Workshop
Emerging Leaders: Making the Future
DATE
Apr 17, 2026
START TIME
12:15 p.m.
END TIME
4:15 p.m.
LOCATION
UOF
Florence Bergeron
Associate Director of KMb and Operations at the Students Commission of Canada
Joshua Zachariah
Senior Economic Advisor, Ontario Ministry of Transportation
Julianna Kowlessar
PhD candidate
Tayyaba Shahzad
Non-Profit Professional
Chara Kai-Le
Songwriter and Producer
Dilara Baysal
Postdoctoral Researcher, Bishop’s University
Mala Khanna
Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet, Privy Council Office
Isha Chaudhuri
Senior Consultant, Oyster Group
Anthony Morgan
Host, Freestyle Socials
Madeleine Case
Lead, Policy and Strategic Initiatives, Democratic Engagement Exchange
Mario Vasilescu
CEO & Co-founder, Readocracy
Aleksi Toiviainen
Co-Founder and General Coordinator, Vote16 Canada
Jillian Gonzales
Senior Leadership Development Assistant
Ashna Ali
Leadership Development Facilitator, The Dais
*Please note that registration for this workshop has reached capacity.
Young Canadians are responding to rising living costs, digital disruption, and declining trust in institutions with creativity, courage, and collective action. Making the Future brings together emerging leaders from Generations A to Z to explore how these challenges are reshaping democracy – and to examine how youth are building new pathways for leadership, participation, and impact.
Sessions
12:20-1:05: Why Young Voters Are Moving Right
More young Canadians are leaning conservative—but what’s driving this change? Youth, researchers, and organizers explore the economic pressures, social dynamics, and identity questions shaping today’s political choices — and what it means for the future of democracy.
1:10-1:55: The Attention Economy: Building Power, Shaping Democracy
In a world built to distract, who controls our focus, and how does that shape democracy? Experts from tech, policy, and media explore how algorithms, social platforms, and youth organizing influence civic engagement. Participants will learn how attention can be reclaimed as a tool for impact, balancing visibility with trust and turning digital focus into meaningful action.
2:00-2:45: Leading Through Precarity: Young Canadians, Work, and Civic Power
Work precarity is reshaping democracy for young Canadians. Gig work, underemployment, and AI-driven uncertainty put civic and political engagement under pressure, but youth leaders, organizers, and researchers are turning these challenges into action. This session explores how precarious work is being transformed into community power, shared advocacy, and new strategies for democratic participation. 3:00-4:15: We the People | A Freestyle Social with Anthony Morgan
Democracies are complicated. Explore what it takes to build and maintain a healthy one. Part conversation, part game, this interactive session turns debate into connection. Dive into the art, science and big civic questions shaping life in a rapidly changing (and polarizing) world. Democracy is not what you think. It’s how.
