Benj Gallander

September 2023

The Globe and Mail called Benj Gallander, “The most classic of contrarians.” The National Post stated, “If all the world’s a stage, then Benj Gallander is one of the market’s greatest characters.” Who is this guy anyhow? Benj is the author of three best-selling books. Some have been translated into other languages. He writes for The Globe and Mail and various other publications in Canada and the United States. Six of his plays have seen the stage across Canada. He is a co-founder of one of Canada’s largest performance festivals, SummerWorks, started in 1991 and continuing to thrive. He was a regular on BNN – Bloomberg and on CBC’s On the Money with Peter Armstrong, talking about topics as diverse as marijuana, crypto currencies, AI, and many others until, ironically, the show ran out of money. Speaking engagements, which he loves, have included Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Palm Springs, South Africa and many universities. Back in the day, he also taught at Humber College and adult education.

Benj has traveled to over 35 countries, working in many of them. This included a stint with the Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI) doing anti-poverty work in Nepal; teaching in Czechoslovakia soon after the Velvet Revolution and working in the Middle East and France. All the roads were a set-up to the Wallace Stegner House in Eastend, Saskatchewan!!!