pounds of food over two weekends. There was also a “very tasteful” female Ghostbusters calendar that raised funds for the Calgary Women’s Emergency Shelter. So what does Ghostbusting have to do with volunteerism, exactly? “I did [Calgary Folk Music Festival] before, I’ve given blood. I like to do nice things for the community,” Schneider says. “[Ghostbusting] just puts a fun twist on it.” With a new Ghostbusters film on the way, Schneider looks forward to sharing her passion with younger fans, too. “It’s going to be a whole new generation of fans. So my niece, who is three now, she can love Ghostbusters like I did when I was younger.” —Ado Nkemka

Made in Alberta Awards Winners Box from Uproot Food Collective GET A TASTE OF AWARD-WINNING LOCAL TREATS.

We’ve partnered with Uproot Food Collective to bring Made in Alberta Award-winning products straight to your door with our curated food boxes. The latest Made in Alberta Awards box features sweet and savoury delights selected from this year’s winners and runners-up, including the Made in Alberta Awards Overall Grand Prize winner Beverage Bombs. Some of the other winners in the box include Alchemist Honey Blackened Garlic Vinegar, Amazing Dad’s BBQ Sauce, Preserved Haskap Jam, Cookie Crumbs Waffle Pucks and Confetti Sweet Totally Awesome Cookie Mix. This Made in Alberta box features products from Bragg Creek to Okotoks to Maskwacis to Guy, Alta., and locations in between, giving you a true taste of the province. Through Uproot Food Collective, Albertans have even more access to authentically original food brands, so you can be sure you’re getting exceptional local products.

To order, visit UprootFoodStore.ca avenuecalgary.com

Openings BODY BY CHAI

What to know about the biggest South Asian holiday of the year and how to celebrate it in Calgary.

very winter before the Christmas rush, millions of people celebrate another time-honoured holiday: Diwali, the festival of lights. Diwali is one of the biggest South Asian holidays of the year and occurs in October/November for two-to-five days. Here are some things to know about Diwali and how to celebrate it in Calgary.

Good Triumphs Over Evil Diwali is a celebration of two Hindu mythologies: Dhanteras and Naraka Chaturthi, the names of the first and second day of the holiday, respectively. In each story, a god (Hinduism is a polytheistic religion) restores happiness and prosperity back to a community by slaying demons.

Daily Customs Each day of Diwali is reserved for specific practices. The first two days are for cleaning your home and yourself, dressing in new clothes and jewellery, and performing puja (prayer) at your local mandir (temple). On day three, the main day of Diwali, families 22

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pray at home to the goddess of good fortune, Lakshmi. The last two days are set aside for quality time with your partner and siblings.

Colourful Traditions Diwali is a colourful and celebratory religious event. During the festival people set off firecrackers, decorate their homes with rangolis (intricate floral designs made with coloured powder or rice) and light hundreds of diyas, small, clay lamps filled with ghee or oil and a wick.

DECATHLON This new 70,000-square-foot store in Southcentre Mall features a gymnasium, coffee shop and a wide range of sporting goods. Southcentre Mall, decathalon.ca

D.O.P. The latest Italian dining sensation in Calgary is D.O.P., a no-fuss joint operated by Tony Migliarese of Pizzaface. The opening of D.O.P. brings Migliarese full-circle into the space formerly operated as Von Der Fels, where he used to do pizza pop-ups. 1005A 1 St. S.W., 587-349-2656, dopyyc.com, @dopyyc

Local Celebrations While firecrackers are restricted in Calgary, the Sanatan Hindu Cultural Society (SHCS) hosts prayers, gatherings and performances every Diwali, (with the exception of 2020). This year, Diwali celebrations are set to happen in the SHCS’s newly relocated mandir and community space in the city’s northeast, where you can also find snacks, sweets, clothing, jewellery and more from an assortment of South Asian grocery and clothing stores. —Tsering Asha

FIRST STREET MARKET This new food hall is home to 10 exciting local vendors, including Actually Pretty Good, Saffron Street, Moose and Poncho, Friends with Benedicts and others. 1327 1 St. S.W., fsmyyc.com, @firststreetmarketyyc

MADAME PREMIER Shop for apparel, artwork, accessories and more at this feminist lifestyle shop in Inglewood. The brand was founded online by Sarah Elder-Chamanara in 2019, while

P H O T O G R A P H Y C O U R T E S Y O F U D AYA D I T YA B A R U A A N D PA R T H O R O Y O N U N S P L A S H , J A R E D S Y C H , D . O . P. , A L A N A W I L L E R T O N , M A D A M E P R E M I E R

DIWALI FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS

This Beltline store focuses on offering “a comfortable, safe and inclusive lingerie experience” for everyone. Virtual and in-person bra fittings are available. 7, 718 17 Ave. S.W., 403-243-7138, bodybychai.com

DETOURS

the new space — designed by Amanda Hamilton — opened this past summer. 1012 9 Ave. S.E., 403-226-0551, madamepremier.com, @madamepremier

MILK The local ice cream artisans have opened a storefront in Mount Pleasant where you can try f lavours like pandan, strawberries-and-cream, Dunkaroos, Vietnamese coffee and more. 2614 4 St. N.W., milkicecreamshop.com

P H O T O G R A P H Y C O U R T E S Y O F @ D E R E K _ N G U Y E N , T H E T E A H O U S E , T U TA C O D E L A C A L L E , W O O D S R O S E S K I N C A R E

TEA HOUSE The downstairs bar at A1 Bodega & Cafe (formerly Two Penny) has reopened with a new food concept. Thank You Hospitality friend Naoki Kimura will serve up a menu of Japanese eats alongside the lounge’s signature cocktails. 1213 1 St. S.W. teahouseyyc.com, @teahouseyyc

TU TACO DE LA CALLE Tostadas, burritos, beef birria tacos, churros — all of this and more at this new Mexican restaurant in Kensington. 102, 1414 Kensington Rd. N.W., 403-283-0137, tutaco.ca

WOODS ROSE SKINCARE Woods Rose Skincare offers facials at its new studio in the Grain Exchange building. Operated by facialist Erin Dick-Jensen, treatments use a “holistic, therapeutic and realistic” approach. There’s already a waitlist for these thoughtful and cleansing experiences. 815 1 St. S.W., woodsrose.com, @woodsroseskin

We get your home to-do’s, done. Snow Removal, Furnace Installation & Repair, Handyman, Plumbing, Hot Water Tank Installation.

Find it all at Rumi.ca/TakeBackYourSaturday avenuecalgary.com

UND 24

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Who made the list this year? It’s a question that has become intrinsically linked to Avenue’s November issue, also known around these parts as the “Top 40 issue.” For more than two decades, Avenue and its predecessor publications in the RedPoint Media family have released an annual list of 40 individuals, all under the age of 40 years old, who have distinguished themselves professionally and are moving the city forward. As such, Avenue’s Top 40 Under 40, presented in association with the University of Calgary, creates a snapshot of what being young and successful looks like in Calgary in a particular year. While the Top 40 Under 40 class of 2021 represents a diverse group of individuals over a wide range of industries and sectors, one of the common threads this year is that many are building capacity for others to succeed. This is a group whose members aren’t just out to succeed for their own gain, but to succeed at creating a more equitable, accessible and just society. As of November 1, nominations are open for next year’s Top 40 Under 40 list. If you know of someone who belongs in the class of 2022, you can get the ball rolling at top40under40.com.

E R40

BY T S E R I N G A S H A , J A Z M I N E C A N F I E L D , D E R E K C L O U T H I E R , C H R I S T I N A F R A N G O U , C O L I N G A L L A N T, T R AV I S K L E M P, N AT H A N K U N Z , A M B E R M C L I N D E N , M I C H E L L E M C I V O R , A D O N K E M K A , K A R I N O L A F S O N , M I C H A E L A R E A M A N D C O L L E E N S E TO P H OTO G R A P H Y BY J A R E D S Y C H H A I R A N D M A K E U P BY A R T I S T S W I T H I N , HEDKANDI SALON AND SALON BOWIE

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ELISE AHENKORAH Inclusion Strategist and Speaker, inclusion FACTOR; Founder & Executive Director, #shemeets

AGE 36

Elise Ahenkorah is an award-winning diversity, equity and inclusion strategist and founder of #shemeets, a women-ofcolour entrepreneurship resource group. s founder of inclusion FACTOR, Elise Ahenkorah uses data-driven strategies to show how an inclusive workplace increases both the bottom line and employee satisfaction. Ahenkorah holds a bachelor’s degree in law and justice with a minor in international relations from Laurentian University (LU). As an undergrad, she reshaped LU with a diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) program and by adding Black History Month programming. She also created a DE&I committee at the presidential level to ensure a studentinclusive environment year-round since 2005. Ahenkorah went on to obtain a graduate diploma in DE&I strategic planning and risk mitigation from Cornell University. This year, LU recognized her with an alumni achievement award due to her sustaining efforts in building DE&I across the university as an undergraduate student in 2005. The inclusion FACTOR clientele includes IBM, Hootsuite, the University of Texas, Saje Natural Wellness and the Law Society of Saskatchewan. With inclusion FACTOR, Ahenkorah is also helping organizations and businesses embed DE&I principles into their business outcomes. In 2019, Ahenkorah started the non-profit #shemeets, to provide training, mentorship and resources for women-of-colour entrepreneurs. In two years, #shemeets has grown to 7,000 members internationally and disbursed $78,090 in microgrants for members looking to scale their businesses. Earlier this year, Ahenkorah was recognized for her impact with #shemeets as a L’Oréal Paris Woman of Worth Canada honouree. “I’m grateful that I had exposure into the importance of using my voice, the importance of problem-solving, and the importance of just seeing something through and being a part of the solution,” Ahenkorah says, “because it has absolutely shaped who I am.” —T.A.

“I’M THE TYPE OF PERSON WHERE I F I G E T A N O , I N E V E R S E E T H AT AS A CLOSED DOOR, I JUST SEE T H AT A S A R E D I R E C T I O N .”

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T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y A L I C E E N N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y C I T L A L I L O Z A , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y B R E N N A S T E V E N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y A M E N M I N H A S , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

DAN ALLARD Co-founder, Cold Garden Beverage Company; Chair, Inglewood BIA

AGE 34

Dan Allard co-founded a successful craft brewery and works to create community gathering spaces outside the taproom. hether it’s selecting second-hand furniture pieces for the Cold Garden brewery taproom or breaking through bureaucratic red tape, Dan Allard says all of his efforts begin in the same place. “The main motivator for me is that there are cool things elsewhere in the world and I want them in our neighbourhood,” says Allard. “And our neighbourhood is Calgary.” Allard handles the business side of Cold Garden, which he co-founded in 2015. While the relaxed vibe of the welding shop-turned-taproom now attracts hundreds of Calgarians daily, it took a lot of hard work to get it there. Allard worked alongside the City of Calgary ahead of the taproom’s opening in 2017 to reshape the microbrewery bylaw. The changes benefited the industry as a whole by upping capacity and permitting sampling and production in a single space, no walls required. Another Cold Garden signature — dogs in the taproom — came from Allard’s efforts with AHS to rework regulations and ensure the pup-friendly policy was people-friendly, too. Allard traces his desire to share communitybased experiences to his lifelong experience performing traditional Métis jigging. He shares his Métis heritage by dancing at events like the 2010 Winter Olympic Games as well as small community gatherings and in Calgary classrooms. He takes the same community-centric approach to his work with the Inglewood BIA. Thanks to Allard and the BIA, an unused green space across from Cold Garden officially became Gopher Park in 2019, complete with a basketball court, chess tables and mini-ramp. As BIA chair, Allard helped establish Car Free Sundays, which turned 9th Avenue S.E. into a pedestrian stroll on Sundays in August. Allard plans to keep pushing the envelope for Cold Garden, Inglewood and the city. “It comes down to stubbornness, but also that it’s just possible,” he says. “I know everything is possible.” —N.K.

“ I ’ V E A LWAY S B E E N A P E O P L E P E R S O N . I G E T E N E RGY O F F OF PEOPLE, I GIVE PEOPLE E N E RGY — B E I N G A RO U N D P E O P L E I S M Y T H I N G .”

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JORDAN BALABAN President, Greengate Power Corporation

AGE 36

Jordan Balaban leads one of the largest producers of renewable energy in the country. s president and co-founder of Greengate Power Corporation, one of the country’s top renewable energy developers, Jordan Balaban is leading the way in providing wind and solar power to the province of Alberta. Balaban was part of the team, then led by his brother Dan, that launched Greengate in 2007. “There were unique challenges to starting a company like this in Alberta, as it’s obviously a province that has been very successful in the world of oil and gas,” Balaban says. “But it is always special when you can combine doing good and serving a community by building a company.” With nine employees, Greengate is relatively small, but the work it does is significant. In the 14 years Greengate has been in operation, it has generated opportunities for nearly $2 billion of investment in renewables through its wind and solar projects. Since its inception, Greengate has created close to a gigawatt of power for the province of Alberta, delivering a clean source of energy robust enough to power 400,000 homes. Balaban and his team are delivering renewable energy without subsidies from the provincial government, relying instead on private investors. One of Greengate’s latest undertakings, the Travers Solar Project, is financed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, one of the world’s largest infrastructure funds. The partnership represents $700 million of direct foreign investment in Alberta. When completed in 2022, Travers will be Canada’s largest solar energy project and one of the biggest in the world. Balaban praises the dedicated team of employees, board members and consultants, advisors and partners for Greengate’s success so far. As Alberta continues to navigate its way toward renewable energy, he is hopeful his work will lead to a cleaner and more economically diverse future. “Greengate is proof that you can complete projects of unprecedented scale with a nimble, motivated and inspired team,” Balaban says. —T.K.

“ F R O M A N E N V I R O N M E N TA L OR SOCIAL PERSPECTIVE, G R E E N G AT E H A S M A D E A T R E M E N D O U S I M PA C T.”

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T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y J AY H I B B E R T, H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y Y O R D A N O S H A D G U , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y J E R E M E B O K I T C H , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

JARED BLUSTEIN Co-founder, The Allium; Program Manager, The Arusha Centre

AGE 37

Jared Blustein is making Calgary a more equitable city through his cooperatively run restaurant and his social-justice work. ared Blustein’s measure of success puts people first. He’s co-founder of The Allium, a plant-based restaurant structured as a worker cooperative, and program manager of The Arusha Centre, an organization that focuses on social, economic and environmental issues. For The Allium, Blustein created a non-hierarchical structure. Management is decentralized and workers are paid a living wage atop dividends on profit. Blustein can typically be found bartending, cooking or doing dishes, recruiting new members and coaching other businesses interested in the Allium model. For two years running, the restaurant has turned a profit in an industry where one in five fail within the first year. Blustein’s mission to create a more equitable society includes his work at the non-profit Arusha Centre. He manages the Open Street Events program and the Calgary Dollars affordable housing program — an offshoot of the Calgary Dollars complementary currency. Open Streets is all about events that reclaim the public realm, with a focus on green energy. The Calgary Dollars affordable housing program allows participants to earn part of their rent through volunteerism. From 2018 to summer 2021, partner agencies accepted $50,957 in Calgary Dollars for rent acceptance, with food-access cause Fresh Routes also accepting more than $5,480 Calgary Dollars for groceries since March 2019. Worker co-ops and non-profit models aren’t novel, but Blustein’s have a contemporary twist. At The Allium, he helped implement flexible membership options, virtual content and retail offerings as a secondary revenue stream. He also helped Arusha pivot to the virtual space. “I firmly believe that by creating greater wealth, greater opportunities, greater empowerment for the mass of people — working class people — we start to create a stronger, more empowered, more uplifted, happier society,” he says. —C.G.

