Priority-Setting Summit Project
Your Voice for Change
Funded by Canadian Heritage, the Priority-Setting Summit Project (PSSP) was a platform for Québec’s English-speaking youth to identify the collective needs and priorities of their communities. The project’s flagship events included a two-day virtual event that took place in March 2021, and a second in-person event that happened in November 2021 at Dawson College in Montréal.
During the first year of PSSP, participants developed their leadership skills through a series of workshops led by community partners, including Institut du Nouveau Monde (INM), Yes Montreal, and Apathy is Boring, as well as by Professor Mike Teed from Bishop’s University. Y4Y was honoured to have keynote addresses from Christopher Skeete, Gregory Kelley and Thomas Mulcair.
Year 2 of PSSP carved out the framework for a five-year Strategic Action Plan that places youth priorities at the forefront of our work across Québec. With the help of professional counsellors, participants developed creative and effective ideas and solutions to address the issues youth face every day. We also welcomed key speakers Sameer Zuberi and Thierry Lindor. A workshop on Strategic Planning by the INM and youth-led workshop were also on the menu. It was an excellent networking opportunity for youth participants to engage and connect with politicians, professors, and community organisers.
Meet the Team
Project/Event Coordinator & Representative
Émily Bérard
Project & Event Coordinator
With a DEC in Communications, a Bachelor's degree in Elementary School Education and a ACS in Event Planning, Émily sure loves to coordinate and plan everything to a tee! From organizing weddings to conferences to private anniversaries, she never says no to a new event planning challenge.
Marie-Dina Salvione
Institut du Nouveau Monde Rpresentative
Marie-Dina Salvione is part of the INM team since 2017. She is in charge of the CiviQc education program which already reached more than 6000 high school students from 15 to 17 years old troughout Québec. This program wishes to introduce them to democracy and civic engagement. Trained designer, Marie-Dina is also an academic expert in built heritage. She is involved in many heritage organisations and teaches at the design faculty of the University of Québec in Montréal (UQAM). Among her many and diverse interests, she loves to conceive new ways to transmit knowledge between all society actors in order to get them involved in their community and increase their participation in democratic life.
Youth Advisory Committee
Leah Sarah Peer
Youth Advisory Committee Member
Leah Sarah Peer is a medical student at Saint James School of Medicine, the recipient of the Anne C. Carter Global Health Fellowship and a graduate of Concordia University, Specialization in Biology, Minor in Human Rights in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Alongside her medical studies, Leah loves voicing her thoughts through writing as she believes being publicly vocal on issues that matter is the first step of committing to change.
Rhiannon Day
First Edition Youth Advisory Committee Member
Daniel Yu
Returning Youth Advisory Committee Member
Born into an immigrant family, since youth, Daniel recognizes the challenges of possessing a language barrier, and how navigating it can be difficult. As such, he joined Y4Y as a youth advisor to make the change he wants to see. With the upcoming Summit, he hopes to empower tomorrow’s leaders and equip them with the proper tools to succeed. Daniel is otherwise an avid reader, a hockey player and an outdoorsman.
Mohamed Kerfela Komara
Youth Advisory Committee Member
Originally from Guinea, Mohamed is a Governance and capacity building specialist with several years of international development experience in the design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of projects and programs. After studying Political Science, he obtained a Masters in Ethics and Governance and a second master’s in development, Governance and Public Management at Senghor University in Alexandria. Mohamed is working as the Africa Coordinator Climate Parliament in Africa where he is supporting Parliamentarians in high-profile renewable energy projects, programs, and policies financed by the European Union. Previously to Climate Parliament, he worked on institutional governance with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Côte d'Ivoire and is the author of the book 'Citizen Participation of Young People in Côte d'Ivoire: Analysis of UNDP Actions Through the Support Project for the Empowerment of Youth Organisations'. Language is part of people identity, and all identity must be considered and protect for a better inclusion.
Brendan Calado-Luke
Returning Youth Advisory Committee Member
My name is Brendan Calado-Luke and I am originally from the South Shore of Montréal but currently living in Gatineau, Québec while I finish my honours degree in Political Science and Communication at the University of Ottawa. I have always been interested in learning and encouraging ways that French and English can live alongside each other without conflict. This comes from my experience playing sports when my teammates and I learned to communicate and have fun no matter what language we spoke.
Charlotte Crober
Youth Advisory Committee Member
Originally from rural Southwestern Ontario, Charlotte has a bilingual honours degree in sociology from Glendon College at York University. Having dreamed of being bilingual since her childhood, she moved to Québec to broaden her knowledge and appreciation of the French language and culture. Nonetheless, she cannot deny that English will always be close to her heart. Her passions include cultural exchange, environmental sustainability, music, learning about basically anything, and introducing people to other people.
Yasmin Farah Peer
Returning Youth Advisory Committee Member
Yasmin Farah Peer (she/her) is currently studying at Concordia University, majoring in Political Science and minoring in Human Rights. She was appointed as a Canadian World Literacy Foundation Ambassador in 2020, and this experience inspired her to start a grassroots movement now, a youth led non-profit organization that’s on a quest to eradicate illiteracy and raise awareness about the beauty of education.
Nicole Nashen
First Edition Youth Advisory Committee Member
