2024 National Educators Conference

Kickoff & introductions 10:00-10:30am

Welcome & view from the bridge 10:30-11:00am

Getting our co-op principles right: a refreshed guide with Susanna Redekop

Get to know your new Getting Our Co-op Principles Right manual, as presented by co-author Susanna Redekop of Freedom Dreams Co-operative Education (FDCE).  Susanna will present the approach to rewriting and designing the new manual that brings co-operative principles into the everyday lives and operations of housing co-op members, Board and staff while introducing key highlights of the new guidelines that embed values of justice, equity, diversity, decolonization and inclusion (JEDDI) into the document.  Susanna will relate the JEDDI values to the concept of Co-op Futures, and in an interactive activity will get all of us to think critically about how we want to reimagine and co-create what our own Co-op Futures look like.

Susanna Redekop is a Co-Founder of Freedom Dreams Co-op Education and a Project Manager at the Canadian Community Economic Development Network. She has spent 13 years co-founding, developing and supporting food and farm co-ops throughout Ontario such as West End Food Co-op and Local Food and Farm Co-ops network. Susanna holds a BA in Anthropology from University of Toronto and a MES from York University; her thesis analyzed the Canadian co-operative sector with a critical intersectional lens. Susanna lives in a housing co-op with her husband and 3 children and is a board member for the Parkdale Neighbourhood Land Trust.

Equitable and inclusive approaches to conflict resolution with Susanna Redekop

This session dives deeper into the values of justice, equity, diversity, decolonization and inclusion (JEDDI) as applied to your co-ops.  This interactive workshop will involve activities, discussion and sharing our collective learnings about how embedding JEDDI values into co-ops can be challenging, rewarding and necessary.  We will discuss conflict resolution, restorative justice and how to implement practical tools and solutions to support you in how you can use the JEDDI framework in your co-op education work.

Susanna Redekop is a Co-Founder of Freedom Dreams Co-op Education and a Project Manager at the Canadian Community Economic Development Network. She has spent 13 years co-founding, developing and supporting food and farm co-ops throughout Ontario such as West End Food Co-op and Local Food and Farm Co-ops network. Susanna holds a BA in Anthropology from University of Toronto and a MES from York University; her thesis analyzed the Canadian co-operative sector with a critical intersectional lens. Susanna lives in a housing co-op with her husband and 3 children and is a board member for the Parkdale Neighbourhood Land Trust.

Insights into adults as learners with Dr. Ralf St. Clair

In this session participants will be invited to share their observations and questions about working with adult learners. A selection of key learning theories will be shared, and participant experiences will act as case studies to think through what these theories can tell us. The emphasis of the session will be practical, providing educators with new ways to think about their role and respond to the challenges of supporting adult learning.

Dr. Ralf St. Clair is Professor (and former Dean) at the University of Victoria. He has been an active researcher for several decades, having studied adult education and literacy, educational aspirations, and Indigenous education. The common thread running through his work is a concern with equity and accessibility in education. Dr. St. Clair has published on a range of adult and higher education topics. His most recent book was “Introduction to Researching Teaching and Learning with Adults,” published by Taylor Francis in 2023.

More crunch, less granola: effective mindfulness tools for educators with Sonia Byrne

The housing co-op learning environment comes with its own unique benefits and challenges for educators. Compassion fatigue, growing mental health concerns, board recruitment and retention challenges along with ongoing and continuous learning needs, means that the role of educators in our sector is more complex than ever.

This workshop will:

• explore effective mindfulness tools that can be used by educators to enhance both the participant experience and their own performance
• develop participant’s understanding of the changing needs of learners
• Share some ways that educators can take care of themselves to avoid burnout

Sonia Byrne, has helped leadership teams and boards in the Canadian co-op housing sector since 2009 and she is known for her mindful approach. Her consulting firm Sonia Byrne & Associates, has led to work in many parts of the world. Sonia holds great enthusiasm for helping individuals and teams untangle the puzzle of communication, perception and perspective.

Always improving: practical tips for inclusive education and handling feedback with Anya Phillip & Deirdre Bain

In this peer-to-peer session, participants will learn the basics of inclusive language and classroom practices. Together, we’ll explore effective ways to respond to feedback on inclusion. Through case studies, participants will analyze how equity practices can sometimes land differently than intended, and practice strategies to acknowledge harm, deescalate, and improve. Participants will leave with foundational best practices for inclusivity and a framework for making responsive improvements.

Deirdre (they/them) has worked in the field of adult education for 7 years, always with a lens of empathy, equity, and intersectionality. Deirdre has designed and delivered education curriculum from customized, individual, in-person learning, to large groups of virtual learners, to self-paced online modules. In everything they do, Deirdre comes to education from a place of appreciative inquiry, aiming to understand what learners already know, and how we can work together to build on their strengths and knowledge.

Going hybrid: engaging learners in-person and online with Maria Roth and Jaclyn Johnston

Hybrid meetings, which involve some participants attending in person while others join virtually, have become increasingly common in membership organizations and educational settings. Although these meetings provide flexibility and inclusivity for some, they also present unique challenges. In this session participants will engage in a discussion about the common fears and frustrations related to hybrid meetings, and will leave with practical tips to make these gatherings more effective and enjoyable for all.

Maria Roth has been active in online engagement since 1997, as a learner, content producer and facilitator. A member of False Creek Co-op in Vancouver, she is part of a seven co-op working group that has delivered over 60 hybrid meetings and educational workshops during the past year.

