2026 CONFERENCE - DAY 1
Monday, October 19, 2026
SESSIONS
Scott Johnson Keynote - It Will Never Happen - Personal Lessons From the Control Room | Miriam Stone, Eric Stuart
Sponsored By: Scott Pollard & Suzannah Patmios
In 2017, after an Ariana Grande concert, a suicide attack took place, resulting in 22 deaths and 1,017 injuries. Miriam Stone, at the time the Duty Manager of the Manchester Arena, was at work that day and she will guide us through her experience facing the greatest fear of every event professional.
This presentation emphasizes that it will be people who respond when something bad happens. This must be in the mind of everyone involved in planning events and writing incident response plans and procedures. People are not theoretical, and people are amazing.
Miriam will share a moving and unique account of her experience of the incident including:
- The evolution of the study of crowd movement and crowd behaviour, and range of backgrounds and experiences event professionals may bring to their roles.
- The venue’s robust interest in security, including plans and preparations, information sources, relationships and communications with the local authorities, first responders and suppliers, and training.
- The lead up to the event and discussions with the Ariana Grande tour personnel.
- The story of that night and her personal responses including thoughts, feelings and decision-making.
- The immediate aftermath, and the weeks and months following the attack.
- Personal learning and lessons learned as an industry.
Providing real-life insight, Miriam will remind us about what we owe to those who lost their lives, those whose lives were forever changed, and those who put the jackets back on and came back to work another day. And how we must value all of them and equip them to do their very best.
Ultimately, it will be our people who will respond in a major incident, and we must remember that people work and play in the events industry for the joy it brings.
Learning outcomes:
- Understand the necessity of preparation and communication
- Understand human behaviours under pressure
- Remind ourselves of why we do, what we do: there are human lives and their safety at stake.
Content Warning: This presentation discusses a real, violent incident, and the content is disturbing.
The Halifax Explosion and the Science of Social Change | Dr. Susan Dodd
110 years ago, about a kilometre from where we will be meeting, a ship packed with explosives bound for the "Great War" was struck by another vessel in the “narrows” between our deep harbour and sheltered basin. The ensuing blast was the most powerful manmade explosion before “the bomb.” At least 1782 people died, thousands were injured, and the North End of the city was flattened. Disaster Studies—closely related to safety—is said to have begun with a study by Samuel Prince: Catastrophe and Social Change.
Prince was an Anglican priest in the North End at the time of the explosion, completed a doctorate in the then emerging area of Social Science at Columbia University and became a professor at the University of King's College and Dalhousie here in Halifax. “The explosion blew Halifax into the 20th century,” Prince said. Prince’s work and life offer insight into a shift in thinking about social responsibility, God’s providence, and random horrors that marks a turn toward what would become Canada's unique welfare state. For Prince, and his generation, disasters like the Halifax explosion opened rare opportunities for comprehensive and scientific social improvement. As Prince puts it, “catastrophe always means change. It doesn’t always mean progress.”
In that terrible blast on December 6, 1917, Halifax became at once “the disaster city” and a unique opportunity for social reform. Our aim is to remember the costs of the Halifax explosion with reverence and, through reflecting on its legacy, to raise questions for ourselves.
Peer to Peer Conversations - Crafting a National Vision for Event Safety (Part 1) | Kevin Tanner (Lead), Steven Adelman, Janet Sellery
Session Description Coming Soon.
Event Safety Jeopardy! | Steven Adelman
What's a great game that combines teamwork, fabulous prizes, and event safety wisdom?
SPEAKERS
Steven Adelman
Attorney & Event Safety Consultant, Adelman Law Group, PLLC
| Steven A. Adelman is the head of Adelman Law Group, PLLC, a founder of the Event Safety Alliance in the U.S., and ESA Canada’s 2026 Event Safety Consultant. He creates safety plans, provides crowd manager training, and serves as an event safety standard of care expert in significant lawsuits, including the cases arising from the 2011 Indiana State Fair stage roof collapse, the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting in Las Vegas, and the 2021 Astroworld festival crowd crush. Mr. Adelman led the task groups that created American National Standards for three related aspects of event safety: ANSI ES1.9-2020, Crowd Management; ANSI ES1.40-2023, Event Security; and ANSI ES1.42-2025, Parade Safety. |
Dr. Susan Dodd
Professor of Humanities, University of King's College, Halifax
| Susan Dodd is a professor of Humanities at the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia where she teaches in the first-year great books course, the Foundation Year Program and the Contemporary Studies Program--“Apocalypse: Revolutions in Politics and Culture.” Professor Dodd is the author of The Ocean Ranger: Remaking the Promise of Oil (Fernwood, 2011), Faith and Progress: the roots of the Canadian welfare state in the first-ever work of disaster studies (Samuel H. Prince’s Catastrophe and Social Change: a study of the Halifax Disaster) (under review at the University of Toronto Press) and numerous chapters and articles including “Blame and Causation in the Aftermath of Industrial Disasters: Nova Scotia’s Coal Mines from 1858 to Westray,” (in Working Disasters: the politics of recognition and response, Eric Tucker, ed. Baywood Press, 2006, 237-276) and “Unsettled Accounts After Westray,” (in The Westray Chronicles. McCormick ed. Black Point: Fernwood, 1999, 218-250). She is an avid volunteer board member and teacher in the Halifax Humanities Society that offers barrier free humanities education in urban Halifax, as well as a member (and the founding chair) of the St. George’s Refugee Sponsorship Committee. Professor Dodd is a graduate of West Kings District High School in Auburn NS and holds a BA (Hon) in Classics, Philosophy and Political Science from King’s and Dalhousie, an MA in Political Science and a PhD in Sociology both from York University. She is developing a small orchard of fruit trees and rose bushes in the Annapolis Valley. |
