Demiesha Dennis

Demiesha Dennis is the director and founder of Brown Girl Outdoor World (BGOW).

“Through community engagement and a wide range of outdoor activities, Brown Girl Outdoor World (BGOW) is committed to changing the narratives assigned to the Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPoC) community and our place in outdoor adventure and recreation. As an organization, we are laser focused on moving the conversation away from what we do not do but work instead to provide tangible solutions to diversifying outdoor recreation. We are putting ourselves in position to create a new narrative that would bridge the engagement gap by calling to action community organizations, business corporations and government agencies, to begin the business of reminding BIPoC communities that they too belong in the great outdoors.” 

Demiesha noticed a lack of representation in the outdoor community in Canada after moving to Toronto from Jamaica at eighteen years old, and decided to take it upon herself to offer a safe and inclusive environment for BIPOC womxn to explore the outdoors through activities like climbing, ice climbing, skiing, ice fishing, camping, and fly fishing.

Melissa Hafting

Melissa Hafting is an ecologist, bird guide, author, and photographer. In 2014 she founded the BC Young Birders Program, which aims to bring together youth of all races, sexual orientations, and genders to look at birds on fun excursions in the natural world. The program also helps teach youth about citizen science and the importance of bird conservation. Melissa is passionate about making birding more inclusive for all, especially for BIPOC birders like herself. 

Melissa is an eBird reviewer for the province of BC and sits on the board of directors of the Frontiers in Ornithology Association and Wild Bird Trust of BC, she was also a judge for the 2022 and 2023 Audubon Photography Awards, the recipient of BC Nature’s 2021 Daphne Solecki Award for contributing to nature education for children in British Columbia, a finalist for the 2021 Nature Inspiration Awards for the Canadian Museum of Nature, a lead in the 2020 CBC TV documentary, Rare Bird Alert, and winner of the 2024 Alan Duncan Bird Conservation Award. In 2025, Melissa will be awarded the King Charles III Coronation Medal, the recipient of which must have made a significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region of, or community in, Canada, or attained an outstanding achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada.

Peter Soroye

Peter Soroye is a conservation biologist based in Toronto. He is currently the Assessment and Outreach Coordinator for the Key Biodiversity Areas Program at Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, which is an independent society that saves wildlife and wild places in Canada through science, conservation action and by inspiring people to value nature. Peter completed his PhD in Biology at the University of Ottawa, where his work focused on predicting the impacts of climate and land-use change on North American and European pollinators. His first PhD chapter was published in Science, and his PhD work was recognized by the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution with a prestigious Excellence in Doctoral Research award.

"Most of my research tries to understand how climate change and land use change (including habitat loss and pesticide use) interact to affect organisms.  I do all my research with the thought that with greater understanding comes better solutions, and ultimately I'd like all my research to be helpful for wildlife conservation and policy. Most of this research I do while focusing on pollinators like bees and butterflies, which I love and which are cute enough for other people to want to find."

Sophia Danenberg

Sophia Danenberg is a mountaineer known for being the first Black woman to summit Mount Everest. On May 19, 2006, she reached the top despite facing bronchitis, frostbite, and a clogged oxygen mask. She started climbing in 1999 through the Appalachian Mountain Club and quickly gained experience in technical mountaineering, leading her to successfully climb four of the Seven Summits; Everest (8850m, Asia), Aconcagua (6962m, South America), Denali (6194m, North America) and Kilimanjaro (5895m, Africa). She summited numerous famous peaks in the early 2000s, including Mount Rainier, Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Baker, Mount Kenya, the Grand Teton, Mount Katahdin, Mount Denali, Mount Tasman and Ama Dablam. Danenberg has spoken about the importance of increasing Black representation in mountaineering and hopes to see more Black climbers in the future!

Sabrina Chapman

Sabrina Chapman is a first-generation Canadian climber who started climbing at 26 and quickly progressed to an elite level. She regularly sends 5.13a/b and is currently working on Titan, a 5.14a route—the benchmark for high-performance climbing.

From the start of her climbing career, Sabrina noticed the lack of representation of Black climbers, especially women. She aims to challenge that underrepresentation and inspire more women of colour to see themselves in climbing. She also pushes back against the limited ways people of colour are often portrayed in outdoor spaces—too often framed through struggle or education rather than personal agency and achievement. Her goal is to shift the narrative and ensure these stories are told in a way that reflects the full spectrum of experience.

Charles Crenchaw

Charles Crenchaw was a trailblazing mountaineer who broke barriers in the climbing world. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest and as a member of the Seattle Mountaineers, he dedicated himself to exploring and protecting wild spaces while becoming an accomplished climber.

His defining moment came in 1964 when he joined an expedition to Denali, North America’s tallest peak. Battling harsh weather and steep, icy slopes, he reached the summit on July 9, making history as the first Black climber to stand on the summit. His achievement challenged the idea of who belonged in mountaineering and paved the way for future generations.

Nearly 50 years later, in 2013, a group of Black climbers set out to honour Crenchaw’s legacy by attempting the same climb. The Expedition Denali team (led by Phil Henderson) aimed to inspire more people of colour to explore the outdoors and see themselves represented in high-altitude mountaineering. Their journey reinforced the lasting impact of Crenchaw’s achievement and the importance of diversity in adventure sports.