Carissa Halton: The Full Story
Carissa Halton is an award-winning writer and author. Her essays have been anthologized and have won provincial and national magazine awards. Her writing has appeared in many publications including: Today’s Parent, Alberta Views, Azure and Postmedia Newspapers. Little Yellow House; Finding Community in a Changing Neighbourhood is her first book and was a finalist for the 2019 Edmonton Book Prize.
As a speaker and trainer, her narrative style and voice reflects storytelling forms she developed as a long time tour guide and historic interpreter. Sharing stories, discovered with curiosity, empathy, and humour, guides her work as a professional speaker. She is proudly represented by the Speaker's Bureau of Canada.
Her leadership and community advocacy have spanned multiple sectors. She has worked as an inner-city non-profit managing director, a political advisor to government ministers, and communications consultant. Each step of her career has introduced her to passionate people making a big difference in their community.
Through her boutique consultancy, Halton Strategic, she supports teams, organizations and individuals to strategically plan for the future and communicate in a complex world. Sshe believes good public policy and successful programs start with engaging the people who are impacted the most, and she's IAP2 trained. Halton Strategic is a proud member of the Lodgepole Consulting Collective, a consultancy bringing policy advisors, economists and governance and public engagement specialists together to help organizations build thriving communities.
Carissa serves on the boards of Right at Home Society and Alberta Labour History Institute. Carissa lives with her children and husband in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.