Canada 150 Women_Conversations with Leaders, Champions, and Luminaries

by Paulina Cameron

  Occupation CEO, TVO

  Film you gift most The Year of Living Dangerously directed by Peter Weir

  Favourite drink Longjing green tea

  Favourite place in Canada Old Montreal

  How has your view of feminism changed over your lifetime?

  I no longer look to feminism to make the point that women can lead; Merkel, Johnson Sirleaf, and Lagarde, among many others, have ended any discussion about what women can achieve at the global level. The challenge remains to address why so many girls and young women around the world are denied the educational opportunities and real personal freedom they need to become such global leaders.

  If you had the gift of a year off, in a paused world, what would you work on?

  I would tackle the challenge of achieving mathematical numeracy in early childhood for all kids, but especially girls. Numeracy gives people a way to assess external realities, which makes democratic reasoning possible.

  What does success mean to you?

  The ability to “fix” things that come up in one’s path.

  What has been a defining moment in your personal or professional life?

  Becoming involved—first as a fan and then as a board director and chair—with the Toronto International Film Festival. Film is a means for people from all over the world to develop the global perspective that is required for success and happiness in the twenty-first century.

  If you were to write a book, what would its title be?

  Politics Is Always a Means and Not an End: How to Create a Kind Society.

  What does being Canadian mean to you?

  The opportunity and the responsibility to think about the future more than the past, to create a society where all citizens—of any background or identity—are free to define themselves.

  What is the boldest business decision you have had to make?

  The decision to transform TVO from a broadcaster to a digital media organization. When I joined TVO in 2005, the media industry was facing upheaval. Together with my leadership team, I made the decision to focus TVO on leveraging the power of technology to foster learning for people of all ages. Now TVO is established as a digital leader, supporting the transformation of learning inside and outside the classroom.

  If you were to get a tattoo of one word, what would it be?

  “Courage.”

  Sara Diamond

  “I chose Canada over a career in the USA because I preferred Canadian institutions, culture, and acceptance of diversity.”

  Birthplace New York, NY

  Occupation President and Vice-Chancellor, OCAD University

  Book you gift most Euphoria and Dystopia: The Banff Centre Dialogues, edited by Sarah Cook and Sara Diamond

  Favorite drink I make a wicked very dry vodka martini, a little bit dirty

  Favorite place in Canada Canmore, AB

  What will it take to achieve gender parity?

  We will need to make change mandatory in some contexts, because otherwise, exceptions will always be found. We need leaders to step up and support change. At OCAD University we are pressing hard on hiring qualified Indigenous and racialized individuals across the university. We need to continue to create the support systems that enable women and LGBTQ2 people to fully engage in our societies, and we need to educate for equity broadly (pun intended). We need to refuse to support extremist views from any religion or philosophy that argues that women and LGBTQ2 people are inferior. We need to help youth be physically and psychologically strong.

  If you were to write a book, what would its title be?

  Artificial Stupidity: Why Human Intelligence Will Always Matter.

  Tell us about a time when you had to summon all of your courage.

  Just one instance? Sometimes it feels like every day! My mother died when I was young—I had just turned ten. My family circumstances were difficult and I realized that I needed to leave home as soon as I turned sixteen (legal age), and I did. I supported myself from that point on and managed to survive, although it was rocky at times. Resiliency was the result.

  I returned to university later in life and completed a PhD in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering. It was exciting to enter a field I had collaborated with as an artist, and that degree has opened up new kinds of research partnerships and funding. Perhaps I have also been a role model for others returning to school.

  I severely damaged my left foot jumping off a burning train in Argentina. It required discipline to return to work as soon as I could, while managing pain and rigorous therapy. I learned a lot about the accessibility of my campus and Toronto. The experience intensified my commitment to inclusive design.

  What message would you put on a billboard, and where?

  One of my grandmother’s favourite sayings, “Courage Sisters!”— in public squares and at borders all over the world.

  If you were to get a tattoo of one word, what would it be?

  “Commitment.” (No tattoos because I’m Jewish.)

  Laurel Douglas

  “Canada needs more women leaders, innovation, and exports.”

  Birthplace Kitchener, ON

  What age do you feel In the second chapter of life

  Occupation CEO, Women’s Enterprise Centre

  Book you gift most StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath

  Favourite drink Black Hills shiraz or Nota Bene

  Favourite place in Canada Okanagan Valley, BC (where I live)

  How has your view of feminism changed over your lifetime?

  As a young woman starting my career in the early-1980s, I didn’t identify with the women’s movement or even know much about the history of the women who fought hard for our political and economic rights in Canada. But I did think both genders deserved to have equal opportunity and be treated the same under the law. I worked in male-dominated industries (insurance, investment banking, telecom) and saw lots of discrimination and poor treatment. I moved to Europe in the mid 1980s to do my MBA and worked in the telecom industry in France, Germany and the UK.

