TEAM
VÉRO Leduc
director and researcher
Véro is a communications professor at UQAM.
She is also an artist and researcher.
Vero teaches cultural action.
She also teaches in the program Disability and Deafhood :
Rights and Citizenship.
With UQAM professors, Vero founded the program Disability and Deafhood: Rights and Citizenship.
Véro is the first Deaf university professor in Quebec.
She is interested in art and music among Deaf people and disabled people.
She is also interested in the inclusion of deaf people in society.
She wants to make culture accessible to everyone.
She works to overcome barriers and include all Deaf and hard of hearing people.
She works to ensure that people who are deaf and hard of hearing have access to the university and culture.
In 2020, Véro was awarded the Governor General’s medal for her extraordinary work with the deaf and hard of hearing people.
Photo credit: Émilie Tournevache
SARAH Heussaff
coordinator
Sarah Heussaff is doctor in communication and was hired as a research professional at the Chair.
She has a PhD in communication and a master’s degree in contemporary art exhibition production.
She is a disabled researcher and exhibition producer and she also teaches at the university about disability and feminism.
Her thesis was funded by the Quebec Society and Culture Research Fund. Her research focused on arts produced by disabled people.
Her research also included a creative component. She produced an exhibition entitled “De la vie au lit” at the UQAM Gallery in 2024. She gave a lot of thought to accessibility in the exhibition.
She coordinates a research laboratory and the research chair. She participates in several research groups at the university.
Email: heussaff.sarah@uqam.ca
Photo credit: Sarah Heussaff
SENDY-LOO Emmanuel
coordinator
Sendy-Loo is an artist with a visual impairment and dyslexia.
She is pursuing a PhD in communication at UQAM and advises and supports people with their artistic projects. She also works in the arts community.
She conducts research in the field of studies developed by and for Black researchers in relation to disability.
She reflects on how art can be a means to open discussions and improve inclusion in Black communities.
She founded the organization WECAN to help, develop, and provide professional opportunities for artists of afro-descent.
She has worked for over 16 years in banking, visual arts, and performing arts. She therefore has expertise in culture and in managing organizations, entrepreneurs, and artists. She helps people get organized and achieve their goals.
She has a degree in infography, which means she can create posters, presentations, and artistic creations on a computer. She is a certified management consultant, which means she can help individuals and businesses solve problems that prevent them from succeeding.
She participates in several research groups and laboratories.
Email: emmanuel.sendy_loo@uqam.ca
VICTOIRE Bajard
research assistant
Victoire Bajard has been Deaf since birth.
She speaks French and is learning Quebec Sign Language.
Her first language is French Sign Language.
Victoire studied :
– Psychomotricity, a field closely related to occupational therapy.
– She obtained a Master’s degree in Health from the University of Lyon 1.
– She is also trained in health ethics at several universities in France.
Victoire is interested in the accessibility of healthcare for Deaf people who use sign language.
Today, she is doing a doctorate in communication at Université du Québec à Montréal, in Canada.
She is preparing a thesis on healthcare communication for Deaf people in different countries.
Email: bajard.victoire@uqam.ca
MARIEKE Hassell-Crépeau
research assistant
is a doctoral student in cultural analysis at Concordia University.
She studied sociology at Université du Québec à Montréal and feminist studies.
She has a master’s degree in social work and training in disability and Deafhood.
Marieke is both involved in research and outside the university.
She is interested in people living with chronic pain.
Marieke uses feminist, queer and crip (disability-centered studies) approaches.
She has chronic migraines and is neurodivergent. Her research is based on her own experience.
LAURE Abdelmoumeni Pierini
research assistant
Laure received her master’s degree in Gender, Equality, and Social Policy in France.
She also has a university degree in French Sign Language theatre from the École de théâtre universelle (Universal Theatre School).
Laure does theatre for fun.
She has performed in French Sign Language plays.
Laure is a PhD student in sociology at the University of Ottawa.
She does research on feminism among deaf people.
Laure is also doing research for the Gender, Disability, and Inclusive Development project.
Laure advocates for the rights of deaf people.
She is a youth member of the World Federation of the Deaf.
Email: abdelmoumeni.laure.2@uqam.ca
JENNIFER Parenteau-Manning
research assistant
Jennifer is a Deaf artist.
She is also a sign language interpreter.
She works in 4 languages.
Jennifer has always taken part in the Deaf community.
For Jennifer, diversity and inclusion are very important.
Jennifer wants to promote Quebec sign language.