“CRITIQUING IS FUN, B U T C R E AT I N G I S M O R E E N J O YA B L E . I ’ M V E R Y M U C H A SOLUTIONS-BASED P E R S O N .”

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President, Co-founder and Co-owner, The Bro’Kin Yolk

AGE 38

JEFF CARLOS Chef, Co-founder and Co-owner, The Bro’Kin Yolk

AGE 32

Brothers Gil and Jeff Carlos own and operate local breakfast-restaurant chain The Bro’Kin Yolk, and have expanded it outside Calgary. 30

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selves, or with confidence — if you tell me what your goal is, I will make it my mission to get there.” For Jeff, the concept of family and mentorship means creating a culture for The Bro’Kin Yolk’s kitchen staff to thrive. “I give cooks a chance to stay in the industry,” Jeff says, adding that many people he’s met throughout the years have left the industry due to low pay, long hours and what can be a trying work environment. “There’s a lot of addiction, and that’s the main thing I’m trying to change — how we treat our employees and how they treat each other. We want a safe environment where people can grow and get rewarded for their hard work.” Community means a lot to the Carlos brothers, and they feel a sense of community here in the city where they launched their breakfast-restaurant mini-empire. “This city honestly helped raise my brother and I,” says Gil. “The Calgary community is so close-knit and we really appreciated that.” —D.C.

H A I R B Y T R A C Y C H E U N G , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

GIL CARLOS

rothers Gil and Jeff Carlos are behind The Bro’Kin Yolk breakfast restaurants. They opened their first Bro’Kin Yolk in Calgary in 2015 and have since added two more Calgary locations and one in Edmonton. A takeoutonly branch called Bro’s to Go is also in the works. The culture of The Bro’Kin Yolk is centered around family and mentorship, something Gil says he and his brother didn’t have much of after their father left when Gil was 13. “[My father] was probably the most influential person in my life,” Gil says. “I learned so much about what not to do, what kind of father not to be.” His approach to running The Bro’Kin Yolk reflects his aspiration to support the people in his life and be there for them. “I help people reach their goals,” Gil says of his employees, “whether it be school, in their personal relationships, with them-

COVID-19 has impacted us all and we are in this together. Thank you to our staff for all you do to help keep Albertans healthy and safe. And thank you to Albertans for continuing to do your part by wearing your masks, staying home when you are sick, and most importantly, getting immunized.

Congratulations to the AHS Winners of the 2021 Top 40 Under 40 award

Dr. Monty Ghosh

Dr. Zahra Goodarzi

Dr. Devon Livingstone

Assistant Professor University of Alberta, Clinical Assistant Professor University of Calgary, Internal Medicine, Disaster Medicine, & Addiction Medicine

Assistant Professor, Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of Calgary

Otolaryngologist, Head and Neck Surgeon

ahs.ca

JASON CURRY Lieutenant, Calgary Fire Department; Director of Government Relations, Calgary Firefighters Association

AGE 38

Jason Curry is working to shift the culture of firefighting by raising awareness of mental health and advocating for diversity and equity within the fire service. hen he’s not responding to emergencies, lieutenant Jason Curry of the Calgary Fire Department is advocating for mental health and increased diversity, equity and inclusion for his fellow firefighters. Appointed director of government relations for the Calgary Firefighters Association (CFA) in 2019, Curry liaises with government and decision-makers on key legislation that directly affects firefighters and their families. According to the Centre for Suicide Prevention, first responders are two times as likely to experience post-traumatic stress disorder than the average population and, subsequently, are more at risk for suicide. But stigma around mental health issues can prevent many from asking for help. To address this, Curry helped create and still oversees four peer-support teams across the province that offer a safe space for firefighters to connect and seek professional support. More than 3,000 active firefighters, retirees and their families use the resource. “Mental health needs care and attention just like physical health. My role is to listen and support them to get the help they need,” Curry says. He also helped establish the Firefighters Assistance Charitable Society, which provides support services, including psychological and professional help and assistance for families following injury or illness. Curry also co-created CFA’s human relations committee, which evaluates programs, policies and procedures from an equitable and inclusive lens. Fire departments have been historically white and male. Curry says increasing diversity of fire departments matters to the communities they serve. “I’ve seen how someone having a medical emergency relaxes when a firefighter who looks like them arrives on scene,” he says. “Less than five per cent of our industry represents equity-deserving groups. We need to change that ratio so current and subsequent groups know equity can exist within our industry.” —D.C.

“ S O C I E T Y H A S C R E AT E D AN IMAGE OF A FIREFIGHTER A N D W E N E E D T O E X PA N D W H AT T H AT L O O K S L I K E .”

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Future forward work

Advanced by the leaders of today Oxford Properties congratulates this year’s Top 40 Under 40 Bow Valley Square | Centennial Place Devon Tower | Eau Claire Tower | Millennium Tower Oxford Properties Group is a leading global real estate investor, asset manager and business builder. We build, buy and grow defined real estate operating businesses with world-class management teams.

GEORGINA DE CAIGNY Executive Director, Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary

AGE 32

Georgina De Caigny rescues wolfdogs and educates 20,000 visitors annually on their conservation. en years ago, 22-year-old Georgina De Caigny knew she wanted to work with animals, but she faced a fork in the road. Her first option was to attend veterinary school. The second was to start a sanctuary for wolfdogs, a passion she had discovered after adopting and falling in love with her own wolfdog, Kuna. She chose path number two, bringing to life the Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary. Located on 160-acres near Cochrane, with a stunning mountain view, Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary now has nine permanent staff members and receives approximately 20,000 visitors every year — Calgarians and tourists alike — who come to learn about the 35 resident dogs and their conservation. De Caigny credits her interest in caring for wolfdogs to the nearby Stoney Nakoda Nation. For centuries, Indigenous people built relationships with wolves and cared for them. That sense of respect and connection is a key element when caring for wolfdogs and it’s something that De Caigny wants to reflect at Yamnuska. Wolfdogs are classified as low, medium or high “content” (a term describing how much of their DNA is wolf). Many people who purchase or adopt wolfdogs aren’t prepared for how much time, space and energy wolfdogs need, and many of these dogs are ultimately abandoned. The lucky ones end up with De Caigny and her team. In October 2020, the sanctuary rescued 10 wolfdogs that became part of Yamnuska’s permanent family. Though educating thousands of individuals every year is fulfilling for De Caigny, she says providing a home for the wolfdogs is the most rewarding part of what she does. “My absolute favourite thing that I get to experience here is when we release wolfdogs into their new massive enclosures, being able to witness those first few moments where it’s like a whole new world for them,” she says. —A.M.

“THE BIGGEST THING WE'VE DONE IS CHANGE PEOPLE’S MINDS ABOUT WOLFDOGS, BECAUSE THEY JUST H AV E S O M A N Y S T I G M A S A N D M Y T H S S U R R O U N D I N G T H E M .”

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T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y J A S M I N E R AT TA N AV I B O U N , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y C I T L A L I L O Z A , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y B R E N N A S T E V E N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S T. C R O I X , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

ALKARIM D E VA N I Co-founder, RNDSQR

AGE 38

Developer Alkarim Devani’s projects balance density with affordability to improve urban living and foster connection. s a builder, Alkarim Devani knows very well that communities are not buildings. “People are the community builders,” he says. “We just provide the canvas and paint.” Devani’s parents immigrated from East Africa to Calgary, where he was born and raised. He developed a passion for helping Calgary grow and prosper, and to ensure other families get the same opportunities he received here. Five years ago, Devani and his brother founded their company Rndsqr (round square), to design townhomes, condos, multi-family and mixed-use buildings that make Calgary’s inner city feel more liveable and connected. Seeing opportunity in established communities, Rndsqr focuses on inner-city living, balancing density with affordability. Unlike traditional approaches to construction that often focus on the buildings and structures, Devani and his team believe in a ground-up approach that puts people’s needs first. They focus on building modern, functional, unique and affordable homes designed around how people move through spaces and interact in them. Devani invests in innercity communities through additions like bike lanes, better transit infrastructure and by incorporating walkable and connected green spaces. The goal, he explains, is to encourage people to use public spaces, support local businesses and see the value and meaning that comes from those interactions. Since its start, Rndsqr has worked in a range of neighbourhoods, including Marda Loop, Altadore, Mission and Killarney, among others. Rndsqr has consistently won awards over the years for innovation, community design and best housing. The company has recently expanded into Winnipeg and Kelowna, where Devani plans to continue the same work of designing mixed-use spaces that foster community. “One of the things that I really hope we can do is help bring people back into spaces to connect with each other, rather than just keeping them within their homes,” he says. —M.R.

“THERE’S SOMETHING E X C I T I N G A B O U T P L AY I N G A ROLE IN BUILDING CITIES AND T H I N K I N G B E Y O N D J U S T W H AT YO U C A N T O U C H A N D F E E L , B U T ALSO HOW PEOPLE INTERACT W I T H S PA C E S .”

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ALLISON DUNNE President and Co-Founder, Pink Flamingo

AGE 32

Allison Dunne amplifies the voices of queer and trans people who are Black, Indigenous or people of colour through public art, anti-racist education and creating safe, inclusive spaces. s a young, gay, Jewish, Black woman, Allison Dunne knows first-hand why representation matters. “Representation is such a huge component of our societal understanding of different perspectives and experiences of life,” she says. “The more differences we bring in, the smarter we become and the more empathetic we are.” Dunne co-founded Pink Flamingo to provide education and safe spaces to uplift the community of queer and trans people who are Black, Indigenous or people of colour (QTBIPOC), whether through workshops, anti-racist programming or parties. The grassroots group began by hosting events and has since become more politically driven. “We listen and practice inclusivity and accessibility so everyone feels awesome, safe and seen,” Dunne says. Dunne also helps BIPOC artists be heard, particularly in Calgary’s public art realm. In 2020, Pink Flamingo petitioned City Council for funding for four Black Lives Matter murals. Council approved $120,000 for the project in partnership with Calgary Arts Development. The first mural was to be painted on the former CUPS building, replacing an existing mural. However, the intended project experienced pushback from the public and Dunne and fellow organizers were subjected to racist attacks, forcing postponement of the project to the summer of 2021. The maelstrom lit a fire in Dunne to continue Pink Flamingo’s anti-racist efforts. A separate mural celebrating Blackness was completed in Chinatown in 2020, while the four murals from this year included a musical partnership with Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. “People think I want to burn it all down, but there are different ways to light a fire. And fire doesn’t always destroy, it can rebirth things,” she says. Ultimately, Dunne wants to make change. “Giving Black and Brown people more opportunities is good. There’s no downside to this.”—C.S.

“ I H AV E PAT I E N C E FOR IGNORANCE. THERE’S GRACE TO DISMANTLING O U R O W N B I A S E S .”

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H A I R B Y L I N D S AY L A R S E N , S A L O N B O W I E ; M A K E U P B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

HERE’S TO MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE Once again, all of you have stepped up in these uncertain times to lead, to innovate, to create — to do the extraordinary work you always do. And somehow, you’ve remained optimistic. Our warmest congratulations to this year’s Top 40 Under 40. Thanks to your creativity, ambition, entrepreneurial thinking and your dedication to serving others, the outlook is brighter for all of us. This year, like most, many of the honourees are part of the University of Calgary family. You make our city and our planet a better place to live. We hope you will continue to explore, discover and learn more by staying connected to the University of Calgary at alumni.ucalgary.ca.

“ P E O P L E L O O K AT C H I L D CARE AS A BASIC SKILL, BUT I THINK IT’S ONE OF T H E M O S T I M P O R TA N T J O B S O U T T H E R E .”

CHLOE DUSSER Founder and Sole Shareholder, Wee Wild Ones

AGE 34

Chloe Dusser has built a thriving child care company, fostering innovative environments for kids and an award-winning workplace for her staff. s founder and owner of Wee Wild Ones, one of Calgary’s largest child care operators, Chloe Dusser rarely has a standard workday. Whether picking up milk or replying to parent emails, Dusser does what needs to be done. Dusser was born in France but grew up moving around North America with her family. After studying finance at Concordia University in Montreal, she landed a job in the natural resources sector. Work led her to Calgary in 2013. She fell in love with the city, quit her job and started a children’s yoga studio, which revealed an opportunity to branch out into child care. Though she had no formal experience in child care or education, Dusser responded by starting an afterschool program and hasn’t looked back. Today, Wee Wild Ones runs two centres (Dusser is working on opening two more), employs over 100 people and cares for 600 kids. Dusser oversees the company’s growth, all the while championing and experimenting with environmentally sustainable practices at an operational and service level. Some of these practices include the use of reusable diapers, elimination of single-use plastic serving ware, and a full vegetarian menu for the children. Dusser also supports kids outside her organization. Since 2018, Wee Wild Ones has donated over $75,000 to Children’s Cottage Society and the WilderFutures Institute has been incorporated as the company’s non-profit arm. Dusser’s drive to provide the highest-quality environments for kids and staff has not gone unnoticed. In 2020, she received a CSPN Emerging Leader Award and more recently, Wee Wild Ones was named one of the 2021 Best Workplaces in Canada. “I’d like to think we’re making [working in] child care more aspirational,” Dusser says, “because it can be beautiful, innovative and exciting.” —M.M.

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A N A L B E R TA P R I M E G R A D E S T E A K H O U S E

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CONGRATULATIONS MEL! 2021 Top 40 Under 40 honouree

MANY NATIONS. ONE FAMILY. Stay connected with culture and community through our team. Left to Right: Melissa Roy, Elders Earnie Poundmaker, Reg and Rose Crowshoe, Shane Gauthier

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NILS DANIEL FORKERT Associate Professor, University of Calgary; Director of the Child Health Data Science Program, Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute

AGE 37

Nils Daniel Forkert develops software, computer algorithms and machinelearning models to help doctors select treatments with more precision, diagnose with more accuracy and predict diseases. ils Daniel Forkert is teaching computers to identify complex and subtle differences between people so doctors can help patients with more precision than ever. Forkert launched the Medical Image Processing and Machine Learning Lab at the University of Calgary in 2014, where his research is at the intersection of computer science and medicine. “We use data to develop sophisticated machine-learning models that we can then use to make better diagnoses in new patients, to treat patients better and even to prevent diseases before they develop,” he says. Forkert’s models help medical professionals compare individual patient data to historical data to identify similar patterns. Currently, his lab is building a machine-learning model that automatically predicts which anti-seizure drug could work best for patients diagnosed with epilepsy. He has also developed tools to diagnose or predict treatment outcomes for patients with depression, stroke and Parkinson’s disease, and he is analyzing data from children with COVID-19 to understand why some are affected severely while others aren’t. Forkert’s research led to the incorporation in March 2020 of Calgary-based company Deep Surface AI. At any given time, he and the 16 students he mentors work with up to 30 clinicians. He estimates that he has developed “more than a hundred” new machine-learning models and image-analysis algorithims. In just seven years, his medical-imaging and machine-learning lab has grown to be one of the biggest in Canada. “We can save a lot of money in the health care system if we diagnose earlier and we give better, personalized treatments to the patient,” Forkert says. “And if we can prevent these diseases to start with, that hugely impacts our health care system.” —K.O.

