Brad Hutchinson
Chair of the Board
Brad Hutchinson is an award-winning community leader who has been recognized for his positive impact in the not-for-profit, public, and private sectors. Brad is a Restorative Justice trainer/facilitator, former Executive Director of The Gatehouse, Master Trainer of ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Trainer), black sash martial artist, former Chair of the Mississauga Library Board, and author. For over two decades, Brad has led mindfulness workshops and provided mentorship for thousands of individuals to help transform unconscious self-limiting patterns into greater personal freedom. Brad is widely respected for walking his talk. Surviving cancer twice—once in childhood and then in 2016—Brad has an intimate understanding of how traumatic experiences can have a negative influence on emotional and mental wellbeing. Brad’s teachings seamlessly combine Eastern wisdom and Western expediency to help transform adversity into achievement. His compassionate teaching style incorporates compelling storytelling, spontaneous humor, and simple proven practices to build resilience in the face of hardship.
Arthur Lockhart, M.Ed.
Board Member
Over the past 43 plus years, Arthur has held the positions of Professor School of Social and Community Services, Chair of The School of Social and Community Services, Chair of The Board of Directors of The Gatehouse, Executive Director of The Gatehouse, Coordinator Advanced Justice Studies Certificate, Senior Development Manager-Ministry of Correctional Services Arthur founded, in 1998,, the award-winning charitable organization: The Gatehouse (www.thegatehouse.org).
Arthur co-founded Laser Eagles Art Guild in 2005: “Laser Eagles will bring people together to passionately reveal their strong spirit and foster their ability to contribute their creativity and insight to the world.” Judith Snow Arthur founded, in 2010, the Annual International Transforming Trauma Into Triumph Conference, held annually at the Toronto Police College. Arthur Co-Founded, in 2014, The Canada Centre for Transformative Social Change (www.cctsc.ca) Arthur provides training and organizational transformation consultation on the local, national and international levels. At the core of his workshops are the power of the human spirit, trauma transformation, and transformative social change.
Arthur has collaborated on the social justice films: Illuminating Silence, Into The Light, and Laser Eagels. Arthur has, along with articles for the Canadian Criminal Justice Association, published three books-Community Lost and Found; and Restorative Justice: Transforming Society with Inclusion Press, and The Human Touch: The Heartbeat of Extraordinary Education.
Peter Dawson, PhD
Board Member
Peter Dawson was raised in South Africa and introduced to human rights advocacy at an early age. After coming to Canada he attended York University from which holds a Ph.D. with a specific focus on international human rights. He is an articulate, innovative human rights education; investigator; advocate, and certified community mediator with anti-racist, intercultural knowledge and experience. Has expert knowledge of United Nations (UN) human rights instruments; (UN) Charter; UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; UNDHR and UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; the UN International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Peter has 20 + years’ Post-Secondary teaching using a collaborative community engagement pedagogical model founded on an international human rights perspective. He is familiar with the Afrocentric concept of Ubuntu and the significant contribution it makes to international human rights law and practice. He is a multi-award recipient and was honored with the York University Senate Award for Service to Students (2009); the Friends of Africa Humanity Award presented by Ndaba Mandela for anti-racist advocacy (2016) and the NGO; ‘Common Frontiers’ for human rights advocacy and anti-racist investigations (2016). He has been involved in restorative justice initiatives in Southern Africa with African National Congress (ANC) community activists Reverend Alf Dlamini and Rommel Roberts and in the United States with Russell Means cofounder of the American Indian Movement (AIM). He has undertaken human rights investigations and collaborations in Canada, Latin America, the United States, and Southern Africa.
