
ABOUT US
MISSION
At Mosaic Institute, we believe that everyone has a right to be free from prejudice & discrimination. 
We equip people with the tools to dismantle prejudice in their own communities through four pillars:

Our office, located in Tkaronto/Toronto, is located on the ancestral and traditional lands of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat (Wyandot), and Mississaugas of the New Credit.
Mosaic's team, distributed across what is now known as Canada, celebrates the ancestral and traditional lands of the Algonquin, Anishinaabe, Blackfoot, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat (Wyandot) Mississaugas of the New Credit, First Nations.
POLICY
We amplify the voices of people in Canada through our programs, research, and dialogues to inform policy changes that address inequities and prejudice.
RESEARCH
We conduct community-grounded research through our postsecondary fellowship and student research programs that identify prejudices and recommend actions.
DIALOGUE
We facilitate community led in-depth conversations using our Model of Dialogue to work through conflict, foster understanding, and find paths forward.
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
We work with and deliver workshops and resources for educators, community leaders, youth, organizations and policy makers to dismantle prejudice.
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We just released our 2022 Impact Report:
2022 was another challenging year, with themes of polarization, disinformation, and hate highlighting the importance of dismantling prejudice as a vital part of societal responses to these urgent issues - from conflict in the classroom, climate change to economic prosperity.



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Reached over 200,000 people in Canada and around the world
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75+ undergraduate and graduate student interns
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90,000+ people reached by UofMosaic Program
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100,000+ people reached by Next Generation
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10,000+ people reached by our public engagement initiatives
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Won the Canadian Race Relations Foundation Community Award of Excellence (2012)
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CharityVillage Awards Winner "Best Nonprofit Employer (Under 20 staff) Workplace Mental Health" (2021)
Mosaic Institute was founded in 2007 to train people of all ages to address the root causes of prejudice and become leaders for a more peaceful and just world. Over the past 15 years, we have:
HISTORY

Charity Village Awards Winner 2021
Best Nonprofit Employer (Under 20 staff) Workplace Mental Health
OUR FOUNDER
My desire to dismantle prejudice stems from my experience growing up in an Armenian family in Toronto, with my parents and sister. Because of the perpetrated mass atrocities and genocide against Armenians, and ongoing issues between modern day Turkey and Armenia, I was conditioned to dislike Turkish people. I saw the same prejudice among other ethnicities in my adopted country of Canada, where immigrants, in addition to the challenges of establishing their new lives, faced exclusion, at times subtle and at times overt.

