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An Exploration of Identity, Belonging and Healing

Reel Causes presents One of Ours on December 7th. Curator Natasha Tony has assembled a dynamic group of panelists to pick up on the threads of identity, belonging and healing.

Join panelists Yasmine Mathurin (Director), Jessica Wood (Associate Deputy Minister of the Declaration Act Secretariat), and Kim Haxton (Lateral Liberation Coach) as they explore pathways to healing, rooted in the complexity of family, self-acceptance and community.

Get your tickets here for the event. If you can’t attend on December 7th, virtual tickets include the film and recorded panel discussion.

Natasha Tony – Curator and Moderator

Natasha Tony, CEO of Vancouver-based Elevate Inclusion Strategies, is a sought-after labour relations specialist, consultant, leadership coach, trainer, and speaker. In 2022, Natasha was recognized as a Black leader in Vancouver by the Vancouver Economic Commission.

Natasha is committed to applying an intersectional, human rights, and reconciliation lens to all that she does. Her deep experience in mediation, negotiation and conflict resolution supports leaders in helping them navigate the stages toward sustainable inclusion.

Natasha works with corporations, businesses, crown corporations, all levels of government, labour unions, and social justice organizations. Her work requires a deep understanding of organizational structure, strategic initiatives, inclusive leadership, and human resources.

Prior to establishing Elevate Inclusion Strategies, Natasha worked for 15 years as an Extras Casting Director in the British Columbia film industry. Following that, she worked as a Labour Relations Specialist, also in the film industry. During this time, Natasha gained a reputation for working collaboratively with unions and Hollywood studios on complex workplace issues.

Natasha also championed and developed the renowned Inclusive Leadership and Inclusive Workplace Training Program for the film industry delivered across Canada and the US. She was recognized for her training by Women in Film + TV Vancouver with a Spotlight Award.

In collaboration with Creative Pathways (Creative BC), Natasha was honoured to contribute to the Creative Equity Roadmap for the recruitment-focused Creative Pathways website. Creative Pathways aims to increase equity and improve diversity in the British Columbia motion picture workforce.
One of Natasha’s priorities has always been to give back to the community she lives and works in. She is currently a board member of the DOXA Documentary Film Festival and an Appointed Bencher with the Law Society of British Columbia.

Yasmine Mathurin – Director of One of Ours

Yasmine Mathurin is a Haitian-Canadian award-winning filmmaker and podcast producer. Her first feature documentary film ONE OF OURS won the Hot Docs Special Jury Prize in 2021 and was nominated for 3 Canadian Screen Awards in 2022 for best writing, best directing and best feature documentary. She previously worked as an associate producer with CBC Original Podcast. Her podcasting work has been awarded with a Webby people’s choice and a Canadian Digital Publishing Award. She most recently participated in the 2022 TIFF Writers Studio and the Chanel Writers Summit where she is currently writing her first feature fiction film with the support of the CHANEL Women Writers’ Network grant. She is currently in post-production on an untitled short docu-series that will be airing on CBC and CBC Gem in 2023.

She holds a BA in Political Science and Non-Profit Management from York University and a Journalism Masters from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly known as Ryerson University).

Jessica Wood Si Sityaawks – Associate Deputy Minister of the Declaration Act Secretariat

Si Sityaawks – (Woman who creates change) is from the Gitxsan and Tsimshian First Nations, with extended roots among the Tahltan and Nisga’a Nations. Currently serving as Associate Deputy Minister of the Declaration Act Secretariat, Jessica is leading British Columbia’s cross-ministry work to align provincial laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous Peoples.

Jessica previously served as Assistant Deputy Minister for the Reconciliation Transformation and Strategies Division with the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. She was responsible for the adoption and implementation of UNDRIP, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action, and learnings from relevant case law.

As part of this transformation, she led, in collaboration with the First Nations Leadership Council, the development of the first Declaration Act Action Plan, released in March 2022. The Plan was developed with Indigenous Peoples to ensure it reflects the priorities of Indigenous Peoples and outlines 89 specific actions every ministry will take over a five-year period.

Jessica was recently the second Policy Practitioner Fellow at UBC’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. She is an experienced community developer whose portfolios have focused on issues related to race relations, residential schools, sexual health, sex work, Indigenous women, and gendered violence. She was the first Indigenous woman in Canada whose work as a municipal social planner focused solely on the health and safety of sex workers and impacted communities, gendered and racialized violence, and the prevention of youth sexual exploitation. Jessica has previously held positions working on the Residential School Settlement Agreement and National Film Board Directory Finding Dawn, a film about missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada. Jessica is a long-time organizer with the Vancouver DTES Women’s Memorial March Committee.

Kim Haxton – Lateral Liberation Coach

Kim Haxton (Potowatomi) is from the Wasauksing First Nation in northern Ontario. She has worked across Turtle Island and abroad in various capacities but always with a focus on local leadership.

Her deep understanding of the need for genuine restoration has far-reaching implications as leaders seek vision and all people seek direction to address the mounting pressure of a system incongruous with the values of the natural world. Kim has developed and facilitated programs in more than 8 countries, and has been working in land-based education and leadership for the past 20 years.

She takes her place among thought leaders in the area of decolonization, particularly as it applies to language, art, economics and gender. She encourages the “lateral liberation” of consciousness by drawing from the embodied knowledge of Indigenous peoples. In multi-day workshops, she moves people through a personal process of questioning what is the truth and what is simply construct – effectively rupturing what we “know.” True expression of respect, harmony, inclusion, equity can come from this place.

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About Reel Causes Society

Reel Causes partners with filmmakers and Canadian causes dedicated to addressing global social justice issues. We host film screenings followed by a Q&A session to educate and inspire our community, and provide a forum for authentic conversation aroundF the issues that affect us locally.

City of Vancouver
BC Arts Council
Canada Council for the Arts
SFU's Vancity Office of Community  Engagement
Consumer Protection BC