Inaugural gathering at Toronto Metropolitan University is in partnership
with its Diversity Institute, Bologna Children’s Book Fair, BolognaBookPlus,
and with the support of Shimmr AI.
TORONTO, Canada – PublisHer, the international publishing movement dedicated to levelling the playing field for female professionals, has held its inaugural Canadian event, assembling senior publishing leaders and emerging talent to celebrate the strides made in female leadership at the top.
The invitation-only event took place at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) in collaboration with its Diversity Institute, one of Canada’s foremost research centres on diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace.
PublisHer Founder Bodour Al Qasimi said: “Canada is leading the way with women helming the majority of their houses, representing some of the most accomplished women in publishing anywhere in the world. This event was an opportunity to recognize and draw lessons from that, and to have an honest conversation about the work that remains to be done. We’re excited to have brought the PublisHer community to Canada for the first time.”
Safe spaces for candid exchanges
The gathering mirrored PublisHer’s model of creating intentional, high-trust spaces for meaningful exchanges. Attendees comprised a mix of representation across all career stages from major international publishing houses, independent and academic publishers, as well as industry representatives. Students from a variety of publishing programs, including TMU’s Chang School of Business Publishing Certificate, rounded out the audience, placing established leaders and the next generation side by side.
The programme included three connected components:
Panel discussion: Covering Canada’s exceptional female leadership at the highest levels of publishing, the discussion was led by Karen Thorne-Stone, President and CEO of Ontario Creates, the provincial agency responsible for promoting and growing the creative economy. Speaking on the panel were Phuong Truong, Co-Publisher and Owner of Second Story Press; Jessica Mosher, President, Publisher and CEO of University of Toronto Press; and Nicole Winstanley, President and Publisher at Simon & Schuster Canada, representing the breadth of the industry in a discussion that was celebratory yet unflinching.
Canadian publishing is notable for having already broken through a ceiling that many countries are yet to reach. Women occupy top leadership positions across the spectrum of its publishing industry, from the major global houses to independent and academic publishing. The panel examined the cultural, institutional and individual factors behind Canada’s progress, and how that achievement can provide a catalytic model for advancing greater diversity in leadership elsewhere.
AI in Publishing, presented by Shimmr AI: A dedicated session delivered by Shimmr AI, providing practical tools and insights to help publishing professionals navigate artificial intelligence, notably in marketing and discoverability. The session equipped participants with the knowledge to engage confidently with the technologies shaping the industry’s future.
Networking reception: A space for attendees to build and deepen relationships across publishers big and small, disciplines and generations, and an opportunity to learn more about PublisHer’s work, the PublisHer Excellence Awards, and membership options, including PublisHer Premium.
The event was possible thanks to the generous sponsorship of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and BolognaBookPlus.
Shimmr AI served as a key delivery partner, bringing its expertise directly to the PublisHer community through a dedicated session on AI’s evolving role in publishing.
The collaboration with the Diversity Institute at TMU was a strategic fit given its academic and research focus to advancing diversity aligns with PublisHer’s commitment to evidence-based approaches to systemic change.
