2025 PuSh Youth Program

Solid State starts worker cooperatives with youth (under-35) from racialized migrant backgrounds. We currently have 18 cohorts running with many more in formation.

We have 120+ participants from more than 35 different national backgrounds and 15 staff. Our goal is to build a mutually-supportive network, grounded in Surrey, a cooperative of cooperatives, bound together by a commitment to hospitality and mutual aid.

Shirin is a founding member of Symposia Events. She was born and raised in Vancouver, and currently resides in Delta. She is a fourth-year student at Kwantlen Polytechnic University and is studying in the English and Creative Writing department. Shirin has always had a deep interest in the arts, particularly in the success of POC artists and creatives. Shirin enjoys reading, writing, and is a music lover, having played the cello for five years. She is published in Kwantlen’s Fall 2024 PulpMag, and hopes to be able to publish more of her work in the future, as well as learn about and help manage future art-related events.

Vivan (he/him) is a founding member of Symposia Events. Based in Surrey, he is a sophomore student at Simon Fraser University, undergoing a BSc in Computing Science at the Faculty of Applied Sciences. Vivan is a 13-year pianist taught at Long and McQuade. Currently at Level 8 in the Royal Conservatory of Music, he has performed many seasonal recitals at the Bell Performing Arts Centre and Kwantlen Park Secondary School. With his multifaceted interests in technology, music and visual arts, Vivan is a self-taught indie game developer, pixel artist and music composer.

Luna(she/her) is the community outreach coordinator at Symposia Events. She joined Symposia in 2021. She was born and raised in East Vancouver and is based in Delta, in the greater Vancouver area. She is a visual artist in the fine arts program at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She loves drawing and painting, and has been doing so since she was a child. She is currently studying fine arts at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. As a person who loves all these different forms of art, she knows how expensive they can be, and the opportunities for artists to enter these spaces aren’t always available or inclusive for all. Her reason for joining Symposia is because if there’s a way to ensure that everyone is welcome, regardless of one’s differences and/or privileges, then the idea of the joy that will bring to others is joyful for her as well.

Andrea (she/her) is an outreach coordinator in Symposia. She started as a participant and made her way up to join the team in 2023. She was born in Mexico and moved to Vancouver in 2016. Andrea has a hospitality and tourism diploma and currently she is studying theatre at Douglas College. Her passion for arts started in high school when she took part of the competitive dance team. She really hopes to get in touch with the community through Symposia, Push and life experience.

Betty is Symposia’s Communications Coordinator. She is an emerging filmmaker based in Vancouver, is a multifaceted creative force shaping narratives through film, photography, and visual art. With a passion for intertwining social issues and cultural insights into her storytelling, Betty brings a unique perspective to her projects, placing emphasis on amplifying voices and experiences often overlooked in mainstream media and conversation. As the founder of OnyXCreatives, she has cultivated a collaborative space where creatives converge to explore themes surrounding the Black Women Experience, fostering a platform for visual storytelling that resonates deeply with audiences and their shared experiences.