A message from Vahan Kololian, the Founder and Board Chair of the Mosaic Institute.
As I matured and my world evolved, I eventually had a “lightbulb moment” where I knew I didn't want to hate Turks. I then wanted to do something that would help others in their journeys of understanding and societal change.
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In the early 2000s, my wife Susie and I created dialogue groups between Armenian and Turkish university students in Canada and the United States. The unique nature of these initiatives eventually led to our creation of the Mosaic Institute in 2007. This was our way to contribute to a more peaceful, inclusive, and just society and to help others of all ages have their “lightbulb moments”.
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This foundation of respectful dialogue is an essential part of who we are and how we go about our work today – focusing as well on education, policy, and training to offer tangible solutions and meaningful skill-building to advance social change. Mosaic has evolved over the last 15 years to become a leading voice with the know-how to help create a more equitable and prosperous society for everyone. These polarized and increasingly divided times we live in now make it clear that this work is more vital than ever.
Canada, comparatively, has stood as a beacon of inclusion in the world. Today, Canada is facing the tough truth about its past with Indigenous peoples, while at the same time maintaining a largely unchanged and potentially expanding immigration policy. To unlock the true potential of these efforts, imagine what we can achieve as a nation as we promote respect and inclusiveness.
We need to continue to work together. Thank you for doing what you can to dismantle prejudice.
OUR TEAM
OUR BOARD
Gaëtane Verna
Board of Directors
Kathleen Vesely
Secretary and Treasurer
MOSAIC CIRCLE
*in memory of
Mohammad Al Zaibak
Debra Campbell
Charles Coffey
Phil Fontaine
Blake Goldring
Helena Gottschling Zabeen Hirji
Margaret O. MacMillan John Monahan
Don Morrison
Jim Muldoon*
Gordon M. Nixon
Raheel Raza
Ed Safarian*
Randy Vander Starren
OUR DONORS
We couldn't do this work without the support of our amazing donors. Thank you all so much for your kindness and generosity in supporting our mission of dismantling prejudice across Canada.
Abigail Shakespeare
Adrienne Marshall
AGF Management Ltd.
Ahila Poologaindran
Alice Stevenson
Alicia Liebregts
Allison Urowitz
Amanda Friesen
Amy Robert
Andy Donovan
Andy MacCulloch
Angel Massey-Singh
Angela Lee
Anna Nevin
Anthony R Graham
Anthony Sigel
Anupam Chaudhri
Astrid Ling
Baljinder Rakhra
Bank of Montreal
Barbara Nathoo
Barry Panov
Ber Tov Capital Corporation
Bernie Farber
Beth Henning
Beverley Wybrow
Carrie Clayton
Cathy Kreuter
Chadha Family Foundation
Chaim Cutler
Char San Pedro
Charles Harper
Chris Keating
Christin Simms
Christopher Kololian
Clair Balfour
Clare Michaels
Colleen Fortier
Conor Gfroerer
Corrine Rahman
Curtis Stevenson
David Bruce
David McKendrick
David Moorcroft
David Sharpe
David Wiebe
Decision Point Research
Denise Korpan
Donna and Gary Slaight
Douglas Davis
Duncan Hamann
Dundee Staunton
Elizabeth Levitt
Erin Kenzie
Evan Dermit
Geoff Plant-Richmond
George Harper
George Zarb
Georgina Black
Greg Guichon
Griggs Family Foundation
Heidi Naturkach
Jane Van Zant
Janice Price
Jen Rudman
Jennifer Huycke
Jesse Gill
Jessica Kailey
Jill Moss
Jim Pottow
Jocelyn White
John Coulton
John Di Tecco
John Sharpe
John Watt
Jonathan Brookman
Joy Waldie
Julia Connell
Justin John
Kara Goorts
Kat Biondi
Kathleen Vesely
Keith Townley
Kelly Meehan
Keltie Neville
Ken Rawana
Kevin Braiden
Kololian Foundation
Krikor Shahinian
Laura Lavie
Laura Pus
Laura Stenberg
Leigh Naturkach
Lesley Buordolone
Liane Gillies
Littler LLP
Lori Harasem
Louis Favretto
Lynda Sexton-Kellett
Maggie Quirt
Marco Andre Fiola
Marina A Horner
Mark D Swartz
Martin Manna
Matteo Scurci
Megan Kee
Melissa Pavlidis
Melvyn Lopes
Michael Bentley
Michael Butler
Michael MacMillan
Michael Marmur
Michael Samlalsingh
Michelle Sparrow
Mohammed Hashim
Mohan Sivapatham
Mona Kornberg
Monique Vesely
Munpreet Singh
Nafeesa Jalal
Nairy Shahinian
Nia Green
Nicole Sigouin
Ouellette Family Foundation
Peggie Pelosi
Peter Sewell
Philip Alves
Rabeena Obaidullah
Rachel and Len Pearl
Rachel Mansell
Rachel Rattray
Ragubala Murugesan
Rajesh Jaglal
RBC
Reeta Roy
Renwick Babwah
Richard Christiansen
Robin Asgari
Rohit Mehta
Rose Ashworth
Rose Najarian Kedeshian
Ross McCully
Sandra Hawken
Sara Byrnell
Sasha McCue
Sasha McCue
Shannon Vadovic
Signe Yama
Simon Romano
Stephen Ford
Stephen Kouri
Stuart Duncan
Sue Kidd
Sunayna Ali
Susan Guichon
Susan Sanei-Stamp
Susie Kololian
Tanya Kololian
Tanya Lamond
Thames Asset Management Inc Cameron
Thanos Polyzos
The Bruce H. Mitchell Foundation
Thio Serene
Thomas Demlakian
Timothy Bean
Todd Minerson
Toronto Metropolitan University
Torys LLP
Vanessa Lewerentz
Wency Keast
York University
CONTACT US
The Mosaic Institute
411 Richmond St. E., Suite B15
Toronto, ON
M5A 3S5
Tel: 416-203-6919