She wants more accessibility for people who are deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind.
Jennifer helps deaf people and hearing people work together.
She has performed in the play Traversée (Crossing).
She also has been a Quebec Sign Language interpreter in the play Guérilla de l’ordinaire (Guerilla of the Ordinary) at Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui.
Jennifer is part of L-Expression.
L-Expression is a group of people who sing in Quebec sign language.
She has performed the Cowboys Fringants’ song Plus rien (Nothing More) in Quebec sign language.
She has performed songs in Quebec Sign Language and American Sign Language.
Photo credit: Jennifer Parenteau-Manning
GWENDOLINE Lüthi
research assistant
Gwendoline is a sexologist, which means she helps people talk about intimacy and sexuality.
She has a bachelor’s degree in social work from Switzerland.
She is a queer woman from dis/ability community.
In her work as a sexologist, she implements anti-oppressive methods. She promotes access to fair, autonomous, equitable, and dignified sexualities.
She has long been an activist in feminist community circles.
She creates and leads workshops to educate people about sexualities.
In these workshops, she discusses topics such as consent and sexual orientation, gender identity, and pleasure.
She has created a podcast called “Au coin de brasier.” She is pursuing a master’s degree in communication at the University of Quebec in Montreal.
Email: luthi.gwendoline@uqam.ca
ÉMILIE Peltier
research assistant
Emilie moved to New Brunswick in 2012.
She has also lived in other countries.
She has degrees in : language sciences, communication, mediation.
Emilie works in the cultural field.
Emilie has learned to do by herself:
cinema, photography, writing, printmaking, embroidery.
Her deafness influences her way of seeing the world.
Emilie makes visual projects.
She likes the world to be fair to everyone,
She has an interest in strange things.
She also likes the relationships between human beings.
Emilie has done several projects, such as films:
In 2021, Émilie moved to Montreal.
She is taking the course “Handicap et sourditude : droits et citoyenneté” at the UQAM, the University of Quebec in Montreal.
Emilie works in accessibility organizations.
She explores her identity as a deaf person.
She also develops her art.
In 2023, she joins the team of the Chair.
Emilie is working to ensure that able-bodied* artists and cultural workers.
are recognized.
*Able-bodied diversity includes:
deaf people
people with disabilities
and people with different brains (neuroatypical and psychoatypical).
Photo credit: Bernard Fougères
MARIE Achille
research assistant
Marie was born Deaf.
She completed a B.A. in queer and disabled art history at the Université de Montréal.
She attended the summer school Handicap et sourditude : droits et citoyenneté in 2022.
Marie always wants to discover new things.
She wants to get to know others so she can get to know herself better.
She is a photographer.
She takes part in collective creative workshops.
In her work, Marie studies bodies, gestures and non-verbal expressions.
Marie wants to show how people are alike and different
different ways of being human.
In her research and in her creation,
Marie is interested in disability, queer and crip art.
Email: achille.marie@uqam.ca
Photo credit: Marie Achille
FLORENCE Lacombe
research assistant
is a Deaf woman and very proud of it.
She studied sign language interpretation at l’Université du Québec à Montréal.
Since she was a child, Florence has been involved in the Deaf community. She is working to ensure Deaf community development and recognition.
Her experience of working with hearing people has enabled her to recognize the obstacles faced by deaf people. She is developing strategies to better include Deaf people and defend Deaf culture.
She is an interpreter and translator in French, Langue des signes québécoise and American Sign Language. She fights for the rights of Deaf people and wants everyone to know more about Deaf culture.
Florence is interested in accessibility issues for Deaf people with interpreter.
In 2023, she spent a year in Toulouse learning new ways of understanding accessibility for Deaf people. This gave her an even greater desire to make the world more accessible for everyone.
NINO Vincent
research assistant
Nino is a deaf artist with a cochlear implant, trans non-binary, queer, and neurodivergent.
Through his creations, he explores the intersections between hearing and Deaf worlds. The plurality of his identities transforms his personal experiences into sensitive and social artworks.
Trained in audiovisual media and visual arts, Nino also has a formation in Cultural Studies and in Social Sciences. He has contributed to various projects in film and live performance/theater. His experience in the performing arts combined with his commitment to inclusion, access and diversity, enriches his projects related to the Dis/ability diversity and to identity.
Currently, Nino is studying in a Masters in Communication at UQAM and he is developing a research-creation project that explores Deaf Arts Practices, “performativity” in LSQ, and the sound experience beyond hearing. His work questions perception, body and vibrations as vectors for artistic expression. He is seeking to (re)think boundaries between audible and inaudible.