“IT COMES DOWN TO A BETTER L I F E F O R PAT I E N T S , B U T A L S O IT COMES DOWN TO OPTIMIZING O U R H E A LT H C A R E S Y S T E M .”

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T H I S PA G E H A I R A N D M A K E U P B Y C I T L A L I L O Z A , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y R O B B I E L A N E , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y P H O E B E H E A R D , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

MICHELLE FOURNIE Manager, Iniikokaan Centre, Bow Valley College

AGE 35

Michelle Fournie helps reduce barriers in education for Indigenous post-secondary students. ichelle Fournie believes there are not enough Indigenous voices represented within educational institutions in Alberta. She is working to change that by creating a supportive community for Indigenous students through the Iniikokaan Centre at Bow Valley College. Fournie, or Tátsikikkónamaan’ikkitstakiaakii (her Blackfoot name, which translates as Centre Pole Offering Woman), is a mother and auntie, a member of Métis Nation Region 3 and a second-generation immigrant from England and Ireland. Along with her work at the Iniikokaan Centre, she is a board member with the Indigenous Gathering Place Society of Calgary and a student at the University of Calgary in the Master of Education program in the topics of Poo’miikapii: Niitsitapii Approaches to Wellness; and Niitsitapiisinni: Real Peoples’ Way of Life. Education is at the forefront of actions recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address intergenerational trauma and attempted genocide through the Indian Residential School system — a legacy Canadians must come to terms with on the journey toward reconciliation. This past summer, Fournie and another Indigenous staff member at Bow Valley College launched the Indigenous Knowledge Keepers Network, where Elders connect with students to offer prayers, ceremony, teaching and guidance. “My teachers and Elders, they have the answers to the existential questions that I think a lot of us are suffering from,” Fournie says, “and I think the more that we take the time to listen, the less we’ll struggle.” Every aspect of Fournie’s work incorporates Indigenous traditions, like celebrating each seasonal semester to prepare students for the challenges they may face. This work contributed to 123 Indigenous students celebrating their graduation in 2020. “I think the more we learn about communites and traditional ways of connection, the more we can appropriately respect and align educational support services,” Fournie says. —A.M.

“I’M NOT TOO IMPRESSIVE WITHOUT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SUPPORTING ME. A L L O F T H E T H I N G S YO U R E A D A N D YO U SEE, THOSE ARE JUST SYMBOLS OF THE C O M M U N I T Y I N V E S T M E N T T H AT H A S G O N E I N T O M O V E M E F O R WA R D .”

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BROOKE GARCIA CEO, 4Seasons Transportation

AGE 31

Brooke Garcia provides compassionate transportation to Calgary students living with disabilities through 4Seasons Transportation, a company she started with as a driver and now oversees as CEO. or students living with disabilities, the bus ride to school can set the tone for their whole day. It’s a responsibility Brooke Garcia doesn’t take lightly as CEO of Calgaryowned and operated 4Seasons Transportation. “We are really the vessel for them to be successful in their day,” Garcia says. “If they have a bad bus ride, these children are set up for failure. A successful bus ride is a successful day.” Creating a commute that allows all students to thrive and have access to equal education is central to Garcia’s mission. The 4Seasons buses transport students with disabilities to and from school and other programs, daily and year-round. Ridership includes students with cognitive, mental, intellectual and behavioural disabilities. Garcia started as a driver for 4Seasons in 2010, one of just eight employees. Previous to that, Garcia ran a day home serving a similar demographic, so she was familiar with the gap in quality services offered to the disability community. Looking to better address this gap, Garcia began to learn the ins and outs of the organization, including payroll, dispatch and vehicle maintenance. While doing so, she also took the lead on signing contracts with large public and private school boards in Calgary and the surrounding area. Quickly rising through the ranks, she took over as 4Seasons’ CEO in 2018. Now in her 11th school year with 4Seasons, Garcia has grown the company to more than 400 employees and increased ridership by twentyfold. Already a case study in expansion, Garcia says she has no plans in slowing down while there’s still potential to serve a community that is near and dear to her. “Growth is exciting to me; more growth is fantastic,” Garcia says. “It just means more children that we can impact.” —N.K.

“I DON’T DO WELL WITH S T R I C T PA R A M E T E R S . I L I K E TO PUSH THINGS FURTHER T H A N T H E N O R M .”

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T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y A L I C E E N N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y J E S S I C A L U T H E R , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S T. C R O I X , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

S.MONTY GHOSH Physician; Assistant Clinical Professor, University of Calgary; and Assistant Professor, University of Alberta

AGE 39

Dr. Monty Ghosh is changing our social and health systems to reduce the inequities harming marginalized populations. arly in his career, Dr. Monty Ghosh asked a physician-mentor for advice on global health work. The response: “There’s a need here. Why are you looking elsewhere?” Today, Ghosh specializes in caring for people experiencing homelessness and addiction — providing medical care through the Calgary Drop-In Centre, The Alex Community Health Centre, Alberta Health Services (AHS) Adult Addiction Services and hospitals. He also leads research, developing national and provincial policies, creating programs and advocating for patients. Over four years, he has attracted $3 million in grant funding as a principal investigator, while projects he has been involved in as a co-lead and collaborator have attracted $6 million and $1 million in funding, respectively. Ghosh, who was recently named deputy editor of Harvard Public Health Review, believes physicians must address the social determinants of health when caring for patients. “If someone doesn’t have housing or food security, there’s no way they can focus on their health,” he says. His motto “innovation for equity,” often leads him to try out novel approaches. One example is a program Ghosh created in 2017, now backed by funding from the City of Calgary, in which people with lived experience of addiction and homelessness help others navigate the health system. In 2020, he was part of a team that helped lead the creation of isolation facilities for people experiencing homelessness and was named co-chair of two task forces, including AHS’s Provincial Shelter Outbreak Task Force. He designed a national virtual supervised consumption service where people using substances can call a hotline for supervision, and he co-founded Alberta’s first comprehensive outpatient addiction treatment program to help clients detox at home and get access to addiction treatment. “It is my moral responsibility to advocate for all those who don’t have my privilege and reduce barriers they may face to access our system,” he says. —C.F.

“ T H E PAT H T O WA R D G E T T I N G SOMETHING ACCOMPLISHED WILL H AV E I T S T W I S T S A N D T U R N S , A N D W I L L B E V E RY CO M P L E X , B U T T H AT M A K E S I T M O R E W O R T H W H I L E I N T H E E N D .”

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ZAHRA GOODARZI Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine and Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary

AGE 36

Dr. Zahra Goodarzi is a rare specialist in an underserved field — a clinician-scientist who’s an expert in combining research and clinical care to help Canada’s elderly. he grew up planning to become a scientist like her father, but Dr. Zahra Goodarzi took a different path after the experience of seeing her own mother in the health care system. “We felt heard and understood,” she says. “That’s really powerful.” Today, Goodarzi is one of around 300 geriatricians (specialists who care for older adults) in Canada. Even more rare, she’s also a clinical researcher who leads studies to identify and treat the unmet needs of Canada’s elders, particularly those with mental illness or frailty, a state of reduced function and health. Goodarzi was an undergraduate research student when she met a clinician scientist who inspired her to do both research and clinical work. She has since gone on to receive multiple nationally funded grants, including a $240,000 grant for a study on depression among residents of long-term care from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Goodarzi has been published in journals such as Nature and The BMJ (British Medical Journal). Her findings are changing care and quality of life for older people across Canada by improving the diagnosis and management of depression or frailty. In 2017, Goodarzi helped found one of Canada’s first geriatric movement disorders clinics — a specialized centre where older adults with conditions like Parkinson’s disease can visit multidisciplinary health-care providers. She is also program director for the Leaders in Medicine program at the University of Calgary, mentoring the next generation of clinician-scientists. Geriatric medicine is about connecting with older adults and their families and Goodarzi, with her ringing laugh and effusive nature, craves those connections. One tip she hears most often from her patients and regularly repeats to herself: “Don’t worry about things. It doesn’t help you.” —C.F.

“MY NEPHEW HAS THE BEST DESCRIPTION OF MY JOB: GRANNY A N D G R A N D A D D O C T O R .”

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HAIR BY SHELBY CAMPBELL, HEDKANDI SALON; MAKEUP BY JESS SHWORAN, ARTISTS WITHIN

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VICTORIA HODGKINSONBRECHENMACHER Director, Patient Registries and Real-World Evidence, Lumiio; Scientific Director, Canadian Neuromuscular Disease Registry, University of Calgary

AGE 38

Victoria Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher is a leader in patient data to improve life for those with rare and devastating diseases. ork hard. Keep moving. Seize the opportunities. If Victoria Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher’s analysis of her scientific career sounds like a hockey player’s post-game interview, there’s a good reason: she played professionally before turning her full attention to science. Raised in Brockville, Ont., Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher went on to play hockey in the U.S. at an Ivy League school. She took a break from academia to play in Switzerland before attaining her Ph.D. in biochemistry at the University of Missouri. In 2013, she transferred to the University of Calgary. Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher had experience conducting research at a bench science level with plants and animals but longed to advance care for patients. She got her chance in 2016 when she joined the Canadian Neuromuscular Disease Registry as a project coordinator. In five years, she has become a scientific director and helped secure more than $9 million in research funding. Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher and colleagues use data from patients across Canada to improve care and accelerate research, especially for people with rare diseases. Their work has improved diagnosis time for patients with ALS and helps to identify spinal muscular atrophy patients most likely to benefit from new treatments. In 2017, Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher helped launch Lumiio. The private digital health company builds data systems for pharmaceutical companies, universities and patient organizations, giving them tools to study patient outcomes and improve care. Lumiio now operates in 18 countries with registries in the fields of neurology, hematology, cardiology, endocrinology, rheumatology and orthopaedics. “I am a woman in science, and I want people to see me as a role model, as someone who can make an impact on the world,” she says. “I want my children to see that.” —C.F.

“LEARNING TO ASK FOR HELP WHEN IT’S NEEDED IS P R O B A B LY T H E H A R D E S T B AT T L E F O R M E .”

avenue November 21

HAIR BY HANNAH MCCORMICK. HEDKANDI SALON; MAKEUP BY KARLEEN AZUCENA, ARTISTS WITHIN

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KELSI HURLBUT Principal Landscape Architect and Owner, The Tula Project

AGE 32

Kelsi Hurlbut creates innovative landscape designs that range from multi-use community spaces to the multi-milliondollar Bear Street revitalization in Banff. andscape architect Kelsi Hurlbut always keeps people front of mind. “Going for a walk with me is a little bit intense because I’m always thinking and analyzing how people are using their space,” she says. That people-centric approach was the guiding principle for her biggest project so far, the $9.5 million redevelopment of Bear Street in Banff. Hurlbut created a plaza-inspired design, forgoing restrictive curbs and installing removable barriers to accommodate outdoor events and festivals. “The awesome part of Bear Street is it made people, who are usually secondary in the streetscape, the primary focus,” Hurlbut says. “Bear Street has been designed to make the car feel like the guest.” For Bear Street, Hurlbut also installed soil cells to filter stormwater and prevent untreated water from flowing into the Bow River. Soil-cell systems remove 80 to 95 per cent of total suspended solids such as salts, oils and other toxins from stormwater. The soil-cell system on Bear Street established a new precedent in Banff for how to treat and manage stormwater on site. Hurlbut’s firm The Tula Project has also put its stamp on suburbia. For the neighbourhood of Hawkwood, Hurlbut created a multi-use community hub with the first outdoor parkour course in the city. Her design for Hawkwood manages stormwater on site, rather than through the City’s system, which moved the project through the approval process much quicker and saved the community association pricey engineer assessment fees. She also installed a shade structure with solar panels. Energy harvested from the panels over 30 years will be the equivalent of taking 45 homes off the grid. “Tula is a Lugandan word that means ‘let’s sit down and work together,’” Hurlbut says. “My approach is to bring people together as we design and create space for everyone.” —T.A.

“ T H E M O S T R E WA R D I N G THING FOR ME ABOUT BEING A LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT IS D E S I G N I N G S PA C E S T H AT F O S T E R INTERACTION AND ALLOW P E O P L E T O B E C R E AT I V E .”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y B R E N N A S T E V E N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y J A I N A - B R O O K E E N G L I S H , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y F U N M I L O L A A J I B A D E , Q U A L I T Y H A I R B Y L A W L A R ; M A K E U P B Y F O L U AY O D E L E - D A N I E L S , FA D B E A U T Y H U B

Ọ L ÁW U N M I ( W U N M I ) IDOWU Founder and Director, Woezo Africa Music & Dance Theatre Inc.

AGE 39

Wunmi Idowu is a dancer and performer shaping the arts community by creating opportunities for African, Caribbean and Black artists and entrepreneurs. or a dancer, Wunmi Idowu does a lot of juggling. The single mother of two wears many hats: choreographer, producer, community builder, entrepreneur. Idowu emigrated from Nigeria to Canada with her family in 1992 and spent much of her childhood in Edmonton. As a teen, she performed with the Wajjo Drummers and Kekeli Dancers. In 2006, she started Woezo Africa Music & Dance Theatre Inc. to preserve African culture and educate others. Over the last 15 years, Idowu has produced and performed in hundreds of dance and theatrical shows in Calgary and around the world, and more than 4,800 African, Caribbean and Black dancers have performed with Woezo Africa. Idowu has also turned Woezo Africa into a social enterprise, with charity performances helping to raise over $2.5 million dollars for philanthropic initiatives worldwide. Idowu’s role in the arts community extends beyond the world of dance. She is dedicated to developing all manner of artistic disciplines and has spearheaded a variety of training, mentorship and networking programs for Black artists and entrepreneurs. These include Unganisha, a dance production, networking mixer and cultural fair; Roots to Branches, an animation documentary for Black youth; the Black Arts Development program and Black Arts Mentorship program for screenwriters and actors; and the Woezo Africa Cultural Festival. In addition to the many performing arts awards she has received, in 2020, Idowu was awarded the Immigrant of Distinction Award for Arts & Culture by Immigrant Services Calgary. “Woezo Africa stands for ‘welcome to the land of perfection,’ and that is exactly what we aim to accomplish,” Idowu says. “We encourage artistic creativity and excellence by amplifying narratives from the African, Caribbean and Black communities to enhance the creative economy in Mohkinstsis (Calgary).” —T.A.

