Hello! My name is Alley McDonald, and I am honoured to be the new National Coordinator of Canadian Voice of Women for Peace. I am a peace practitioner with previous experiences working with feminist and peace focused organizations that represent my values, and I am grateful to be able to continue this work with VOW.
I recently graduated from the Masters of Peace and Conflict Studies program at the University of Waterloo. Three important areas of research I focused on were: strategizing the prevention and intervention of gender-based violence against older women in rural, remote and Northern communities of Ontario; considering repair through legal personhood—addressing natural & artificial Canadian persons abusive relationships with the environment; and environmental racism in Chemical Valley impacting the Aamjiwnaang First Nation.
I am a community mediator engaging in transformative and restorative practices and, in my own time, I cultivate knowledge in mycology, of flora and fauna, and developing a deeper connection to the natural world.