Callie is a PhD Candidate at Carleton University in the Department of English Language and Literature. Her graduate research focuses on queer archival practice in Canada, and she specializes in teaching 20th and 21st century gay and lesbian literatures. As such, she believes that queer activism and advocacy can be fostered through education, and that such an education should be accessible to all.

Having joined the Capital Pride team as the Operations and Logistics Coordinator for the 2022 Festival, and returned this past summer as the Operations Director. Callie has demonstrated incredible leadership and developed a great understanding of the goals and functioning of the organization. Under her oversight, the 2022 and 2023 Street Festivals and Parades were all incredible successes with the largest recorded attendances in the organization’s history.

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Cecelia joined the team at Capital Pride as a summer student in 2023 as the Volunteer Coordinator. Under her leadership, Capital Pride’s volunteer program grew to include over 500 volunteers.
Outside of Capital Pride, Cecelia is currently pursuing her Masters of Arts in Geography at the University of Toronto. Her research looks at rural-urban migration of queer youth in Canada and queer space-making practices in rural areas. Originally from rural Nova Scotia herself, Cecelia understands the importance of queer spaces to be in community with like-minded people.

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I am a recent graduate from Algonquin College’s graphic design program. I have a previous degree in history from Lakehead University in my hometown of Thunder Bay. My passion is art and creating, and I am happy to use that passion to create for Capital Pride
I joined the team in early spring of 2024, and am working to provide design and media for Capital Pride, as well as helping to create what this year’s pride branding will look like. I’m excited to see what the summer will hold, and how this year’s festival will turn out.

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A proud queer and non-binary Franco-Ontarian, Francesco joined Capital Pride’s Board of Directors in 2019 as the Director of Francophone Affairs. Since then, they have sought to expand the organization’s French-language programing while promoting advocacy efforts to improve the lives of gender-diverse people in the National Capital Region, where they have lived since 2014.

As a current PhD student in political science at Concordia University, Francesco studies the citizenship and political representation of trans, non-binary, and Two-Spirit people in Canada at both the federal and provincial levels. Always eager to promote queer and trans civic engagement, Francesco has worked for a number of non-profit organizations, both as a Board member and an employee.

In their day job, Francesco promotes the health and well-being of gender and sexual minorities as the Community-Based Research Centre’s Francophone Content Strategist. They are also involved in multiple research projects that seek to empower marginalized people to facilitate lasting change within their communities.

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Tony Bui is a proud queer Asian person, residing in Ottawa since 2012. Tony is originally from Hamilton, Ontario and is the second son of Vietnamese boat people.

Tony currently works in the public service as a communications, outreach, and engagement specialist, and had a prior extensive career in federal and provincial politics, and in union lobbying. He is a published columnist and writer, and has appeared in both the Ottawa Citizen and CBC News. Throughout his experiences, he has built a large network of community partners, activists, and stakeholders who he regularly engages to support 2SLGBTQIA+ initiatives.

Tony joined Capital Pride’s Board of Directors in 2023 after having participated in Capital Pride festivities for several years. He is dedicated to creating more inclusive spaces for all 2SLGBTQIA+ peoples, and in particular, is focused on building space for Asian queer and trans people to find community and belonging. He also brings an inclusive sports connection to Capital Pride, as he currently serves as Partnerships Coordinator with Gay Ottawa Volleyball.

In his off-time, you will find him partaking in social activities with friends, skating the Rideau Canal in the winter, or preparing his next written piece.

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Sean brings experience in the education, sports media, youth sports, marketing and sponsorship sectors to the Capital Pride Board of Directors. He also has extensive experience working as a volunteer for community-based initiatives and non-profits. These include championing initiatives such as a local fundraising event to advocate for youth mental health services, being a board member of the pride & remembrance run in Toronto, and co-leading 2SLGBTQ+ inclusion initiatives in university athletics. In addition, Sean has a passion and love for storytelling and brings a personal commitment to lifelong learning.