“A R T I S E V E R Y W H E R E , A N D W E WA N T T O M A K E S U R E T H AT P E O P L E U N D E R S TA N D I T I S S O I M P O R TA N T I N T H E E C O S Y S T E M O F L I F E .”

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MELISSA J AY Owner and Psychologist, Canmore Counselling; Founder, Trauma-Informed Yoga Psychology School

AGE 38

Melissa Jay takes a socially conscious approach to mental health care through the integration of psychology and yoga and teaches this approach to others. sychologist Melissa Jay believes that a trauma-informed approach to mental health care empowers people to make choices, “even if they are the most subtle choices.” Jay is the owner and lead psychologist at Canmore Counselling, which she founded in 2014. She is also a registered yoga teacher since 2015, and in 2019, she founded the Trauma-Informed Yoga Psychology School, teaching students and other professionals around the world how to integrate yoga with psychology. Jay holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Walden University and is the first person in her immediate family to earn a university degree. She received numerous scholarships and awards in her own educational journey and, conscious, of the financial barriers to education, she also offers scholarships through her Yoga Psychology School. For more than five years, Jay has been an instructor at Athabasca University, and last year she moved into the position of Assistant Professor. Her research in the Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences is community-based and integrates forms of knowledge typically excluded from academia. “Some academics are hesitant to include things like the word ‘spirit,’” she says. Jay is Nehiyaw-Métis, which informs her dedication to the process of decolonization. “The time is now to really use our voices to demand justice. To invite opportunities for equity to ensure that social justice movements don’t just start to fade away, as they have many times,” she says. In June 2021, she co-organized a sharing circle for Indigenous students at Athabasca University after the discovery of unmarked mass graves at former residential schools. “It feels important creating that sense of community that’s maybe outside of what the job description is,” she says. “How can I use my voice to speak? To speak up even if my voice shakes?” —A.N.

“ W H E N W E C L A I M O U R S E LV E S A N D A C C E P T O U R S E LV E S JUST AS WE ARE, I FEEL LIKE T H AT ’ S H O W W E C A N M O V E M O U N TA I N S .”

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HAIR AND MAKEUP BY CITLALI LOZA, ARTISTS WITHIN

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K AY L Hip-hop Recording Artist and Activist

AGE 33

“ T H E R E ’ S S O M U C H T H AT W E H AV E T O D O T O C R E AT E EFFECTIVE CHANGE AND TO ME, I T ’ S J U S T M O T I VAT I O N A L .” X X X X

avenue November 21

apper and recording artist Kay L has toured with hip-hop royalty like Rihanna and Snoop Dogg and was a collaborator on the Junonominated Big Page track “Still Fly” featuring Drake and the U.G.O. crew. Born in Zimbabwe and raised in northeast Calgary, Kay L has been a victim of and witness to police brutality and racism and often draws on those experiences when creating his music. “I want to say real things that happen in real life so that other people can relate to it,” he says. Inspired by the rise of Black Lives Matter (BLM) movements in the U.S., Kay L and two others started BLM YYC in 2016 to combat police brutality and systematic racism in their home city. BLM YYC has since lobbied to have three motions passed by Calgary City Council: the banning of tiki torches at rallies (a show of white supremacy), making sure that police officers cannot remove their body cameras and outlawing the practice of racially motivated “carding” (stopping people on the street and demanding they produce I.D.). In 2020, BLM YYC held the biggest protest in Calgary’s history with over 10,000 participants. Kay L’s music has earned him fans worldwide. When his song “Wish They Would” became popular on the radio in Sierra Leone in 2019, he donated the funds it generated to a local orphanage, an amount that supported the facility for almost a year. The experience inspired Kay L and an associate in Sierra Leone to build another orphanage, Kay L’s Centre for Little Miracles, in the capital Freetown, set to be completed at the end of this year. “If we just remove those hurdles and obstacles and give everyone a fair shot at this thing called life, we could actually change the world and actually change humanity,” Kay L says. “That’s ultimately the message with Black Lives Matter and that’s the message with my music and that’s my message as a person.” —J.C.

H A I R B Y V I C T O R I A M C B E A N , S A L O N B O W I E ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

“THERE’S SO M U C H T H AT W E H AV E T O D O T O C R E AT E EFFECTIVE CHANGE, AND TO ME IT’S JUST M O T I VAT I O N A L .”

Kay L is the executive director for BLM YYC and an independent songwriter and rapper who directs some of the earnings from his music toward housing orphaned children in Sierra Leone.

masters.ab.ca avenuecalgary.com

SANDRA AIGBINODE LANGE Associate, McCarthy Tétrault

AGE 33

Sandra Aigbinode Lange is an accomplished litigator who is blazing a trail for racialized youth to have better access to the justice system. hen Sandra Aigbinode Lange was a criminal Crown prosecutor, she saw Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) overrepresented as offenders yet underrepresented as her peers. She has since made it her mission to see more faces like hers as judges and lawyers. For Lange, diversity and inclusion in the justice system is about rectifying that ratio by improving the system overall. “I knew law was a tool that I needed to be able to do the kind of work I wanted to do, which is to help people have access to justice, protect people, be a defender of humankind,” she says. Today, Lange is the Calgary Chair for McCarthy Tétrault’s Inclusion Now Race Action Group, working with others to educate colleagues on racial justice and recruit BIPOC students to the firm. Since she joined McCarthy Tétrault in 2017, the Calgary office has hired at least one new BIPOC student or lawyer per year. As one of three supervising lawyers for the Indigenous Youth Outreach Project in Siksika Nation, Lange teaches high school students how to participate in the justice system, recognizing that many of them may be hesitant to learn about a system that has historically persecuted them. “I want them to see a younger female litigator, who has been to all levels of court in Canada — including the Supreme Court of Canada — and loves the courtroom,” Lange says. “I want them to see that they can do it, too.” In 2020, Lange assisted the Canadian Association of Black Lawyers with its first-ever Supreme Court intervention. The dispute concerned the removal of peremptory challenges. Peremptory challenges are a tool essential for BIPOC offenders in jury selection to protect them from micro-aggressions and unconscious biases they face from potential jurors. “Sometimes it is difficult to put these things into words,” says Lange. “You just see it, you feel it, you know it, because you’ve lived it.” —T.A.

“ W H AT E V E R I D O I S R E P R E S E N TAT I V E O F E V E R Y O N E T H AT ’ S A S S O C I AT E D W I T H M E , A N D I E X T E N D T H AT T O BIPOC COMMUNITIES, FOR BETTER O R W O R S E , S O T H AT B U R D E N C A N S O M E T I M E S B E R E A L LY H E AV Y.”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E M A K E U P B Y C I T L A L I L O Z A , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y B R E N N A S T E V E N S , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y J A I N A - B R O O K E E N G L I S H , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

DEVON LIVINGSTONE Otolaryngologist, Neck Surgeon and Clinical Lecturer, University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine; Chief Medical Officer, Alethea

AGE 33

Ear, nose and throat surgeon Dr. Devon Livingstone has improved access to care through his company Alethea, which provides physicians with novel diagnostic devices and an e-consult platform. hen he was training to become an ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeon, Dr. Devon Livingstone grew frustrated with outdated communication systems in health care. So Livingstone began to study machine learning. He took a year to complete a master’s degree in translational medicine, focusing on moving research out of the lab and into patient care. In 2019, he founded Alethea, a Calgary-based company that produces diagnostic medical devices powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and an e-consultation platform that connects family physicians and specialists. “It’s easy for me to make a visual diagnosis for certain conditions. So I became interested in how I can build an AI so that a family physician can have a specialist’s level of snap visual diagnosis in their pocket,” Livingstone explains. Alethea is the first company in the world to use computer vision AI for ear disease. Its first device, a digital endoscope for ear assessments, is approved by Health Canada, and the AI component is under submission to the federal body. More products are in the pipeline, including AIs for skin, oral, ear and nasal diseases and voice disorders. Currently, 85 family physicians in Alberta are enrolled in the e-consult platform and more than 5,000 patients have been treated using the digital tools. Livingstone spends about four days a week in surgery or clinic and dedicates the rest of his time to Alethea. Surgery provides a mental break from the technology world, he says. Having done outreach work in Tanzania and Ethiopia, Livingstone dreams of taking Alethea into global health settings. “There’s such an opportunity for these types of digital diagnostic tools in areas where they don’t even have a doctor, much less a specialist,” he says. —C.F.

“ B U I L D I N G A C O M PA N Y, Y O U N E E D T O H AV E A S T E A D Y H A N D A N D S TAY T H E C O U R S E EVEN WHEN THINGS ARE N O T N E C E S S A R I LY G O I N G A S Y O U H A D H O P E D .”

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SAMANTHA LOWE Director of Health and Wellness, The Mustard Seed

AGE 34

Occupational therapist Samantha Lowe is changing the scope of her profession and the lives of Calgary’s most vulnerable through innovative wellness programs. amantha Lowe describes occupational therapists, or “OTs” as they’re known, as the “the Swiss Army knives of health care.” Put another way: “OTs are uniquely positioned to help people in all walks of life.” While many work in hospitals or outpatient rehab, Lowe makes a strong case that OTs can also change the lives of people experiencing homelessness. Lowe is director of health and wellness at The Mustard Seed, a non-profit organization for people experiencing homelessness. Under her directorship, the Seed’s Wellness Centre serves more than 12,000 clients each year — up from 8,292 in 2019. Among her innovative programs, Lowe co-created a service to offer free functional cognitive assessments for clients, many of whom can’t afford the testing fees (which can be in the range of $1,200) but need the results to access supports. Lowe believes the key to making change is working within a larger community. “We all have to work together if we’re going to get something done,” she says. In March 2020, Lowe was part of an ad hoc collective that came together to create safe spaces for people experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. Over 13 months, the Mustard Seed’s isolation unit provided beds for 679 people. Lowe initially set out to work in global health, but the time she spent working on the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory changed her life trajectory. “I felt called to work alongside vulnerable populations in Canada and help those who needed advocacy,” she says. Lowe founded the Occupational Therapists for Social Justice network and is a sessional instructor at the University of Alberta and a clinical educator, earning national teaching awards. A single parent, Lowe says work-life balance can be a struggle, but she is motivated to keep going. “I’m inspired by this incredible community of support where people have dedicated their lives to serving the most vulnerable,” she says. —C.F.

“PEOPLE ARE AMAZING, R E S I L I E N T, B E A U T I F U L H U M A N B E I N G S .”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R A N D M A K E U P B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y R O B B I E L A N E , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y P H O E B E H E A R D , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

SARAH MACDONALD Forensic Interview Specialist, Luna Child and Youth Advocacy Centre

AGE 34

Sarah MacDonald is an award-winning forensic interview specialist who trains leaders across the country on how to spot, stop and prosecute child abuse. orensic interview specialist Sarah MacDonald finds it more useful to describe what her job isn’t. “People think I’m like this human lie detector,” says MacDonald. “I’m not.” A forensic interviewer uses empirical methods rooted in memory science to provide a neutral, comforting and unbiased environment for a person to tell their story. MacDonald is the only forensic interviewer and interview trainer in Canada employed in-house at a child advocacy centre. In addition to conducting forensic interviews herself, she says this arrangement allows her to share cuttingedge research into proper forensic interviewing techniques and show how perpetrators manipulate children. “Oftentimes the child’s recollection of what happened is the only piece of evidence,” MacDonald says. “So, when I teach law enforcement, I tell them that the child’s memory is evidence, and we have to treat it with the same kind of integrity that we do with physical evidence.” In four years, MacDonald has led more than 40 lectures and training seminars for police officers, prosecutors, child-protection workers and other professionals. She has published award-winning research and created educational materials for the organization Respect Group on how to identify the sexual abuse-grooming process, that were then distributed to more than 80,000 parents, coaches and sports leaders across the country. In 2019, she initiated the first province-wide virtual peer review program to better reach RCMP officers in rural Alberta and, ultimately, the children they serve. Each initiative is a step toward making it easier for children to disclose abuse by training adults on how to listen. “Kids are very unpredictable. They’re going to say things and do things that are not in the protocol,” MacDonald says. “That’s why forensic interviewing [of children] is like a perfect blend of science and art.” —T.A.

“ E V E R Y C H I L D I TA L K T O , I LEARN SOMETHING FROM, A N D T H E Y H E L P M O T I VAT E M E T O C O N S TA N T LY I M P R O V E .”

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KARIM MANJI Podiatric Surgeon, Zivot Limb Preservation Centre; Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Calgary

AGE 35

Dr. Karim Manji led the development of the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre, the first Centre of Excellence in Canada dedicated to diabetes-related foot complications. s an undergrad in biological science, Dr. Karim Manji shadowed several health care workers. After one day with a podiatric surgeon, he knew the field was for him. “It was the thrill of being able to do something and make someone feel good right away,” Manji says. With no training programs in Canada, Manji moved to the U.S. to become a podiatric surgeon, a doctor specializing in foot diseases. By the time he returned to Calgary in 2013, podiatric surgery had become a provincially funded health service. “That meant we had this really fertile ground to start delivering services to patients,” Manji says. In 2015, Manji co-founded the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre at the Peter Lougheed Centre, the only facility in Canada where podiatric and vascular surgeons work side-by-side in treating diabetes-related foot complications. The Centre uses a “toe and flow” model (toe for the podiatric surgeons; flow for the vascular surgeons) to provide timely management of infections, wounds and blood flow. As a result of Manji’s efforts, major lower-limb amputations for diabetes declined 45 per cent in Calgary (compared to Edmonton) over a 10-year period. “Saving a limb is important because it maintains someone’s independence and quality of life,” he says. Diabetes is expected to affect one in three Albertans over the next 20 years. Manji is driven to help people access specialized care that can help prevent complications and limb amputations. “Sometimes people will say diabetes is a disease of bad choices, but there are a lot of factors,” he says. With more limb preservation teams across Canada, he believes major amputation rates for diabetes-related complications will decrease. But Calgary was the perfect place to start, he says. “It’s that spirit that we can do things differently and we can do them well.” —C.F.

“ YO U C A N L E A R N S O M E T H I N G F R O M E V E R Y O N E .”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y H A N N A H M C C O R M I C K , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y K A R L E E N A Z U C E N A , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y S A R A H PA L M E R , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y A M E N M I N H A S , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

SARAH MCALLISTER Founder and CEO, Go Clean Co.

