Navigating
Deep Waters
We’ve found ourselves in deep waters - surrounded by threats to water, people, & planet on all sides. Yet, we also find ourselves surrounded with inspiration, stories of resistance, people awakening to the power they have to protect the environment, and hope. Watershed 3 is about navigating the deep waters together and harnessing our collective power to propel the Water Justice Movement through the deep waters of our time.
Enjoy this engaging day of learning, listening, and inspiration as we build a stronger environmental movement together.
Keynote Speakers
Watershed 3 features three incredible and inspiring speakers who bring their experiences and knowledge from the Water Justice and Social Justice Movements. Keynote Speakers will share their thoughts on the big vision for the environmental movement, speaking from their respective lived experiences and on-going work in the movement.
10:00 AM
Ayisha Siddiqa
Ayisha Siddiqa is a Pakistani climate justice advocate. In response to the 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference, she founded Polluters Out with Isabella Fallahi and Helena Gualinga. The organization was created in response to the realization that fossil fuel industries play a big role in the COPs. She is also the co-founder of Free Fossil University.
12:30 PM
Larissa Crawford
Larissa proudly passes on Métis and Jamaican ancestry to her daughter, Zyra, and is a published Indigenous, anti-racism, and climate justice researcher, policy advisor, and restorative circle keeper with over 14 years of experience. Larissa is the Founder of Future Ancestors Services, a youth-led professional services social enterprise that operates at the intersection of climate and racial justice.
2:30 PM
Jasveen Brar
Jasveen (she/her) is a climate educator from the prairies. Her work centers around environmental justice, intersectional environmentalism, and ensuring that youth are involved in decision-making. She is the Executive Director of Youth Climate Lab, a Canada-based, global non-profit organization of youth mobilizing youth to create just, climate-resilient futures.
Story Sessions
11:00 AM - 11:45aM
In Pursuit of Water Justice in Bangladesh
Sazzad Khan
Cologne University of Applied Sciences
Freshwater is abundant in Bangladesh, yet water challenges are also abundant. From improving water quality to drinking water access to transboundary water governance, learn about the emergent pathways towards a more just water future in Bangladesh.
Dive into details behind campaigns to fight for water justice across the world and the lessons we can take into our collective movements for justice.
Line 5: Confronting An Ecological Disaster
Learn about Line 5 － the 70 year old fossil fuel energy pipeline running through the heart of the Great Lakes － and the Indigenous-led resistance campaign working to confront this ecological disaster in the making.
Threats and Alternatives to Water Privatization
The corporate capture of water has seen an exponential rise over the last few decades in many different forms. Learn how the privatization of water undermines water protection in Ontario, across Turtle Island, and beyond, and discover the alternatives we must demand.
Creating a Divested Banking Future
Banks are funding the destruction of our future, but youth from all across so-called Canada have been protesting and speaking out against the funding of pipelines that threaten water, people, and Indigenous sovereignty. Learn more about the resistance and how you can support the realization of a divested banking future.
Skills
Workshops
1:30pM-2:15PM
Ship Building with Indigenous People:
The Design Phase
Georgie Horton-Baptiste
Nogojiwanong Indigenous Friendship Center
More information on the way
Choose from a variety of skills-building workshops led by organizers in the environmental movement.
Speaking to Your Audience: How to Develop Meaningful Messaging
The foundation of good communications is all about speaking to your audience. Learn how to identify your audience, understand them, and land on the right framing to speak to them in meaningful ways.
Building The Movement
Leadnow organizes campaigns that build and defend a just, sustainable, and equitable Canada. Learn how to leverage campaigning & movement-building skills to create a stronger, more just environmental movement!
Collective Visioning
Spend time in collective visioning for the next steps in the Water Justice Movement with Facilitator Rehana Tejpar and Graphic Recorder Devon Kerslake. Rehana will guide participants into a harvest session to learn from each other and collect the day's learnings. Through small-group discussions and whole-group activities, we will begin to dream about and create a vision for the path forward. Devon will create a graphic in real-time to reflect the vision and potential pathways toward it.
