Ann-Louise Davidson Ph.D. is the Director of Concordia University’s Innovation Lab and is the Innovation Strategic Advisor for the Faculty of Arts and Science. She is also Associate Director of the Milieux Institute for Art, Culture and Technology, where she directs #MilieuxMake, the institute’s makerspace.

Giuliana Cucinelli is an associate professor in the Educational Technology program within the Department of Education. She is co-director of the Communities and Differential Mobilities research cluster of Concordia’s Milieux Institute for Arts, Culture, and Technology. Cucinelli’s research-creation program focuses on the social, cultural and educational impacts of technology.

Ivan is concerned with how technology can enable us to build a better, fair and sustainable future. His current research interests are in Computer Science Education, Communities of Practice and Collaborative Learning. He is also passionate about Web Development.

Margarida Romero is the research director of the Laboratoire d’Innovation et Numérique pour l’Éducation (LINE), a research lab in the field of Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL). Professor at Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (France) and research associate at Université Laval (Canada). Her research is oriented towards the inclusive, humanistic and creative uses of technologies (co-design, game design and robotics) for the development of creativity, problem-solving, collaboration and computational thinking.

Dr. Nadia Naffi is an Assistant Professor of Educational Technology in the Department of Teaching and Learning Studies at the Faculty of Education and holder of the Chair in Educational Leadership (CLE) in Innovative Pedagogical Practices in Digital Contexts – National Bank at Université Laval. She holds a doctorate in education (educational technology) and a master’s degree in educational technologies from Concordia University. As Chairholder, Naffi’s research focuses on the ethical, critical, responsible and sustainable application of disruptive digital technologies such as artificial intelligence in education, training, talent development and upskilling and reskilling of the future and current workforce for the future of work.

Houda’s passion for integrating technology in education has led her to pursue her Master’s in Educational Technology at Concordia University, following a career path as a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit nurse and a Nursing Instructor. Driven by her innate love and enthusiasm for tinkering and making, Houda has joined Education Makers to research and develop 3D fabrics and embedded wearable prototypes. She interrogates what these new plastic composites mean for everyday life and how our skin interacts with them.

Makerspace to me is an inclusive community where we practice solving problems with a do-it-yourself and disruptive approach. It is empowering to make things with your hands, take risks, learn from your mistakes and by the end of the day be able to say
“it’s Good enough!” we came up with yet another sustainable solution.

Playing an active role in people’s career journeys as a human resources professional made me realize people strive to learn and there are great opportunities to create meaningful learning experiences. This led me to pursue graduate studies in educational technology and step outside my comfort zone and into a community of makers. Interested in the process of using different technologies to make and applying learnings during that process of building educational opportunities for others.

Maker by day, and gamer by night, Rima spends hours at #MilieuxMake researching, designing and 3D printing figurines of characters from popular TV shows and video games. She is also passionate about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and curious about how to use AI to create revolutionary gaming experiences. When she is not printing or playing, Rima is shooting baskets.

Alina is a Graphic facilitator who draws people’s ideas to help them visualize their goals and aspirations in order to facilitate the development of attainable goals. She is in a constant search for ways to apply these in the community to be able to create social impact through visual messages and the community’s visual explorations.
She is currently working on her PhD in which she is merging her backgrounds in organizational development and fine arts to create a synergistic recipe blending graphic facilitation, organizational development, learning, and change.
Her research focuses on the long-term impact of using visual tools to facilitate and co-create so that human systems can better work in collaboration and use new tools to facilitate conversations that are otherwise hard to approach.

Sylvain Durocher is a teacher and a skilled tradesperson. He works with a variety of materials, ranging from wood to cement and metal, which he re-mixes with electromechanic and other mechanical harmonies. He mixes the process of creation and design to give shape, character and usability to material.

Karl-André St-Victor is the Director of Chalet Kent, a non-for-profit organization where youth members and adults can actively work on creating a safer-space for youth between ages 11 and 18. He writes: Our raison d’être is to create an inclusive environment built on the foundation of respect, critical thinking, and open communication. Chalet Kent is an extension of our diverse support system, located in the neighbourhood Côte-des-Neiges. Most notably, I am what I stand for, in my career as well as in my life as an individual, a father, a son, a partner and a friend.

