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Editorial   Back to Top

Nehal El-Hadi

Nehal El-Hadi

Interim Editor-in-Chief

Nehal El-Hadi is a journalist, editor and researcher. She has a background in science and environmental journalism, and holds a PhD in Planning from the University of Toronto.

Lisa Varano

Lisa Varano

Deputy Editor

Lisa Varano is the Deputy Editor of The Conversation Canada, based in Toronto. She previously held the role of Audience Development Editor. Prior to The Conversation, she worked at CTV News Toronto as a TV news writer. She has an MA in journalism from Western University and a BA in political science from McGill University.

Vinita Srivastava

Vinita Srivastava

Senior Editor, Culture + Society | Host + Exec. Producer, Don't Call Me Resilient

Vinita is a journalist, educator and media innovator. She's reported internationally from New York, Mumbai and Johannesburg and has worked in both big and community media, including: the New York Times Magazine, VIBE, the Village Voice, WBAI and CKLN. She's a leader and a mentor in both newsrooms and classrooms and has taught journalism at SFU's Podcast School, TMU's School of Journalism and the National University of Rwanda. She is a member of the Journalism Innovation Lab at UBC.

Lee-Anne Goodman

Lee-Anne Goodman

Politics Editor

Lee-Anne Goodman is a longtime journalist who's worked in Washington, D.C., Ottawa and Toronto covering everything from the political ascent of Barack Obama during her years as White House correspondent to the fatal 2014 shooting on Canada's Parliament Hill. Before joining The Conversation Canada as its Politics, Business and Economics editor, she worked as Business Editor and Ontario Bureau Chief for The Canadian Press, managing a staff of more than 20 reporters and editors.

Susannah Schmidt

Susannah Schmidt

Education + Arts Editor

Susannah Schmidt worked as general reporter for Turtle Island News and edited for the Centre for Global Social Policy. Earlier, she documented play development for Playwrights’ Workshop Montréal, worked in adult literacy and with a queer-affirming network engaged in questions of Christian faith and social justice. She has a bachelor of applied arts in journalism from TMU, a BA in drama & religious studies from McGill and a master of Catholic thought from St. Jerome's University.

Patricia Nicholson

Patricia Nicholson

Health + Medicine Editor

Patricia Nicholson is a journalist who has reported on health and medicine for more than a decade. She has been a staff writer at the Medical Post, has produced consumer health information in multiple media and written material for continuing medical education courses. She has a master of journalism degree from Carleton and a BA in anthropology from McMaster University.

Martine Turenne

Martine Turenne

Éditrice, La Conversation Canada

Martine Turenne est rédactrice en chef de La Conversation Canada. Elle a une vaste expérience en journalisme au Québec, notamment, ces dernières années, comme rédactrice en chef de sites web d'information. Elle a occupé divers postes dans le secteur des médias : TC Média (Les Affaires et Commerce), Québecor (Le Journal de Montréal, TVA-Argent), L’actualité et elle a écrit pour de nombreux magazines. Elle est aussi l'auteure de plusieurs romans et biographies.

Kerry Benjoe

Kerry Benjoe

Editor — Indigenous Affairs and Community Builder

Hello/tansi/aniin I am Kerry Benjoe a long-time journalist who has recently joined The Conversation on a part-time basis. I'm a member of the Muscowpetung Saulteaux Nation located in the Treaty 4 Territory. However, l live in Regina Saskatchewan. I have more than 20 years of journalism experience under my belt. I've worked for Post Media and CBC before taking over the operation of Eagle Feather News, which is in the process of rebranding to EFN Media. My educational background includes...

Mélissa Khadra

Mélissa Khadra

Cheffe de section en science, santé et environnement

Mélissa Khadra est Cheffe de section, science, santé et environnement. Écotoxicologiste de formation, elle possède un doctorat en sciences biologiques de l’Université de Montréal. En plus d’avoir contribué à l’avancement des connaissances sur les effets de plusieurs types de contaminants sur la santé des écosystèmes, elle a œuvré dans le milieu académique, gouvernemental, ainsi qu’au sein d’organismes à but non lucratif.

Eleni Vlahiotis

Eleni Vlahiotis

Business + Economy Editor

Eleni is a writer and editor specializing in media, business, labour and Canadian politics. She has an academic and research background in journalism and media, sport policy studies, and social justice education and holds a master of journalism degree from the University of British Columbia.

