Martine St-Victor is a communications strategist and the General Manager of Edelman in Montréal, one of its 60 offices worldwide, making it the world's most important communication firm.

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Martine is a monthly columnist at the Montreal Gazette and La Presse and can be seen and heard regularly on Radio-Canada television and radio. During federal and provincial elections, Martine analyzes political communication on CTV News.

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Martine is a Trustee on various Boards, a founding member of the Black Opportunity Fund, and Vice-Chair of the Québec section of IWF (International Women’s Forum).

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Sylvine, better known as The Artiiist, of Central African origin, was born in France and has now been living in Canada for 12 years. From an early age, art has always played a central role in her life: singing, dancing and then painting. This passion has gradually turned into a real career: she is the founder of Smard Art.

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It was during the COVID-19 pandemic that Sylvine launched her artistic enterprise: Smard Art. Her talent and vision quickly attracted attention, propelling her work onto the international scene. This dazzling success has enabled her to make a living from her art and develop her business internationally, although she still harbors even greater ambitions.

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Through her work, she celebrates the identity, culture and beauty of black people, themes that are close to her heart. Combining traditional and digital art, she draws her inspiration from realism, which she considers a form of expression of great intensity, while exploring mixed media techniques and abstraction.

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Despite this recognition, she remains driven by the desire to push her own boundaries and reach an even wider audience.

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Boubacar Djiba, is among Africa’s music industry’s prolific change agents with over 15 years’ of experience in the music industry in Senegal. He is an entrepreneur who evolves in the creative industry, technology, and communication sector. He is a consultant, music producer, designer and sound engineer passionate about the change and development of Africa through his youth. Connected in the global creative industry, he discovers and develops talents through his label Vazy Music.

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In Jan 2024, Boubacar launched the first instant AI mastering platform in Africa, Senmixmaster after years of research. Senmixmaster is the first AI technological start-up evolving in cultural and creative industries in Senegal, more precisely in music and audio content. Senmixmaster uses AI and reinforcement learning, its engine works like a real engineer, making original decisions as the mastering progresses by tweaking the music to remove technical errors while applying necessary enhancements or anything preventing a great music listening experience.

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Eager to build a strong creative ecosystem, Boubacar is a sure bet for the development of the creative industries in Africa with the use of technology.

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