The Muskoka Summit on the Environment 2025 will feature an opening and closing ceremony, five featured presentations, and an interactive display space hosted by local secondary school students. High schools from Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, and Huntsville will each have a table for attendees to engage with during breaks.
Christopher is a 5th-generation member of the Wáhta Mohawks, whose ancestors relocated from Kanehsatà:ke (Oka, Quebec) to Muskoka in 1881. He began teaching with the Wáhta Mohawk’s Kinderkids outdoor program for JK/SK students and later taught Mohawk as a Second Language for grades 4–8 at Six Nations of the Grand River, developing his distinctive style.
Beyond the classroom, he has shared his culture through performances with his brother as The Wáhta Boys, singing in Mohawk at national celebrations and local festivals. His journey through cancer deepened his perspective, reinforcing what matters most: time.
Chris will open the Summit with a traditional Opening Ceremony, setting the tone for a day of learning, reflection, and connection to both the land and each other.
Dr. Anabela Bonada leads research and knowledge mobilization at the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, advancing practical strategies that integrate applied science, risk assessment, and policy. She leads the Centre’s wildfire work and co-leads flooding initiatives, ensuring research is translated into cost-effective tools for residents, governments, and industry. Dr. Bonada holds a Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Guelph and serves on the National Research Council’s Resilient Residential Retrofit Advisory Committee and the Task Group on Wildland Urban Interface for the 2030 National Model Codes, among other advisory roles. She is a frequent media spokesperson on climate adaptation and science.
Presentation Title: Wildfire and Climate Change: Reducing Risk in the Muskoka Region
Angela is the CEO and founder of GreenStep, which was launched in 2008 to empower businesses to measure and improve their sustainability performance while taking climate action. Under her leadership, GreenStep has supported thousands of organizations across Canada and internationally, proudly leading by example as a B Corp, Climate Neutral Certified, Rainbow Registered, and Living Wage Certified company.
With over 25 years of experience in sustainability, Angela has co-founded nonprofits, served on multiple boards, and was elected as a Kelowna City Councillor on a platform focused on sustainability. Her cross-sector expertise powers programs like EcoFund, which has enabled millions of dollars in carbon reduction and cost-saving projects for GreenStep’s clients.
Beyond work, Angela is an angel investor supporting women-led impact companies, an avid regenerative gardener, backcountry adventurer, and proud mom of two energetic kiddos.
Presentation Title: Tourism in a Warming World: Building Climate Resilience for Muskoka’s Economy
Jeff Lehman is Chair of The District Municipality of Muskoka, having been elected by Council in December 2022. Previously, he was the 46th Mayor of the City of Barrie, serving from 2010-2022, and was twice Chair of the Ontario Big City Mayors’ Caucus, representing Ontario’s 28 largest cities.
Chair Lehman holds a Chartered Director (C.Dir) designation and has served on the Boards of Directors of 9 separate organizations over his nineteen-year career in public service. His articles concerning the future of municipalities have appeared in the Globe and Mail and industry publications and he has been a frequent keynote speaker, focusing particularly on innovation in the public sector and the intersection of business, community, and government.
Presentation Title: Hearts More Than Minds: Making the Case for Change
Anita Krajnc is Executive Director of the Animal Save Movement, a worldwide network of Save groups bearing witness to farmed animals and global campaign coordinator for the Plant Based Treaty. She received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto and is a dedicated follower of Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi and Cesar Chavez. Anita has also served as an assistant professor at Queen’s University (Ontario) and has published extensively on social movements and environmental politics, co-authoring “The Secret Life of Pigs: Stories of Compassion and the Animal Save Movement” (2024).
Presentation Title: Eating Our Way to a Greener World
Chris Magwood is working to help create a world where buildings are a leading part of the climate solution instead of a major contributor to climate change and doing so in a way that makes the world more equitable, healthy, beautiful, and efficient.
In 2022, Chris joined the Rocky Mountain Institute’s Carbon-Free Buildings team. There he leads efforts on HomebuildersCAN, a unique community of practice for homebuilders working to decarbonize, and the development of RESNET Standard 1550 for the measurement and reporting of embodied carbon for homes.
In 2019, he helped to establish Builders for Climate Action and has been leading the development of the BEAM carbon estimator tool for low-rise construction. At BfCA, he co-authored four major studies on embodied carbon in the homebuilding industry.
From 2011 to 2022, Chris served as a director and teacher at The Endeavour Centre, a not-for-profit sustainable building school. Prior to that, he ran a design/build firm specializing in carbon-storing, healthy, energy efficiency new construction and renovations.
Chris has authored seven books on sustainable building. His latest book, Building Beyond Zero: New Ideas for Carbon-Smart
Architecture is co-authored with Bruce King and published by Island Press.
Presentation Title: Holistic Green Building: Understanding YOUR Criteria
Accordion Content
Brian Dwayne Sarazin is an Indigenous artist, singer, and educator of Algonquin, Lakota, Onondaga, and Chippewa descent who comes to us from the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation. As a musician, Brian has performed with mainstream artists for Royalty, Prime Ministers, Governor Generals, and Cirque du Soleil. He received the Medal of Excellence from General W.J Natynczyk, Chief of Defence, one of only three civilians to do so, after singing an honour song during the first occasion on record of the Canadian and U.S. National Defense being in one room.
To conclude the Muskoka Summit on the Environment, Brian will lead us in a drumming ceremony, bringing the day to a meaningful close.
