An Evening with Leanne Betasamosake Simpson

Sintering: Making new worlds across difference

In this talk, we will think alongside water as a theorist, a network and a map to making worlds beyond the one we have inherited from colonialism.

Leanne Betasamosake Simpson

A Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg writer, musician, and scholar, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson is one of the most compelling Indigenous voices of her generation.

Rooted in Nishnaabeg language, thought, and land-based practice, her work draws on more than two decades of independent scholarship and community education.

For this event, Simpson will discuss her most recent book, Theory of Water, a national bestseller and finalist for the 2025 Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction. Reimagining water’s relationship to all beings and life-forces, Simpson envisions it as a catalyst for radical change. Collaborating with snow and ice, Simpson creates a sovereign space for communal dreaming and imagining, re-worlding our hearts and minds in response to our shared present moment. 

Other notable titles of hers include Noopiming: The Cure for White Ladies and Rehearsals for Living, both shortlisted for Governor General’s Literary Awards, while her album Theory of Ice was shortlisted for the Polaris Prize.

Whether on stage or on the page, Simpson invites audiences into layered worlds where Indigenous ways of knowing become powerful acts of resilience, care, and transformation.