Jaclyn was born and currently lives in Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia) with her two young children. She has over 12 years of experience in governance support, specializing in property, financial, and contract management. She is currently the Program Manager of Co-operative and Planning Services (Atlantic) with CHF Canada. In her role, Jaclyn supports initiatives that foster understanding, awareness and learning in cooperative housing.  She has successfully arranged and facilitated hybrid meetings that align with legislation, ensuring inclusive participation for all members.

Brain friendly learning with Sophie Cooper

Just because we all have one brain, doesn’t mean we know how they work! This session will boil down what brain science tells us about brain friendly learning into six key elements. The session will start with a short overview of each element followed by small group work to figure out what each means for us as educators and our learning environments.

Sophie has 30 years experience working in the non-profit sector building capacity for change through participation, lifelong learning and community empowerment initiatives. She is a qualified youth and community worker and some of her favourite work is training trainers who work in community settings. She currently works as Program Manager of Education Services at CHF Canada. She has a Masters of Community Education which she took as hybrid learning from Leicester University, UK.

From apathy to empowerment with Rusa Jeremic

This session will present three fundamental and interconnected principles for learning in non-formal community spaces: connection, validation & action. Through presentation, dialogue and activity, participants will explore how to adapt community engagement principles to educational practices. Participants will leave with concrete ideas for how to put empowerment principles into practice in co-op communities.

Rusa Jeremic is a long-time activist with experience working in international human rights, conflict mediation, and grassroots organizing. She had the privilege to live in a coop for over twenty years. As an educator, campaigner, and facilitator, Rusa has been active in informal education spaces and is strongly committed to knowledge-building that centres peoples’ lived experience and adopts a community empowerment approach using an equity lens. Rusa is a Professor in the Community Worker Program at George Brown College on the territory of Mississauga’s of the Credit First Nation, Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat. She recently completed her PhD in Social Justice Education at OISE/UofT where she explored online humour-based activism as a form of edu-activism.

Continuing conversations of Reconciliation for housing co-op educators with April Ager-White

Reconciliation is an ongoing process for us all. Establishing a mutually respectful relationship between Indigenous peoples and Canada will take time and effort.

In Continuing Conversations, we recognise that awareness and understanding is part of the journey, not the destination. In this workshop we will talk about how Indigenous Ways of Knowing can be integrated into the lives of co-op members and educators.

Family is of paramount importance to April. As a member of the Bear Clan, she grew up in a family that put an emphasis on volunteering and taking seriously one’s responsibilities to the community. April is a former co-op manager and bookkeeper. She currently serves as Treasurer at First Nations Housing Co-operative in London, Ontario, works with the non-profit Atlohsa Family Healing Services and is on the CHF Canada Board of Directors.

We all belong! Diverse learning styles as part of equity, diversity and inclusion EDI with Rusa Jeremic

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an emerging educational practice that recognizes that we learn and express ourselves in different ways. This session will take a deep dive into UDL practice as part of larger equity, diversity and inclusion and community building goals. Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the principles and practice of creating content in multiple ways for multiple learners.

Rusa Jeremic is a long-time activist with experience working in international human rights, conflict mediation, and grassroots organizing. She had the privilege to live in a coop for over twenty years. As an educator, campaigner, and facilitator, Rusa has been active in informal education spaces and is strongly committed to knowledge-building that centres peoples’ lived experience and adopts a community empowerment approach using an equity lens. Rusa is a Professor in the Community Worker Program at George Brown College on the territory of Mississauga’s of the Credit First Nation, Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat. She recently completed her PhD in Social Justice Education at OISE/UofT where she explored online humour-based activism as a form of edu-activism.

Workshop missteps and storms: lessons from the trenches with Shawn Conway

Despite their best plans, educators sometimes face challenges during the course of a workshop that knock them off track. Some of the things that can get in the way of a smooth workshop are participants behaving in a bullying or dominating way, or participants bringing in agendas, concerns and conflicts not associated with the workshop topic. Sometimes challenges to the educator’s workshop plan can arise spontaneously. This session will be an opportunity for educators to share ways of dealing with these and other challenges and disputes that come up in workshops.

Shawn is a professional mediator and alternative dispute resolution trainer with several years’ experience in the co-op sector as meeting facilitator and chair. He is known as a bridge builder, facilitator and coach for co-ops challenged by conflict, difficult conversations and distress.

Engaging audiences with Denise McGahan and Sophie Cooper

This session will focus entirely on practical ways to engage participants in a workshop. Learn new activities and exercises for your workshop facilitator ‘toolbox’. Share your favourites with other educators and talk about how they can be adapted for particular  topics, diverse learners and different learning environments.

Denise is the Program Manager of Co-op & Planning Services Southwest Ontario Region, CHF Canada. She has been in her current position with CHF Canada for 17 years, serving housing co-ops in Southwestern Ontario. She is an accomplished workshop leader and facilitator with a background in accounting and over 35 years in the co-op housing sector. This experience has included various volunteer positions as a member of a housing co-op and a career as a housing co-op manager, workshop leader and consultant.

Sophie has 30 years experience working in the non-profit sector building capacity for change through participation, lifelong learning and community empowerment initiatives. She is a qualified youth and community worker and some of her favourite work is training trainers who work in community settings. She currently works as Program Manager of Education Services at CHF Canada. She has a Masters of Community Education which she took as hybrid learning from Leicester University, UK.

Plain language and clear design with Mary Ann Hannant

We all want our workshop materials to be accessible to our participants. In this session participants e will look at some examples of plain language and clear design and show the difference that a few simple changes can make.

Mary Ann Hannant is a Co-op Advisor at the Co-operative Housing Federation of Toronto. Mary Ann has been an educator for over 30 years and spent many years planning CHFT’s Education Program.

Closing plenary with Ayanna Inniss and Denise McGahan