Ladyfest Workshops!

Ladyfest Toronto presents a diverse and exciting day-long series of practical and provocative workshops hosted by talented and diverse women from across the city.

Sunday, September 21, 2008
10:30am - 7:30pm
St. Stephen's in-the Fields Church

Admission to the entire series is PWYC ($15 suggested). Please come early as space is limited.

Ladyfest Toronto 2008 Workshop Series Schedule:

10:30 a.m.

WORKSHOP 1
Daily Detox: A guide to understanding detoxification and incorporating it into your daily life
Facilitated by: Cathy Bouchard
There is so much information out there on cleansing! This workshop is designed to introduce simple ideas you can incorporate into your everyday routine everyday to cleanse and detoxify your body. Discussion on: eating meat free, re-usable menstrual products, food sensitivities, everyday toxins, whole foods and more. There will be recipes, DIY cleaning supplies as well as other tried and true tricks of the trade. THE NUTRITIONISTA is Cathy Bouchard, a Registered Holistic Nutritionist (RHN). Her belief is that a clean diet and a healthy lifestyle are the key to a healthy body. Through workshops and consultations, Cathy has helped people make subtle changes that make a big impact on their health. She can be found at her shop, aptly named THE NUTRITIONISTA, selling all your "natural necessities". Please visit www.thenutritionista.ca for more information.
Maximum 20 Participants

WORKSHOP 2
Audio Basics 101: An overview of the basics of audio setup and digital recording (Women-Only)
Facilitated by: Carly Beath
This workshop will give an overview of the basics of audio setup and digital recording. Participants will learn about connectors, cables, signal flow, recording, editing and mixing.
Maximum 10 Participants

12:00 p.m.

WORKSHOP 3
Reclaiming Indigenous Feminism
Facilitated by: Jessica Yee
Indigenous, matriarchal cultures around the world began what we modernly term as feminism, but are rarely acknowledged for these significant and necessary beginnings. This workshop aims to reclaim, revision, and restructure the roots of feminist theory and honour the teachings our ancestors have always believed in.
Maximum 20 Participants

WORKSHOP 4
Eco-woman: The environmental impacts of women's health and body care products (Women-Only)
Facilitated by: Amy & Kimberley Sedgwick, Red Tent Sisters
This workshop covers the environmental impacts of some common body and healthcare products. Topics will include menstrual products, adult toys, lubricants and contraceptives. The workshop will outline some of the ingredients that you should watch out for, such as parabens and phthalates, when choosing products for your body.
Maximum 10 Participants

1:30 p.m.

WORKSHOP 5
Zine-making for Social Change
Facilitated by: Danielle O'Hearn & Tara Bursey, Toronto Zine Library
In this workshop/talk, members of the Toronto Zine Library Collective will discuss the history of zines and subversive self-publishing in the 20th century, and their use as vehicles for empowerment and social change/counter-cultural activity. Toronto Zine Library is a non-profit, community based organization run by individuals dedicated to the promotion of free artistic/creative expression and subversive thought, self-empowerment and the DIY ethos. Through our workshop, we aim to educate attendees about the zine medium, in turn encouraging them to explore the mediums potential as a tool for self-empowerment, self-expression and the dissemination of subversive thought.
Maximum 15 Participants

WORKSHOP 6
Nomadic orphans: Women using art to reclaim our personal histories (Women-Only)
Facilitated by: Janus
Combine your past and present in one unforgettable experience. We will be exploring the concepts of womens personal history and how it has become slowly erased. Through our colour-filled, non-representational drawings we will recreate an image of ourselves that will help us understand who we are in the present.
Maximum 10 Participants

3:00 p.m.

WORKSHOP 7
Homo-Hop: Beginner breakdancing for all queers & allies
Facilitated by: Jen Crawford, Toronto Breakprancers
Putting the homo into hip hop, the bottoms into top rock, and the queer into the crew. Breakprancing is a place for queers & allies to learn the basics of breaking in a collaborative and inclusive environment. We keep it cheap, real, and fun.
Maximum 20 Participants

WORKSHOP 8
Ecstatic Consciousness, Ecstatic Sex (Women-only)
Facilitated by: Dee Dussault
This is an introduction to the art of Tantra. In this interactive workshop, we share ways to include spiritual practices such as mindfulness, ritual, and acceptance into our sexual practices (partnered and solo). We discuss how Tantra helps with body image, communication, orgasm, and all other (non-sexual) areas of life! We do exercises to awaken sexual energy and move it through the body, as well as gentle yogic stretching to encourage limber bodies for the energy to move through.
Maximum 10 Participants

4:30 p.m.

WORKSHOP 9
A woman-of-colour's guide to getting involved in canadian politics
Facilitated By: Anita Agrawal


WORKSHOP 14
Beyond the 'Trans 101': Surfacing Cis Privilege
Facilitated by: Jordan Zaitzow & Rebecca Hammond
Maximum 15 Participants

WORKSHOP 10
Getting it Ripe: A DIY plan for whole foods eating
Facilitated by: Jae Steele, author of 'Get it Ripe'
Maximum 20 Participants

6:00 p.m.

WORKSHOP 11
Bicycle Basics: How to love your bike and have it love you back: Basic bicycle repair, insight, and discussion of riding in T.O. (Women-only)
Facilitated by: Women from Bike Pirates
Did you know that the bicycle played a major role in the women's rights movement? the age of the bicycle has come around again, and we believe that everyone who rides a bike should make the most of the amazing tool they have at their disposal. We will discuss the gender dynamics of bicycle spaces, the rise of "women only" spaces in alternative bike shops, as well as general safety and riding tips for the streets of Toronto. The workshop will also include basic bike repair and maintenance information like: how to clean and care for your bike, "bike fit", bicycle anatomy, and fixing a flat. Please bring your bike to the workshop!
Maximum 10 Participants

WORKSHOP 12
Sex Worker Safety, Rights, and Ally Work
Facilitated by: Wendy Babcock & Tori Jezebel Sea
Maximum 15 Participants

WORKSHOP 13
The way the Cookie Crumbles: Things you need to know to bake up delicious wheat-free, vegan desserts
Facilitated by: Jae Steele, author of 'Get it Ripe'
Maximum 10 Participants