Sean completed his MBA with a sports business focus and presently works as a Marketing Director for a youth baseball organization. Through his recent education and work, Sean has been dedicated to advocating for increased equity and inclusion education, creating safe spaces, enhancing marginalized voices, and improving mental health awareness. As part of his involvement, Sean is dedicated to fulfilling the mission of Capital Pride to create opportunities to celebrate, advocate, educate and connect people, respecting the full diversity of the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Sean passionately supports and advocates for spaces in sports that celebrate all experiences and everyone's voices.

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Taib is an Ottawa based consultant, facilitator, speaker, and anti-racism educator. An ardent advocate for human rights and social justice, he has 10 years of experience working through a variety of local and international organizations and collectives to advance the rights of Black and LGBT+ minorities and other oppressed communities. He leads his own firm, TKB Consulting, where he provides consulting and training for a wide variety of organizations in the public and private sectors.

Taib draws upon both lived experience and his educational background – he is currently a master’s candidate in sociology with a specialization in feminist and gender studies at the University of Ottawa.

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Aneesh (Tib) moved to Ottawa from Toronto in early 2021. Tib has over 10 years of professional work experience building community networks and creating financial-administrative controls/procedures across the heritage and higher education sectors. He also has over 8 years of volunteer experience advocating for the advancement of workers’ rights and protections across emerging economic models and providing fiscal management and operational oversight to not-for-profit organizations in Toronto and Ottawa.

He is an enthusiastic board gamer, theatre lover, traveler, and dinner host. Tib currently works for Toronto Metropolitan University as the Lead of Finance and Administration. He is also active in other not-for-profits in the city. He currently lives in Ottawa with his partner and their two Boston terriers Daisy and Clementine.

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Jean-Philippe moved to the National Capital Region in 2009 to start his career within federal public service as a trained translator. He has always been involved in the community, whether it is within his students’ association, his professional network, his community association or his department’s 2SLGBTQIA+ advisory group. Until very recently, Jean-Philippe was promoting queer events in Ottawa West showcasing diverse local drag talent. These activities helped raise thousands of dollars for local charities.

Jean-Philippe is passionate about words and languages. Over the years, he developed an expertise in inclusive writing. He is aware of the power of language and its impacts. He personally believes the language we choose is the first step towards full inclusion for our 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. Jean-Philippe is looking forward to contributing to Capital Pride’s operational and strategic growth by bringing his expertise and experience from past projects. He is particularly eager to get involved with governance, communication and French programming.

When he is not working or involved within his community, Jean-Philippe attends local drag shows, plays video games, tries to reduce his pile of books to read, and spends quality time with his partner and their husky Charlotte.

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Eric Vande Velde is a Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL) with a focus on talent acquisition, total rewards, and people analytics. He graduated from the University of Ottawa (Psychology & Public Administration) and Algonquin College (Human Resources Management). Eric is passionate about building and mentoring high-performing teams. He is a proud mental health advocate within the LGBTQ2S+ community. Eric has been a Board member with several organizations and is an avid traveller.

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Cooper is a proud trans, non-binary, queer professional who is eager to contribute to the Capital Pride community. They have a proven track record of representing their peers and engaging in transparent decision-making while recognizing and respecting diverse needs and perspectives. They began their career working closely with queer and trans youth, evolving into an almost decade of experience in non-profit management. This includes their deep roots in the student movement, having worked at six different university and college campuses across Canada.

Cooper holds degrees from Carleton University and the University of Toronto Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. Throughout their studies and years of community activism, Cooper has developed a deep understanding and respect for the history of Pride and will work tirelessly to ensure their work embodies its roots of resistance and celebrates those in the community who made Pride what it is today.

Cooper believes strongly in the power of collective action and is committed to investing in initiatives that are anti-racist, anti-colonial and inclusive of all marginalized identities in all their complexities. Deeply invested in the growth and improvement of Capital Pride as a Board member, Cooper will be focused on increasing the accessibility of Pride and supporting the most marginalized in our community.

