Meet the Season Two podcast team
Released in January 2025
Mariko Sakamoto: Podcast Host and Research Lead
Mariko Sakamoto, host of the second season of Call to Mind, is an assistant professor at the University of Victoria’s School of Nursing and research affiliate at the Institute of Aging and Lifelong Health. She specializes in dementia-related, community-based participatory research. Her work centres on amplifying the voices of people living with dementia and their care partners, addressing stigma, and highlighting their needs. Through action-oriented research, Mariko aims to foster inclusive communities, challenge societal assumptions, and advance understanding and support for those affected by dementia.
Jenni Schine: Producer
Jenni Schine is a sound artist and Registered Clinical Counsellor based in Vancouver, BC. Over the last two decades, she has worked in non-profits, social justice, and the arts in remote communities and urban centres. She is a big fan of collaborative projects and public engagement and has extended her academic work into film, radio, podcasts, electroacoustic compositions, and art installations. Jennifer's decision to pursue a career in counselling arose from a profound desire to listen deeply to her environment, to others, and within the self. She holds a Master's in Counselling Psychology from Adler University, a Master of Arts (Communication) from Simon Fraser University, and a Bachelor of Arts (Anthropology) from the University of Victoria.
David Parfit: Sound Designer
David Parfit is a Victoria-based film composer and sound designer with a Master’s in Music Technology from New York University. David owns Seaside Sound, co-runs Monkey C Interactive and has created film and video scores for release in theatres and TV (CBC, BBC, ABC, PBS, ESPN and National Geographic). Notable scores include The Hollow Child, Two 4 One, Saving Luna (re-edited with narration by Ryan Reynolds and released in US theatres as The Whale – co-composed with Tobin Stokes), The Breach, Call of the Baby Beluga, Esluna: The First Monolith (with fellow composer Marc Junker). He has won more than 50 industry and festival awards worldwide.
Suzanne Ahearne: Executive Producer
Suzanne Ahearne is a journalist and podcast producer. She led the production team for the multi-award-winning first season (2022) of Call to Mind while a member of the communications and marketing team at the University of Victoria, where she piloted research-focused podcasts including Scales of Change: A Field Guide to the Dragons of Climate Inaction produced by Future Ecologies (2020) in partnership with UVic. Suzanne holds a BA (English) from UVic and a Master of Journalism from UBC.
Debra Sheets: Founding Host
Debra Sheets is a professor emerita in the School of Nursing and a research affiliate with the Institute on Aging and Lifelong Health at the University of Victoria. She is the founder of several community-based arts and music initiatives including Voices in Motion Choir and Memory Connections in Victoria, BC, that focus on engagement in arts, music, and creating caring communities that reduce dementia stigma and social isolation. She is the founder of Call to Mind, and was the host of season one, released in 2022.
Research, Technical & Advisory Support
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Jim Mann
Consultant
Advocate living with Alzheimer's & recipient of UBC honorary Doctor of Laws degree
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Cynthia McDowell
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Cole Tamburri
Research assistant
PhD student, (Psychology), UVic
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Bruce Devereux
Technical assistance
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Paulina Santaella
Research coordinator
Sakamoto Lab, UVic
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Mendel Skulski
Technical assistance
Our Partners and funders
Call to Mind, Season Two (2025), is made possible by the generosity and creativity of the participants in Mariko Sakamoto's research project, and by the University of Victoria, with funding support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and Scholar Award funding from Michael Smith Health Research BC/Alzheimer Society of BC.
