One of our goals with The Uniter is to start conversations that aren’t happening in other publications, and to tell stories that open up new spaces for learning and discovery. The written word can do some of that, but it can’t always replace an in-person conversation.

That’s where the Uniter Speaker Series comes in. Through the Speaker Series, we plan and program events that take these conversations off the page and into our communities.

Over the last two years, we’ve partnered with the UWSA’s Grass Routes Sustainability Festival, Red Rising Magazine, the West End Cultural Centre and Fernwood Press to host some wonderful events.

We’ve worked with speakers like Freda Huson, Chickadee Richard, Meredith Graves, Diana Beresford-Kroeger, Andrea Landry, Michael Champagne, Shawn Katz and more.

The Uniter’s Speaker Series isn’t trying to replicate the big name reach that other speakers series can do (though it’s wonderful to have people like Jane Goodall and Amy Goodman visiting Winnipeg!)

What we are trying to do is bring in voices we might not otherwise hear, or use our platform to amplify conversations that are already happening and could reach a wider audience.

And this October, we’re going to kick off another amazing year of programming. Watch our social media spaces for some exciting announcements! And if there’s anything in particular you want to see this year, email [email protected].

-Anastasia Chipelski

Published in Volume 72, Number 5 of The Uniter (October 5, 2017)