Alison Taplay

Alison Taplay

President

Alison joined Vela Canada’s Board of Directors in 2018 and has been honoured to serve as President since 2021. Alison is committed to equity and inclusion for all citizens and for 30 years has been a leader in the not-for-profit sector serving the disability community. For 20 years she has been a contributing Microboard member on Lasqueti Island and in Powell River, and has been teaching at Vancouver Island University for over 10 years.

Her volunteer work focuses on individual and community wellness and the intersections of the two. She is recognized for her work with community located diversity projects like the Groundswell project. She completed her master’s degree in leadership. Her thesis, Rediscovering Innovation through Engagement, explored increasing employee and family engagement in organizational change initiatives. Alison is a proficient facilitator both in person, and online. She is skilled at gathering and analyzing information in ways that emerge trends and reveal key opportunities for change. In her leisure time, she enjoys gardening, hiking, kayaking, and Nordic skiing with friends and her husband, Kirk.