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Danielle Kydd is a biracial Afro-Arab queer person living on unceded Anishinaabe Algonquin territory, in the area now known as Ottawa, Canada. She is passionate about amplifying and creating spaces for Black and racialized queer people. Danielle vehemently supports decolonizing relationships and can be found celebrating queer joy with the loves of her life: her friends. In 2023, Danielle completed her MSc in International Social and Public Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science in London, UK, where she researched how 2SLGBTQ+ people in Canada experience food insecurity. While living in London, UK, Danielle volunteered with Queer Britain, the United Kingdom’s National LGBTQ+ Museum.

In her community, Danielle volunteers with Marginalized Majority, an organization that provides in-person and virtual 2SLGBTQ+ programming. For over four years, Danielle sat on Ottawa’s Youth Action Now Steering Committee, where she helped facilitate the distribution of over $100,000 in micro-grants for youth-identified community needs. Danielle works in social policy with the federal government, where she seeks to use sound and well-researched public policies to improve people’s lives. On the weekend, Danielle can be found at a farmer’s market with a coffee in hand and tulips in her tote bag.

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Jeffrey is passionate about 2SLGBTQ+ issues, environmental sustainability and affordable housing and he has been an active volunteer in the local community. Jeffrey serves on the board of Ecology Ottawa and volunteers as a member of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute’s Eastern District Leadership Team. While a student at the University of Waterloo, Jeffrey co-led a student design team to design and construct a Net Zero Habitat for Humanity house on a reserve for an Indigenous family in need of housing. Jeffrey also volunteered as the Advocacy Director of the University of Waterloo’s Glow Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity where he co-led an initiative to improve PEP and PrEP coverage for students.

Jeffrey is currently a law student at the University of Ottawa; he holds a Bachelor of Environmental Studies degree in Planning from the University of Waterloo. Prior to starting law school, Jeffrey worked at several municipalities in urban planning roles.

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Kim lives in Clarington, Ontario but began a new career which has her travelling to Ottawa on a weekly basis in 2023. Kim’s area of expertise is coaching & mentorship, which she utilizes in her position as District Vice President for a large financial institution. She is the Executive Chair of the ‘LGBT+ Committee’ in her organization, which raised over $10,000 to support local charities in 2023. Her goal is to ramp up awareness and equality in the Finance industry while continuing to focus on philanthropy.

In her spare time, Kim gives back to the community through the Arts: she sings in her local church’s choir, and teaches Hip Hop/ Music Theatre forms of dance to children and adults.

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Based in Ottawa, Shemar is a seasoned communications and government relations consultant with a rich background in strategic communications, policy analysis, and advocacy. His professional journey started at the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA), a non-profit organization that advocates for the interests of over 150,000 students. Here, he served as a Board Member & Research and Policy Analyst.

Moving to Ottawa in 2020, he strengthened his communications expertise by earning a Master’s degree in Political Management from Carleton University. Following graduation, he worked as an Advisor in Ottawa, where he provided strategic support to clients within the technology and financial services sectors. Simultaneously he worked as a Freelance Writer at IPolitics Intel, where he specialized in delivering insightful reports on House of Commons and Senate committee meetings.

With a solid foundation in policy and communications, Shemar shifted his emphasis towards media engagement, utilizing his established connections with Canadian media outlets to enhance the visibility and objectives of his clients. Shemar has a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Social Psychology from McMaster University, with a minor in Religious Studies, complementing his Master’s degree from Carleton University.

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Victoria works as a management consultant advising public sector organizations on business, technology, and organizational strategies to improve the lives of Canadian citizens and communities. She looks to leverage her skills and experience to increase the reach and capacity of Capital Pride and partner community organizations to drive positive change for the National Capital Region’s 2SLGBTQ+ community.

An advocate for the improved representation of queer people of colour in all realms of public life, Victoria avidly supports and promotes the sharing of diverse 2SLGBTQ+ experiences through art and storytelling, and is dedicated to amplifying such voices as a member of the Board of Directors.

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