Rehana Tejpar
Collective Visioning Facilitator
Rehana Tejpar, M. ED is a facilitator of systems change experiments in organizations and the building of capacity for generative dialogue across difference. At Bloom, she accompanies organizations in their evolutionary change processes towards equitable systems change, organizational health, participatory leadership and creating cultures of belonging. She is deeply serious and deeply playful at once, believing in the need for strategies that include creativity & play as ways to open up the fields of possible transformations, and reconnecting our mind, body, heart and spirit.
Devon Kerslake
Graphic Recorder
Devon believes in the positive, transformative power of art for all communities great and small. She holds an MA in Cultural Studies with a special emphasis on Curatorial Practices. Following this degree, Devon worked for the Winnipeg Film Group supporting Canadian Independent film and for the University of Winnipeg Cultural Studies Research Group as a Project Coordinator specializing in academic learning events.
Watershed 3
Live Entertainment
Liv Cazzola will provide lunchtime entertainment. Spend time listening to the Beautiful music of Liv Cazzola while you soak in the learning form the first half of Watershed 3
As I continue on my path as a musician, I'm finding it more and more integral to be using my artistic platform in responsible ways. I feel indebted to the land, and am committed to being a steward of it. This sort of commitment percolates through all aspects of my life, not least of which involves my musical self. From the way I carry myself on tour, to the content of my songs, to the conversations I have with fans, to how I manufacture albums and merchandise: environmental activism is a critical component of my career. I am always looking to learn more, to do better, and to empower others to dig deeper into their own sustainability journeys
James Gordon
Closing performance by James Gordon, where he will perform a new song to summarize the day we shared together.
James Gordon has been there. He’s done that. He has had a remarkably diverse and resilient career in the Canadian cultural sector. As a solo singer-songwriter and with the ground-breaking trio Tamarack, he’s recorded 40 albums and toured relentlessly around the world. He’s written for symphony orchestras, musical theatre and dance works, scored films, and for more than ten years was heard on CBC radio as songwriter-in-residence for the ’Basic Black’ and ‘Ontario Morning’ programs. Between tours, James is a record producer, playwright, community activist, theatre director and currently has a part-time ‘side hustle’ as a Guelph City Councillor. These days he’s perhaps known as the composer of the viral internet hit “Crybabies Caravan”, about the so-called ‘Freedom Convoy’ in Ottawa. It’s received more than 300,000 views and stimulated a lot of inspiring discussion.
Watershed 3 Agenda
NAVIGATING DEEP WATERS
9:30AM
Opening Ceremony
Gather together to settle into the day with opening words, event orientation, and a warm-up activity.
10:00AM
Keynote Speaker
Ayisha Siddiqa
11:00AM
Story Sessions
Dive into details behind campaigns to fight for water justice across the world and the lessons we can take into our collective movements for justice. Choose one of 4 concurrent story sessions to learn, listen, and engage.
In Pursuit of Water Justice in Bangladesh
Line 5: Confronting An Ecological Disaster
Creating a Divested Banking Future
Threats and Alternatives to Water Privatization
12:00PM
with Liv CAZZOLA
Live music
12:30PM
Keynote Speaker
Larissa Crawford
1:30PM
Skill Building Workshops
Choose one of 3 concurrent skills-building workshops led by organizers in the environmental movement. Choose one of 3 concurrent sessions to build your skills.
Ship Building with Indigenous People
Building The Movement
Speaking to Your Audience
2:30PM
Jasveen Brar
Keynote Speaker
3:30PM
Visioning Session
facilitated by Rehana Tejpar and graphic recording by Devon Kerslake
Rehana will guide participants into a harvest session to learn from each other and collect the day's learnings. Through small-group discussions, and whole-group activities we will create a vision for the path forward. Devon will create a graphic to reflect these visions and potential pathways forward in the journey.
4:30PM
Closing & Entertainment
Gather together to reflect on the day and close out with our calls to action and original music written to incorporate seeds of the day by James Gordon
Live Music provided by
James Gordon
Watershed 3 is generously supported by...
