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Elevate and Amplify

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Project Overview

Elevate & Amplify was a virtual conference held on June 3rd, 2021, centring the voices of BIPOC professionals within design and social change. The first conference of its kind in Canada, it brought together practitioners hungry for critical reflection, honest conversation, and community-building across the sector.

Project Description & Outcomes

Elevate & Amplify was built around a simple but radical premise: every single speaker was BIPOC. The conference was designed to counter the narrative that BIPOC professionals are difficult to find in design and social change work, and to create space for the kinds of critical conversations that are too often missing from mainstream sector gatherings.

The conference featured three panels:

Navigating Systems that are not Designed for Us

A panel of “recipients” engaged in design processes who are charting their own paths and designing alternatives.

Beyond Broken Promises of Co-design

A panel of designers who have adapted their practices and approaches to engagement as they learn from failure.

Now What — How Do We Do Systems Change?

A panel of those leading who grapple with the tension of solving immediate and urgent problems while working toward long-term change.

Panelists included:

Teshyla Bailey (she/her)

Founder of Sis To Sis Toronto

From personal development workshops to open discussion and relief sessions, Sis To Sis Toronto is a community organization focused on personal development for young black and racialized women.

Spearheaded by its executive director, Teshyla Bailey, the organization was launched in January 2019 out of the West End of Toronto and is centered around core values of authenticity, connection, and joy.

Inspired by childhood memories of a tight-knit community and conversations with her friends, Teshyla created Sis To Sis Toronto to provide a similar safe space for women.

Teshyla’s passion for community development and gender equity came from her conversations about life with her childhood friends during recess in grade school. However, conversations about their lived experiences as children took a much deeper meaning later in life.

With a degree in sociology and a minor in women and gender studies, Teshyla credits her major for allowing her to be able to put to words some of her experiences.

Chantel Parris (she/her)

Outreach Coordinator of Sis To Sis Toronto

I currently work at Sis To Sis Toronto as the Outreach Coordinator. I am working towards building relationships that will uplift and empower Black women and women of colour within the GTA community.

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Daisy Nolasco (she/her)

Program Coordinator & Co-Founder of Bayanihan Empowerment

I am the Program Coordinator and one of the co-founders of Bayanihan Empowerment, a grassroots group based in Tkaronto that builds capacity in Filipinx youth through community, conversations, peer support, and mentorship. 

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Marc Kerwin Fernando (he/him)

Co-Founder of Bayanihan Empowerment

I am one of the co-founders of Bayanihan Empowerment which is a Filipinx organization for and by the youth. Our grassroots organization aims to connect 1st and 2nd generation Filipinx and to empower the community through conversations, co-healing, and recognition of shared humanity.

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Shenikqwa Phillip (she/her)

Program Manager at Black Women in Motion

Currently, I am working on finishing my degree in History from York University and overseeing the Black Peer Education Network; a 6-month employment and training program for Black womxn, femmes, and non-binary youth between the ages of 16-29 living in Neighbourhood Improvement Areas and/or Toronto Community Housing communities.

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Megan Lewis (she/her)

Queer, Mixed Kanyen’keha:ka woman and member of Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory

Director of the Centre for Indigenous Policy & Research at CRE

I am currently the Director of the Centre for Indigenous Policy & Research at CRE. The focus of The Centre is to create space for new leadership and provide resources and tools for Indigenous youth voices to create impactful change. In my spare time, you can find me beading and exploring outside. 

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Ranee Lee (she/her)

Associate Professor in the Industrial Design Program at OCADU

Ranee is the first WOC/POC tenured faculty in the ID program at OCAD University with a teaching pedagogy reflecting her professional practice. Since 2015, she integrated design for social change into the program by engaging with a group of immigrant women in Regent Park (former social housing area) to design and sew for income generation as part of the City of Toronto’s Poverty Reduction Strategy.

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Anu Radha Verma (she/her)

Research Manager, Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC), independent curator & consultant, organizer with QTBIPOC sauga, radio host

Working towards the development of a national survey on 2SLGBTQQIA+ communities and chronic health, informed by anti-racism, intersectionality, disability justice and more. Also curating a few virtual shows for Pride events: any chance to celebrate QTBIPOC brilliance!

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Karen Carter (she/her)

Co-founder of Black Artists’ Network and Dialogue (BAND) and BIPOC fellowship in museum, arts and culture

Karen Carter is a cultural sector executive who enjoys working in creative and educational environments. She has over 25 years of experience working and volunteering in a range of arts, culture and heritage settings.

Lena Phillips (she/her)

City-Building, Systems Design, Equitable Philanthropy, DEI Consultant

Up until recently, I spent 4+ years working at the intersection of equity and philanthropy supporting grassroots and systems change work led by-and-for Black and/or Indigenous communities. Additionally, past work includes engaging as a: youth-led, grassroots organizing for climate justice; International Development Fellow with the Aga Khan Foundation in Uganda; participatory action researcher focused on housing/displacement in London post-2012 Olympics and anti-eviction work in slums/informal settlements in Dar es Salaam; research consultant with OCAD U’s Faculty of Design exploring creative placemaking; and a researcher with Digital Justice Lab/Trinity Square Video examining digital, just and Black urban futures. I’m currently based in Cape Town at the African Center for Cities engaging non-Western urbanisms and concepts of space/placemaking.

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Yumi Kotani 小谷友美 (she/elle)

Senior Policy and Programs Strategist on the Anti-Racism Task Force at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

I came to the federal public service after many years in the non-profit sector, working on equity and inclusion, civic engagement, community development, and − although I didn’t know the terminology at the time − social innovation. I try to bring my critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and a human-centred approach to make public policy more relevant for the diverse people and communities it serves.

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Organizing Committee

Communications: Alexandra Da Dalt (she/her)
Communications: Rachel Phan (she/her)
Co-Organizer: Jennifer Chan (she/her)
Co-Organizer: Vanessa Toye

Supporters

Pro-bono design: Trajectory Brands Inc.
Technology: Karim Rizkallah (he/him)
Participant Caretakers: Alia Bye (she/her), Elvin Velasco (they/them), Irene Lam (she/her), Joanne Tsung (she/her), JoAnne Wang (she/her

What we Practiced

  • Telling the Truth
  • Holding & Metabolizing Contradictions
  • Practicing Curiosity

What we Imagined

A sector where BIPOC practitioners don’t have to seek belonging at the margins of existing conferences — but instead have their own spaces to think critically, build community, and shape the field on their own terms. A Canada where the question of “where are the BIPOC voices in design and social change?” is answered loudly, clearly, and with no shortage of brilliance.

Project Assets