Peter Dunn, PhD
Board Member
Peter Dunn studied at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst), the University of Toronto, London School of Economics and Political Sciences, and Brandeis (Boston) before becoming a professor for 30 years at the Faculty of Social Work, Wilfrid Laurier University. There he taught MSW and Ph.D. students in the areas of inclusive social policies, research methods, poverty and housing issues, social change, and holistic practices. Prior to becoming an academic, Peter was a grassroots community organizer and social planner in Canada, the United States, and Britain working with marginalized groups and then became the Executive Director of a social planning council in Toronto. He completed seven national research projects primarily funded by SSHRC/CURA and Statistics Canada and several community research projects focusing upon disability rights, social housing, the feminization of poverty and social exclusion. He has written numerous articles, chapters, and papers. Recently he published his second book with Canadian Scholars Press entitled: Holistic Healing: Theories, Practices and Social Change. This book, which includes over 30 diverse contributors’ links together a wide range of progressive theories, research and practices from the exciting field of holistic studies to create an alternative paradigm of healing and social change at the individual, community, national and global levels. He has also worked with students, staff and faculty to bring greater disability inclusion in Canadian Schools of Social Work and broader diversity and inclusion in his own Faculty of Social Work. Peter has fortunately been honoured at the national, provincial and local levels for his social justice work. He is an enthusiastic dancer, holistic facilitator, social advocate and pet lover.
Aqeel Saeid, Ph.D.
Executive Director:
Aqeel has worked in multiple academic institutions and still practicing academia in Canadian educational institutions. Aqeel also worked as a researcher in several academic institutions, including the University of Toronto and Wilfred Laurier University. He also has published multiple articles in peer-reviewed journals on social problems, social theory, mindfulness, mental health, and more.
In addition, Aqeel is very involved in community-based work through his capacity as a former United Nations Association –Toronto Region Branch president from 2008-2010, board member of the Children’s Aid Society of Toronto (CAST), and a member of the New Horizons: Healing and Hope Coalition (NHHHC). He facilitates healing sessions for children, youth, and families traumatized by war and immigration for several communities in the GTA as one of his roles in the NHHHC.
Aqeel holds a Ph.D. and Master’s degree in Sociology and another MA in Criminology. Aqeel looks at the CCTSC as a multi-disciplinary approach that focuses on facilitating student/citizen engagement in the area of social innovation by sharing knowledge and expertise around transformative social change. Furthermore, a philosophical approach increases awareness about collective societal conscience and individual mindfulness around social change.
Zahra Harriet Badua-Baffoe
Board Secretary
Zahra Harriet Badua-Baffoe is a teacher, dancer, administrator, and youth counselor from Ghana who grew up in Montreal, Quebec. Her educational background is in Legal Administration, Community, and Justice Services, and Criminal Justice. She has worked with schools and community centers within the GTA building recreational, academic, and/or dance programs to help students deal with school pressures, life skills training, conflict management, self-esteem issues or simply to provide an outlet to express themselves. She has also worked in detention centers as a counselor for youth in conflict with the law for many years before transitioning fully into the arts.
Harriet continues to counsel; however, she has changed her approach. She finds that she can reach youth more effectively through the arts within school settings rather than detention centers or through other punitive measures. She teaches dances and the history behind the cultural movements from West Africa and the Carribbean as well as a movement coach for adults with developmental disabilities in schools and community centers within the GTA.
In her artistic career, she has performed, taught, and danced in Montreal, Toronto, and Winnipeg. Lastly, Harriet started her own educational and performance-based brand called ZahraMoves. Her aim is to use the art of dance to teach culture, promote happiness, self-expression, and confidence.
Carol Smith, RIAC, EPC, RIS
Board Member
Carol Smith is on the board of directors for The Gatehouse, an organization that provides support and resources for individuals impacted by childhood sexual abuse. A survivor of childhood trauma herself, Carol is actively involved in contributing to this organization and most recently she has taken the role of co-chair together with Arthur Lockhart on the Gatehouse Global Poetry Project.
Carol has been a Financial Advisor for over 17 years and is currently in partnership with Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network. Carol has participated on several financial services industry panels exploring the growth of Responsible Investments in Canada and has provided insight for several publications on Responsible or Ethical Investing. She is a sustainability advocate and has hosted the green networking event, Green Drinks Mississauga for many years. In 2018, Carol was a nominee for the NEI Investments Award for Excellence in Responsible Investments. Carol is on the Board of Directors of the Responsible Investment Association of Canada (RIA), an organization dedicated to providing education and resources that advance the adaption of responsible investing in Canada. Responsible investing incorporates environmental, social, and governance issues into the selection and management of investments. It can lead to better financial returns while contributing to positive social and environmental impact.