IVY - Key Persons
As Senior Consultant, Amanda provides queer-informed and equity focused support to non-profit clients across the country with a focus on designing and delivering comprehensive queer and trans education programs and training, skilled facilitation for consultations, events, conferences, and meetings, policy development, and strategic planning. She is an experienced leader, educator, and facilitator who is passionate about building sustainable, supportive, and just environments.
As a Junior Consultant, Amina provides broad support to non-profit clients in the areas of project management, evaluation, program development, content creation, policy review, surveying, and data analysis. Her life tells a captivating tale woven across Somalia, Tanzania, Kenya, Hong Kong, and Canada, revealing a rich tapestry of experiences that profoundly shaped her dedication to community-driven impact. Her journey through diverse cultures, culminating in a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs from the University of Regina in 2023, reflects a passionate commitment to the intricate web of global relations and diplomacy.
Amina's experience includes a role as a Junior Professional Consultant for the Global Early Childhood Education initiative at UNICEF Education HQ in New York. She is an ardent advocate, armed with a linguistic repertoire encompassing English, German, Swahili, and Somali. These linguistic skills serve as bridges across cultural divides, amplifying her capacity to foster mutual understanding amid diverse contexts. Amina is passionate about building bridges, empowering communities, and championing change on a global scale.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Coordinator & Junior Consultant
Ivy, Jacq's grandmother, was an incredible woman who lived almost her entire life in rural Saskatchewan. Ivy was unabashedly progressive and actively supported the fight for affordable healthcare and workers' rights in her community. She worked as a retail worker, while supporting and raising her family.
Jacq's mother, whose last name is Dean, is also an incredible woman. Devoting her professional life to building inclusive and accessible education in the Northwest Territories, she is well-known in the North as somebody who works hard, values progressive education, and fights for the right for all children to participate fully in school.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Founder
- Principal Consultant
As a Consultant at Ivy + Dean, Lindsay is focused on providing Northern-informed broad support to meet the unique needs of organizations in the NWT. They are a Two-Spirit M'Chigeeng, Anishinabek born and raised in Sǫ̀mba K'è, Denendeh, and multidisciplinary artist, educator, and facilitator for many Northern Initiatives.
She is the current Camp Director for Qmunity Camp NWT, a non-profit providing on the land culturally based programming to 2SLGBTQIPA+ youth throughout the North. In addition to coordinating and delivering accessible on the land programs, Lindsay enjoys supporting non-profits through meeting facilitation, strategic planning and project management. They hope one day to become a Registered Psychologist to bring more gender and sexually diverse Indigenous representation into mental health spaces in the NWT.
Lindsay is passionate about building ethical, anti-racist, decolonial spaces and empowering First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples of Denendeh to reclaim their culture, traditions, language, and identity. #LANDBACK
As Technology Coordinator, Nova is our in-house tech support wizard, supporting the team and clients by providing administrative and technical support. She is an administrator, tech consultant, and website designer with a passion for making technology more accessible to individuals without an IT background. Whether it's live technical support for large meetings, website design, or easy to understand documentation and training for new tools, Nova is dedicated to ensuring that behind the scenes technical issues and worries are minimized or eliminated so that projects can focus on what's really important: the people.
Nova studied computer science at the University of Regina while also working there as an audio visual technician and producing live televised classes to students across Saskatchewan before it was commonplace. She has a special interest in cyber security, as well as reading, music, and videogames. She's gone from designing rudimentary HTML websites in elementary school to the page you're reading this on.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operations Officer
- Principal Consultant
As Chief Operations Officer, Risa is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of Ivy + Dean Consulting. She's also a Principal Consultant, serving diverse non-profit clients with a focus on facilitation and training, good governance, public and private fund development strategies (including writing kick-ass grants), human resource planning and guidance, and supporting the development of confident and effective non-profit leadership through mentorship and coaching. She is passionate about supporting non-profit staff and board members in developing strategic, sustainable, and just approaches to their work that contribute to strengthening organizations and the communities they serve. While Risa can (and does) work with diverse non-profits, her background in multidisciplinary arts organizations makes her an especially great fit for clients in the creative sector.
When she's not working, Risa is a travel-loving, adventure-seeking bibliophile who finds joy in live music, bold colours, and the expansive prairie landscape. She lives in Regina's Heritage neighbourhood with her wife and children.