JUNE 24, 2026
1:00 - 2:00 PM EDT
Description
For more than 20 years, Calgary and Hamilton have been leaders in long‑term, place‑based poverty reduction. Their stories stand out: two communities that stayed the course, built deep cross‑sector partnerships, centred lived and living experience, and achieved measurable systems‑level impact over decades. Their journeys offer rich lessons for emerging and evolving poverty‑reduction tables — showing what becomes possible when communities commit to long‑term collaboration, shared leadership, and deep community engagement.
Tamarack released two companion publications capturing the lessons, breakthroughs, and hard‑won insights from this work. Click here to view the recent publications.
Join us for a dynamic national webinar that brings these publications to life — featuring a panel of leaders from Calgary and Hamilton who have been directly involved in this 20‑year journey.
Speakers
Tom Cooper. Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction
Tom has been a prominent advocate for raising social assistance rates, ending predatory lending, and expanding living wage initiatives. He played a key role in helping establish Ontario’s first Basic Income Pilot, a landmark research initiative designed to test whether a basic income could improve housing stability, health outcomes, and social inclusion for low‑income residents.
Liz Weaver. WeaverWorks Consulting
Liz was formerly the Co-CEO and a senior leader with the Tamarack Institute. She also held the position of Consulting Director, Collective Leadership with the Tamarack Learning Centre. The Learning Centre focuses on advancing community change efforts. During her time at Tamarack, Liz developed tools, resources, case studies and workshops on topics including nonprofit and collaborative management and governance, sustainability, storytelling and collective leadership. Liz has designed and facilitated strategic planning processes for organizations and collaboratives across Canada, the United States and globally. Liz is skilled at supporting organizations to move from idea to impact. Before joining Tamarack, Liz was the Director of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, a collaborative roundtable focused on ending poverty.
Laura Cattari. Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction
Laura is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, where she contributes to systems‑level change through policy development, community engagement, and the integration of lived experience. Her work focuses on income security and rights‑based policy related to poverty and disability. Laura served on a provincial income‑security reform working group that co‑designed Income Security: Roadmap for Change and supported the rollout of Ontario’s Basic Income Pilot in Hamilton.
Ted McMeekin. Public Servant, Educator, and Community Leader
Ted is a longtime public servant and community leader with a distinguished career in Ontario politics and municipal government. He is currently a City Councillor in Hamilton, representing the community of Flamborough-Waterdown. First elected to the Ontario Legislature in 2000 and re-elected four times, he served in several senior cabinet roles, including Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; Minister of Community and Social Services; and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Before provincial office, he served as Mayor of Flamborough and as a Hamilton city councillor. Ted holds an MSW from Wilfrid Laurier University, where he is an Assistant Practicum Professor. His career includes leadership roles in social planning, education, and social justice, as well as eight years as owner of the award‑winning original Chapters bookstore in Waterdown. A dedicated community volunteer, he has contributed to organizations including the YMCA, Hamilton‑Wentworth Lung Association, Wesley Urban Ministries, and Operation Lifeline.
Michelle James. Vibrant Communities Calgary
Michelle is a public‑health professional with more than a decade of experience advancing social equity and well‑being through community‑driven policy work. She is the Director of Policy at Vibrant Communities Calgary, where she leads research and advocacy to influence public policy and strengthen community impact across all levers of Calgary’s Enough for All poverty‑reduction strategy. Before joining VCC, Michelle developed her passion for mission‑driven work through roles at the Women’s Centre of Calgary and Miskanawah, and she brings additional policy experience in local government and global health. She holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Victoria and is recognized for her collaborative, evidence‑based approach to advocacy and social change.
Savera Hayat-Dade. United Way of Calgary and Area
Savera is an educator, speaker, and public intellectual whose work focuses on poverty, sustainable development, and systems change. She holds an MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science, specializing in poverty, inequality, and development policy. She is the Director of Community Strategies at United Way of Calgary and Area, where she advances collaborative approaches to complex social challenges. Savera also serves as Co‑Chair of the Calgary Local Immigration Partnership and sits on United Way Centraide Canada’s National Diversity Council. She is an adjunct professor of inclusive governance at the Cumming School of Medicine and a faculty member with the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Calgary. Her international experience includes work with the World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development on initiatives related to poverty reduction, development, and community well‑being. Her work explores how economic, social, and environmental systems shape communities, with a particular focus on the intersections of poverty, climate change, inequality, and social justice. Through teaching, public engagement, and cross‑sector collaboration, she aims to bring thoughtful and accessible perspectives to public conversations on resilience, inclusion, and the future of sustainable communities. Through teaching, public engagement, and cross-sector collaboration, she aims to bring thoughtful and accessible perspectives to public conversations on resilience, inclusion, and the future of sustainable communities.
Danya Pastuszek. Tamarack Institute
Danya is the President & CEO of the Tamarack Institute. Her career has focused on economic mobility, financial inclusion, and community‑driven systems change. Before joining Tamarack, she spent a decade with the Promise Partnership / United Way of Salt Lake, co‑designing cross‑sector partnerships at school, neighbourhood, city, and regional levels to advance economic mobility. She is a published author, with work appearing in the National Observer, Social Innovation Journal, and the World Economic Forum. Her leadership has been recognized through honours such as Utah Business Magazine’s CxO of the Year (2021) and the Schwab Foundation’s Collective Social Innovation Award (2023), awarded to Tamarack during her tenure.
