Shara Marie-France
Shara Marie-France has spent her life as a systems nomad. Seven countries, fifteen schools, and now law, policy, and government. Deeply curious about how people, culture, and systems shape the way we live, relate, and lead, she ends up asking a version of the same question wherever she lands: What becomes possible when institutions understand community experience as thoroughly as they understand their own operations?
Professionally, that curiosity has taken her to work as a lawyer, senior policy advisor with the Ontario Ministry of Education, and most recently as an independent consultant helping organizations translate community experience into responsive decisions.
Personally, it shows up in her love of psychology, culture, history, nature, wellbeing, and her lifelong practice of unpacking what she thinks she knows. Her current obsession is figuring out whether restless ambition and a regulated nervous system can actually coexist.


Benjamin Bassey
Benjamin Bassey is the Founder and Executive Director, leading initiatives focused on accessibility, inclusion, entrepreneurship, healthcare innovation, and community empowerment across Canada and Africa.
A disability advocate with lived experience, Benjamin is passionate about driving barrier-free innovation and creating opportunities for underserved communities through social impact programs, partnerships, and inclusive leadership. With a background in client services, sales and marketing, public speaking, media communication, and small business development, he brings a people-centered approach to building sustainable solutions that advance equity, accessibility, and social change.


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