About Us / À Propos
Documenters Canada is inspired by Documenters.org, a project started by City Bureau in Chicago to produce news designed for and with communities.
The team at City Bureau discovered that having many people providing coverage of meetings could speed up the information collection process. They also found that it was easy to teach citizens how to document meetings and do research. The documenting process displayed how community members could learn from each other and create a network of shared information, enabling collective power.
A few years later, City Bureau launched Documenters to bring these learnings to communities across the U.S. As of 2024, there are 25 Documenters projects across the United States. Our first pilot project, launched in 2024, is a partnership between The Green Line and Concordia University. This project is actively documenting public meetings relevant to people in the Alexandra Park community of Toronto. And now, we’re expanding across Canada.
At Documenters Canada, we encourage community members to be active participants in the kind of news we report and share. Citizens have the power and interest to be active in the production of news to inform future decision-making and community development.
Inspired by Hearken, we help community members address this question: what does our community not know that we could help them find out and understand?
Our approach is grounded in community-centred journalism. Documenters Canada focuses on producing information “for” and “with” community members, instead of “about” them. This focus enables all of us to create, engage in and nurture collaborative relationships in the community.
We hope the work of Documenters Canada will inspire community members to come together to look for solutions.
Documentalistes Canada s’inspire de Documenters.org, un projet lancé par City Bureau à Chicago pour produire des nouvelles conçues pour et avec les communautés locales.
L’équipe de City Bureau a découvert que la couverture des réunions par de nombreuses personnes pouvait accélérer le processus de collecte d’information. Elle a trouvé qu’il était simple d’enseigner aux citoyen·nes comment documenter les réunions et effectuer des recherches. Le processus de documentation a montré comment les membres d’une communauté pouvaient apprendre les un·e·s des autres et créer un réseau d’information partagée, permettant un plus grand pouvoir collectif.
Quelques années plus tard, City Bureau a lancé Documenters afin de partager ces enseignements avec les communautés à travers les États-Unis. En 2024, il y avait 25 projets Documenters chez nos voisins du sud. Notre premier projet pilote, lancé en 2024, est un partenariat entre The Green Line à Toronto et l’Université Concordia à Montreal. Ce project documente les réunions du quartier d’Alexandra Park à Toronto. Maintenant, nous nous développons à travers le Canada.
Chez Documentalistes Canada, nous invitons les membres de la communauté à prendre part aux nouvelles que nous couvrons et partageons. Les citoyen·nes ont le pouvoir et l’intérêt de contribuer activement à la production d’informations afin d’éclairer les décisions à venir et de favoriser le développement de la communauté
Inspirés par Hearken, nous aidons les membres de la communauté à répondre à cette question : qu’est-ce que notre communauté ne sait pas et que nous pourrions l’aider à trouver et comprendre ?
Notre approche repose sur le journalisme centré sur la communauté. Documentalistes Canada se privilégie la production d’informations « pour » et « avec » les membres de la communauté, plutôt que « sur » eux. Cette démarche favorise la création, l’engagement et le maintien de relations collaboratives dans la communauté.
NOUS ESPÉRONS QUE LE TRAVAIL DE DOCUMENTALISTES CANADA INSPIRERA LES MEMBRES DE LA COMMUNAUTÉ À SE RASSEMBLER POUR CHERCHER DES SOLUTIONS.
Mission and vision / MISSION ET VISION
Documenters Canada’s mission is to equip people to engage in their community in new ways while also improving the amount and quality of local news and information, and working toward greater accountability of elected representatives. We do this by training and paying community members to document public meetings in partnership with news and community organizations. We are inspired by and owe a huge debt of gratitude to our friends at Documenters.org.
La mission de Documentalistes Canada est d’équiper les citoyen·nes pour qu’ils et elles s’engagent dans leur communauté d’une nouvelle façon, tout en améliorant la quantité et la qualité des nouvelles et des informations locales, et en œuvrant pour une plus grande responsabilisation des représentant·es élu·e·s. Nous accomplissons cette mission en formant et rémunérant des membres de la communauté pour documenter des réunions publiques en partenariat avec des organismes de presse et des organisations communautaires. Nous sommes inspirés par Documenters.org, à qui nous adressons toute notre gratitude
our team / notre équipe
Chrystel Abi Samra
Master’s Student, Concordia University
Chrystel Abi Samra is a Master’s student at Concordia University in Montréal, pursuing a degree in Digital Innovation in Journalism Studies and working on her research-creation thesis. She is a content editor at Cision Canada and a research assistant with Documenters Canada. Her work and studies focus on the intersections of storytelling, media innovation, and representation, exploring how journalism can adapt to digital transformations while amplifying diverse voices and perspectives.
Nicole Blanchett
Associate Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University
Dr. Nicole Blanchett is the co-director of the Documenters Canada expansion team and an associate professor of Journalism at Toronto Metropolitan University, researching journalistic roles and the impact of technology on practice. A former television journalist, she also heads the Canadian team of the Journalistic Role Performance project, is a leader of the Explanatory Journalism project, co-director of the Local News Research Project, and is part of Canada’s Worlds of Journalism Study. Her research has been published widely, including in Digital Journalism, Journalism Practice, and Journalism Studies. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9444-2018
Sibo Chen
Associate Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University
Sibo Chen is an Associate Professor in the School of Professional Communication at Toronto Metropolitan University. His current research explores how political polarization is communicated in the public sphere, focusing on three topics: political contention over climate change, online mis/disinformation, and the rise of anti-Asian racism. He is co-lead of the Explanatory Journalism Impact and Uptake project. His research has been published in Chinese Journal of Communication, Environmental Communication, Journalism Practice, etc. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0693-9046
Yara El Murr
Managing Editor, The Green Line
Yara El Murr is managing editor at The Green Line, an award-winning Toronto-based publication that reports on solutions, actions and resources that help residents navigate life in the city. Yara is a journalist and documentary filmmaker with experience covering grassroots movements, migration, environmental issues and post-war society in Lebanon. Her work now focuses on hyperlocal community-driven journalism in Toronto. She led The Green Line’s Youth Journalism Program in Alexandra Park, and now manages all editorial output from monthly issues and biweekly newsletters to daily multimedia and social content.
