Governance & Financial Resilience: Executive Tools for a Changing Sector

Based on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh first nations, Kenji’s experiences are diverse and grounded in his passion for the arts, education, and building community, and influenced by his Uchinanchu heritage. He brings with him over 20 years of experience within the cultural sector working within national and local contexts, and across sector disciplines. Kenji is the Executive Director of the Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance focusing on strengthening sector capacity, advancing advocacy efforts, and building community. 

He is the co-lead of Pathways an equity and access learning program, which has seen more than 125 organizations across B.C. participate in the first two years, as they navigate complex organizational and community realities. He has also taught the Thriving as a Cultural Entrepreneur at Simon Fraser University since 2019 to support the next generation of artistic and cultural leaders. Kenji is thrilled to be back at Banff Centre as an alum of Banff’s 2019 Cultural Leadership Program, to both offer his experiences and to learn from the participants. 

He loves spreadsheets, chewy chocolate chip cookies, and his husband Alan.

Jeanne LeSage's 35 year career has spanned from a decade as a stage manager (including 6 seasons at the Banff Centre),  starting the first HR department at TIFF, international postings at the Kennedy Center (DC), Abu Dhabi Film Festival (UAE), Royal Opera House Muscat (Oman), FilmAid (Haiti); and then forming LeSage Arts Management to support arts organizations in areas such as strategic HR, leadership succession, organizational development, governance, and interim management.  

Jeanne has designed and delivered leadership training across Canada and abroad: Teatro Nacional (Portugal), NEOM Cultural Leadership (Saudi Arabia), Charles University / Prague Sounds (Czechia), DeVos Institute International Arts Management Fellows (DC); at schools such as NTS, Humber, TMU; and multiple sessions with ASO’s and conferences.   

Jeanne is the author of research reports such as: “Who will lead Canada’s Performing Arts Organizations?”,“Reporting and Investigating Mechanisms for Workplace Harassment in the Arts”, and “Future of Arts Work: Board Governance in the Arts”.  

Jeanne is the recipient of Work in Culture’s 2023 Bob Johnston award and a proud co-founder of the national COVID response initiative LEAN (Leadership Emergency Arts Network).

Janis Kahentóktha Bomberry is Mohawk Nation, Turtle Clan from Six Nations of the Grand River.  Janis is Executive Director and CEO of the Canadian Museums Association.  Prior to this Janis returned as the Executive Director of Woodland Cultural Centre, one of the largest First Nations- run cultural centres/museums in the country.  Previously, Janis was appointed the Director of Tourism and Cultural Initiatives for the Six Nations of the Grand River Development Corporation. 

Janis attended the University of Western Ontario where she attained a Bachelor of Arts in History and received a Museum Studies diploma from Algonquin College.  Janis continues to volunteer in her community at Six Nations and in Brantford, and is a recipient of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers designated by the Governor General of Canada.

Heather Clara Young, CPB, founded Young Associates in 1993 to provide bookkeeping, payroll, training, consulting and outsourced CFO services to not-for-profits and charities, specializing in the arts and culture sector. Heather teaches accounting and financial management in Humber College’s Arts Management program, and has taught for Humber’s Fundraising and Volunteer Management program and University of Toronto’s Arts Management program. Finance for the Arts in Canada (2005, 2024) is a unique self-study guide, reference source and textbook. The book has been praised for its straightforward approach to mastering nonprofit accounting and financial management skills.

Chris Lorway is the President and CEO of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Chris brings senior leadership experience across a broad range of artistic disciplines in both Canadian and international contexts. Well-positioned to strengthen Banff Centre’s position as Canada’s creative leader in arts, leadership, and convening, Chris has a proved record as a global influencer in arts and culture. 

Chris is a Canadian citizen, born and raised in Cape Breton, and comes to Banff Centre from his recent position as both Executive and Artistic Director at Stanford Live in California. His artistic and community programs draw on the breadth and depth of Stanford University to connect performances to the significant issues, ideas, and discoveries of our time in a season featuring over 200 performances and events across four primary venues. 

Prior to his role at Stanford Live, Chris was Director of Programming and Marketing at The Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall, where his focus was on developing a cohesive brand identity for the institution and ensuring that programming in the halls reflected the diversity of the city of Toronto. 

Prior to that position, he was the inaugural Artistic Director of the Luminato Festival, where he commissioned or co-commissioned nearly 50 new works from Canadian and International artists. 

Before his return to Canada in 2007, he was a consultant in the United States with AMS Planning and Research and AEA Consulting. These two roles offered him detailed insight into the governance and operations of major cultural organizations, including Carnegie Hall, New York City Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Edinburgh International Festival, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the West Kowloon Cultural District and San Francisco Opera. 

Prior to his consulting experience, he worked for Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, where for two seasons he was part of the Lincoln Center Festival team. It was there he was introduced to some of the world’s top artists and companies. He also had roles in marketing and development at Lincoln Center and worked on the first phase of the $1.5 billion campus redevelopment project.