AGE 38

Sarah McAllister has grown her local home-cleaning company into a globally recognized brand, teaching millions of people her tried-and-true methods. ack when the pandemic hit, Sarah McAllister closed her home-cleaning company and laid off her five employees. Was she stressed? Sure. But giving up wasn’t an option. Instead, McAllister ramped up her social-media content, sharing cleaning tips and before-and-after pictures with the 10,000 Instagram followers she’d gained since launching Go Clean Co. in 2018. Her straight-shooting advice resonated with the masses who were locked down at home doing what she calls “panic cleaning.” Next, she published an e-book outlining her home-cleaning system. The demand crashed Go Clean Co.’s site. As her fanbase grew, McAllister realized she’d landed on the ideal business model: part cleaning company, part content creator. The formula has turned her into a global sensation and a celebrity at home, where people often call out to her as she’s running errands. “Having a cleaning company isn’t a glamourous thing,” she says. “But I knew if I had the right type of cleaning company, I could be really successful with it.” Though she ran a successful dog-walking company for 15 years, Go Clean Co. is on a whole other level. McAllister has amassed more than two million Instagram followers, forged partnerships with mega-companies such as Procter & Gamble and SC Johnson, and has been featured in publications across North America. She offers a cleaning course for individuals called “Basic Training,” and is launching an online course enabling cleaning companies around the world to become Go Clean Co. Certified. McAllister says she couldn’t do it all without her team, now 30 women strong. Their services are booked well into 2023 with a waitlist “two arms long.” Need a deep clean before then? It’s simple. Check out her Instagram stories, buy a handbook and roll up your sleeves. —M.M.

“ I ’ M C O N S TA N T LY S C H E M I N G . I ’ M A LWAY S THINKING SIX MONTHS DOWN THE LINE, LIKE W H AT C A N W E D O B I G G E R AND BETTER?”

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ALEXANDER MCGIRR Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Non-Invasive Neurostimulation Network, University of Calgary

AGE 38

Psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Alexander McGirr is improving treatments available to people with psychiatric disorders. r. Alexander McGirr envisions a day when people with major depression and bipolar disorder will be able to receive non-invasive stimulation treatments tailored to the specific biology of their disease. “When someone suddenly tells you that they feel like themselves again, that’s pretty inspiring,” he says. A researcher at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute’s Mathison Centre at the University of Calgary since 2018, McGirr runs a cutting-edge laboratory where he works on new strategies to treat severe mental illness. He’s also a psychiatrist specializing in caring for people whose disease is not controlled by standard treatments. McGirr’s area of expertise is non-invasive stimulation treatments, especially transcranial magnetic stimulation — a therapy that involves targeted brain stimulation from outside of the head. He specializes in researching the biological pathways that affect a person’s disease and finding ways to maximize the benefits people get from existing treatments. “The future is that we’ll consider non-invasive stimulation treatments on an equal footing as psychotherapy and medications,” he says. For the time being, however, these treatments are limited to people who do not respond to conventional treatments. McGirr designs and leads clinical trials and is the co-investigator on projects that have received more than $6 million in research funding. As part of this work, he developed protocols that, through a combination of medication and non-invasive brain stimulation, doubled the number of patients who responded successfully to treatment. In July of this year, McGirr created a company, SalvoStim, which patented these protocols to help bring them to market. “This commercial entity will help ensure that these treatments become available to people outside our lab,” he says. —C.F.

“ I T ’ S G O O D T O H AV E S O M E T H I N G T H AT Y O U ’ R E W O R K I N G T O WA R D S A N D A FIRM BELIEF IN WHY Y O U ’ R E D O I N G I T.”

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ASHLEY MELLER Marketing and Communications Professional

AGE 38

Ashley Meller’s work with Calgary Opera helped expand and diversify the audience, increase sales and build community among younger patrons. uch of Ashley Meller’s career as a marketing and communications professional has involved trying to dispel the notion that the arts are not for everyone. As director of marketing communications at Calgary Opera, Meller helped dismantle that perception by listening to audiences to create a welcoming experience. “We gave a lot of credence to the feedback we got,” she says. “That wasn’t always the case. There have been gatekeepers to arts and culture.” At the Opera, Meller revolutionized programs to build young, diverse and sustainable audiences. She launched a low-cost discovery pass for those new to opera, spearheaded a digital marketing strategy to reach wider audiences and revamped the promotion of the Allegro under-35 program. More than 400 young opera patrons joined the audience at the 2019 production of Rigoletto — the largest ever Allegro turnout. By the next production, La Bohème, Calgary Opera recorded its highest sales for a three-show production in the company’s nearly 50-year history. Meller is now embracing a new role as account director at The Agency, a boutique public relations and marketing firm with strong footing in the innovation and technology space. “I don’t think you have to look back much further than the last 20 months to understand the importance of being able to communicate clearly and effectively to an audience, which is what marketing at its most fundamental level is,” says Meller. “Who knows where the next great innovation to change the world will come from, or what revolutionary idea might be sparked for someone sitting in a theatre watching a play? The only thing I can say for sure, is that without being able to communicate effectively, those ideas are often doomed to get lost in the noise of our extremely noisy, hyper-distracted world.” —C.S.

HAIR BY JESS SHWORAN, ARTISTS WITHIN; MAKEUP BY JESSICA LUTHER, ARTISTS WITHIN

“I LIKE BEING CHALLENGED WITH NEW P E R S P E C T I V E S A N D WAY S O F T H I N K I N G A B O U T A P R O B L E M . I T H I N K I T ’ S A LWAY S G O O D T O B E A L I T T L E O F F B A L A N C E .”

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CARMEN MORIN Owner and Executive Director, Morin Music Studio

AGE 37

Carmen Morin has grown her local music school into a global music-education enterprise. usic has been part of Carmen Morin’s life since before she can remember, as she began taking piano lessons at just two years old. She went on to become a classically trained pianist and was part of the Mount Royal Conservatory’s teaching faculty from 2008 to 2013. Morin also has a mind for business, and in 2013, she launched her own commercial music school, Morin Music Studio, in the community of Springbank Hill. By 2019, the school had more than 700 students, and Morin expanded into a second space in the same commercial centre. Morin Music Studio has since grown to have a faculty of nearly 40 teachers instructing more than 1,000 students. In 2018, Morin launched a virtual music school, Morin Music Online, which saw exponential growth during pandemic lockdown measures in 2020. Morin Music Online has sold teaching videos to more than 1,000 students in 20 countries worldwide, contributing to an 80-per cent growth in revenue from 2020 to 2021. The bricks-and-mortar school’s revenues are currently in the seven-figure range, with the online school’s revenues projected to top seven figures by the end of this year. Morin’s success as a music educator has earned her international recognition. In 2019, she was the first teacher from Calgary to be inducted into the Steinway & Sons Teacher Hall of Fame in New York. Locally, she founded the Love of Music Calgary program, which helps provide music education to families who may not otherwise have the means. Morin Music Studio’s annual (pre-2020) faculty charity concerts have raised nearly $30,000 total for YW Calgary and CUPS. Morin believes the key to her entrepreneurial success is that it is rooted in her passion for the arts. “Any career is going to take a great deal of resilience and hard work and dedication, and when you shape that around something that you care deeply about and believe deeply in, I think that’s the answer to having a successful career,” she says. —A.N.

“ I ’ M S U R P R I S E D AT H O W L O N G I T H A S TA K E N M E T O T R U S T M Y I N S T I N C T S , T O R E A L LY L I S T E N T O M Y S E L F A N D N O T N E E D S O M E K I N D O F E X T E R N A L C O N F I R M AT I O N O F W H AT I K N O W T O B E T R U E .”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y J AY H I B B E R T, H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S T. C R O I X , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y L I N D S AY L A R S E N , S A L O N B O W I E ; M A K E U P B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

ALICIA NAHMAD VA Z Q U E Z Assistant Professor of Robotics and AI, School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, University of Calgary

AGE 39

Alicia Nahmad Vazquez is changing perceptions about AI while developing workflows for human-robot collaboration. n architect with a passion for robotics, Alicia Nahmad Vazquez works toward maximizing the benefits offered by robotics and people through mutual augmentation. Her vision is about combining the best of both, not replacing people. “[Robots] can help us to understand things that we cannot understand,” she says. Nahmad Vazquez first noticed a missing link between translating a 3D model from computer to reality while working with construction processes. Traditional architectural drawings have typically guided those processes, but with complex designs, it’s not so easy. By taking advantage of the capabilities of the robots, she saw how they could help humans explore novel architectures that are not feasible with current construction practices. In 2012, Nahmad Vazquez founded Architecture Extrapolated (R-Ex), which aims to merge cuttingedge design and digital fabrication technologies (think robot arms) with traditional craft. R-Ex has collaborated with professional and research institutions worldwide, including Zaha Hadid Architects, Grimshaw and ETH Zurich. R-Ex’s work includes the award-winning KnitCandela, a thin concrete shell built using ultra-lightweight knitted formwork. Designed and built by multiple teams in Europe and Mexico, the shell harnessed collective expertise in computational design, engineering and fabrication and showcases an integration of advanced computational design and fabrication tools with traditional crafts and building trades. Nahmad Vazquez believes that by showing the benefits of blending robotic technology with human skill, perceptions will change for the better. “I love this idea that by working together with machines, we can make something amazing,” she says. By volunteering with the organization Women Leading in AI, she is working to make her field more diverse and inclusive, too. —M.R.

“[ROBOTS] CAN HELP US TO U N D E R S TA N D T H I N G S T H AT W E C A N N O T U N D E R S TA N D .”

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CHARLES OSUJI CEO and Managing Partner, Osuji & Smith Lawyers

AGE 35

Charles Osuji champions diversity at his law firm and mentors other immigrants to succeed in business. hen Charles Osuji immigrated to Calgary from Nigeria in 2011, he couldn’t have guessed that a mere five years later, he’d own a successful law firm. In fact, when the opportunity first arose to buy the firm, where he began his career as an articling student, he wasn’t even interested. “It was a very risky move,” Osuji recalls, “but my mentors didn’t think so. I have a strong support system so I took that jump. I was scared I wouldn’t make payroll, but the path of success requires taking risks,” he says. In less than four years since he took sole ownership, Osuji’s firm, which is unspecialized, has increased its earnings fivefold and is consistently a top-rated firm in Calgary. As an employer, he promotes a diverse workplace, hiring locally trained lawyers of a range of cultural heritages. “Excellence in diversity — that’s the story I want to tell,” he says. His efforts landed him on Canadian Lawyer’s 2020 Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers list and a 2020 Immigrant of Distinction Award from Immigrant Services Calgary. In August he was named one of Best Lawyers Ones to Watch for 2022, as voted by fellow lawyers across Canada. Osuji acknowledges there have been challenges. “My biggest adjustment upon arriving in Calgary was suddenly becoming conscious of my ‘Blackness,’” he says. He channeled any negativity he experienced into motivation to succeed. Now, he inspires people with his story. “Especially people who look and sound like me, being told they won’t make it or how their race will hinder their growth,” he says. As someone who has benefitted from mentorship, Osuji gives back as a mentor with the Calgary Region Immigrant Employment Council (where he is on the board of directors) and the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society, among others. “It’s very easy to mentor, to empower somebody’s journey, especially when they’re just trying to get their foot in the door,” he says. “I want to be remembered for how many people I help.”—C.S.

“ T H E R E A R E N ’ T A LWAY S A L O T O F P E O P L E W H O L O O K L I K E M E AT T H E TA B L E , L E T A L O N E W H O O W N T H E TA B L E .”

avenue November 21

H A I R B Y J E R E M E B O K I T C H , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

Congratulations Samantha Lowe! ~ Director Health and Wellness, The Mustard Seed ~

We’re so proud of you for this amazing achievement. We’re honoured to have you by our side as we work towards The Mustard Seed’s vision to eliminate homelessness and reduce poverty where we serve.

Blessings from your friends and colleagues at The Mustard Seed. TheSeed.ca

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avenue November 21

MELISSA ROY Director of Operations, Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary

AGE 33

Melissa Roy has helped grow the capacity of the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary to offer a wider range of programs for urban Indigenous peoples in the city. t the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary, Melissa Roy is doing her “life’s work.” Raised by a mother who survived the residential school system, Roy is dedicated to ensuring all Indigenous families, youth and individuals have access to cultural reconnection opportunities. Originally from Tŝi Del Del First Nation in B.C., Roy came to the AFCC in March 2018. She has helped grow capacity, expanding the team from nine to 26 and the number of key programs from three to 20. As director of operations, Roy oversees all programming in a range of areas including food security, housing, mental health, addiction recovery and youth. She facilitates Elder sessions as part of a family program called “Honouring the Bonds” and provides access to traditional medicines and on-theland teaching opportunities. “Our work is important to share a different narrative of Indigenous wellness and our role within society,” Roy says. In July 2018, she helped launch iitaohkanitsini’kotsiiyio’p, the first Indigenous support service hub and partner initiative of its kind in Canada, wherein agencies “wrap supports around an individual” at point of contact, rather than draw out the process with a series of referrals. Recently, AFCC launched an urban Indigenous community immunization clinic. The first phase addressed COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Indigenous seniors and created a safe space for them to be immunized outside of Western medical facilities, resulting in 400 seniors receiving vaccinations. In phase two, the clinic has vaccinated more than 5,000 individuals (both Indigenous and non-Indigenous). “My journey to end up in Calgary at the Friendship Centre was about finding somewhere that I could be part of something meaningful for the community,” Roy says. “Where I come from, if somebody is in need, the whole community comes together to help.” —T.K.

HAIR BY RACHEL ANDERSON, HEDKANDI SALON; MAKEUP BY PHOEBE HEARD, ARTISTS WITHIN

“INDIGENOUS PEOPLE ARE NOT A FOOTNOTE, NOT A CHECKED BOX. TO BE S U C C E S S F U L I N P R O G R A M M I N G Y O U H AV E T O C O N N E C T T O T H E C U LT U R E S .”

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MAUD S A LV I Executive Director, Sled Island Music & Arts Festival

AGE 37

Since becoming executive director in 2013, Maud Salvi has kept the Sled Island festival alive through a massive flood, recessions and a global pandemic. hen the Sled Island Music & Arts Festival is in full swing and all eyes are on the stage, Maud Salvi says she often finds herself looking in the opposite direction. “What I really enjoy is watching the audience watching the show,” Salvi says. “That, to me, is the real reward.” Since 2013, Salvi has been the executive director for the multi-venue festival, creating opportunities for thousands of local and international artists to perform or exhibit in Calgary. Salvi looks after budgeting, hiring, partnership development and fundraising for the festival, along with booking and interacting with artists. The festival takes place over five days in late June, but Salvi works on it for most of the year: her prep begins 10 months prior each September and after the festival wraps, she continues working into August. After the 2013 flood in her inaugural year forced Sled Island to cancel mid-festival, Salvi has navigated the challenges of recessions, a weak Canadian dollar impacting the festival’s ability to book international artists, and most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic, but she has kept the festival afloat. Although the pandemic led to forced hiatuses in 2020 and 2021, she helped keep the Sled Island spirit alive with speaker sessions on topics such as accessibility, ageism and sexism in the music industry, plus compilation albums and smaller events like last summer’s Camp Sled Island, a three-day showcase of live music and film events. Although Sled Island has established itself as an institution in the city, challenging the perception of what Calgary is beyond the city limits remains a driver in Salvi’s work. The potential to continue shaping the city, she says, is what keeps things exciting. “Through the festival, I’m able to contribute to moving the city in a certain direction,” she says. “I like the idea that there is still much to be built.” —N.K.

