Sabreena Delhon

Executive Director

Sabreena Delhon is the Executive Director of the Samara Centre for Democracy, a non-partisan civil society organization that is committed to securing an accessible, responsive, and inclusive democratic culture in Canada. Prior to joining Samara, Sabreena was the Principal of Signal Strategies and managed access to justice initiatives at the Law Society of Ontario. She has directed research studies that examine public perceptions of legal technology and the justice system; results have informed the work of Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General and can be found on law school syllabi. She is a Fellow with Simon Fraser University’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue and Massey College.

Jennifer Giamblanco

Communications Manager

Jennifer is a storyteller. Throughout her career, Jennifer has sought out opportunities to work with organizations advocating for greater equity and inclusion. Prior to joining the Samara Centre, Jennifer immersed herself in the stories of digital government and civic technology at Code for Canada. There, she led campaigns to recognize the impact of digital projects in government, authored a case study on attracting digital and technical talent to the public service, and implemented a data driven approach to outreach.

As a co-organizer at Civic Tech Toronto, she helps create a space for civic-minded folks in the city to engage in discussion, learn from speakers, and work on projects to benefit the community. Jennifer's previous experience in political advocacy and national politics have made her a firm believer in the importance of civic engagement and the necessity of making democratic participation more accessible for all.

Beatrice Wayne 

Research Manager

Beatrice is an experienced mixed methods researcher and project manager in the democratic civic culture space. She has spent the past ten years researching and teaching about youth democratic engagement in Canada, the United States, Ethiopia and Australia. She recently served as a research fellow with the Students Learn Student Vote Coalition in the United States, after serving as Faculty in Harvard University’s History and Literature concentration for three years. Beatrice earned a PhD in History from New York University, and holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She has worked as an educational researcher for Scholastic Books, and has received grants to conduct research on youth civic engagement across Canada, the United States and Ethiopia. She received her B.A. from McGill College in Montreal. 

Vijai Kumar

Research Coordinator

Vijai is a public policy enthusiast with a range of research experience at multiple governing levels. He has held research positions at the Indigenomics Institute, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). He has also worked as the Policy Manager for the Bay Area Climate Change Council. Vijai holds a Master in Global Affairs from the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy as well as Bachelor of Arts from the University of Waterloo. 

A proponent of community wealth building, Vijai volunteers to address the crisis of homelessness in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). He is a proponent of community land trusts (CLTs) and “missing middle” infrastructure, providing research support to community groups and nonprofits around affordable housing solutions. He also enjoys demystifying economic policy for non-economist audiences through his writing.

Having a musical background, Vijai is an advocate for the Arts, currently sitting as an Advisor to The Arts, Culture and Creative Industry Development Agency (ACCIDA) in his hometown of Brampton. He also occasionally freelances for music and culture publications like Exclaim! Magazine.

Alex MacIsaac

SAMbot Project Coordinator

Alex is the Project Coordinator for the SAMbot initiative, which examines how online toxicity affects civic engagement during Canadian elections. He was drawn to the SAMbot project due to his personal and academic interests on how discourse within Canadian politics has changed during the digital age.

Alex is a recent graduate of McMaster University’s Master of Public Policy in Digital Society program, where his research focused on digital privacy law, digital democracy, and the spread of dis- and misinformation online, all within a Canadian context. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Communications, Leadership, and Culture from the University of Prince Edward Island. Through holding previous working roles in research, communications, public affairs, and municipal government, Alex has had experience working within both the non-profit sector and public service.

Beyond online discourse, Alex is passionate about issues surrounding equity within public education, digital literacy, and youth engagement.

Alison Loat

Co-founder

Alison is co-founder of the Samara Centre for Democracy, was the executive director from 2008 to 2015, and continues to serve on the Advisory Board. She is co-author of the #1 best-selling book Tragedy in the Commons. The Samara Centre’s early work was used to develop federal legislation on democratic reform, improve politics curricula, the orientation of newly elected MPs, and initiatives to improve citizens’ participation in politics. 

Alison is a member of the Premier of Ontario’s Highly Skilled Workforce Expert Panel, and is on the board of the Banff Forum. She was also a fellow and instructor at the University of Toronto from 2007-2014, and served as the past president of the Canadian Club of Toronto, a director of the Toronto Community Foundation, and a member of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Alumni Board.

Alison received several awards for her public service leadership, including the Queen’s Gold and Diamond Jubilee Medals. She is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, where she co-leads a disability rights initiative, and was named one of the WXN 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada. She has degrees from Queen’s University (BAH) and the Harvard Kennedy School (MPP).

Michael MacMillan

Co-founder and Board Chair

In 2007, Michael co-founded the Samara Centre for Democracy, and continues to serve as Chair of the Board of Directors.

In 2011, he co-founded and is CEO of Blue Ant Media, a company that produces, distributes, and broadcasts television programming internationally.

In 1978, Michael co-founded Atlantis Films Limited with fellow Queen’s University grads Seaton McLean and Janice Platt. He was Chairman and CEO of Atlantis (which later became Alliance Atlantis) for almost 30 years.

Michael is also the co-founder and co-owner of Closson Chase Vineyard and Winery in Prince Edward County, Ontario.

A member of the Order of Canada, Michael has volunteered with numerous community and industry organizations over many years. He is a Senior Fellow at Massey College and co-author of the book Tragedy in the Commons.