Join the online Zoom webinar
For Canada based viewers: July 22
For Australia based viewers: July 23
Register to also receive a future post-event recording!
Transforming Reconciliation and Cultural Equity in Canadian Arts
Launch of Imagine Canada Case Studies
Featuring Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario (CPAMO) and Nunavut Independent Television Network (Uvagut TV)
Diversity Arts Australia (DARTS), in partnership with the Canada Council for the Arts and the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Health Equity and Community Wellbeing at Toronto Metropolitan University,, invites you to an Imagine Talk conversation on Canadian arts organisations. ,
This session brings together cultural equity leaders from Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario (CPAMO) and Nunavut Independent Television Network (NITV / Uvagut TV) to examine how organisations are actively shifting power in the arts and media sectors.
Across two case studies, speakers will share grounded approaches to:
- shifting decision-making power in arts organisations
- building long-term equity systems, not one-off initiatives
- supporting Indigenous, racialized and marginalised artists and communities
- developing leadership pipelines that change who leads and who decides
- creating media and arts platforms that strengthen language, identity and visibility
- responding to funding inequity and institutional resistance
Facilitated by DARTS, this conversation draws from the Imagine Case Studies Project, which documents 72 international case studies from 42 countries on cultural practice and structural change in the arts.
Free event
Date: Wednesday 22 July 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Register now
Transformer l’équité culturelle dans le secteur des arts au Canada
Lancement des études de cas d’Imagine Canada
Un évènement mettant en vedette le Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario et le Nunavut Independent Television Network (Uvagut TV)
En collaboration avec le Conseil des arts du Canada et la Chaire d’excellence en recherche du Canada sur l’équité en santé et le bien-être communautaire à l’Université métropolitaine de Toronto, Diversity Arts Australia vous invite à une discussion Imagine Talk sur les organismes artistiques du Canada.
Cette séance rassemble des figures de proue de l’équité culturelle issues du Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario (CPAMO) et du Nunavut Independent Television Network (NITV/Uvagut TV) afin d’examiner comment les organismes s’emploient activement à redéfinir les rapports de force dans les secteurs des arts et des médias.
À travers deux études de cas, les intervenantes et intervenants présenteront des approches concrètes visant à :
- Transformer le pouvoir décisionnel au sein des organismes artistiques;
- mettre en place des systèmes d’équité à long terme, au lieu d’initiatives isolées;
- soutenir les artistes et les communautés autochtones, racisées et racisés et marginalisées et marginalisés;
- élaborer des structures qui repensent le leadership et déconstruisent qui dirige et qui décide;
- créer des plateformes médiatiques et artistiques qui renforcent la langue, l’identité et la visibilité;
- prendre des mesures à l’égard des inégalités de financement et de la résistance institutionnelle.
Animée par Diversity Arts Australia, cette conversation s’appuie sur le projet Imagine Case Studies, qui répertorie 72 études de cas internationales provenant de 42 pays sur les pratiques culturelles et les changements structurels dans les arts.
Événement gratuit
Date: Wednesday 22 July 2026
Heure : 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Inscrivez-vous maintenant
Speakers
Tarndeep Pannu
Tarndeep Pannu is a multidisciplinary communicator, researcher and strategist whose work sits at the intersection of social justice, storytelling and strategic communications. With qualifications in Dramatic Arts, Public Relations and Cultural Studies, and currently pursuing a PhD in Social Justice Education at the University of Toronto, her work focuses on inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (EDI+A). She has extensive experience in youth engagement, digital media and knowledge mobilization, creating accessible and engaging content for equity-deserving communities. Committed to interdisciplinary collaboration, Tarndeep uses communication, research and innovative outreach strategies to advance social change and amplify marginalised voices.
Charles C. Smith
Charles C. Smith is a poet, playwright, performer, and editor whose work moves between page and stage, exploring histories and lived realities of the African diaspora. Trained at New York University, the Herbert Berghof Studios, and Frank Silvera’s Writers’ Workshop in Harlem, he developed a practice grounded in performance and community storytelling. His award-winning play Last Days for the Desperate received recognition from Black Theatre Canada, and his five poetry collections and writings have appeared widely across Canada. As an editor, he has championed Black writers, founded Black Perspectives Cultural Program, and developed arts initiatives in underserved communities across the Greater Toronto Area.
Dawn Olivence
Dawn Olivence is Anishinaabe from Treaty Two Territory and a member of Kakakwekwekejeong First Nation. She serves as Manager of Original Programming and Acquisitions for NITV / Uvagut TV, Canada’s first national Inuktut television channel. Based in Winnipeg, Dawn is dedicated to amplifying authentic Inuit voices, supporting Inuktut language revitalization, and fostering cultural connections. With over 25 years in broadcasting, including 23 years at APTN, she has extensive experience in programming, marketing, and scheduling. Dawn has also contributed to community leadership as Executive Director/ CEO of the Winnipeg Indigenous Executive Circle (WIEC), a 31-member Indigenous-led collective of non-profit organizations in Winnipeg.Dawn is passionate about Indigenous storytelling and the powerful impact it can have on our communities.
Erin Jones
Erin Jones is Convenor/Co-Director Curator of Transformational Change. She is a playwright, director, actor, and theatre board member in Toronto. Erin previously served as Vice President, Learning and Development, with over 20 years of experience across finance, government, education, and non-profit sectors in senior leadership roles. She holds a Master of Arts in Community College Education from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Toronto, with a minor in Social Anthropology. DDI certified, she has developed and facilitated leadership, organisational development, and performance management programmes delivered globally.
Kevin A. Ormsby
Kevin A. Ormsby Co-Director/Curator of Programming and Engagement at CPAMO, Kevin A. Ormsby have led EDI initiatives for organizations including the National Ballet of Canada, Canada’s National Ballet School, and Luminato Festival. A passionate arts advocate, he advances culturally responsive practices, community connection, and place-making through his artistic and scholarly work. As Executive Artistic Director of KasheDance, he creatively engages Caribbean and African diasporic dance. Kevin has served on arts boards In Toronto and is a recipient of the Jamaica Diaspora Impact Award, Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award, and Patrick Conner Award, and has been a finalist and nominee for the Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prize.