“IT ALL COMES BACK TO C O M M U N I T Y. I R E A L LY L I K E T H AT F E E L I N G O F B E I N G PA R T O F A COMMUNITY OF LIKE-MINDED I N D I V I D U A L S .”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N ; M A K E U P B Y A M E N M I N H A S , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

SHERRI (GURSHARAN) SHERGILL Clinical Supervisor, the Centre for Refugee Resilience; Co-founder, Mata Jai Kaur Maternal and Child Health Centre in Rajasthan, India

AGE 36

Sherri Shergill acts both locally and globally to deliver health services to women and racialized populations. t’s challenging to get Sherri Shergill to talk herself up. That's partly because she uses a “culturally responsive” approach to health that doesn’t presume expertise. Shergill works in the mental health field and gives her clients the opportunity to self-define their needs. “People don’t need my help,” she says. “I think what they need is a space to honour trauma that has happened to them — to explore it — and I think they need security and safety.” Shergill is a private clinical therapist to women of colour, a clinical supervisor to developing therapists at the Centre for Refugee Resilience here in Calgary and one of the founders of Mata Jai Kaur (MJK), a clinic in Rajasthan, India, that offers prenatal health care as well as mental health supports. She also collaborates with Maskwacis Health Services and the Martin Family Initiative to respond to programmatic need and promote maternal and family well-being. Shergill opened MJK in 2009 in collaboration with family members, including her cousin and her father, who hails from Rajasthan. The clinic has hosted more than 25,000 outpatient visits and helped deliver nearly 2,000 healthy babies in a region with an extremely high infant-mortality rate. In all her many roles, Shergill works with marginalized populations — refugees and Indigenous people — on the needs, she says, that are largely misunderstood by the mental health care system. She has touched countless lives with her empathy, listening skills and decolonized approach to wellness. “My expertise is just listening to communities and then figuring out how we can support them, or what can be structured to support them,” she says. “It’s trying to take an affirming and anti-oppressive approach, and then minimize power dynamics. “I’m just part of this with you.”—C.G.

“ S U C C E S S , T O M E , I S T O H AV E P E O P L E R E C O G N I Z E T H AT T H E Y D E S E R V E A C H A N C E .”

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SARAH SINCLAIR Lawyer for Sahwoo mohkaak tsi ma taas, Calgary Legal Guidance

AGE 38

Sarah Sinclair is helping bring about systemic change in the legal system by creating equal access to justice for Indigenous clients and educating fellow lawyers on Indigenous legal issues. s a lawyer, Sarah Sinclair is driven to create systemic change within the legal system, where Indigenous people are largely underserved. In 2013, Sinclair, who is Oji-Cree, was the first Indigenous articling student hired at Calgary Legal Guidance (CLG), a not-for-profit that provides free legal services to people who otherwise would not be able to access them. In 2015, the year she was called to the bar, Sinclair began volunteering with CLG. In 2019, CLG hired her as the lawyer for its Indigenous legal clinic Sahwoo mohkaak tsi ma taas (Blackfoot for “before being judged”). In her role, Sinclair provides legal services for Indigenous clients in the areas of criminal, civil, administrative and Aboriginal law, where she has specialized knowledge pertaining to on-reserve and off-reserve legal questions and issues involving intergenerational trauma resulting from residential schooling and the Sixties Scoop. Sinclair also educates CLG colleagues, law students and other lawyers around Alberta about Indigenous legal issues and shares knowledge about trauma-informed practice and Indigenous cultures. In 2020, Sahwoo mohkaak tsi ma taas provided legal services and outreach to 260 individuals and provided cultural training sessions to 131 people. Sinclair consults with Knowledge Keepers and Elders and an advisory committee of Indigenous leaders and allies to ensure Sahwoo mohkaak tsi ma taas is serving the community. She also acts on behalf of CLG at the Calgary Indigenous Court. “The mainstream legal career is not the only option,” Sinclair says. “The profession will make way for you if you just kick the door down.” Her work has earned her two eagle feathers, given by Elders and Knowledge Keepers to signify achievement in life. “To receive one is a great honour,” she says. —A.N.

“ I F Y O U R G O A L I S T O C R E AT E SYSTEMIC CHANGE, OR JUST TO H E L P A C E R TA I N P O P U L AT I O N , I T ’ S I M P O R TA N T T O U N D E R S TA N D W H O T H E P E O P L E A R E T H AT Y O U ’ R E T R Y I N G T O H E L P.”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y L I N D S AY L A R S E N , S A L O N B O W I E ; M A K E U P B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E H A I R B Y V I C T O R I A M C B E A N , S A L O N B O W I E ; M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

H O L LY SINGER CEO, Milk Jar Candle Company Inc.

AGE 32

Holly Singer’s candle-making company is an inclusive workplace that donates $1 of every product sale to support organizations for people with disabilities. hen Holly Singer decided to turn her candle-making hobby into a business in 2016, she imagined it would stay small. Her main goal for Milk Jar Candle Company was to donate a portion of sales to non-profits supporting children with disabilities. It was a cause she also championed through her work as a kinesiologist focusing on people with special needs and early intervention programs for children with disabilities. “When parents see there are going be challenges for their kids growing up, it can feel isolating and stressful, so to be a part of helping those kids feel a sense of belonging is so special to me,” Singer says. “I wasn’t nervous if Milk Jar failed. If we donated just $500 that first year, it still would have been worth it.” But by the end of 2018, Milk Jar had far surpassed initial expectations by earning $189,219. In 2019 that number doubled, and by 2020 it soared to $1,038,545. Today, Milk Jar has donated more than $100,000 to non-profits for children and adults with disabilities. Singer and her team make the eco-friendly candles by hand using clean-burning wood wicks and coconut soy wax, which doesn’t release harmful chemicals when it burns. Beyond monetary donations, Singer also wanted to be an employer of the disability community. To hire inclusively, she works with Gateway Association and Inclusion Alberta, organizations that help adults with disabilities find jobs. Singer says the commitment, energy and culture these employees bring to Milk Jar gives the entire company a greater sense of purpose. “You’re not just buying candles. It’s more than Milk Jar. You’re buying a whole feeling and a whole initiative that people care about,” she says. Moving forward, Singer plans to use Milk Jar’s dollar donations to create a wage-subsidy fund to help support or encourage other employers to hire inclusively, and eventually grow her initiative Canada-wide. —M.R.

“ I K N E W I WA N T E D T O B E C O M E A N I N C L U S I V E E M P L OY E R . . . T O H E L P B R I N G T H AT S T O R Y F U L L C I R C L E O F W H Y W E D O N AT E T O T H E D I S A B I L I T Y C O M M U N I T Y.”

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TREVOR S O LWAY Writer, Director and Producer, Solway Entertainment; Founder, The Napi Collective

AGE 29

Trevor Solway has blazed a trail for Indigenous filmmakers and has passed on his successes to his community. rowing up on a ranch in Siksika, Trevor Solway didn’t see anyone working in film. Now, he has brought a grassroots film industry home to his community to tell their stories and preserve their history. “I want our youth to watch our films and see locations, see actors, people, stories they recognize, and feel like their existence matters and their lives matter,” he says. Solway runs both the private production company Solway Entertainment and the non-profit Napi Collective, a filmmaking society that mentors Indigenous youth. “I’ve developed a little microindustry of filmmakers back home. I’m really proud of that,” he says. He estimates he has worked on more than 50 films to date, including his breakout film Indian Giver, a micro-budget short (truly micro-budget at only $1,000) that he made during his time in the journalism program at Mount Royal University. The film made the international festival circuit and helped cement his future as a full-time filmmaker. Solway later received the school’s Horizon Award for early career achievement. Part of Solway’s income comes from client work — including for Siksika Nation and Siksika Health Services. But lately he’s been consumed with paid opportunities for clients including CBC, APTN and the National Film Board of Canada. During the pandemic, he worked on the sixth Napi Collective film, a dramatic short. Solway also made a feature-length documentary about his recently deceased grandfather for the CBC, preserving his story for the next generation. Solway’s entire family was part of the film and cousins of various ages were part of the crew. “When Indigenous storytellers are telling our stories we’re telling these stories from the truth of lived experience,” Solway says. “A lot of people have favourite directors. For me, my favorite storyteller was my grandpa. He taught me the value of stories.” —C.G.

“ I T H I N K O U R G E N E R AT I O N A N D T H E Y O U T H O F T O D AY A R E I N A U N I Q U E S P O T, W H E R E W E ’ R E H O L D I N G T W O W O R L D S T O G E T H E R .”

avenue November 21

M A K E U P B Y M I C H E L L E S U VA , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

Michelle is Opening Doors & Opening Minds o

Congratulations, Michelle and all the 2021 Top 40 Under 40 winners!

JOIN US T O CELEBRAT E AVENUE ’ S T OP 40 UND ER 40 CLASS O F 2 0 2 1 WIT H A SP ECIAL O N L I N E ANNOUNCEMENT ON O C T O B ER 2 6 . F I N D M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N AT TO P 4 0 U N D E R 4 0 . C O M

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JASON W E AT H E R A L D Respirologist; Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Calgary

AGE 37

Dr. Jason Weatherald has been on the front lines treating patients during the pandemic and leading research to help patients with COVID-19 and other lung diseases. or most of his career, Dr. Jason Weatherald had to explain what respirologists do. But COVID-19 made lung doctors “suddenly famous,” he says. Weatherald has spent much of the last two years taking care of patients with COVID-19 and its long-term complications and trying to find answers for them. “In everything else in medicine we have a history of experience. Here, there’s no experience to tell us what to do,” he says. A researcher whose work has been published in prestigious medical journals, Weatherald co-leads an international clinical trial looking to improve outcomes for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and low oxygen levels. He also established the postCOVID-19 clinic at Peter Lougheed Centre, caring for patients experiencing prolonged effects from the virus. In the non-COVID world, Weatherald treats people with pulmonary hypertension, a lifethreatening disease affecting the blood vessels in the lungs that is often diagnosed late. As a trainee, Weatherald reached out to an expert at a top research centre for pulmonary hypertension in Paris. The pair met for a beer at a conference, and their discussion launched a collaboration that took Weatherald and his wife to France for a careerchanging year. Weatherald brought back to Canada a cutting-edge technique — exercise hemodynamic testing — which measures changes in blood pressure and flow in the heart and lungs during physical activity, and may identify higher-risk patients. Weatherald also volunteers with the Pulmonary Hypertension Association of Canada, where he works to raise awareness of the condition. Now a father of two boys, one of his biggest struggles is finding balance between work and family life. “To really balance the things that are important to you, I don’t know what the recipe is yet,” he says. —C.F.

“ S E E I N G PAT I E N T S W I T H COVID-19 HAS GIVEN ME A C O M P L E T E LY D I F F E R E N T PERSPECTIVE ON THE P R A C T I C E O F M E D I C I N E .”

avenue November 21

HAIR BY SHELBY CAMPBELL, HEDKANDI SALON; MAKEUP BY JESS SHWORAN, ARTISTS WITHIN

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ELMIEN WINGERT VP Finance, Midstream, Tidewater Midstream and Infrastructure Ltd.

AGE 39

Rising executive Elmien Wingert is a trailblazer for women in the energy industry and a dedicated volunteer who strives to uplift immigrant women and children. s a finance executive at an oil and gas company, Elmien Wingert is quick to identify the biggest misperception about her role: that she only works with spreadsheets. “The reality is, I work with people,” Wingert says. Leading with a team-first mindset has propelled Wingert up the ranks at Tidewater Midstream and Infrastructure Ltd., where, in 2020, she became a vice president. Wingert is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) who prides herself on using numbers to tell a story. Ultimately, she helps her teammates understand how every decision impacts the company’s bottom line. Beyond her official duties, Wingert is eager to mentor future leaders and share valuable lessons she has learned throughout her career, such as how to advocate for your ideas while listening to everyone at the table. Her desire to uplift others runs deep. Since moving from South Africa to Calgary in 2003, Wingert has donated her time to assist low-income Albertans in completing tax returns, shared her expertise with CPA groups and volunteered to lead a local chapter of Toastmasters International. Currently, she finds joy as a board member (and recent board chair) of the Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association (CIWA), an organization that supports more than 17,000 women and their children every year. Her board chair role for CIWA includes helping set strategic direction and governing with intent. An immigrant herself, Wingert is thrilled to help families not just integrate, but thrive. With so much on the go, it would be easy to let self-care slide, but Wingert finds time to hike, bike and tackle other outdoor adventures with her husband and kids. She knows it’s essential to her well-being — and her ability to pursue her goals. “If you go too hard, too fast and you burn out, you cannot help others succeed,” she says. —M.M.

“ S U C C E S S F O R M E I S N O T S I N G L E - FAC E T E D . IT’S THE ABILITY TO UPLIFT OTHERS AND C R E AT E A N E C O S Y S T E M W H E R E E V E R Y O N E ’ S S U C C E S S E S A R E E Q U A L LY I M P O R TA N T.”

avenue November 21

T H I S PA G E H A I R B Y R A C H E L A N D E R S O N , H E D K A N D I S A L O N ; M A K E U P B Y P H O E B E H E A R D , A R T I S T S W I T H I N O P P O S I T E PA G E M A K E U P B Y J E S S S H W O R A N , A R T I S T S W I T H I N

DARBY LEE YO U N G Founder and Principal, Level Playing Field

AGE 39

Darby Lee Young is elevating the accessibility and inclusivity of private and public spaces in Calgary and across North America. orn with cerebral palsy, Darby Lee Young walks where she can and relies on a motorized scooter for long distances. She knows firsthand that getting around the city isn’t always easy for people living with disabilities. But Young refused to accept these barriers, so, in 2015, she founded Level Playing Field, an eight-person, lived-experience consulting firm that evaluates, promotes and elevates the accessibility of new construction projects and renovations. Prior to founding her firm, Young says Calgary lacked assertive voices to improve accessibility for everyone. “Level Playing Field is here to bridge that gap and help people understand that people with disabilities are vital members of society,” she says. Level Playing Field offers educational seminars and training, reviews drawings of new builds, and does site audits on existing buildings. The team’s accessibility strategists consider things such as turning radiuses within washroom stalls for people using wheelchairs, the location of electrical outlets and alternatives to stairs. They also consider those with “invisible disabilities” such as autism, who might require designated sensory rooms or quiet spaces to retreat into when feeling overstimulated. In 2019, Level Playing Field began work on the $500 million BMO Centre expansion alongside Stantec, Populous and S2 Architecture. Other local projects include the new Victoria Park/Stampede CTrain station and Arts Commons’ accessibility upgrades, which consider both back-of-house staff and performers. Beyond Calgary, Young’s team consulted on the Digital Learning Centre expansion at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the Kivalliq Long Term Care Facility in Nunavut and Simon Fraser University. “When it comes to built environments, it’s about including everyone from the beginning,” says Young. “Then, right from the start, you have a space where everybody feels warm and welcome.” —K.O.

