Our Team

Meet the masterminds behind FTT!

Dr. Shana MacDonald

Associate Professor in Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo

Dr. Shana MacDonald is O’Donovan Chair of Communication Across the Curriculum and Associate Professor in Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, Canada. Her interdisciplinary research examines feminist, queer, and anti-racist media activisms within social and digital media, memes, popular culture, cinema, and contemporary art. Dr. MacDonald is co-director of the Digital Feminist Network of Canada (digfemnet.org) and co-runs the online archive and research collective Feminist Think Tank (Instagram: @aesthetic.resistance). She is a series editor for Ohio State University Press’s Digital Feminist Resistance book series. MacDonald has published in Feminist Media Studies (2020), Camera Obscura (2022), MAI: Feminism and Visual Culture (2023), and is lead editor of Networked Feminisms: Digital Practices and Activist Assemblies (Lexington Books 2022).

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Dr. Brianna I. Wiens

Assistant Professor in English Language & Literature at the University of Waterloo

Brianna I. Wiens is an Assistant Professor of Digital Media and Rhetoric in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Waterloo. Her work brings together intersectional feminism, feminist media studies, and critical affect studies to examine the embodied methodologies, rhetorics, and politics of digital culture in order to explore how people use media in critical and creative ways to foster community and speak back to power. Her current work investigates the visual culture and rhetorical vernaculars of misogyny, mixed-race representation, and misinformation amid the rise of technology-facilitated violence. She is Co-Director of the research collective Feminist Think Tank (www.feminist-think-tank.com) and the recently established Digital Feminist Network of Canada (https://digfemnet.org/), as well as Co-Editor of The Ohio State University Press book series Digital Media, Feminist Resistance (https://ohiostatepress.org/books/series/dmfr.html).

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The Research Assistants

Sid Heeg

Sid Heeg is a PhD student at the University of Waterloo in the Faculty of Environment, working towards a PhD in Sustainability Management. Their research focuses on miscommunication and misinformation about agriculture in digital spaces and understanding the impacts they have on farmer's work practices.

Thuvaraka Mahenthiran

Thuvaraka Mahenthiran is a masters student in Developmental Psychology at the University of Waterloo. She is currently working under Dr. Shana MacDonald and Dr. Brianna Wiens as their Project Manager on the Feminist Digital Media Project.

Kate Bradley

Kate Bradley (she/her) is a third year History student at the University of Waterloo with a minor in Gender and Social Justice. She has done archival, research, curatorial, and museum work in both Ontario and in Prince Edward Island. Kate is passionate about the intersection of feminism and history, especially when that manifests in film and media. She joined the project eager to help with big-picture analysis, drawing connections, and analyzing themes of activism and media. Kate thrives when she is buzzed on several cups of coffee and diving deep into feminist research.

Hannah Delamere

Bio coming soon!

Nevetha Kugathas

Nevetha Kugathas is a fourth-year Arts student majoring in Psychology, with a minor in Cognitive Science at the University of Waterloo. She has contributed to various student-focused projects at the University of Waterloo and is currently working as a research assistant, where she is passionate about exploring gender intersectionality. She seeks to illuminate the nuanced realities faced by marginalized groups. Her enthusiasm extends to seeking to broaden the scope of feminism's inclusiveness.

Sakeenah Ashique

Sakeenah is a third year student at the University of Waterloo studying Honors Dac with a minor in Cognitive Science. She is working under Shana MacDonald on her data archive and various research projects. Sakeenah's area of interest is in the convergence of feminism, race, and religion to examine the implications of intersectional identity within Western society, with the aim of establishing a broader, inclusive comprehension of feminism.

Dena Huang

Dena Huang is a Communication Arts and Design Practice (CADP) student at the University of Waterloo with a minor in Computer Science. She is a researcher and curator for Feminist Think Tank, focusing on feminist discourse, popular culture, and well-being in the digital age. Dena is interested in sustaining humanity in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and aims to empower and promote inclusivity through digital experiences.

Selah Banton

Selah-Kareena Banton (she/her) is a second year undergraduate student at the University of Waterloo studying Communications with a minor in the French language. She is working under Dr. Shana MacDonald and Dr. Brianna Wiens in feminist digital media research, which she takes high interest in. When not working with Dr.MacDonald and Dr.Wiens she is involved in social justice movements and community building specifically for young black girls and non binary youth in the wellness space.

Mitra Myrie

Mitra is an alumni of the University of Waterloo with an Honours BA in Speech Communication and a Digital Arts Communication minor. They are working with Dr. Shana MacDonald and Dr. Brianna Wiens as a Knowledge Mobilization Consultant and Podcast Director for Feminist Think Tank.

Previous Research Assistants

Eliana Hill-Zeesman (2022)