PARTI CI PANT BI O S AUTHORS TINA ATHAIDE was born in Entebbe. After leaving Uganda she immigrated with her family to Canada from England. She has been a teacher for thirty years. Believing that books can present different experiences to children in an organic, natural way, she started publishing early literacy readers for the educational market before her debut book, Orange For The Sunsets. The MG book is a Junior Library Guild Selection and is nominated for a Silver Birch award by the Forest of Reading program in Canada. NAFIZ A A Z AD is the author of The Candle and the Flame and the upcoming The Wild Ones. BRIT TA BADOUR, better known as Britta B., is a Kingston-born, Toronto-based spoken word poet, emcee and artist educator. She has mentored thousands of youth through arts programs initiated by organizations like JAYU (pronounced JAH-YOU), Poetry In Voice, Prologue Performing Arts and The Power Plant. Britta is an alumna of the Toronto Arts Council Leaders Lab and a member of the League of Canadian Poets. Currently, Britta is a Creative Writing MFA candidate at University of Guelph. SHANE BURCAW is the author of several award-winning books about disability. He is the President of a nonprofit organization called Laughing At My Nightmare, and a renowned public speaker who has performed across the country at places such as Harvard University, The University of Florida, The University of Connecticut, Princeton University, and many more. An accomplished motivational speaker and author, MICHEL CHIK WANINE grew up in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Much of his childhood was ravaged by a war that claimed the lives of 5.8 million people; his father included, and forced him to be a refugee and child soldier. Now, a United Nations Fellow for People of African Descent and graduate from the University of Toronto, he now inspires people to believe in their ability to fulfil their purpose.
DALL AS HUNT is Cree and a member of Wapsewsipi (Swan River First Nation) in Treaty 8 territory in Northern Alberta, Canada. He has had creative and critical work published in the Malahat Review, Arc Poetry, Canadian Literature, and the American Indian Culture and Research Journal. His first children’s book, Awâsis and the World-Famous Bannock, was published through Highwater Press in 2018, and was nominated for the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award. JUNE HUR was born in South Korea, raised in Canada, and studied History and Literature at the University of Toronto. She began writing her debut novel, The Silence of Bones, after obsessing over books about Joseon Korea. She lives in Toronto with her husband and daughter. MICHAEL HUTCHINSON is a member of the Misipawistik Cree Nation, north of Winnipeg. He currently lives in Ottawa, Ontario where he works at the Assembly of First Nations, which advocates for First Nation families and communities across Canada. Prior to that, he spent 7 years as the host and producer of APTN National News. He wrote this book to instill pride in Indigenous youth and educate others about First Nation communities, beliefs, and opinions. ADAM GARNET JONES is a Cree/Metis author, filmmaker and beadworker from Edmonton, Alberta. His first book, Fire Song, is based on his award-winning feature film. He currently works as the Lead of Indigenous Initiatives at Telefilm Canada and the Canadian Media Fund. SOYEON KIM is a Korean-born artist and educator currently living in Toronto, Ontario. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts and Bachelor of Education from York University. She has participated in artist residencies at The Hermitage (St. Petersburg, Russia) and Spark Box Studios (Picton, Ontario). As a children’s picture book illustrator, she has participated in TD Book Week 2018 and Adelaide Writers’ Week (Australia) for the Kids’ Weekend in 2017.
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