Future Building

Future Building translates and enacts teachings in anti-oppression and peacemaking for people and organizations everywhere. We shed light on the unjust and intersecting systems of inequality we’ve inherited in order to take action toward our collective liberation. 

Future Building is an inclusive, flexible, collaborative initiative that draws on the wisdom of many who have come before us. We strive to transform systems through caring, accountable relationships and the good mind in action. We warmly welcome you to join us in change-making that creates a healthier, safer, and more equitable future for all.

Who we are

Tecumseh/Ed and Stephanie met in 2020 through their shared work on Indigenous bioethics. They discovered that they were both involved in capacity-building related to social justice and reconciliation. Stephanie called this work anti-oppression. Tecumseh called this work peacemaking. Tecumseh and Stephanie now understand this work as Future Building.

About

Tecumseh/Ed

Dr. Ed Connors, also known as Tecumseh, is of Mohawk ancestry from Kahnawake Mohawk Territory and is also of Irish ancestry. He is a retired psychologist who has worked with First Nations communities across Canada since 1982 in both urban and rural centres. His work has included Clinical Director for an Infant Mental Health Centre in Regina, Saskatchewan, and Director for the Sacred Circle, a Suicide Prevention Program developed to serve First Nations communities in Northwestern Ontario. Tecumseh’s more recent work has involved development of Indigenous Life Promotion projects, including Feather Carriers Leadership for Life Promotion. He incorporates traditional knowledge about healing as well as his experience as a psychologist. His current work also includes consultation and community training to assist First Nations in developing Restorative Justice practices.

About

Stephanie

Dr. Stephanie Nixon is a straight, white, middle class, able-bodied, cisgender, settler woman of English and Irish ancestry who strives to understand the pervasive effects of privilege, and what to do with and about it. Stephanie leads the consulting firm, Stephanie Nixon and Associates Inc. She is also a Full Professor, Vice Dean (Health Sciences) and Director (School of Rehabilitation Therapy) at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. She completed her PhD in Public Health at the University of Toronto, and a post-doc at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, before joining the University of Toronto for 15 years as a professor. Stephanie developed the Coin of Privilege as a way to translate core ideas about anti-oppression and intersectionality to people in positions of unearned advantage like herself.

What we offer

  • Capacity-building for groups (virtual, hybrid, or in person)

    • a one-time introductory session
      (1-3 hours)
    • a short series of 2-3 scaffolded sessions (1-3 hours each)
    • a long series of 4+ scaffolded sessions (1-3 hours each)

  • Coaching for individuals and teams (virtual, hybrid, or in person)

    • a one-time session to offer dialogue, guidance and support
    • a series of ongoing sessions

  • Resources that share our Future Building ideas

    • online, open-access resources available to use and share
    Resources