The Intercultural Exchange: What We Carry

Five speakers, five true stories about what we carry across cultures and generations. What We Carry Part of The Intercultural Exchange The Intercultural Exchange returns for its second edition. Five speakers each tell a true ten-minute story about culture, family, work and identity, and the night closes with Story Crossing, where audience members enter on the night and a few are drawn to tell their own story in two minutes. Three of the five have never told a prepared story on a stage before. The lineup JungSook "Jay S" Lim, Experience Design Leader, Life and Career Coach, and Storyteller Why I Waited Until 54 to Use My Voice For years, JungSook believed staying quiet was the right thing to do. In this deeply personal story, she explores what we carry across cultures and generations, and what finally gives us permission to use our own voice. Doyin Abitoye, Certified Life and Career Coach, HR Professional, Author, Immigrant Storyteller What I Carried Across the Ocean "The problem was never our voices. The problem was the beliefs that taught us to hide them." Doyin has spent a career on that idea. On October 20 she tells the story that put it there. Shehzad Qureshi, ADHD coach, speaker, and founder of Shehzad Qureshi Coaching & Consulting What I Choose to Carry Forward Shehzad's talk is about what gets handed down in families and in cultures, and what each of us decides to carry forward. Vivian Meraki, Award-winning Human Connection Speaker, Founder of The Aliveness Journey, Best-selling Author The Inheritance We Don't Keep Vivian has spent twenty-five years on what families hand down without deciding to. On October 20 she brings her own. Karen Craggs-Milne, Award-winning global leadership and inclusion strategist Kenyan-born and shaped by Indian, British, East African, and Canadian cultures, Karen moved to Canada at 19 to attend university and went on to build a life and global career across cultures. She brings warmth, humour, and hard-won wisdom to the question at the heart of this evening: What do we carry, and what are we ready to put down? The evening Doors at 6:30pm and the stories start at 7:00pm, running about two hours with time to talk afterwards. The Intercultural Exchange began in April 2026 with Love Beyond Borders, which drew a full house of newcomers and longtime Torontonians. October's edition takes its theme from what people carry across borders and generations, the parts they keep and the parts they put down. A note on age. These are true personal stories and some go to difficult places, so this event is for 13 and up. Anyone under 18 needs to come with a parent or guardian. Two things to know before you buy This event is filmed. We record What We Carry on video and in photographs, and the cameras cover the audience as well as the stage. If you're in the room you may appear in the footage, and by coming you're agreeing to that. IMPORTANT: Please review the venue access information before purchasing your ticket. We recognize that this venue has significant accessibility limitations and that, as a result, some people may not be able to attend. We regret this exclusion. We want to be transparent about these barriers before tickets are purchased and offer as much information and support as we can within the limitations of the space. The event room is on the second floor and can be reached only by stairs. There is no elevator, lift or step-free route. The nearest washrooms are on the third floor, approximately 12 to 14 additional steps above the event room. There is no washroom on the event floor or at street level. If you have questions about the venue or would like to discuss an accessibility need before purchasing, please contact John at [email protected]. Tickets Early bird is $45 for the first 20 seats. Regular admission is $60. Both prices are all in, with nothing added at checkout. Every ticket is sold online in advance. About refunds. Tickets are non-refundable, but they're transferable. If you can't make it, email us with the name of the person taking your place and we'll move it across, any time up to noon on October 20. If you decide the venue or the arrangements we can offer won't meet your accessibility needs, contact us at any time before the program begins on the event day and we'll provide a full refund, without requiring you to disclose a diagnosis or personal medical information. Partners Rivo is the Official Broadcast Partner. Canadian Immigrant is the editorial partner. JVS Toronto is the community partner. Questions [email protected] Getting into this event What We Carry will take place on the second floor of the Black Swan Tavern at 154 Danforth Avenue. The event room can be reached only by stairs. There is no elevator, lift or step-free route to the room. There is no washroom on the event floor or at street level. The nearest washrooms are on the third floor, approximately 12 to 14 steps above the event room. Additional washrooms are located in the basement. We are providing this information before tickets are purchased so that you can determine whether the venue will meet your access needs. If you have questions about the stairs, seating, lighting, sound, timing, washrooms or room layout, or would like to discuss another accessibility need, please contact John at [email protected]. We will discuss your individual requirements with you and explore what arrangements may be possible within the limitations of the venue. You do not need to disclose a diagnosis or personal medical information. We may ask what arrangement or support would help you participate. A team member familiar with the venue will be available at the entrance during guest arrival. Team members can provide directions and information about the venue but are not trained to provide physical mobility assistance on the stairs. If you require a particular seating location, please contact us in advance. We will work with you to identify suitable seating, such as an aisle seat or a location near the front, back or stairs, subject to the room layout and safety requirements. There is no additional charge for an accessibility-related seating arrangement. Disability-related support persons, interpreters and intervenors are welcome and will not be charged for admission. Please contact us in advance so that we can reserve appropriate seating. Live captioning, ASL interpretation and other interpretation services are not currently scheduled for this event. If you require communication support, please contact us as early as possible so that we can discuss your requirements and explore available options. This event will not be livestreamed, and there is no online participation option for this edition. Because there is no step-free route from the event room, attendees who may require assistance during an emergency are encouraged to contact us before purchasing a ticket. We will provide the available venue emergency information and discuss your individual needs. Event staff cannot lift, carry or physically transfer attendees. Step-free access to the event space and washrooms will be prioritized when selecting venues for future editions. Filming and photography at this event What We Carry is being recorded on video and in still photographs on the night. Two camera teams will be working: a videographer and photographer engaged by John Edward McGraw, and a crew from New Horizons Media Inc., producing a series based on The Intercultural Exchange for its streaming platform Rivo. Cameras cover the stage and they cover the room. That includes wide shots of the audience, close-ups of audience reactions, and people arriving, talking and moving through the venue. If you're in the room, you may appear in the footage and the photographs, and you may be recognisable. By buying a ticket and by entering the venue, you agree that John Edward McGraw and New Horizons Media Inc.