Carissa Halton

Principal Consultant, Facilitator

With a career spanning many sectors, Carissa is an authentic leader, supportive advisor and fearless facilitator. She has broad experience in leadership and communications roles: in the non-profit sector as the Managing Director of The Mustard Seed Edmonton, in the government sector as a political advisor to the Premier of Alberta and Minister of Seniors and Housing, and in the private sector as a communications consultant and publicist. She is an award- winning journalist, winner of both a National and Alberta Magazine Award and her essays have been anthologized. Her debut book, Little Yellow House: Finding Community in a Changing Neighbourhood (University of Alberta Press), was released in 2018 and she regularly speaks to audiences about community development, leadership and employee engagement.

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Halton Strategic brings these diverse leadership experiences together, uniquely merging her writer's listening ear, journalist’s perceptive questions, political advisor’s risk analysis and training in facilitation and public engagement.

You can find more about her publications and events here. She is trained in IAP2 method of public engagement.

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Halton Strategic is a proud member of the Lodgepole Consulting Collective, a consultancy of industry leaders helping organizations build thriving communities. By bringing policy advisors, economists and governance and public engagement specialists together, Lodgepole supports clients to build more effective processes, clearly demonstrate value and make better informed decisions which lead to more meaningful services for customers and communities.

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Trisha Estabrooks

Associate

Trish's exceptional listening and reporting skills were honed over 17 years working as a journalist with CBC in stations across Canada. An award winning journalist, she's worked with Journalists for Human Rights in West Africa and was co-host and producer of the Broadcast, a podcast about women and politics. Her curiosity and tactful, probing questions help clients go deep and get focused. Her editing skills ensure Halton Strategic's reports are clear and to-the-point (because while team conversations aren't linear, client reports should be!)

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Currently the Chair of the Edmonton Public School Board, Trish was elected as a Trustee and re-elected in the Fall of 2021. This experience has honed her skills in facilitation and organizational communications.

She has lived in Edmonton with her family since 2007.

Andrea Hasenbank

Associate

Andrea's talent at distilling complex and (sometimes) wandering group brainstorming sessions into clearly articulated take-aways has been honed through her doctoral work and research.   With a Ph.D. from the University of Alberta, Andrea teaches courses on media history and the news at the University of Alberta and consults on learning design and facilitation. 

Andrea has worked as a project leader, writer, editor, and researcher. She has collaborated with not-for-profit organizations and industry professionals to support grant applications and knowledge mobilization. Between 2015 and 2019, Andrea was a political advisor within the Notley government in Alberta, working extensively in the areas of health policy, mental health and addiction, seniors’ care, and housing.

Andrea's skill at crafting prompts and evaluation questions, as well as experience developing inclusive learning environments is part of the magic behind our clients feeling heard and like their time was well spent.  She lives in Edmonton, where she is active with a number of community and worker-focused organizations.