  When I moved back to Canada in the mid-1990s, I made a career change and entered the economic development field, started volunteering with women’s organizations, and began to develop a mental framework to understand the issues facing women in Canada and around the world. In 2004, I took over as CEO of Women’s Enterprise Centre (WEC), and my understanding and appreciation of these issues deepened. During my tenure in this role, I have seen feminism go from being considered a “bad word” by many, to our prime minister embracing being a feminist, even posting YouTube videos on how to become one. However, I’ve also witnessed how, despite ranking relatively high on several international scorecards on gender equality, Canadian society still has deeply entrenched biases against women, visible minorities, and others gaining economic and political strength, influence, and equality. I’ve come to believe that the situation won’t change without proactive policies to counteract the status quo.

  What will it take to achieve gender parity?

  In 2016, women owned about 38 percent of all small businesses in BC. While this has increased since I started at WEC in 2004, it seems to be levelling off below 40 percent, and I doubt it will ever get to 50 percent. Women have many other options, and entrepreneurship is just one of them. In financing a business, there seems to be a lack of gender parity. In 2016, the average male business owner in Canada had $310,000 in business debt authorized, whereas the average woman-owned business had $180,000 in business debt authorized. Why is this? Is it just the banks causing this lack of parity? Actually, the reasons are far more complex, and one factor is women ask for less capital. They have a tendency to under-capitalize their businesses, thinking they can make do with less, and this limits their ability to grow their business, which might explain why women-owned businesses are smaller than those owned by men.

  For me, the discussion about parity is more about things being equitable for all—women, minorities, and other disadvantaged groups. To be truly equitable means bein
g willing to face where things have been unfair due to unconscious bias, unequal access to opportunities and networks, and plain ignorance be truly equitable.

  Tell us about a time when you had to summon all of your courage.

  When I was thirty, my mom died. When I was thirty-one, my dad died. In between those two events, four other people in my family died. I was living in Europe at the time, where I had been for many years, and I had to come back to Canada and help dispose of my parents’ earthly possessions. It was hard, but I put one foot in front of the other and did it. After the work was over, I did an epic bicycle trip across Canada on the Tour du Canada, a 7,550-kilometre trip that goes through all ten provinces. A year or so later, I moved back to Canada and started a new career in BC, where I had never lived. Facing grief and loss and working through it takes courage. Redefining yourself and your life is an act of courage, too. What I learned through this experience is that I can count on my strength and resilience to face just about any obstacle that life might throw at me. I also learned that it is in our vulnerability that we connect with people, not our strength. I feel that I am a better friend, spouse, parent, and boss because of the grief and loss that I have experienced.

  What is the best investment you’ve made?

  Becoming a parent. It’s been the best education I’ve ever had.

  What message would you put on a billboard?

  “Love your neighbour as yourself.”

  Pat Duncan

  “Success means exemplary public service, making a contribution to the community, or resolving people’s difficulties with government.”

  Birthplace Edmonton, AB

  What age do you feel 35

  Occupation Manager, Yukon Workers Advocate Office

  Book you gift most Agatha’s Feather Bed: Not Just Another Wild Goose Story by Carmen Agra Deedy

  Favourite drink Yukon water

  Favourite place in Canada The Yukon with my family

  How has your view of feminism changed over your lifetime?

  It has changed as my own role has changed. For example, when I was growing up, my father said to me, “They can because they think they can,” giving me the courage to take on any challenges. In high school I was a sportscaster for CBC Radio. Serving on the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women and on the national executive of the Girl Guides of Canada reinforced the importance of and need for all-women or single-sex organizations. As a wife and mother, I found The Second Shift presented a different view of the role of women than I or my husband grew up with, and truthfully we still wrestle with it. As the only woman premier at the time at First Ministers’ conferences, I didn’t see myself differently or as a “feminist trail-blazer”; it was simply the job I was doing.

  What gives you courage?

  Knowing I am doing what is right, and that it is within the taxpayers’ means.

  If you had the gift of a year off, in a paused world, what would you work on?

  My collection of crafts, especially the boxes of quilting projects! (That is the answer from my family.) I agree, but I would add myself—all of us are “works in progress.” I would also like to work on family hunger in my community and in Canada. I would volunteer at a food bank, and I am keenly interested in the work of the Red Cross in Canada in emergencies such as forest fires and floods.

  What does being Canadian mean to you?

  I am the only “born Canadian” in my immediate family. Canada welcomed my Scots father, an RAF pilot, and my mother, an American who left home and joined the Canadian Army. Mom served prior to her honorable discharge to marry and live in Great Britain with my father. My brother and sisters were all born in the UK. They emigrated first to the US and then to Edmonton, where I was born. My mother always proudly introduced me to people as the “twinkle in my dad’s eye” and the “Canadian.”

  If you were to write a book, what would its title be?

  I would borrow the saying from the Famous Five: I Feel Equal to High and Splendid Braveries.

