Rachel Loewen Walker is the Ariel F. Sallows Chair in Human Rights with the College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan where her research focusses on gender, sexuality, and human rights. Prior to this, Rachel served as the Executive Director of OUTSaskatoon for nearly seven years. During her tenure, the organization grew from six to fifteen employees, now reaching more than twelve thousand people per year with an annual operating budget of just over a million dollars. While at OUTSaskatoon, Rachel worked with 2SLGBTQ leaders across Canada to develop The Enchanté Network, a national organization that works to build the capacity and reach of Two Spirit and LGBTQ Centres and Rachel currently serves as the President of The Enchanté Network’s board of directors. Rachel has a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from the University of Alberta, and has taught and published in the areas of feminist and queer theory, continental philosophy, and the philosophy of time. She spent more than 10 years as a sessional instructor at the University of Saskatchewan, and has worked in a number of research capacities including with the Indigenous Peoples’ Health Research Centre, the Prairie Region Health Promotion Centre, and the Canadian Mental Health Association. Throughout Rachel’s community and academic work she has developed expertise in non-profit organization management, facilitation, leadership, and policy analysis, while focusing on opening up spaces for social change, cultural diversity, and greater collaboration across non-profit, University, governmental, and other spheres.

Christian Tanguay has been working with Montreal’s 2SLGBTQ+ communities for over 15 years. A HEC Montreal management alumnus, his extensive work with 2SLGBTQ+ youth began at Jeunesse Lambda. He continued to devote his time and energy with organizations such as AlterHéros, REJAQ and the Conseil québécois LGBT. Christian continued his studies in philanthropic management at Université de Montréal and then in educational science at UQAM to finally pursue graduate degree in adult education. He joined the Montreal LGBTQ+ Community Centre (CCGLM) team in the summer of 2014 as Executive Director.

Christian’s work to modernize the centre and his dedication to 2SLGBTQ+ causes has strengthened the organization’s foundation and improved programs and services to better meet the need of our communities.

Charlie Murphy (pronouns he, him, they, them) is a long time 2SLGBTQIA+ activist currently residing in St. John’s NL and as the Executive Director of Quadrangle NL, the province first and currently only registered charity mandated to create a 2SLGBTQIA+ Community Centre for the province. For the past 12 years he has worked for the community through a number of organizations like PFLAG St. John’s chapter as a peer support facilitator, a former board member of their local pride organization, a past President of Planned Parenthood NL and Co- founder of Raise Up Fundraising a not-for-profit organization that raises funds and awareness for marginalized populations.

He is also currently working as the St. John’s Regional Support Coordinator for The Community Based Research Centre, which promotes the health of gay men through research and intervention development. The CBRC’s work is inclusive of bisexual and queer men (cis and trans) and Two Spirit people.

Chelsea Thacker became the Executive Director of the Rainbow Coalition of Yellowknife in 2017. Over the past five years, their work has been focused on supporting LGBTQ2S+ children and youth in the NWT, designing and delivering training programs, and working with national organizations to ensure the rights and issues of LGBTQ2S+ children and youth in the NWT are recognized and accounted for in national initiatives. Chelsea is passionate about educating and inspiring individuals working with LGBTQ2S+ children and youth and helping communities develop environments that are open and inclusive. The Rainbow Coalition of Yellowknife is an organization that supports LGBTQ2S+ youth across the NWT. Through grants, delivering workshops and trainings, providing support to Gender & Sexuality Alliances, implementation of support and art programs, and creation of resources.

Cait Glasson is a 53-year-old lesbian trans woman from Ontario, currently living in Waterloo. Retired as a translator, she spends most of her time doing activism and awareness work for the 2SLGBTQ+ community, volunteering some 25-30 hours a week. She has been out and active since 1994.

Kirk Furlotte (he/him) is the regional manager for Atlantic Canada with the Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC) He lives, works, and plays in Kjipuktuk/Halifax in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq.

Prior to joining CBRC, Kirk completed two degrees in health promotion from Dalhousie University at undergraduate and graduate levels. He has a long history of community engagement and activism. Kirk has been engaged in many projects including CATIE, Hepatitis Outreach Society of Nova Scotia, the Halifax Sexual Health Centre, the Youth Project, Nova Scotia Rainbow Action Project, and East Coast Rainbow Softball Association. He has worked in queer health research at Dalhousie and Simon Fraser University on national studies.

Kirk is a firm believer that that many hands make for lighter loads and that camaraderie in trying times makes for lighter moods.

Living in one of the smaller provinces, he sees the need for capacity development across Atlantic Canada and he thinks building networks like Enchanté is one of the most direct lines to empowering our communities to come together and push for our common causes.
Kirk has long held a passion for community service and sees his term as another way of giving back to the community.

New board member.