Vivetha Thambinathan is an Eelam Tamil activist-scholar, community-engaged researcher, and public health professional. Vivetha is a doctoral candidate in the Health and Rehabilitation Sciences program at Western University, where her research project focuses on refugee health justice, historical trauma, and arts-based healing within the Toronto Tamil refugee diaspora. She is the former Research Director at Washington-based PEARL (People for Equality and Relief in Lanka), a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for justice and self-determination for the Tamil people in the North-East of Sri Lanka. Driven by her passion for equity and justice in higher education, Vivetha also founded @diversityinacademia – a platform with over 100,000 followers – as a radical space to amplify voices typically excluded from narratives shared within the academy. Vivetha feels most inspired working at the intersections of community mobilization, creative storytelling, & healing justice.

With over 18 years’ experience in information technology, including the last 14 years in professional services and consulting, Naren Balakrishnan helps companies access Government funding programs and to file maximized and substantiated tax credit claims. His clients represent a number of industries including Telecommunications, Software/IT, Electronics, Financial Services Institutions, Aerospace and Defence, Health-IT and Bio-Technology. He assists clients in a number of areas including: determination of eligible expenditures, preparation of technical reports, review of documentation, incorporating best practices to maximize claim size and handling potential CRA matters including audit defense. Naren is heavily involved in business development initiatives, working with international companies to enter the Canadian market, developing strategic partnerships with technology associations and working closely with start-up companies to help them get to the next level. He also works to mentor, connect and introduce companies to other accounting and business functions at Grant Thornton.

Vivetha Thambinathan is an Eelam Tamil activist-scholar, community-engaged researcher, and public health professional. Vivetha is a doctoral candidate in the Health and Rehabilitation Sciences program at Western University, where her research project focuses on refugee health justice, historical trauma, and arts-based healing within the Toronto Tamil refugee diaspora. She is the former Research Director at Washington-based PEARL (People for Equality and Relief in Lanka), a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for justice and self-determination for the Tamil people in the North-East of Sri Lanka. Driven by her passion for equity and justice in higher education, Vivetha also founded @diversityinacademia – a platform with over 100,000 followers – as a radical space to amplify voices typically excluded from narratives shared within the academy. Vivetha feels most inspired working at the intersections of community mobilization, creative storytelling, & healing justice.

With over 18 years’ experience in information technology, including the last 14 years in professional services and consulting, Naren Balakrishnan helps companies access Government funding programs and to file maximized and substantiated tax credit claims. His clients represent a number of industries including Telecommunications, Software/IT, Electronics, Financial Services Institutions, Aerospace and Defence, Health-IT and Bio-Technology. He assists clients in a number of areas including: determination of eligible expenditures, preparation of technical reports, review of documentation, incorporating best practices to maximize claim size and handling potential CRA matters including audit defense. Naren is heavily involved in business development initiatives, working with international companies to enter the Canadian market, developing strategic partnerships with technology associations and working closely with start-up companies to help them get to the next level. He also works to mentor, connect and introduce companies to other accounting and business functions at Grant Thornton.