The Assembly's Group Facilitators
Marielle Bérubé is a facilitator for the Assembly’s small group meetings. Marielle received a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Ottawa in 2002. She completed a Masters degree in Political Thought in 2006, also at the University of Ottawa. Marielle will begin her doctoral studies in Political Philosophy when the Citizens’ Assembly process is complete. Her research interests include agency in late capitalism and postmodernism, the relationship of Canadian political culture and electoral systems with voting behaviour and voter alienation.
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Gordon DiGiacomo was a facilitator for the Assembly's small group meetings during the Learning Phase. He lives in Ottawa where he works as a policy and research consultant. Gordon also teaches Political Science on a part-time basis at the University of Ottawa and Carleton University. He is a doctoral candidate in Political Science at Carleton. He is just beginning his dissertation, concentrating on Canadian government and politics and public policy. Gordon has examined various proposals for electoral reform but he hasn’t decided which system he prefers.
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Louise Hayes is a Procedural Clerk at the House of Commons and is currently the Clerk of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security. She will serve as a facilitator for the Assembly’s small group meetings. Prior to working at the House, she spent three and a half years working for a former federal cabinet minister as a Legislative Assistant and then Director of Communications in several portfolios including Veterans Affairs and Western Economic Diversification. She has also worked for a national literacy organization training volunteers. Louise has an undergraduate degree in Journalism and Political Science and recently completed her Masters in Political Science at Carleton University, focusing mainly on Canadian politics.
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Caitlin Hayward is currently working on a Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of Western Ontario. Born in Toronto, she completed her BA in Political Science and History at Mount Allison University, and received her MA in Comparative Ethnic Conflict from Queen’s University Belfast. She has worked for a number of governmental and non-governmental organizations, including the Parliament of Canada. Her current research is focussed on electoral politics and party behaviour in deeply divided societies.
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Dr. Michael Johns is Assistant Professor of Political Science with Laurentian University at Georgian College. He will serve as a facilitator for the Assembly's small group meetings. Michael has an undergraduate degree from Wilfrid Laurier University and received a Masters of Science in comparative politics from the London School of Economics in 1998. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland in 2004. Prior to his arrival at Laurentian at Georgian, Michael was the Researcher-in-Residence for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's High Commissioner on National Minorities in The Hague, Netherlands. His research interests concern minority rights, ethnic conflict and the design of government and intergovernmental institutions to help promote ethnic peace.
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Michelle Lowry says she is excited to join the Citizens' Assembly facilitator team during its Deliberation Phase. Michelle earned a Bachelor of Arts in women's studies from York University in 1996 and in 1998 received a Master's of Arts in sociology and equity studies in education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. She has all but dissertation status in the Ph.D. program in women's studies at York. Her academic research interests have focused on immigration and refugee studies within a Canadian context. She learned to facilitate meetings during her time in the teaching/researchers' union at York, and is looking forward to using her skills with the Citizens' Assembly.
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Daniel Moure will serve as a small group facilitator for the Assembly’s small group meetings. Daniel is pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at York University and holds a Canada Graduate Scholarship from the Social Sciences and Humanties Research Council. Daniel received his Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and Film from the University of British Columbia, a law degree from McGill University, and a Masters degree in Political Science from York University. His research interests include political theory, Canadian and comparative constitutionalism, and political history.
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Sarah Newman is a small group facilitator for the Citizens’ Assembly. Sarah received a Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University in 2003, where she graduated with honours, completing a major in political studies and a minor in women’s studies. Following her undergraduate studies, Sarah received a Diploma in Democratic Administration and a Masters degree in Political Science from York University. She is currently completing her Ph.D. in the Political Science Department at York University. Her research interests include mechanisms of governance, politics of knowledge production, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and identity politics.
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Dr. Alice Ormiston was a facilitator for the Assembly's small group meetings during the Learning Phase. She was born and raised in Saskatchewan, and came to Ontario in 1987 to do graduate work. Alice has a Ph.D. in political philosophy and Canadian politics from the University of Toronto, and taught at various Canadian universities over the past eight years. She returned to Toronto in 2004 to make it her home. She loves political philosophy and has studied and written on Rousseau, Hegel, and Weber. She is committed to democratization and is very excited about the Citizens’ Assembly, which she calls “an amazing experiment in participatory democracy.” Alice lives in Toronto with her husband, Reza, eight year old daughter, Shadan, and dog, Cyrus.
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Amanda Rogers is completing her final semester at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, and will be completing her articles at a prominent union-side labour firm. She will serve as a facilitator for the Assembly’s small group meetings during the Deliberation Phase. Amanda received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto in 2003, graduating with an honours double specialization in political science and history. Her research interests include labour relations, electoral reform and the use of litigation as a tool for social change.
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Kristin Skinner is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at York University. She will serve as a facilitator for the Assembly’s small group meetings. Kristin received her Bachelor of Arts from York University in 1999, graduating with an Honours double major in Women’s Studies and Political Science. She received a Masters Degree in Political Science in 2002 from York University. Kristin has extensive experience teaching and facilitating small groups. Her research interests include gender and public policy, federalism, constitutionalism and social reproduction.
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