Clearing a New Path™

On Sunday, I invited newsletter subscribers ( you can sign up here ) to an open Zoom call to talk about issues facing each person, where they are in rural Canada. I had a great conversation with Elizabeth from Vermilion, Alberta. We talked about Canadian politics, Alberta politics, women in politics, climate change and socialism vs communism. We also talked about community and if we can ever get t...

You might remember Cindy Crowe from season one. She was the last episode of the first season. As luck would have it, I had quite a thought-provoking conversation with Indigenous Elder, Lodgekeeper, Author and rural business woman Cindy Crowe. Cindy is a band member of the Opwaaganisiniing or the Red Rock Indian Band about an hour east of Thunder Bay, Ontario. Cindy talks about upcoming municipal e...

Welcome to the second season of Clearing a New Path Podcast. I’m your host, Shauna Rae. I’m in rural Southwestern Ontario, on the traditional territory of the Anish-inaabe, Haudenoshownee and Mississauga or Neutral peoples who once used this land as their traditional beaver hunting grounds.  There are soooo many underrepresented voices across Canada, folks ignored, overlooked and silenced. I feel...

Cindy Crowe, Elder, Lodgekeeper, Author, is a band member of the Opwaaganisiniing (Red Rock Indian Band) located an hour east of Thunder Bay, Ontario. Since 1994, Cindy has been bridging gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people and communities. Cindy’s life purpose is to share a message of love and interconnectedness and she creates space for change in many different venues with people fr...

Lynette Mader was raised in rural Middlesex County. She got her career start with a job as public relations manager for Turkey Farmers of Canada in Mississauga and from there, took a marketing job at what was then, Cold Springs Farm in Thamesford. This brought her back to the London area where she met her husband - one of the owners of Bellamere Country Market and Winery.  She left Cold Springs Fa...

Kelly Snowdon is 28 year old competitive athlete turned entrepreneur from Moncton, New Brunswick. Kelly has competed in 5 Canadian Ringette Championships,  the Canada Winter Games in Halifax in 2011 and was a part of 3 seasons of the National Ringette League with the Atlantic Attack.  Kelly has 3 sisters Jessica, Jenny, and Britney and ringette has been part of the family for two decades. It has m...

Therese Van Es is an enthusiastic, dynamic rural entrepreneur in the worlds of both business and food! About business… Therese is the President and Chief People Leader of Ladder HR Solutions, Inc. She is a Human Resources Executive with 25 years of experience on a mission to instill innovative people practices and processes in dynamic, high growth companies before people problems become unwieldly....

Selena Strong is the founder of Selena Strong Fitness and she has over 15 years of Exercise & Fascial Stretch Therapy experience, and she has never stopped learning and improving. This is a mentality that she tries to pass on to every client she meets.  Fitness is Life. Selena  is also a sponsored Fitness Competitor and Fitness Model.  She has worked with a wide range of clientele, from folks...

Chelsea Major is a Master's of Science student in the School of Environmental Design and Rural Development at the University of Guelph. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Geography, Environment, and Geomatic and a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Development from the University of Guelph.  During her studies, she has worked on research on future food production pathways, the sociocu...

Zeleen Virani worked in the banking industry for over 20 years, most recently in Retail Branch Management and Operational Risk roles where she was often part of making the decisions on whether or not rural women entrepreneurs would be getting access to capital. She assessed return on investment on all budgetary decisions and she was instrumental in collaboration with key partners and a trail blaze...

If you are a person immigrating to Canada wanting to live your best life in one of the most beautiful places in our country then you have to meet Lindsay Rubeniuk. Lindsay is passionate about developing a skilled workforce, growing Canadian rural & northern towns and spreading her knowledge on the subject of immigration. She loves Canada and her education backs that up. She is an Economic Deve...

Members of the Rural Ontario Community of Queer Youth Mabe Kyle Maker of poetry, pottery, and photography who loves being creative. Adventurer who calls many places home across borderlines.  Builder of communities who enjoys being active. Embracing friends, family, and their neurodivergent mind. Keener for desserts served at every meal with the sweetest tooth you may find. Yearning for disability...

