Benny Skinner
Benny Skinner (they/them) is a Two-Spirit thinker, educator, and creator living in the Great Lakes Regions (Waterloo, Haldimand Tract) of Turtle Island. On their father’s side, they come from the community of Harbour Round, Newfoundland that has mixed Ktaqmkuk Mi’kmaq, Inuit, Keltic, and French ancestry. On their mother’s side, they come from the Kapampangan people who are ancestrally Indigenous to the Southeast Asian archipelago and were stagnated by colonial activity on the island of Luzon, Philippines. Benny currently works as an independent consultant in decolonizing institutional spaces and Indigenous research. They are also a sessional lecturer at St. Jerome’s University in the Sexualities, Relationships, and Families Studies Department. Benny holds a Bachelor of Arts in Peace and Conflict Studies and a Master of Arts in Global Governance, both from University of Waterloo. They are a research fellow and PhD student at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, an ambassador for a number of human rights advocacy organizations, and queer public figure in Waterloo Region.