  What is the best investment you’ve made?

  Investing in our children’s sports activities: both were competitive swimmers and our son played hockey. People may not realize that it can cost thousands and thousands of dollars for northern children to compete in sports. There is significant government assistance, but a parent’s investment is more than the money: it is the time and volunteer effort. We all gained so much from these experiences—friends and the life skills we see as they mature as young adults.

  What are Canada’s best traits?

  We are a mosaic, not a melting pot, and we welcome new citizens from all over the world.

  What message would you put on a billboard?

  The prayer in use in the Yukon Legislative Assembly when I was a member: “Oh Great Spirit, creator and leader of all people, we are thankful to be gathered here today. Great Spirit, I ask that you touch and bless each and every one in this House. Grant that we, the elected Members, will make only strong, fair, and sound decisions, on behalf of the people we represent throughout Yukon.”

  Knowing what you know now, what would you have done differently when you were first starting out?

  I would have taken more time to just be at peace and listen to my gut instincts.

  If you were to get a tattoo, what would it be?

  A fireweed and the word “Yukon.”

  Susan R. Eaton

  “Being Canadian means living in a country that demonstrates tolerance, empathy and the courage to face its past.”

  Birthplace Sydney, NS

  What age do you feel? 16

  Occupation Geoscientist, journalist, polar snorkeler

  Favourite drink Sedna Martini—it was inspired by my snorkel and diving expeditions to the Arctic and it’s concocted from all-Canadian ingredients

  Favourite place in Canada Haida Gwaii, BC

  Book you gift most The Golden Spruce by John Vaillant

  Tell us about the Sedna expedition—an all-female team of scientists, divers, explorers, artists, and educators—and how it came to be.

  “Sedna” is the Inuktitut word for the goddess of the sea. From Greenland to Alaska, according to Inuit legend, Sedna is the mother of all marine mammals. When she’s happy, Sedna releases animals to the Inuit to hunt and fish. When she’s angry, she withholds sea creatures from the Inuit. In 2013, when I created an all-female team of explorers, I consulted with Inuit Elders in Nunavut about using the name “Sedna.” I was respectful of not misappropriating an important Inuit legend. Since my all-female team was focused on empowering with Inuit girls and young women, the Elders deemed the name appropriate. Thus, was born the “Sedna Epic Expedition.”

  Since 2010, I’ve participated in seven polar expeditions to study climate change and ocean change: three expeditions to Antarctica and four expeditions to the Arctic. As much as I love snorkeling with penguins and leopard seals, I decided that it would be more impactful to spend my time in Canada’s Arctic, working on solutions to climate change that might benefit Indigenous peoples. In order to work successfully in the Canadian Arctic, we’ve collaborated with the Inuit.

  Since 2014, Team Sedna has scouted, documented and recorded ocean change and disappearing sea ice in the Arctic. We’re preparing to snorkel the Northwest Passage, from Pond Inlet, Nunavut, to Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, a distance of 3,000 kilometres. Team Sedna is comprised of 12 women scientists, artists, educators and explorers. Inuit and Inuvialuit communities are matrilineal in nature, and women are the traditional leaders. That said, in order to affect change in these northern communities, Team Sedna’s sea women need to work with girls, young women and women Elders. Team Sedna is focused on empowering the next generation of female Inuit and Inuvialuit leaders, equipping them with the skills and tools to deal with climate change and societal change.

  During my career, I’ve worked in predominantly male-dominated fields. And, now I lead an international team of women ranging in age from 29 to 59 years of age. It’s been
an exciting adjustment working with (and mentoring) women ocean professionals. Team Sedna plans to add women in their sixties, seventies, and eighties, demonstrating that women of all ages have something significant to contribute to society.

  Where have you learned about courage and risk taking?

  The Sedna Epic Expedition involves risks on many levels: large sums of money are required to charter boats and aircraft. Exploring arctic waters, strewn with pack ice and ice bergs is risky business; the climate is harsh and unforgiving. The safety of Sedna’s divers and snorkelers is my primary concern—Team Sedna has created built-in redundancies to mitigate risk during polar expeditions. When I select female team members, I look for specific characteristics, traits, and skill sets: I need the team players with the ‘right stuff.’ Often, the goals of the expedition supersede an individual member’s goals. I grew up in a family of risk takers and people who achieved firsts. My mom was a woman ahead of her time, a marine biologist with the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. My father was an entrepreneur.

  If you could have dinner with any woman, alive or dead, who would it be?

  My mother. She died three years ago, three weeks before the Sedna Epic Expedition’s inaugural expedition to Labrador, Greenland and Iceland. Her death was sudden and unexpected. And, even from the hospital, she was giving me advice on how to run my expedition. When people read my mother’s obituary, they said, “It’s really interesting... Not many families can say that two generations of female scientists have travelled to Antarctica and Labrador.”