At East and West Learning Connections, we hold ongoing dialogues with people of different heritages to promote mutual understanding at an individual level. With deep appreciation we thank our guest speakers who volunteer their time to share life experience, expertise, thoughts, advice, and have a conversation with our audience!
We proudly kick off our 2025 Dialogue program with a compassionate lawyer, speaker, author and a super Jazz fan!
Time: Saturday, March 29, 2025, at 7:30-9 P.M. (Eastern Time)
Free English Hybrid Event, transcript of translations of other languages available on Zoom.
Please RSVP to info@eawlc.org if you wish to participate in person.
Venue: 1585 Yonge Street, Yorkminster Park Baptist Church (Use the Toronto School for Strings and Piano entrance)
Free parking, close to St. Clair Subway Station. Door opens at 7 p.m.
Light snacks will be provided. You are encouraged to bring your own water bottle to help reduce disposable waste.
Or register for the online session by clicking Zoom registration link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/bry6oZ8cQDKqrdnvSzxt8w
Guest Speaker Introduction
Peter Thurton is a recently retired Canadian financial services and energy lawyer. His legal expertise is in the areas of Corporate governance, regulatory compliance, ethics and diversity, equity and inclusion. For over thirty years, Peter has worked on behalf of a number of North American multinational companies such as Manulife Financial, CIBC, Royal Bank Insurance, and Enbridge. His legal work spanned China (Hong Kong), South Africa, the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Throughout his career, Peter has acted as a mentor to many young lawyers and law students.
In his spare time, Peter does volunteer work for a number of local Toronto churches, and his beloved high school, St. Michael’s College School. Peter has also been appointed to the Advisory Board of the Art Gallery of Ontario to advise on the global purchase and promotion of art and artist of Black people worldwide. He is an avid reader of Greek and Medieval philosophy, specifically the philosophy of the great Italian philosopher Thomas Da Aquino. He is also an avid gardener, and an avid collector of Jazz music. He hosts a series of lectures delivered by some of the world’s most renowned Jazz musicians at his Regal Heights home annually.
Peter will be speaking about the challenges and rewards in his life as a Trinidadian immigrant to Canada. One of the eleven children to Metha and Andrew Thurton, Peter lived through great economic and family dynamics hardships in his early years in Trinidad. His Mother bravely took the challenge to immigrate to Canada alone leaving her husband and ten children behind to forge the path for all of them to arrive in Canada over the ensuing months. Peter’s talk will focus on how he has come to appreciate the unending love of his parents, grandparents, aunts and elder siblings, all of whom had very little economic means but an over abundance of love that has seen him survive days of hunger and psychological challenges to be the success he has been able to achieve academically and professionally.
Everyone is welcome to join the dialogue with Peter, and get inspirations from a great first-generation immigrant achiever!
For inquiries, please email us at info@eawlc.org. Thanks.
Please consider to support us by volunteering, donating or participating in our endeavor to help people of different heritages break cultural barriers and get connected. Together, let’s make learning and connections happen!