Every day, people in Canada wait for a life-changing kidney transplant, but not everyone gets the chance. Living donors can make an incredible difference - but there are big barriers standing in the way.
Why is it still so hard for patients to find a match? What challenges do donors face before and after surgery? And most importantly - what can we do to fix this?
Join us during National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week (April 21 – 25, 2025) for an eye-opening Zoom webinar hosted by the PKD Foundation of Canada, featuring Kris Woods, a living kidney donor and Maritimes Director of the Canadian Transplant Association (CTA), and Joanna, a PKD patient who received Kris’s kidney.
Together, they’ll share their powerful story and take a deep dive into the urgent issues facing kidney patients and living donors - especially in Atlantic Canada.
What you’ll learn:
- The real-life journey of a kidney donor and recipient
- The biggest barriers stopping people from becoming living donors
- Why Nova Scotia’s presumed consent law isn’t a perfect fix
- How outdated policies and insurance rules make donation harder
- Where advocacy is urgently needed - and how YOU can help
If you’re wondering how to take action and make a real impact for kidney patients, this webinar is for you. Whether you’re a patient, a family member, a potential donor, or someone who simply wants to push for change, you’ll leave with practical steps to get involved.
About the presenters
Kristofer Woods was a living kidney donor to his friend Joanna in 2018. Since the donation, Kristofer has been active in his local community engaging others in the conversation around the benefits of organ donation and the positive impact choosing to be a donor can have on so many others. Kristofer lives in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, and has been a member of L'Arche for the past 16 years - a community-based organization that provides housing and programing for people with and without intellectual disabilities. Kris is currently the director in Nova Scotia, and interim director in PEI and New Brunswick.
Joanna is a PKD patient living in Ontario. She received her living kidney donation from Kris.