On Jan. 14th the Canadian Ecosystem Gathering will be hosting their 3rd event in their Equity, Diversity and Inclusion series. This event will be focused on the role of Artificial Intelligence through the ED&I lens. To further this conversation we are pleased to announce our panelists below.
Shingai Manjengwa
Founder & CEO at Fireside Analytics Inc and Director at Technical Education, Vector Institute
Shingai Manjengwa is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fireside Analytics Inc., a data science education solutions company that develops customized programs that teach digital and AI literacy, data science, data privacy, and computer programming. Clients include corporates, governments, non-profits, higher education institutions, and high schools. Data science courses by Fireside Analytics have over 480,000 registered learners on platforms like IBM’s CognitiveClass.ai and Coursera.
A data scientist by profession, Shingai is the Director of Professional Development at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Toronto, where she translates advanced AI research into educational programming to increase AI capacity, and drive AI adoption and innovation in the industry. She serves on the advisory council for, "Accelerating the adoption of AI in healthcare, " a program by the Michener Institute of Education at UHN and the Vector Institute to empower front-line healthcare workers with literacy and skills in AI. Shingai also serves on the board of the Institute on Governance (IOG).
Shingai’s book, ‘The Computer and the Cancelled Music Lessons’ teaches data science to kids from ages 5 to 12 and she holds a Master's degree in Business Analytics from New York University's Stern School of Business. Shingai is the 2020 recipient of the Public Policy Forum, 'Emerging Leader' award presented by TD Bank.
Bethany Edmunds
Director of Computer Science at Northeastern University - Vancouver
Dr. Bethany Edmunds has a background in software development, machine learning, and educational innovation. She holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science with a specialization in Artificial Intelligence and is currently Director of Computer Science at Northeastern University’s newly opened Vancouver campus.
Recently, Dr. Edmunds was named as one of BC Business's Most Influential Women in STEM, Business in Vancouver's Forty under 40, and YWCA Women of Distinction. Bethany is passionate about breaking down barriers to create greater diversity, access and inclusivity within the technology community.