“UNIVERSAL DESIGN MEANS AC C E S S F O R E V E RYO N E A N D B E I N G A B L E T O G E T I N T O T H O S E S PA C E S W I T H M I N I M A L E F F O R T.”

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ME ET THE J UD GES TH E PA N EL T H AT SELECTE D T HE TOP 4 0 U NDE R 4 0 CL A S S OF 2 0 21

NICOLAS BEIQUE Nicolas Beique (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2019) is the founder and chief executive officer of Helcim, a payments company that makes it faster, easier and more affordable for businesses to get paid. Today, Helcim serves thousands of merchants in Canada and the U.S. and has built a reputation for being a friendly and transparent payment processor. Beique was the lead developer on the company’s first software launch, Helcim Commerce. He was recognized for his contributions to the payment industry and tech economy in Calgary as the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Prairies Technology overall category winner in 2018.

NEIGE BLAIR Neige Blair (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2015) is co-founder, olfactory engineer, creative director and “right brain” of routine inc. Working alongside her sisterin-law Pippa, the duo has grown routine into Canada’s premier natural deodorant company, winning multiple awards and accolades, including ATB small business of the year in 2019. They have since partnered with Canada’s largest wellness distributor and have distribution contracts in the UAE, U.S. and Europe. This past summer Blair and the “routeam” launched a full line of natural, personal care products with both the products and bottles made here in Calgary. Blair also loves dogs.

CHELSEY CARRICK Born-and-raised Calgarian Chelsey Carrick (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2014) is a manager in TC Energy’s Capital Markets group, focusing on evaluating natural gas projects in Canada and Mexico. A finance professional with a passion for travel and international development, she is driven to apply her financial acumen to evaluate and communicate sustainability efforts in the energy industry. Prior to joining TC Energy, Carrick began her career at Deloitte in its Financial Advisory practice, working in Germany and Calgary. Carrick holds a master of science degree from the London School of Economics and is a charter holder of the Chartered Business Valuator (CBV) designation.

KÄTHE LEMON Käthe Lemon is vice president product development & publishing for RedPoint Media, Avenue’s parent company. Before taking on this role she served as the editor of Avenue for 15 years. Lemon has worked as a magazine editor and writer for more than 20 years for a range of publications, and for five years taught communications history and theory through Athabasca University. Her work has been recognized with awards from the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association (AMPA), the Western Magazine Awards, the National Magazine Awards and the International Regional Magazine Publishers Association. In 2011 she was named Editor of the Year by AMPA.

AV E N U E W O U L D L I K E T O E X T E N D H E A R TF E LT G R AT I T U D E TO THIS YEAR’S CURTIS RUNNING RABBIT-LEFTHAND Curtis Running Rabbit-Lefthand (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2019) is a multimedia creative producer, musician and music executive; and founder and board member of Indigenous Resilience in Music — an Indigenous-led organization empowering Indigenous youth and musicians in reclaiming their identity through music and the arts. He is a solo songwriter and accompanying writer in hardcore punk groups past and present in what he deems “so-called Canada.” His work continues to evolve as a festival curator, director and artist/group manager. Running Rabbit-Lefthand is a proud member of the Blackfoot Confederacy and comes from the Amskaapipikuni, Siksika and Stoney Nakoda Nations. 80

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JUNG-SUK (JS) RYU JS Ryu (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2019 ) is president and CEO of the National accessArts Centre, Canada’s largest and oldest disability arts organization. Appointed a Salzburg Global Fellow in 2017, Ryu has held senior roles in a broad range of sectors including: director, external relations at the Banff Centre; director, public affairs at the CNIB; senior consultant with the Alberta Medical Association; and principal speechwriter to the ambassador of Japan. He is passionate about the arts and culture sector and currently sits on the board of directors of Creative Calgary.

FAREEN ZAVER Fareen Zaver, MD (Top 40 Under 40 class of 2019), is an emergency physician and an assistant professor at the University of Calgary. She has received numerous awards and honours for her education, teaching and leadership in medical education. Zaver has created numerous online education curricula now used in 10 countries, making her an international leader in medical education. Her research explores medical education through the lens of digital innovation and she is completing her master’s degree in medical education on supporting new doctors in their first year of independent practice.

J U D G E S , W H O G AV E THEIR TIME AND THEIR EXPERTISE TO HELP DETERMINE THE TOP 40 UNDER 40 CLASS OF 2021. I F YO U K N OW SOMEONE WHO SHOULD BE ON NEXT YEAR’S TOP 40 U N D E R 4 0 L I S T, N O M I N AT E T H E M AT TO P4 0 U N D E R 4 0 . CO M .

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DINING

B Y C O L I N G A L L A N T P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y J A R E D S Y C H

WORLD WIDE

VEG

How to meatlessly eat your way around the world, right here in Calgary.

W H O L E L I F E G O R E S TA U R A N T I N H I L L H U R S T.

he term “plant-based eating” is a relatively new addition to the vernacular, but veganism and vegetarianism aren’t new. Rather, these diets have existed around the world for millennia. So, while the rise of contemporary plant-based dining spots is certainly good news for those who have chosen a meatless diet, there is a world of veggie cuisine to explore in some of the city’s more traditional restaurants, as well. Here are just some of the spots in Calgary where veg-focused diners can get their fill of global flavours. avenuecalgary.com

PAR K BY S I D EWA LK CI T I ZEN Mediterranean One of the most beautiful restaurants in the city is also home to some of the brightest, freshest Mediterranean cuisine in Calgary. You can find the usual suspects like hummus, labneh and falafel, as well as creative offerings like the chamomile and melon salad. Since several dishes contain cheese and/or eggs, lax vegetarians have more options than vegans at Park, but there’s certainly something for everyone. It’s also a great place for sober diners, with inventive zero-proof cocktails, as well as Annex Ales’ artisan sodas and comforting hot beverages. 340 13 Ave. S.W. (Central Memorial Park), 403-263-2999, sidewalkcitizenbakery.com, @parkbysidewalk 84

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ABYSSINIA

HAPPY VEGGIE HOUSE

Ethiopian and Eritrean This Ethiopian-Eritrean restaurant in the Beltline serves vegetarian and vegan appetizers and a full menu of vegan entrees. Injera and hearty stews are the order of the day, offered in varying spice levels from a combination of hot peppers and berberé, a staple Ethiopian spice blend. Pair the food with traditional teas or the Ethiopian beer St. George (a.k.a. Giorgis) and finish with a traditional coffee ritual. 910 12 Ave. S.W., 403-452-3498, abyssiniarestaurant.ca, @abyssinia_yyc

Chinese Conveniently located in Chinatown, Happy Veggie House offers vegan takes on some of the most iconic Chinese takeaway dishes, such as ginger “beef ” and sweet-and-sour “pork.” While you can get meat substitutes on rice or chow mein with a side of wonton soup or dumplings, they also do a tasty eggplant-and-tofu dish that doesn’t need to impersonate anything. 109, 303 Centre St. S.W., 587-955-8633, happyveggiehouse.com, @happyveggiehouse HEAVEN RESTAURANT BAR

EMBER LOUNGE

Lebanese Ember’s menu is not exclusively plant-based, but this Lebanese restaurant does have a dedicated vegan menu of meat substitutes, including Lightlife and Beyond Meat, in Lebanese staples such as shawarma and kafta. There are also lots of items made with vegetables, including dips and tabouli. 11670 Sarcee Tr. N.W., 403-567-7642, emberlounge.ca, @emberloungeyyc

Venezuelan While this Venezuelan restaurant on 17th Avenue S.W. mostly promotes itself for having a gluten-free menu, there are also plenty of vegan items. From arepas and empanadas to a vegan take on pabellón criollo (a Venezuelan national dish of beans and rice), Heaven has plentiful offerings for veg eaters looking for a taste of paradise. 1013 17 Ave. S.W., 403-249-3037, heavengf.com, @heavenyyc

DINING

SAV EG CA F E Korean Run by a YouTuber with the username “CheapLazyVegan,” this Korean-leaning eatery offers breakfast and daytime fare inside The Academy fitness studio. There are the usual suspects like japchae, bibimbap and bulgogi (the latter also available in burrito form), plus Westernish breakfasts and hearty rice bowls. The house special is sweet potato and tofu air-fried in yangnyum (sweet and spicy) sauce served with cabbage and rice. Pair it with something from the extensive smoothie menu. 637 11 Ave. S.W., 403-263-3126, savegcafe.ca, @savegyyc

NAN’S NOODLE HOUSE

Pan-Asian The owners of Heart’s Choices, local purveyors of tasty Thai-inspired vegan fare, opened Nan’s Noodle House in the fall of 2020. Nan’s specializes in vegan noodle dishes from across Asia, including Japanese ramen, Vietnamese pho, Thai khao soi and Korean udon. Nan’s also has banh mi and refreshing iced beverages. 3103B Edmonton Tr. N.E. 403-455-0590, nansnoodlehouse.com TAMARIND

Vietnamese This family-run restaurant used to serve meat, but in 2014, the proprietors decided to focus on entirely vegan Vietnamese food. Tamarind recently moved from downtown to the Beltline, but the menu remains intact and delightful. There’s a range of noodle soups, including pho, vermicelli and rice dishes, as well as Vietnamese crepes and mango salad. Many dishes are made with mock “meats” including a ham substitute that is especially tasty. 908 12 Ave. S.W., 403-262-6644

VEGAN STR EET TACO BAR Global The popularity of Beltline-based Vegan Street led its ownership to open a taco bar in Inglewood this past summer. The new location serves its own takes on Mexican restaurant standards like nachos with “cheeze” and tacos, burritos and bowls made with seasoned veg and meat substitutes. There’s also a standout asada portobello as well as non-Mexican offerings such as watermelon poké. 1413 9 Ave. S.E., 403-453-3282, @veganstreetinglewood; veganstreet.ca

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DINING

W HO LELIFEG O Japanese This dainty nook in Hillhurst serves whole-ingredient vegan dishes inspired by a range of international cuisines — though the menu skews mostly Japanese. Two of the biggest draws are the “sushi” and ramen. The California roll is made with avocado, mayo, crispy cucumber and vegan-version tamagoyaki, while the ramen is a satisfying surprise, with its broth made creamy by an array of nuts and seeds to give the same richness of a traditional meat-based broth. WholeLifeGo also has a small market of take-home products, including you-make sushi cone kits. 340 14 St. N.W., 587-352-5433, wholelifego.com, @wholelifego

VEGGIE KING

Indian You can find vegan and vegetarian options at just about every South Asian restaurant, but Veggie King in the northeast has an entirely vegetarian menu. Fans of paneer will find many delights here: scrambled, with spinach, with gravy and more. Also great are the dal, stuffed parantha and malai kofta (veggie balls with gravy). The restaurant is popular enough to offer a subscription tiffin service. 49 Savanna Blvd. N.E., 403-583-1111, veggieking.ca, @veggiekingsavanna VEG-IN YYC

RONI’S KITCHEN

Cookbook author Roni Zaide was a chef at vegetarian restaurant The Coup for seven years and has also cooked internationally. These days, Zaide teaches cooking classes under the name Roni’s Kitchen (also the name of her cookbook). Though Zaide is of Iranian descent, her cookbook and classes aren’t focused exclusively on Middle Eastern cuisine — she divides her recipes into sections titled “home,” “travel” and “Calgary.” Zaide’s online classes make for a great date-night in. roniskitchen.com @roniskitchen 86

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YEMENI VILLAGE

Yemeni Just blocks away from the 10th Street Bridge, this new Arabian Peninsula restaurant has a menu that is admittedly heavy on meat dishes. However, the vegetarian section of the menu has many great options for plant-based eaters. Most of the meatless dishes revolve around white beans — served soft or charred, with herbs, tomatoes, allia and bread — but the signature dish is salta, a hearty vegetable stew cooked in a lava stone pot. The price-to-portion ratio is excellent, and your meat-eating friends won’t even realize that they’re at a destination for vegans. 402 8 St. S.W., 403-452-8595, yemenivillage.ca, @yemenivillage.ca

RONI’S KITCHEN PHOTOGRAPH BY HANNAH BURNE

VEGGING OUT WITH

Indian This family-run Indian-fusion restaurant near Centre Street Station serves traditional dishes made with plant-based imitator ingredients including Beyond Meat. Pick your spice level (the highest is called “consult a doctor”) and either a bowl or “burger.” Everything on the menu is vegan, including the decadent slices of cake. 215 6 Ave. S.E., 587-351-5253, veginyyc.com, @veginyyc

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low down, breathe deep, listen to the sounds of the forest — the wind in the trees, the crackle of ice, the crunch of snow beneath your boots. It’s magical. This is winter in the Rockies as you may not have experienced, with Indigenous guides showing you the way. Indigenous tourism has become a significant contributor to the Canadian tourism industry. According to Shae Bird, CEO of Indigenous Tourism Alberta, one in three international travellers are seeking some type of Indigenous experience when visiting Canada, as

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are one in four domestic travellers. Despite high demand, the past years have been challenging for Indigenous tour operators due to COVID-19. Bird says the goal right now is to see Indigenous tourism in the province rebound to pre-COVID numbers — an annual economic contribution of $166.2-million — by 2024-2025. Indigenous Tourism goes well beyond cultural showcase events, with a range of adventure experiences extending across all seasons. Here are three Indigenous tour outfitters offering outdoor programming in the mountains and foothills near Calgary over the winter months to come.

MOUNTAINS

G IRT H H ITC H G U I D I N G

P H O T O G R A P H Y C O U R T E S Y O F I N D I G E N O U S T O U R I S M A L B E R TA , J AY M C D O N A L D

PAI NTED WARRIO RS From smudging sage at the start of your visit, to laying down an offering of tobacco, it’s all about sharing, connecting and learning at Painted Warriors, which offers land-based programs in the serene foothills of the Rockies northwest of Calgary. Co-owners Tracey Klettl and Tim Mearns (the duo is a couple as well as business partners) share knowledge from their Ojibway and Cree heritage with their guests through programs, camps and tours. “It’s building a bridge of understanding between cultures, and bringing back a connection between the land, animals and people. It’s really about pausing and digging deep,” says Klettl. Experiences include archery, hunting-gathering skills and education, snowshoeing, outdoor survival skills, animal track identification and wildlife viewing. There’s also horseback riding and equine training presented with an Indigenous perspective. “Riders learn to make a connection with their horse before they ride it,” Klettl says. “They learn how to speak to their horse … and the whole feeling when you ride a horse after you’ve actually made that connection is completely different.”