Ibrahim Daair

Ibrahim Daair

Culture + Society Editor

Ibrahim is a journalist and the Culture and Society Editor at The Conversation Canada. He holds master's degrees in journalism and conflict analysis and a BA in politics and international relations.

Harris Kuemmerle

Harris Kuemmerle

Environment + Energy Editor | The Conversation Canada

Harris is a writer, researcher, and the Environment + Energy editor at The Conversation Canada. Specialising in global environmental politics, he holds an MSc from SOAS, University of London and a PhD from King's College London.

Board of directors   Back to Top

Philip Steenkamp

Philip Steenkamp

President and Vice-Chancellor, Royal Roads University

Dr. Philip Steenkamp is president and vice-chancellor of Royal Roads University. He previously held the role of vice-president, external relations at the University of British Columbia and at Simon Fraser University. His academic roles have included research fellow at the University of Namibia and assistant professor and postdoctoral fellow in the Department of History at the University of Victoria. Among his many awards, Philip received the King Charles III Coronation Medal in 2024 to recogn...

Alfred Hermida

Alfred Hermida

Professor, School of Journalism, Writing, and Media

Alfred Hermida Ph.D. is co-founder of The Conversation Canada. He is an award-winning author, online news pioneer and media scholar, with more than two decades of experience in digital journalism. He is a full professor at the School of Journalism, Writing, and Media at the University of British Columbia, where his research explores the digital transformation of journalism, media innovation, social media and data journalism. His books include Data Journalism and the Regeneration of News (...

Philippe Beauregard

Philippe Beauregard

Chief Communications Officer, Concordia University - Montréal

Philippe Beauregard leads Concordia University's Communications Services, the group that opens the channels of communication throughout the university and to the outside world. Guiding a team of communications, media relations, marketing, and digital communications professionals, Beauregard’s role is to devise and implement strategies that enhance Concordia’s reputation, develop and maintain the integrity of Concordia’s brand and improve the communications between the university and its facul...

Annette Trimbee

Annette Trimbee

President and Vice-Chancellor, MacEwan University

Dr. Annette Trimbee became President and Vice-Chancellor of MacEwan University in 2020. Prior to that, she was president of the University of Winnipeg from 2014-20. Previously, Dr. Trimbee served as Deputy Minister of several departments in the Alberta government, including Finance and Treasury Board, and Advanced Education and Technology. She currently serves on the boards of Universities Canada and USports.

Alice Aiken

Alice Aiken

Vice-President Research & Innovation

Dr. Alice Aiken is the Vice-President Research & Innovation at Dalhousie University. She is an active researcher focused on health systems transformation and evidence-informed policy-making. Dr. Aiken is currently the Vice-Chair of the Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and chairs the board of Research Nova Scotia.

Wisdom Tettey

Wisdom Tettey

Vice-President, University of Toronto and Principal, University of Toronto Scarborough

Dr. Wisdom Tettey is vice-president of the University of Toronto and principal of the University of Toronto Scarborough, as well as a professor of political science and development studies. His research interests include media, politics, and civic engagement in Africa; transnational citizenship and the African diaspora; political economy of globalization and information technology in Africa; African higher education and the knowledge society.

Lori Campbell

Lori Campbell

Associate Vice President (Indigenous Engagement)

Lori is Two-Spirit and is a member of Montreal Lake First Nation, Treaty 6 territory. She is an intergenerational survivor of the Indian Residential School system and a child from the Sixties Scoop generation. Lori has made it her career advocating for social justice and working towards a more equitable society for all. With over 16 years of progressive leadership in student services, academics, research and administration, Lori is an experienced leader in education. Through the sharing o...

Founders   Back to Top

Andrew Jaspan

Andrew Jaspan

Founder

Andrew Jaspan is the creator and co-founder of The Conversation. He launched the project in Australia in 2011 and was instrumental in seeing it established in the UK and the US. The project was born out of concerns Andrew had about public access to reliable information amid a dramatic shift in the production and consumption of journalism internationally. Andrew has been Editor of The Observer, The Age (Melbourne), The Scotsman and the Sunday Herald (Glasgow).