Leading from the Inside Out: The AST Leadership Learning Podcast

We are joined by The Rev. Dr. Rob Fennell to discuss his theological perspective on leadership - a gift from God - and the importance of helping others discern and embrace their gifts. Rob Fennell is Academic Dean and Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Atlantic School of Theology, and is an ordained minister of The United Church of Canada. The author and editor of several books, Rob is Founding Director of Camino Nova Scotia and is committed to the growth and development of healthy leaders and communities. On July 13, Rob will lead an online session called The Pilgrim's Pace: Leadership through the lens of walking and slowing down. You can learn more and register for the session here.

In this episode, we chat with Basia Solarz about how we can bring more of our whole selves to our leadership, to help us face challenges, listen more deeply and lead in a way that serves others and ourselves. Basia Solarz, MAdEd, CPCC, brings over 25 years' experience facilitating conversations in educational, workplace, and community settings. Currently, she serves as the Consultant, Communications and Conflict Competence, for the award-winning Workplace Conflict Resolution Program at Nova Scotia Health. In this role, she offers mediation, conflict coaching, and educational services across the province-wide organization. A Certified Transformative Mediator™ and Fellow of the Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation (ISCT), Basia is particularly interested in the moral-ethical dimensions of conflict transformation as well as the intersection of adult learning and the transformative approach (Bush & Folger) to working with conflict. On June 22, Basia will lead us in a new AST Leadership Learning program - Empowered Communication: Speaking your truth with compassion. You can learn more and register for the series here.

Dr. Kristin Williams joins us for a conversation about the leadership lessons she has learned through her work as a leader in the non-profit sector and through her own research into women's leadership. Kristin is the President & CEO of Junior Achievement of Nova Scotia, a global charity with a mission to empower youth. She is the project lead for the Nova Scotia Business Hall of Fame and the associated Legacy Project which has funded two arts and education installations celebrating the business history of Nova Scotia. A critical management scholar with a focus on equality, diversity and inclusion, Kristin identifies as a polemical feminist engaged in critical historiography, activist writing and narrative methods and she investigates neglected figures of significance, novel theoretical approaches, alternative ways of organizing, and overlooked innovative management strategies and practices. She was the recipient of the 2018 Senior Women Academic Administrators of Canada Award of Merit, she was a Nova Scotia Innovation Graduate Scholar (2015-2019), and the 2018 Emerald Literati Award recipient for Outstanding Paper published in the Journal of Management History. Kristin will lead the session, Herstory: Evoking the lessons of great women leaders, as part of our Leading from the Inside Out series. You can learn more and register for the series here.

Nikanu'skw is the Mi'kmaq word for female leader. In this episode, Sheila Isaac shares learning from her own incredible leadership journey at the forefront of countless important moments in Indigenous Canadian history. Sheila is a Mi'gmaq lawyer from Listuguj First Nation, Quebec who now resides in Membertou, Nova Scotia. She is a highly regarded subject matter expert in Indigenous history and on Indigenous women's leadership. She has contributed as a researcher and policy analyst for the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People, the Assembly of First Nations, the Native Women's Association of Canada and the Odawa Native Friendship Centre. Shela worked in her home community as the Band Manager and as the Director of Human Resources. She also worked with a team of Mi'kmaq lawyers on the Supreme Court of Canada Marshall Decision. Sheila also grades Indigenous proposals for the federal government and sits on the Indigenous Women's Circle to feed into policy initiatives affecting Canadian women. Sheila will lead the session, Nikanu'skw: My Journey, as part of our Leading from the Inside Out series. You can learn more and register for the series here.

Jennifer Gillivan joins us to discuss her perspective on leadership, particularly women in leadership and how their unique skills can offer so much value to a community, home or organization. Jennifer is President and CEO of the IWK Health Centre Foundation. She was appointed by the Prime Minister of Canada to serve as a member of The Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments in Nova Scotia. Jennifer is the Vice Chair of Children's Hospital Foundations Board, a Board member of Save the Children International and a passionate advocate for the rights of women and children. Jennifer will lead the session, The Other Half and Why It Matters, as part of our Leading from the Inside Out series. You can learn more and register for the series here.

Jeff Ward has been referred to as a Mi'kmaq knowledge keeper and sharer. He is a leader in the White Eagle Sundance, a Lodge keeper, drum keeper and maker, and a conductor of ceremonies, talking circles and justice circles, with over 30 years of experience. Among many other roles on boards and working in community, Jeff is also General Manager of the Membertou Heritage Park, with vast experience and knowledge in the field of culture, management and administration. He is the former Director of Operations for Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation. In this episode, Jeff speaks with us about his leadership philosophy and journey. On February 9, he will lead the session, Mi'kmaq Perceptions, Protocols and Teachings, as part of our Leading from the Inside Out series. You can learn more and register for the series here.

In this episode, we speak with mediator and therapist, Paul Hutchinson about leadership and the ability to manage conflict, how to receive and hold different perspectives or narratives and the importance of risk as a way forward. Paul Hutchinson is a mediator, therapist, artist and retreat leader living in Northern Ireland. He is a former Director of Corrymeela Peace and Reconciliation Centre and is currently a Commissioner on the Northern Ireland Parades Commission. Paul is the founder/Director of Imagined Spaces. He has over 25 years' experience as a mediator and peace practitioner and has worked extensively in Northern Ireland, in North West of England, in New York, Jerusalem and Canada. He works with individuals, with interpersonal issues, with organisations, congregations and communities. Paul will lead the session, More Than One Story, as part of our Leading from the Inside Out series. You can learn more and register for the series here.

We speak with the Honourable Dr. Mayann Francis, O.N.S. about her personal philosophy of leadership, what it means in the context of social justice, and what it looks like for future generations. Dr. Francis was appointed to the Faculty of Management, School of Public Administration as the first Distinguished Public Service Fellow in fall of 2015. She served as Lieutenant Governor for the province of Nova Scotia, from 2006-2012, and was the first African Nova Scotian and second woman to be appointed as the vice regal representative. She is the recipient of six honourary degrees and an Honorary Diploma. She has served in many leadership roles including Chair of the Board for the Atlantic School of theology. You can learn more about Dr. Francis' philosophy on leadership in her memoir, Mayann Francis, An Honourable Life, through The Viola Desmond Community Talks on Eastlink, and in her session, Ethical and Spiritual Leadership, part of AST's Leading from the Inside Out series available here.

In our introductory episode, we speak with Dr. David Deane about his Leading from the Inside Out session, Questioning Toxic Assumptions, exploring some of the most damaging assumptions that underpin our western society and perpetuate human crises, such as climate change and social injustice. Dr. Deane helps us understand how we can see and confront these assumptions in a way that can inform our decisions, as leaders and as humans. David Deane has a PhD in Theology from the University of Dublin, Trinity college. A former Research Fellow at the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences, he is currently associate Professor of Theology at Atlantic School of Theology, where he directs the the MA program and the Diploma in the New Evangelization Program. David's books include Nietzsche and Theology, Still Unhealed: Treating the Pathology in the Clergy Sexual Abuse Crisis and the forthcoming Resisting the Tyranny of the Banal. You can learn more and register for the Leading from the Inside Out series here.