Dwayne Cline – Chair
Dwayne Cline is the founder and principal at Cline Consulting. He was the lead pastor of James North Baptist Church (JNBC), in Hamilton, for 28 years. He led the congregation in building a new church facility which included 45 apartments for those needing supportive and affordable housing. Under his leadership the church also established a Portuguese speaking congregation as well as a Karen congregation (refugees from Burma). He has a MDiv from Tyndale Seminary. He is currently working toward his certification as a ToP Facilitator. He sits on several boards and speaks in a variety of forums across the country.
He consults with organizations in the areas of governance, strategic planning, fundraising and teambuilding. In his spare time, he relaxes with his wife and their four children. They love to vacation together.
Karen Persad – Secretary
Karen Persad brings over 20 years of experience in healthcare as a Senior Medical Laboratory Technologist in Genetics at Kingston Health Sciences Centre. With keen interest in elevating quality, she has participated in many continuous improvement initiatives in the laboratory, education, and accreditation spaces.
With years of experience on a regulated health profession board, Karen has served in Board Chair, Vice Chair, and Committee Chair roles. She has been called upon over the years to mentor new Board Directors as part of their on-boarding process. While practicing servant leadership skills in a governance environment, Karen’s passion ignited for collaborative team dynamics, and its ability to set and monitor strategic directions.
On her never-ending journey of personal growth, Karen enjoys engaging her skills for positive impact. She was first drawn to the ICA Courage to Lead (CTL) program as a participant in 2020. With inner resonance of her own leadership style, she joined the Courage to Lead guide team to help build capacity in others to “lead from where you stand”. Karen continues to be involved in CTL offerings which has included the public program, CTL at the University Health Network (UHN) in Toronto, and CTL in Nepal.
Karen’s rejuvenation rituals include staying active on nature hikes, quiet time in yoga and meditation, baking up a zen, and enlightening her inner foodie in local culinary scenes.
Jeanette Stanfield – Volunteer Advisor
Jeanette Stanfield is an educator with a Master of Arts degree who first encountered the Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA) in a local community on the west side of Chicago. Since that time, Jeanette has worked with ICA in Australia, India, USA and Canada. Presently residing in Toronto, Ontario, Jeanette wrote a book, Just Checkin’ On Ya, on her experience of caring for her husband Brian during the last chapter of his life. She led a team to create a second edition of The Courage to Lead, the book Brian wrote to share the foundational elements of ICA’s approach to creating positive social change.
Pierre Cenerelli – Treasurer
Pierre is a historian by training and has extensive working experience in government, academia, and non-profit organizations. Most recently, he worked as the Executive Director of the Graduate Student Society at Simon Fraser University, the student society and governing organization of all graduate students at Simon Fraser University. The GSS represents over 4,000 students in 38 academic programs at SFU’s Burnaby, Surrey, and Vancouver campuses.
Before this, he worked for the Government of Québec to foster international scientific cooperation in a wide variety of research fields. He has also used his professional and management skills as a volunteer and board member for several nonprofit organizations.
In his spare time, he is a lifelong birder and wildlife photographer with a passion for ecological conservation.
When Pierre first discovered ICA Canada, he immediately regretted that he had not heard of it earlier, as its leadership training program would have come in very handy as he tried to train up the next generation of leaders who passed through the GSS. He is now making up for lost time and hopes to help this organization as it looks forward to its 50th anniversary and the next 50 years of its existence!
Abi Ogunti
Abi brings over 15 years of leadership experience spanning behavioural health, technology, and banking. She has led cross-functional teams in Canada and Nigeria, advancing innovation, customer experience, and access to essential services while driving sustained revenue growth across diverse sectors.
With graduate degrees from Queen’s Smith School of Business and Lagos Business School, she combines strategic vision with a deep commitment to innovation, inclusivity, and both cultural and financial literacy. Abimbola is passionate about building equitable systems and fostering dialogue that strengthens communities—values she brings to her role on the ICA Canada Board.
Lindsay Humber
Lindsay Humber believes in the power of thoughtful, purposeful engagement to build bridges and transform communities. She uses her 15+ years of public engagement, communication, and research expertise to help organizations learn from those in their communities to build relationships and make decisions.
She’s passionate about participatory decision-making, combining her understanding of group dynamics, human connection, and interpersonal communication with an academic background focused on understanding people and how we shape our environments.
Based out of Edmonton in Canada, she is grateful to live, work, play, and raise her children on Indigenous land in Treaty Six territory.
David Johnston-Weiser
David Johnston-Weiser is a member of the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation as is experienced in Indigenous consultation and relations work in Ontario. He has experience facilitating and mediating a variety of Indigenous relations matters including in the commercial fisheries and the potential storage of nuclear waste. David currently works at the Ministry of Mines with the Ontario government where he supports the ministry’s consultation efforts on mining initiatives. David believes that everyone has unique talents, and through collaboration and synergizing everyone’s unique talents, the best outcomes are often achieved. David looks forward to offering his unique abilities to the ICA board and to further develop his skills as a
Olawale Williams
Olawale “Wale” Williams is an entrepreneur, community leader, and strategic consultant whose work bridges continents, cultures, and causes. He is known for bold, inclusive leadership and a knack for turning vision into measurable results.
Currently serving as President of the Nigerian Canadian Association of Hamilton, Wale has sparked increased civic engagement, supported cultural identity, and advanced economic empowerment for a growing diaspora community. Under his leadership, the Association has grown into a vibrant hub for mentorship, dialogue, and multicultural exchange and most recently, successfully made the leap from not-for-profit to registered charitable status with the Canada Revenue Agency, overcoming significant hurdles along the way.
On the entrepreneurial front, Wale leads The Lazy Investor portfolio, which is focused on widening access to wealth building opportunities through asset-backed ownership. He’s also curating a new platform Rebuild | Mediocrity is a Lie! challenging individuals and communities to strive for excellence while building sustainable systems for success. His broader experience spans marketing, communications, logistics, real estate, and impact investment, with advisory work that stretches across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. What sets Wale apart in every role is his people-first approach—bridging strategy with empathy, and innovation with genuine inclusion—which makes him a valuable part of ICA Canada’s mission and governance.