Ben has a background in software engineering, studio art, and manufacturing. His passion for innovation, tinkering, and hobby electronics led him to found the Robot-In-A-Can project. He is currently focused on developing a low-cost pedagogical toolkit that focuses on building maker skills. If you spot him around he is always happy to share his excitement for learning with others!

Charles Matthews is a creative technologist currently specialising in access and music. Charles has worked closely with UK organisation <a href=https://www.drakemusic.org/>Drake Music</a> for several years, developing: a custom guitar with musician John Kelly (the Kellycaster), an outdoor installation featuring sensor-based instruments (Planted Symphony), and a musical lazy susan for turn-taking in classrooms. Charles has created an open-source framework called instrumentmaker.org, which will form the basis of forthcoming workshops in collaboration with Montreal-based musician Gift Tshuma.

Dr. Jiyae Bong is an assistant professor of Educational Technology in the Department of Education at Concordia University. Bong’s research focuses on (a) how people interact and engage in knowledge activities in technology-integrated learning spaces and (b) how educators make instructional design decisions in their specific contexts. She served as the board associate in the Design and Development division of the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT) in 2015. She also received the NSF/AECT Early Career Award in 2019 and PacificCorp Design and Development Award (currently Design and Development Competition) from the AECT in 2014.

Ariel Harlap is a community project instigator. He tries to listen deeply and openly share ideas while bridging across sectors. He has over 10 years of professional experience in project management and organizational strategy, and another 4 years in geosciences. Under his leadership, Techno Culture Club became a recognized innovator in community technology education for the public sector. Ariel has contributed to and co-organized various social movements in Montreal relating to participatory and active citizenship.

Elizabeth Lakoff has loved storytelling since an early age. She invented all kinds of tales about her friends, family and even her pets. Nowadays, her favourite stories to tell are inspired by her incredible children – her brilliant and passionate teenage daughter and her curious and kind young son. Her son’s experience as an amputee served as an inspiration for Amber the Maker. After obtaining a Bachelor of Education degree, Elizabeth spent a decade working as an English and Social Studies high school teacher while raising her children and completing her Master of Arts degree at Concordia. Elizabeth now works in training. When not writing or working, Elizabeth enjoys a quiet country life with her husband, children, and two dogs.

Demetrius is a doctoral candidate in the Instructional Systems & Learning Technologies program at Florida State University. The focus of his dissertation research is the conditions impacting the implementation of project-based learning in K-12 environments. In addition to his graduate studies, he continues to design and facilitate career and technical education (CTE) related training, camps, and programs for K-12 teachers and students.

Théo Chauvirey is a multidisciplinary designer who graduated from the Master of Design program at Concordia University. His work is articulated around experimental research on biomaterials (bacterial cellulose, mycelium) and their potential in the field of design. Théo has been a researcher member of the Biolab at Milieux Institute since 2017.

Professor Emeritus Barbara Layne is the Director of Studio subTela and Co-Director of the Textiles and Materiality Cluster at the Milieux Institute for Art, Culture and Technology at Concordia University. Layne lectures and exhibits internationally, most recently in AS-Helix: The Integration of Art and Science in the Age of Artificial Intelligence Exhibition at The National Museum of China, Beijing, the Festival de la Image Exhibition, Museo de Arte de Caldas, Manizales, Colombia and Taking Care, Ars Electronica Exhibition in Linz, Austria. Her work is supported by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the Social Science and Humanities Research Council, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Quebec, Hexagram and the Milieux Institute.

Don Undeen is an M.Des.candidate, artist, performer, designer, and educator. His background is in building and running makerspaces, creating spaces for innovation, and helping artists develop technology solutions to achieve their creative vision. He has taught numerous workshops and university courses on creative coding, innovation strategy, making and maker culture, and creative collaboration.
Full CV and portfolio at https://undeen.com

Scott DeJong is a PhD candidate in Communication studies at Concordia University studying educational game design, play, and disinformation.  Currently, his FRQSC dissertation is studying how games and play relate to disinformation practices and critical thinking skills. His work connects creative practice with research to improve media literacy approaches, as witnessed in his research boardgame Lizards and Lies. His past work, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, constructed games on issues of digital literacy and older adult mistreatment. In his free time, Scott co-produces a podcast speaking with scholars and practitioners on the role and design of humour in games. He is an active member of the TAG (technoculture, Arts and Games) Lab, the Applied AI Institute, and the mLab.