Aia Jaber
Master’s Student, Toronto Metropolitan University
Aia Jaber is a Master of Journalism student at Toronto Metropolitan University. Her work focuses on cultural identities, how communities preserve them, and community-oriented journalism. She was a research assistant for the 2025 Engaged Journalism Conference and has held editorial roles at several publications, including The Green Line. She now works with Documenters Canada as a research assistant. Aia is completing her Major Research Project on how violence shapes collective identity in Toronto’s Roma community.
Magda Konieczna
Associate Professor, Concordia University
Magda Konieczna is an associate professor of journalism at Concordia University. After years of being inspired by the work of documenters.org, she decided to start a Documenters project in Canada, and has been blown away by the support and enthusiasm. Her research examines the relationship between journalism and democracy in the face of challenges in the news business. She taught journalism in the U.S. for many years and is the former city hall reporter at the now closed Guelph Mercury.
Clément Lechat
Master’s Student and Network Lead, Concordia University and Documenters Canada
Clément Lechat is completing his Master’s in Digital Innovation in Journalism Studies at Concordia University and serves as the Network Lead at Documenters Canada. He co-developed field guides and training materials and is now supporting the expansion of the network across Canada while studying this new form of collaboration between journalists and citizens. His research focuses on innovative approaches to journalism that address equity, diversity, and inclusion, as well as issues of representation and participation in the media. His journalism and research have been published in Facts and Frictions, Le Trente, CBC Montreal, The Concordian, and L’Express.ca.
Anita Li
Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Green Line
Anita Li is publisher and CEO of The Green Line, an award-winning news outlet in Toronto that delivers community-driven solutions journalism. She also serves as Journalism Innovator-in-Residence at Toronto Metropolitan University. With over two decades of industry experience across North America, she is recognized for her expertise in community-driven journalism, news entrepreneurship, and media innovation.
Archie McLean
Associate Professor, Mount Royal University
Archie McLean is an associate professor of Journalism & Digital Media at Mount Royal University. A graduate of Columbia University, he was a reporter and editor at the Edmonton Journal and served as the managing editor for CBC North in Yellowknife. At MRU, his teaching and research examine the practice and theory of digital journalism and he has helped lead the program’s award-winning Calgary Journal news website.
Angela Misri
Assistant Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University
Angela Misri is an assistant professor of Journalism at Toronto Metropolitan University, researching the ethics of use of AI to create journalism. Formerly a CBC reporter and producer, and digital director at The Walrus, she is also the author of seven fiction novels. Misri is co-director of the Local News Research Project, and part of the JRP Canada project. Her research has been published in Digital Journalism, AI & Society and Facts & Frictions. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-2277-4313
Tyler Nagel
Instructor, Southern Institute of Technology in Calgary
Tyler Nagel is a full-time journalism instructor at the Southern Institute of Technology in Calgary, and a PhD student at the University of Groningen in The Netherlands. As well, he is an associate faculty member in the School of Communication and Culture at Royal Roads University in Victoria. His current research focuses on journalism in rural and remote communities. His work has been published in Journalism Studies, Journalism Practice, The Journal of Media Literacy Education, and The Walrus, among other publications.
Mary Newman
Community Engagement Lead, The Green Line
British-Canadian journalist with over a decade of experience producing for the BBC, CBC and independent outlets — in addition to working as a labour organizer in the media industry. She’s committed to journalism that drives audiences to action and to empowering citizen journalists to document and share their communities’ stories.
Elise Stolte
Community Engagement Producer, CBC
Elise Stolte is a community engagement producer for CBC in the Calgary newsroom. She has two decades of experience in news and feature writing, social-impact and community-based journalism. In her current capacity, she uses text messaging campaigns, public writing workshops and community-based pop-ups to open the process of storytelling and involve more community members in the news conversation. You can reach her at elise.stolte@cbc.ca.
Lisa Sygutek
Owner and Publisher, Crowsnest Pass Herald
Lisa Sygutek is the owner and publisher of the Crowsnest Pass Herald, a second-generation family newspaper serving Alberta since 1930. Growing up in the newsroom, she learned the business from her parents and has worked in the industry for over 25 years. As president of the Alberta Weekly Newspaper Association, Lisa champions the importance of independent community journalism. Under her leadership, the Herald covers municipal politics, local events, and the people who make the Pass unique. She is also involved in national legal action to protect Canadian news outlets, committed to keeping small-town newspapers strong in a rapidly changing media world.
Terra Tailleur
Assistant Professor, University of King’s College
Terra Tailleur is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of King’s College, specializing in digital news. She has a keen interest in the local news ecosystem and teaches a mix of courses, from reporting fundamentals to the business of journalism. She led the award-winning Signal student newsroom for many years. She often collaborates with groups both in and out of journalism. She is a researcher with the Worlds of Journalism survey and a member of the CAJ’s ethics advisory committee.
Sebastian Tansil
Documenter, The Green Line
Sebastian is an economist, journalist, and housing advocate with the Kensington Market Community Land Trust. He began his career in the public service before moving to economic consulting, where he worked in the Brattle Group‘s competition and antitrust practice. Sebastian views research as community organizing and is committed to advancing systemic change through stronger local engagement.