SARA HOULE
interpreter
has been a Quebec Sign Language interpreter for over 20 years.
She works at Université du Québec à Montréal as a sign language interpreter.
Sara has a wealth of experience in various fields, including personal assistance, school and art.
Quebec Sign Language is her first language. She loves developing projects in Quebec Sign Language is her first language for young people. Sara has worked with several Deaf communities in different provinces of Canada
AUDREY Beauchamp
communications and marketing coordinator
Audrey enjoys action and challenges.
She is driven by accessibility, equity, and inclusion.
Audrey has a small business in communications and marketing.
She also works as a marketing coordinator in another company.
Audrey has lots of experience in the in the Quebec Sign Language community.
Audrey is also an artist.
She wants to help deaf artists gain recognition.
She wants to help to eliminate the barriers for deaf people.
Photo credit: Isaac Leal
XING Fan
video capsules editor
Xing is a deaf man.
He comes from Shanghai in China.
He knows several languages:
Mandarin, English, French, Chinese Sign Language, Quebec Sign Language and American Sign Language.
Xing completed a degree in cooking in China.
He arrived in Quebec at the age of 16.
He studied in the deaf sector at the Lucien-Pagé school.
He has done a technique in 2D animation at Cégep du Vieux Montréal.
He also obtained a diploma in computer graphics at Cégep Ahuntsic.
Since 2020, Xing works as a video editor for a deaf film company.
He can create different art forms.
He keeps on working for his passion, digital art.
KIM Auclair
graphic designer
Kim is an entrepreneur, blogger, speaker, and graphic designer.
She helps companies better communicate on the internet.
She helps people get recognized.
She enjoys telling the story of a product or service.
Kim is deaf.
She has an implant in her ear that allows her to hear.
She is involved in projects to help people understand how deaf and hard of hearing people live.
She does illustrations and helps create tools with communication experts.
ISAAC Leal
photographer
Isaac loves the magic of images.
From a young age, Isaac has been creating all kinds of artwork using images.
Isaac is deaf since his birth.
He is curious.
He works as a photographer and webmaster.
He is interested in sign language and digital art.
Isaac is studying in sign language interpretation at UQAM.
He assists a professor in Communication Studies and Deaf Studies at the Cégep du Vieux Montréal.
Isaac works on several art projects.
He is very involved in the Deaf community.
He works to make art accessible to everyone.
Photo credit: Florence Lacombe
Audrey-Anne is a Master student in Communication Studies at UQAM.
She has a bachelor’s degree in social work.
Audrey-Anne has worked as a social worker with homeless people.
She has also worked in the mental health sector.
Audrey-Anne is interested in people who are excluded from society.
She wants to help people who have behaviors said to be different to make their own choices.
She wants to foster inclusion for people living with a mental illness.
Audrey-Anne discovered the visual arts through the Bob Ross’ TV shows.
Audrey-Anne is looking for ways to use the arts to help psychiatrized people become more independent.
In the 1970s, artists said people who have been locked up in asylums can be proud of their insanity and their unique life stories.
Mad people want the word mad to be a positive one.
Isabel is from Mississauga, Ontario.
She is Latina.
She is an artist-designer and illustrator.
She holds a degree in graphic design from the United States.
Isabel is very talented and enjoys challenges.
She founded the Izalaix Design studio.
She is the studio director.
Isabel always wants to learn.
She also wants to help people realize their creative dreams.
Isabel Lainez was raised in Mississauga, Ontario. She graduated in graphic design at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York. She is a Latina designer, illustrator, and creative-of-many-talents. She founded and now owns the design studio Izalaix Design, that allows her loving mind to be creative everyday and to enjoy taking on different challenges. She has been an artist her entire life and today, she is a freelance designer who has worked on several different collaborating projects with a diversity of peoeple. These experiences encourage her to expand her skills set into more than what she is accustomed to, helping people make their own creative dreams a reality.
Marie-Ève is a PhD candidate in Communication Studies at Université de Montréal.
She has studied communication, visual arts, literary creation, and mental health intervention.
Marie-Ève is interested in people with mental health challenges.
She wants to find ways to empower people.
Marie-Ève is interested in inclusion and citizenship.
She is doing research on the life stories of people living with a mental illness.
She is curious about the people involved in anti-stigma initiatives.
Marie-Ève is creative, dedicated, and very respectful of people who are different.
She enjoys caring for others and listening to life stories.