As the world begins to understand the long-term impact of the pandemic on our social norms and we collectively navigate what “post” a pandemic even means, rituals can help anchor us in what we want to keep and make space for what we want to create. How do we balance the pandemic rituals we want to hold on to, returning to pre-pandemic rituals we miss, and creating brand new rituals for this new life? Our panel of expert ritualists will explore the question together. 

GRACE GORDON

Grace Gordon (she/her) is an actress and activist. Her podcast THE ART LIFE was founded during a lunch break between GLA sessions. Listen at www.theartlife.show

XANDRA ROBINSON-BURNS

Xandra Robinson-Burns (she/her) is a Writer, the Protagonist of Heroine Training (heroinetraining.com), and co-host of The Art Life podcast. She writes about everyday rituals, being the heroine of our own stories, and finding wisdom in what we do for fun. A Gryffindor and Jane Austen songwriter, she lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.

EZRA BOOKMAN

Ezra is an experience designer, artist, and facilitator exploring the transformational power of ritual and art. Ezra is the founder of Ritualist, a creative studio helping leaders create more conscious companies and connected communities, and the youngest member on the Board of Directors of The Secret City, an Obie Award-winning arts organization.

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE: LESSONS FROM STAR WARS

In a time when balance certainly needs to be brought to the force, what lessons can we learn from the struggles and wins of our favorite Star Wars heroes? Join panelists Preeti Chhibber, author of A Jedi You Will Be and contributor to the Star Wars Clone Wars: Anthology, and Annalise Ophelian, documentary filmmaker behind Looking for Leia. Thanks to Annalise, all Campers will receive an access link to watch the full Looking for Leia series! 

ANNALISE OPHELIAN

Annalise Ophelian (she/her) is a San Francisco-based documentary filmmaker, clinical psychologist, and media consultant whose work includes the docu-series Looking for Leia (SYFY, 2019) and MAJOR! (Outfest Audience Award Best Documentary, 2016). She is a member of Reps on Set, a team of production advisors, coordinators, and advocates for underrepresented identities in television and film. www.annaliseophelian.com / www.repsonset.com

PREETI CHHIBBER

Called “Spider-Man super fan and author” by Publishers Weekly, Preeti Chhibber is a YA author, speaker, and freelance writer. She worked as a publishing professional. She has written for SYFY, Polygon, BookRiot, BookRiot Comics, The Nerds of Color, and The Mary Sue, among others. Her debut original middle-grade, Orientation (Marvel’s Avenger’s Assembly #1) came out from Scholastic in August 2020 and her first picture book, A Jedi You Will Be was released by Disney this fall, she is also featured in the forthcoming YA and Adult anthologies Battle of the Bands (Candlewick, Fall 2021) and Stone Sword Table (Random House, 2022). You can find her co-hosting the podcasts Desi Geek Girls and Strong Female Characters (SYFYWire). She’s appeared on several panels at New York Comic Con, San Diego Comic Con, and on screen on the SYFY Network.

Moderator: ABIGAIL E. PAGE

Abby (she/her) is the Volunteer Manager of the Leadership and Education Department at Fandom Forward. She considers herself an Anakin but dreams of being an Ahsoka.

In the height of the pandemic, many of us had to learn how to find joy in the little things [the rise of cottagecore and the return to favorite childhood games and shows over the past year illustrates this]. Now that things are opening back up, how can we take the lessons we learned about simplicity and self care into this new world? In this interactive workshop, we will create self care plans and learn new ways to follow our passions, set strong boundaries, and live our lives with joy.

TIARA DEGUZMAN

Tiara DeGuzman (She/Her) is a full time Career and Life Coach located in Chicago IL. She is passionate about social justice and centers her work on advocating for and engaging with queer communities of color. Tiara can usually be found doing book reviews on Instagram (@booknerdspells) or working on her book, which she hopes to finish soon!