Organic Islands - Team 2008

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Team 2008

Debra Morse, Festival Founder, Director and Co-Producer

Debra Morse started her socially responsible event production and publishing enterprise in 2005 after graduating from the University of Victoria. She is the founder and producer of The Organic Islands Festival and Sustainability Expo, Canada's largest outdoor 'green' festival, and manages staff and 100 volunteers for the annual event that draws thousands of attendees.

After a period of learning about organic producers on Vancouver Island, she was inspired to act on her lifelong flair for entrepreneurship and create a web site connecting the public to the local organic community and green initiatives.

“I was really impressed with the green community here and the pioneering work being done on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands; I wanted to ontribute by helping grow and bring together the community in a way that hadn’t been done before,” says Debra. “I’m really passionate about giving people the tools, information and resources to create a sustainable, organic future for everyone.”

Debra works with over one hundred socially responsible organizations, and is a charter member of the Values-Based Business Network. As co-chair of the BC Network for Compassionate Communication, she has promoted the spread of communication models fostering respect, compassion and integrity. She is currently training as a certified Dynamic Governance consultant (aka Sociocracy), and faciliates Dynamic Governance workshops and provides consultation services. She is implementing dynamic governance in her own enterprise and festival productions. Debra is a member of the North American Sociocracy Study Circle, and has facilitated numerous circle meetings designed to foster collaborative decision making and power-with (rather than power-over) working relationships.

Debra graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Victoria with distinction in 2002 after a diverse working life as a real estate conveyancer, legal secretary, assistant researcher in artifical intelligence, and llama trainer. She is a proud mother of her daughter Aliyah, age 5, whom she adopted from China in 2002 with her husband Stuart Morse, E-commerce Manager for Pareto Logic. Debra enjoys walking in Knockan Hill park, camping on Galiano Island and shopping at farmer's markets (especially the one on Pender Island). She lives with her family in Victoria, BC. Contact: deb(AT)organicislands.ca or 250-658-8148.

James Cowan, Festival Co-Producer and Production Manager

James Cowan is in his first year of co-producing and doing production management for the Organic Islands Festival. James has over 10 years experience in the concert and event industry working on many events such as the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, The Western Canadian Music Awards, The Vancouver International Jazz Festival, The Vancouver International Film Festival Surrey Canada Day, and many more tours, festivals, concerts and community events. James' other passion is organic gardening/farming and building community. He and his family are part of a budding ecovillage project on Salt Spring Island called EcoReality where they hope to provide a model for sustainable land use and public outreach. Working on the Organic Islands Festival is a chance for James to combine the skills acquired from the event industry and the passion of sustainable living and organic growing. When not being a stay at home dad James also works part time as a paramedic for BC Ambulance, gets outside as much as possible, paddles and swims, does yoga and is working on landing a backflip.

Dan Tourigny, Administrative Support and Logistics Coordinator

Daniel Tourigny provides administrative support and works as logistics coordinator for the Organic Islands Festival. He started as a volunteer at the 2nd Annual Organic Islands Festival and found a deep appreciation for the amazing energy that was present that weekend. Daniel's scholastic background includes a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Victoria. He has a strong interest for promoting a happier, saner, more peaceful planet. His work at Organic Islands is one of the ways he works toward this vision. "I have been through a lot these past few years and know that everyone is capable of great things. However doing should not come at the sacrifice of being. I choose to walk the walk to create a balanced and sustainable life situation so I can contribute to a peaceful and happy society." Daniel also enjoys spending time volunteering at the Greater Victoria Compost Education Centre and the Victoria Centre for Self-Awareness.

Judy Kitts, Festival Volunteer Manager and Sustainability Expo Coordinator

Judy Kitts is the Volunteer Manager of the Organic Islands Festival, Sustainability Expo Coordinator and a Master's student in Dispute Resolution at the University of Victoria. She is an avid world-traveler and has recently returned from Israel and the Palestinian territories where she conducted her master's research. As a newcomer to Victoria, Judy is taking full advantage of all the island has to offer. She is currently training for her first triathlon and can be found zipping around the city on her blue bicycle. Judy's interest in the Organic Islands Festival lies in her summer aspirations of starting a compost, growing a herb garden, and trying to decrease her eco footprint.