Janine Heber - Top 30 Under 30

“Continually question and re-evaluate how spaces can be made more accessible, and take action to reduce barriers for marginalized folks.”

-Janine Heber

Age: 19

Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta

Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta

Affiliations: Queer Flex, Sexual Violence Awareness/Office of Human Rights, Plan International Canada Speakers’ Bureau, Rainbow Alliance Youth for Edmonton, The Quiltbag, MacEwan Office of Sustainability

Tell us about yourself!

I am a queer, non-binary artist, activist, and student. I have a background in yoga-inspired movement (RYT-500) and am currently studying psychology and gender studies. I am passionate about creating safer, trauma-sensitive, and inclusive spaces and services for LGBTQIA2S+ communities, especially within the context of health and wellness. I also love creating and supporting art as a powerful tool for social change. Currently, I am part of the Edmonton Speaker’s Bureau, a youth-led gender equality initiative organized by Juliana Kaneda. I am excited to work with Queer Flex, which is Canada’s First queer-centred non-profit gym. I am also a member of the youth committee of Rainbow Alliances for Youth Edmonton (RAYES), which aims to promote increased understanding, knowledge, and empathy around the experiences of LGBTQIA2S+ communities.

How does your work promote gender equality in Canada and around the world?

Be an ally to LGBTQIA2S+, especially QTBIPOC. Educate yourself. Recognize intersectionality and remember your privilege. Advocate for gender-neutral bathrooms and language. Language is a powerful tool. Cis-folks can practice stating their name and pronouns during introductions to help normalize this practice and reduce the emotional labour experienced by trans people. Support non-binary/trans activists and artists. Reflect and challenge your own and other’s oppressive ideas. Who is represented? Who is not? Ask who is left out of conversations, spaces, services, and question why.

What inspires you to make a difference in the world?

I think a huge part of reducing inequality is increasing representation, especially supporting diversity in conversations around gender equality. Volunteering and working with organizations that support youth and increase understandings of LGBTQIA2S+ communities is a big part of that for me.

Good Health and Well-Being (SDG 3) is a global goal I am incredibly passionate about in my work. Structures of inequality make health and wellness inaccessible to marginalized people. I aim to prioritize the health of LGBTQIA2S+ communities by offering accessible trauma-informed classes, developing a queer-centred health resource guide, and supporting organizations with similar missions.

More 2019 Top 30 Alumni

Elizabeth Roden

"You don’t have to do something on a grand scale; just live your values and stand up for what you believe in." -Elizabeth Roden Age: 29 Hometown: Glendon, Alberta Currently Residing In: Calgary, Alberta Affiliations: Operation Eyesight (ACGC Member) From an early age, I’ve always believed that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. I helped form a leadership group at my high school and was eager to learn more about world issues. In 2007, I moved to Calgary to pursue a degree...

Hamila Al-Turk

"Gender equality is not just a women’s issue, but a human rights issue, and we all need to be part of the conversation." Age: 21 Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: City of Edmonton Youth Council, Social Equity Subcommittee, Diabetes Canada Club One of the wisest teachers to have taught me once said, “Compassion is the basis of all morality, so live your life as if you were a mirror that reflects the good back to people.” Being a student under her...

Bryce Thomsen

"I invite all youth in our community to identify opportunities to create change and to not be afraid to pitch their ideas to mentors for support." -Bryce Thomsen Age: 23 Hometown: Camrose, Alberta Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: TEC Edmonton, Health City, University of Alberta Faculty of Medicine Growing up in a small town in rural Alberta, I always wondered what life was like on the global stage. I was fascinated with various cultures and their ways of life, but soon...

Belen Samuel

"Acknowledge the call to relationship and reconciliation that is present with the land you stand upon." -Belen Samuel Age: 26 Hometown: Born in Zimbabwe, originally from Eritrea Currently Residing In: Treaty 6 (Amiskwaskahegan/Edmonton, Alberta) Affiliations: Supports with Dreaming Rainbow I am a Zimbabwean-born Eritrean settler with migration experiences as a refugee. I currently exist on Treaty 6 territory, where over the past five years, I worked at the Africa Centre and at Youth...

Karl Narvacan

"Be inclusive and accepting of other people’s ideas and habits, and you can be a changemaker for gender equality." -Karl Narvacan Age: 29 Hometown: Manila, Philippines Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre Society, Choosing Wisely Canada As first-generation immigrants from the Philippines, our family faced a common challenge—navigating the health care system. I vividly remember going to the ER one day when I had a severe toothache, only to...

Sonia Lal

"Reflect on the stereotypes and prejudiced views you may apply to others. Recognize if you’re discriminatory, and rectify your behaviour. Change starts with you." -Sonia Lal Age: 18 Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: John Humphrey Center for Peace and Human Rights (ACGC Member) Students Invested in Health Association, Live Different, Big Brothers Big Sisters From a cheerleader with a bow in her hair to a Taekwondo competitor gearing up to spar on...

Daryl Kootenay

"We must support gender equality in our gatherings by creating spaces in which female leaders can learn, engage, and act on each other’s ideas." -Daryl Kootenay Age: 27 Hometown: Morley, Alberta Currently Residing In: Morley, Alberta Affiliations: Stoney Nakoda Youth Council, Banff Center for indigenous leadership, Mni Ki Waka: Decade of Water Summit Since I was in high school, I have always felt a deep sense of the need and desire to help others. This aligns with my identity as a Stoney...

Nicole Jones-Abad

"It’s important to honour people’s pronouns, have physically accessible all-gender washrooms at events, and talk about gender in less binary terms. It’s also important to check in on your trans and non-binary friends, and make room for them." -Nicole Jones-Abad Age: 23 Hometown: Quito, Ecuador Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Shades of Colour, RAYE (Rainbow Alliance for Youth of Edmonton), QWTF (Queer Women and Trans-folk Fest), The Edmonton Shift Lab While I’ve lived...

Peter Anto Johnson

"People become change-makers when they work towards a mutually benefiting outcome, one based on tolerance and respect." -Peter Anto Johnson Age: 22 Hometown: Angadical, Kerala, India Currently Residing In: Edmonton, Alberta Affiliations: Run for Support and Health (RuSH), University Infant Toddler Centre – University of Alberta, Student Health Committee, Health & Wellness Movement, Obesity Canada - Students & New Professional I’m a women and children’s health researcher, community...

Tina Guo

"As young individuals, we have a unique opportunity and responsibility to advocate for marginalized populations, and strive to effect positive change in our communities." -Tina Guo Age: 22 Hometown: Calgary, Alberta Currently Residing In: Calgary, Alberta Affiliations: Students Against Domestic Abuse Association, Outrun the Stigma Calgary, Student Run Clinic Born to a poor, first-generation immigrant family, I understood at a tender age the irreplaceability of diligence and tenacity. However,...