S. Ashleigh Weeden

Ashleigh is an award-winning rural futurist, feminist, and researcher. Her work focuses on the way people, place, and power dynamics are reflected in and affected by policymaking, particularly in rural contexts. A long-time advocate for community-engaged, place-based approaches to public policy, Ashleigh has spent her career championing locally-led innovation. She is currently completing her PhD in Rural Studies at the University of Guelph. Recognized as a thought leader on rural revitalization and contributor to a growing body of research on the right to be rural, Ashleigh works to advance evidence-based policy and public sector leadership across a wide variety of critical portfolios, including infrastructure, innovation, and inclusive community economic development.