Fredericton Walrus Talks event includes 2 N.B. writers
The next stop for the Walrus Talks national tour presenting Order of Canada members and youth leaders speaking about how to make Canada a better country is Monday in Fredericton.
The event is being held at The Playhouse and it will feature eight speakers, four members of the Order of Canada and four youth leaders.
Shelley Ambrose, executive director and publisher of the magazine that organizes the events, said they typically have two local speakers and six from other parts of Canada.
Writer David Adam Richards and photographer/writer Freeman Patterson, both members of the Order of Canada, will represent New Brunswick at the talk.
Ambrose said the speakers selected for each talk represent Canada geographically and bring different perspectives from their areas of expertise.
In total, there are 50 Order of Canada recipients speaking at the talks, as well as 50 youth leaders.
"We have 100 perspectives, we could have 1,000. I think almost every Canadian could be a Walrus talker because everyone has their own story and a different perspective," said Ambrose.
So far, speakers have touched on subjects like the future of food security, the importance of culture, reconciliation, kindness and Canada's place in the global world.
7 minutes
Each speaker has seven minutes to talk.
"The seven minutes comes from my years and years at CBC radio with Peter Gzowski at Morningside and Peter Gzowski always said that the human ear cannot listen to the human voice for longer than seven minutes," she said.
The 80-minute event is followed by a "raucous reception" where Ambrose said there is lots of talking between the speakers and audience.
Speaker list
Other speakers at the Fredericton event will be:
- Sara Abdessamie, a member of the Prime Minister's Youth Council.
- Jessica Bolduc, executive director, 4Rs Youth Movement.
- Maxwell Hartt, post-doctoral fellow, University of Toronto.
- Aaju Peter, advocate for Inuit rights.
- Margaret McCain, philanthropist and chair, Margaret & Wallace McCain Family Foundation.
- Jenna Tenn-Yuk, spoken word artist and facilitator.
Through a partnership with the Canadian Heritage department, the event is free. Tickets can be ordered via Eventbrite.