Janet Sellery, CRSP, CHSC
Sellery Health + Safety, Health & Safety Consultant
| Janet Sellery CRSP, CHSC, is one of Canada’s leading experts in health and safety and the arts, entertainment, and live events. She started her career in stage management and, after a critical injury involving an actor, she pioneered the health and safety program at the Stratford Festival, Canada’s largest repertory theatre. Janet is an active volunteer with Event Safety Alliance Canada (2026 Programming Coordinator (Conference); Board Chair, 2021 - 2024), Event Safety Alliance U.S. (Director), the Ontario Ministry of Labour Live Performance Health & Safety Advisory Committee, the Scott Johnson Working Group and the Event Safety Working Group. She has been awarded the “Jack McAllister Award” (Toronto Metropolitan University), the “Ron Epp Memorial Award for Professional Achievement” (Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology) and “Canada’s Safety Manager of the Year” (Canadian Occupational Safety Magazine). As a consultant (Sellery Health + Safety), Janet focuses on customizing programs, training, and resources to reflect the constantly evolving and unique demands of the arts, entertainment, and live events. |
Miriam Stone
Miriam Stone, Venue Operations Consultant
 | Miriam Stone has worked in the events industry all her life, starting out as a theatre and venue technician for Hounslow Council. She has been an Events Manager since 1997, planning and operating outdoor events including BBC Music Live, BBC Proms in the Park and the Summer Pops – and orchestra season under canvas in Liverpool as well as touring with artists as Promoter Rep. She started at the AO Arena in 2006 as Events Manager ending up as Director of Operations until 2025. Having worked on events as diverse as the Urban Farm Show to World Championship Boxing, her hands on experience of events, event management and crowd behaviour is extensive. She is a people-centred manager and events professional, focusing on the individuals who work across the industry and, ultimately, who will respond in a major incident, while remembering that people work and play in the events industry for the joy it brings. Miriam is now a consultant in venue and event operations, and as such, her work is broad. From speaking engagements across diverse industries through to longer term working with old and new venue teams to review and develop structures and processes. In a constantly evolving industry, robust operations which support those who work within them and enable them to feel safe and considered, will help to make events safe, secure, and fun for everyone. |
Eric Stuart, QPM, BA
Director, Gentian Events
| Eric Stuart QPM, BA, is the director of Gentian Events, and also the retired chair of both the UK Crowd Management Association and the Global Crowd Management Alliance. He has been involved in Crowd Safety for nearly 20 years and was the police planning lead for Notting Hill Carnival 1.1 million, London New Year’s Eve of 450k and the 70-day London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay, viewed by an estimated 14 million people. At the end of his service, he was awarded the Queen’s Policing medal for dedication to duty, leadership and professionalism in his 33 years of police service. He was a witness at the Manchester Arena Inquiry, specifically in relation to the role of private security in counter terrorism roles. He is currently acting as a tactical advisor to the Metropolitan Police in London investigating a double fatality in a crowd crush at the O2 Academy Brixton in December 2022. He was the author of three aspects of the Baroness Casey Review into the Wembley Euro 2020 Finals disorder, particularly Wembley’s fitness to continue to operate, the impact of security shortages and skills and lastly, the crowd safety issues that led to the declaration of the nearest of near misses since Hillsborough. He was a Crowd Safety Manager for events ranging from summer festivals and concerts through to Edinburgh Hogmanay and is also engaged with crowd management at many complex ‘crowded space’ environments including large shopping centres and religious gatherings across the US, Canada and the UK. The largest of these include the 800,000 Vaisakhi Parade in Vancouver, BC, Canada. He was the crowd safety advisor to the Calgary Stampede and Global crowd advisor to F1 Grand Prix races. He holds a FdA and BA in Crowd Safety Management and was the co-author of the 2015 and 2019 UK Good Practice Guide to working in Safety Advisory Groups. He authored and reviewed chapters of the ‘Safer Crowds, Safer Venues’ published in 2023. He has recently completed a review of crowd safety aspects of the Liverpool FC Victory Parade in May 2025. |
Kevin Tanner
Executive Director, Dalhousie Arts Centre
| Kevin Tanner is an executive leader in arts, culture, and live events with a passion for bringing people together to share in incredible experiences. His career began as a Technical Director in theatre, advancing through production leadership roles before being appointed the Managing Director of Production at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Now, as the Executive Director of Dalhousie Arts Centre, Kevin is leading one of Atlantic Canada’s premiere legacy venues through an exciting strategic business transformation that will revitalize the organization’s cultural impact, reputation, and build financial stability. Kevin is a two-time alumnus of Queen’s University, holding a Master of Arts in Arts Leadership and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) majoring in Drama. Committed to making arts spaces safer places, he is a co-founder of the national not-for-profit Event Safety Alliance Canada. He is an avid competitive bagpiper, a curler, and, most importantly to him, a new dad. |
Programming and speakers are subject to change.
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