Emma Hull is a transformational Life Coach, Facilitator, Yoga Teacher, and Reiki Healer. A natural leader, Emma thrives on seeing others flourish. She is gifted at inspiring people to be their favourite version of themselves – on the mat, at work, home or play. Emma has over a decade of leadership experience in corporate and government environments from England to Canada. After her own awakening s...

Melissa Mackey is an international best-selling author, speaker on the topics of Business Growth, Travel & Transformation. She is an independent mom on a mission. She is the CEO of Travel Chicks & Founder of Ignite Me Now. Melissa brings 17 years of experience in the field, and working one on one with clients to inspire them through the power of travel & transformation. She leads retre...

Bruce County, Ontario based artist Heather Lynne Travis is known for her bold use of colour in her large scale, and often whimsical, abstracts. A lifelong artist selling mainly to family and friends, Heather has been exhibiting professionally (and selling art to strangers) since 2018 and in that short time has sold almost 100 works of art, as well as limited edition prints, now living in homes all...

In town hall style, and from some of our most engaging guests, we created a community space of vulnerability to hear authentic challenges faced by women-identifying and non-binary entrepreneurs in rural Canada. Our goal is to connect rural women-identifying and non-binary entrepreneurs with rural women politicians, band council chiefs and business leaders in order to learn how we can support each...

* 'Explicit Content' = cursing*  Erica Marchand is the founder of Bear and Fox Apparel based in Embro, Ontario which is in Oxford County. The brand is named after Erica’s children and they are one of the many reasons why she created the business. Erica grew up immersed in the outdoors:  hunting, trapping and fishing. She wanted her brand to exemplify that heritage. Not only would the bus...

Jessie Thomas is the creator and owner of Farm Girl Fitness ; a small group training facility with a focus on Fresh Air Fitness. Farm Girl Fitness was established in the summer of 2020 to help provide people a safe place to workout, socialize and support mental health during the pandemic. Multiple studio shutdowns due to Covid-19 created opportunities for Farm Girl Fitness to pivot. Jessie kept pe...

According to the newest census data, East Gwillimbury, Ontario is Canada’s fastest growing municipality. But how is that growth being managed as it relates to immigration and diversity? Meeta Gandhi is an award-winning communications professional with experience in both the federal and municipal sectors. Meeta joined the Town of East Gwillimbury last year where she is the Director of Communication...

Serena Viola is currently completing her Masters in Capacity Development and Extension at the University of Guelph. She completed her undergrad at the University of Toronto in Political Science and Diaspora & Transnational Studies. Her interests lie in food and community, rural expansion, rural immigration and rural immigration retention. We talk about her recent survey asking rural Ontario im...

Lourdes Still is the creative behind Masagana Flower Farm & Studio , a small-scale flower farm dye studio near La Broquerie, Manitoba.  In this immigrant, Filipina-lead small business, Lourdes puts a priority on sustainable growing practices. She grows seasonal blooms, dye plants and makes hand made, small batch naturally dyed textile goods.  She grows crops without synthetic fertilizers in ga...

Sierra Lathlin is the founder and owner of Barkery Dog Treats . She is a 24-year old Indigenous female from Opaskwayak Cree Nation but she currently lives and handcrafts all her pet treats in Gimli, Manitoba, where she also has a storefront. Late last year, Sierra attended the Young Entrepreneurs Alliance G20 Summit which was hosted in Milan & Rome. She was one of 13 young entrepreneurs from a...

While a war rages in the Ukraine, a few states in the US have waged war on the lives of trans and gender diverse people. Although President Joe Biden has stepped in, there is still a troubling anti-trans sentiment that fueled orders and legislation in Texas and Florida that would in essence, make it illegal for parents to seek gender-affirming care for their trans children, calling it ‘child abuse...

Cheryl Haskett has had a diverse career with a start in tourism, then supporting a family run construction company.  After her divorce she diverged completely into a career spanning 14 years in training and development in multiple roles including sales, service, strategy, instructional design & facilitation.  Cheryl facilitates learning in the areas of Emotional Intelligence, Innovation, Conve...

Shawna Perry is the owner of Little Black Dress, a women's high end consignment boutique located in Summerside, Prince Edward Island. Shawna grew up in a rural community in PEI. In her early twenties she travelled as much as she could, both nationally and internationally, before settling back in PEI to raise her family and open up her own business. Although she was hesitant to start a busines...