The archery lesson starts with safety training and instruction, then moves on to a simulated “hunt” for food that begins by laying down an offering of tobacco and proceeds using threedimensional, life-sized foam animal targets. “We use archery to give people a feel for what it would have been like to hunt and how it looks through our lens — hunting responsibly and ethically,” Klettl explains. “Hunting from our perspective is completely different than trophy hunting … A lot of people are surprised at how archery touches you on so many different levels. It challenges you mentally, emotionally and physically, and it’s very spiritual, because when you are shooting a bow, you have to calm and clear your mind.” Dinner at Painted Warriors is often cooked over an open campfire and includes traditional fare such as bannock twisted into a “snake on a stick” on a green willow branch and toasted over the hot coals. After dinner there’s freshly brewed mint tea, and then it’s time to sleep in the cozy Métis trapper tents, each warmed by a wood-burning stove. paintedwarriors.ca

Girth Hitch Guiding offers climbing and ice-climbing courses and experiences for all levels, from beginners to advanced, primarily in the David Thompson Corridor near Nordegg. “Climbing is for everyone,” says Girth Hitch owner and Association of Canadian Mountain Guidescertified lead guide Tim Taylor. “We’re pretty excited about Canadians getting switched-on to their own backyard. “As Canadians, we have access to some of the best winter playgrounds, with the longest ice-climbing season and the most accessibility to great ice climbing anywhere in the world.” Taylor, who is Métis, ties his Indigenous heritage into his mountain adventures through what he describes as “a sense of place, connecting to the land and the wilderness that’s part of

our heritage.” The David Thompson Corridor offers a vast number of excellent ice climbs on frozen waterfalls ranging from 30- to 300-metres high, but even more so than the physical challenge it’s the spiritual side of climbing that Taylor wants to share with his guests. “It’s about transformational adventures,” he says. “Climbing is where I challenge myself holistically as a person and develop the competence that I can bring back to the challenges in life.” Taylor also sees that transformation in the climbers he guides. “The mountains are the catalyst,” he says. “I get to be the coach, the one who walks beside them while they unlock that potential. It’s a huge privilege.” girthhitchguiding.ca

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I N D I G EN O U S TOUR IS M N OT EB OOK The Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum in Banff is a space dedicated to the culture and heritage of First Nations of the Northern Plains and the Canadian Rockies.

The Carter-Ryan Gallery, with locations in Canmore and Banff, features the bright graphic paintings and soapstone sculpture of Indigenous visual artist Jason Carter. In Jasper, Warrior Women, founded by Cree Knowledge Keeper and artist Matricia Bauer, does a series of outdoor fireside chats with conversation about Indigenous culture, stories, drumming and songs. Canadian travel app and web-based platform Yervana helps connect travelers to off-the-beaten path adventures and local guides, including some who are Indigenous. 90

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M AH IK AN T RAILS Mahikan Trails is an Indigenous-owned tour company that shares teachings from the land through medicine walks. Mahikan walks take place year-round in locations such as Grotto Canyon near Canmore, at Cascade Ponds near the town of Banff and in the foothills areas in and around Sundre, Alta. Guides help their guests find the rhythms of the forest while instructing them about wild-plant medicine. In addition to educating their groups on forest plants, Mahikan guides also speak on what

makes up a healthy forest, including the need for regular fires and the complex interrelationships between plants, animals and people. Even in winter, lead guide and instructor Jordan Ede says there are many medicinal plants that you can spot in the snow, including yarrow, wild rose and buffalo berry shrubs. “A lot of people will look out here and see a forest. I look out and I see a pharmacy, a grocery and a hardware store,” Ede says. mahikan.ca

P H O T O G R A P H Y C O U R T E S Y O F I N D I G E N O U S T O U R I S M A L B E R TA

At the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff, the Recognizing Relations program is an ongoing collaboration with the Stoney Nakoda Nation seeking to identify individuals and families in the photographs and films in the museum’s archives and library and remove inappropriate language in the descriptions. View images from the program and visit the online database at whyte.org/recognizing-relations.

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The kitchen has ample space for homeowner Louis Duncan-He to cook and homeowner Donovan Duncan-He to bake, as well as for the couple to entertain guests.

DECOR

This page The monochromatic colour scheme of Slice House allowed architect and designer Kayla Browne to indulge her love of colour when it came to furniture and art pieces. Opposite Cedar siding applied in the centuries-old board and batten method creates contemporary vertical lines on the exterior of the home. Extended cladding above the study windows outlines the overhang that engages with the deconstructed front porch.

SLICE OF LIFE HOME AT

PEACE HOW INT ERIOR DES IG N E R LOU I S DU N C A N - H E T U RN E D H I S MODER N HOUSE I N TO A S A N CT UA RY OF ST YLE . 92

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DECOR B Y M I C H A E L A R E A M P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y E Y M E R I C W I D L I N G

I nterior designer Louis Duncan-He jokes that when decorating his own home, he became his own worst client. “When you’re designing for yourself, you have so many different places you could take it,” he says. Both Duncan-He (who was part of Avenue’s Top 40 Under 40 class of 2019) and his husband Donovan Duncan-He have demanding careers — Donavan especially, who works as a physician in pediatric care. That’s why, when designing their three-storey home in South Calgary, their goal was to create a sanctuary. The home is best described as West Coastinspired with a Parisian twist. The open layout creates a feeling of brightness and connection. To create a restorative setting, the couple sought out neutral and streamlined pieces. “It was about having a calming space that allows us to unwind and forget

An organic living art installation designed by Louis Duncan-He (standing) and handcrafted by Donovan Duncan-He (sitting) balances the living room’s elegant white panelling.

about the stresses of the day,” Donovan says. Louis updated the kitchen by swapping out the black lacquer for white lacquer and natural wood cladding. He brought in wooden tables for the dining and living rooms, showcasing his design philosophy to “find the dichotomy between the natural and material worlds.” The living room proved to be the most challenging part of the design for Louis. Though the room is a substantial size, it wasn’t quite wide enough to fit a lot of furniture. So instead of working with multiple chairs and seating elements the couple chose an oversized sectional for the space. It’s the perfect piece for enjoying lazy Saturdays together and doubles as spacious seating for larger get-togethers. “It’s about being able to lounge, just the two of us, but also have a space that can [be flexible enough] to avenuecalgary.com

DECOR

Clockwise from top A long table in Louis’s office provides space for his clients to view samples that he stores in ceilingheight cabinets along the wall. While Donovan was away in Montreal, Louis designed a home office for him as a birthday gift and welcome-home surprise. Louis uses the seating area in his home office for creative writing and hosting informal project discussions with clients.

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“We were mindful of how [our home] needed to make us feel, as well as how it had to look.”

WHEN WE EACH DO A LITTLE, A LOT GETS DONE.

LOUIS DUNCAN-HE accommodate more,” Donovan says. Louis’s spacious top-floor loft office was a key selling point when it came to the house. “I’ve always wanted to have a beautiful home studio that I can work from if I want to,” he says. Sliding glass doors on both sides make the workspace bright and airy. Louis kept the decor streamlined to avoid overstylizing the space for visiting clients. He added a 918discussions 0638 cozy seating area for informal 403 project SUITE 200, 815 - 10 AVE SW with clients and his team.CALGARY, Following these discusAB T2R 0B4 sions, clients can move to the spacious wood table to interact with samples and textures, which Louis stores in ceiling-height cabinets. Donovan’s home office, which Louis designed for him as a birthday gift, is filled with colour, texture and pattern — a reflection of Donovan’s taste and personality, with artwork that celebrates his love of travel. The large desk and leather reading chair in the corner were Donovan’s only requests for the space, allowing him to do work at home or relax and read for leisure. Louis and Donovan wanted the main bedroom, especially, to feel wholly restorative and relaxing. To achieve that, Louis kept the decor simple, with organic features. A wallpaper mural behind the bed, reminiscent of a West Coast mountain scene, flows into the organic green throw pillows and simple white bedding. “A well-designed space shouldn’t rely just on the furniture,” he says. In the ensuite bathroom, Louis veered from the original colour scheme, which was mostly white. “[It] was so modern and clean that I felt like there was a bit of disconnect in terms of how monotonous it was,” he says. Louis added green wallpaper in the water closet to create a colourful focal point. The star feature of the ensuite is undoubtedly the luxurious soaker tub. “Donovan would spend his entire day in the bathtub if he could,” jokes Louis. From the bathtub and beyond, both Louis and Donovan say they truly feel a sense of peace and serenity within their home, having perfectly captured the essence of restorative design. “We were mindful of how [our home] needed to make us feel, as well as how it had to look,” Louis says.

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DECOR

HOW TO MAKE YO U R H O M E FEEL MORE R E S T O R AT I V E Interior designer Louis Duncan-He effortlessly blends stylish decor to create a restorative feeling. Here are three things he suggests to make your home into your sanctuary. ADD ARTWORK

Art is a great visual addition, but don’t pick a piece for the sake of having artwork on the wall. Instead, choose something that is personal and moves you. “That’s always going to make the space feel more like you,” he says. CLEAR THE FLOOR

Don’t over-rely on furniture to fill your house. “What can happen is your home looks furnished but not finished,” says Duncan-He. Focus instead on keeping the floors clear and use texture to add flavour and make the space feel finished and polished. THINK LIFE, THEN STYLE

Before focusing on design elements and decor, DuncanHe suggests looking at other aspects of your life for inspiration. “Look in your closet,” he says, as an example. “Do you have monochromatic everything? Then maybe your aesthetic is more tone-ontone and more natural.”

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Clockwise from top Organic elements in the main bedroom, including the mountain-scene mural and use of greens, help create a sense of peace. The deep soaker tub is a key element for full-body restoration and relaxation. Colourful plants add a pop of colour in the powder room. A frosted-glass divider in the main bedroom creates a soft glow in the ensuite, while also providing privacy.

MODERN NATURALHOME DESIGNED BY JAMIE BANFIELD DESIGN Amarosa Allure Walnut SOURCE Home built by Ken Homes, 6045 Centre St. S.W., 403-560-6106 and 403-891-1253, kenhomes.ca Interior design by Louis Duncan-He Designs, 403-966-1138, louisdhe.com Electrical by Adam Kochanek, facebook.com/adamelektrics Painting by Parsa Painting, 2105 90 Ave. S.W., 587-215-2263, parsa-painting.business.site Various fabrics from Maxwell Fabrics (trade only), maxwellfabrics.com Kitchen pendant lights from Carrington Lighting, 2513 5 Ave. N.W., 403-264-5483, carringtonlighting.com Floor lamp from Carrington Lighting Bar chairs by Rove Concepts, roveconcepts.com Living room carpet from Flor, flor.com Sofa by EQ3, Deerfoot Meadows, 403-212-8080, eq3.com Coffee table, side table and armchair from CF Interiors, 7, 6325 11 St. S.E., 403-515-0011, cfinteriors.ca Draperies from Calgary Window Fashions, 337 58 Ave. S.E., 403-252-4170, calgarywindowfashions.net Artificial plant by Artiplanto, artiplanto.com Poufs from CB2, cb2.ca Artwork by Louis Duncan-He Designs Louis’s office sofa from Structube, six Calgary locations, structube.com Artwork from Renwil, renwill.com Side tables from CF Interiors Rug by Loloi, loloirugs.com Artificial plant by Artiplanto Pendants from Carrington Lighting Table by Transformer Table, transformertable.com Donovan’s office table custom-made by homeowners Sideboard and armchair from Structube Carpet by Loloi Wallpaper from Walls Alive, 1328 17 Ave. S.W., 403-244-8931, wallsalive.com, installed by Modern Wall Design, 403-671-6774, modernwalldesign.ca Draperies from Pottery Barn, CF Chinook Centre, 403-259-2100, potterybarn.ca Chair by Rove Concepts Main Bedroom bed frame and headboard by Vänt Panels, vantpanels.com Wallpaper mural by Hovia, installed by Modern Wall Design End tables from CF Interiors Draperies by Calgary Window Fashions Wall sconces by RH, Southcentre Mall, 403-271-2122, rh.com Floral decor from Chintz & Company, 1238 11 Ave. S.W., 403-245-3449, chintz.com Ensuite end table from CF Interiors

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Acrylic, found images, graphite, satin ribbons, mirror on birch panel.

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SIZE

40 inches by 24 inches. LOC AT I ON

Owerko Hall, St. Mary’s University, 14500 Bannister Rd. S.E. NOT ES

Canadien’s landmarks is in the art collection of St. Mary’s University. Canadien is represented in public collections such as the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Glenbow, Nickle Galleries and the Indigenous Art Centre.

L ANDMARK S Erratics were carried to the Calgary region approximately 10,000 years ago on a tongue of glacier reaching south from Jasper. Canadien depicts two erratics: Split Rock, one of Calgary’s best-known, is in West Nose Creek Park; the other is near Priddis. Canadien was born and raised in Denendeh, in the communities of Fort Providence and Hay River in the Northwest Territories. He currently lives and works in Black Diamond. A member of the Deh Gah Got’íé Kóé First Nation, a Deh Cho Region member of the Dene Nation, he has a long history in the Mohkinstsis (Calgary) area. He lived here with his family when he was three, and later

returned for art school, graduating from the painting department of the Alberta College of Art (now Alberta University of the Arts) in 1993. The Indigenous painters of the ’80s and ’90s, including Jaune Quick-To-See Smith, Jane Ash Poitras and Bob Boyer, were important influences for Canadien. He has garnered a strong exhibition record of his own, often focusing on First Nations/Tribal sovereignty, resource exploitation and environment. Canadien’s landmarks is characteristic of his inventive use of materials and commitment to presenting evidence of continuing Indigenous presence.

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF BRUNO CANADIEN

n each of landmarks’ four panels, artist Bruno Canadien evokes experiences of the land with the thoughtful use of images, colour, geometry and material. On the top left, a small shower of multicoloured ribbons shimmer against the clear blue sky. Photographic slivers of a bird of prey — perhaps a northern harrier — hover over golden grassland where an archival photograph of a herd of bison and a painting of the glacial erratic known as Split Rock are interrupted with strips of blue. Below, a curtain of green ribbons, evocative of tall prairie grass, obscures a photo of a gathering in modern times with cars and teepees. It’s cut and collaged with a silver circle, leaving the image cleaved like the rock above. Each of the square panels echoes at least one visual element from its neighbour. In the bottom right panel, the silver circle reappears as the central focal point. Underneath is a sun-washed, delicate graphite drawing of an erratic, set amidst an expansive prairie landscape. The green panel above conveys two elements: a photo of a large boulder in the foreground and a convex mirror in which you might see yourself and consider how our surroundings have changed. When curator Tamara Lee-Anne Cardinal invited eight Indigenous artists to create a new work for Aisinna’kiiks, the debut exhibition at the Mauro Art Gallery at St. Mary’s University in Calgary, she consulted Elders, who asked that the artists envision the land pre-settlement. Canadien, one of this group of eight, considered how the glacial erratics would have been prominent landmarks on the open prairie, as well as sites of spiritual importance for the people and rubbing stones for the buffalo.

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Wolf Willow Local Species Behavioural Data Collection

Daily Habits of ] the S

Bicyclia

Suburbia Bicyclia is on the move in Wolf Willow. This adult and his young have learned how to use wheels to travel swiftly along the Bow River. The parent keeps them close together, staying safe throughout their journey.

11:15 AM

Leave dwelling on bicycle (wearing head protection).

11:25 AM Reach paved Bow River pathways.

HOMES FROM THE

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