Built From Nothing
What seven years in the shelter system taught Joél about resourcefulness, resilience, and starting before you feel ready.
Joél Zola — social entrepreneur, public speaker, programmer and consultant
Hey, I’m a...
Social entrepreneur, public speaker, programmer and consultant.
I build tools, platforms, and narratives that empower marginalized communities and independent creators.
Issue Nº 01 — Toronto, CA
Social entrepreneur•Public speaker•Programmer•Consultant
§ 01 — The short versionP. 02
At fifteen, Joél Zola was on his own
.
For seven years he moved city to city, shelter to shelter. At Eva’s Phoenix, a Toronto youth shelter with a print
shop, he started printing his poetry. That pamphlet became 
, a Black-led nonprofit where
marginalized youth tell their own stories
.
Now he brings that story to stages, boardrooms and classrooms.
12+
Years building Street Voices since its first magazine issue in June 2014
05
Issues of the magazine published while Joél was still homeless
500
Copies in the first print run, most of them sold or handed out in shelters
02
Major honours in 2025, from the Toronto Arts Foundation and LEGUP
§ 02 — What I doP. 03
One story.
Four hats.
Every role Joél plays comes back to the same idea: the people closest to a problem should be the ones shaping the solution. He builds the platforms, tells the stories, and helps organizations do the same.
- 01 Social Entrepreneur Founder & Executive Director of Street Voices, a Black-led nonprofit empowering street-involved and at-risk youth through arts, media and community.
- 02 Public Speaker Keynotes, workshops and fireside chats on resilience, youth voice, media, and building something from nothing.
- 03 Programmer Builds the digital tools behind the mission, like Street Voices’ online directory of free programs and services across the GTA.
- 04 Consultant Helps nonprofits, institutions and companies design programs, platforms and stories that actually reach the communities they serve.
§ 03 — On stageP. 04
Stories that
move rooms.
From youth assemblies to conference keynotes, Joél speaks from lived experience, then hands every audience something they can use on Monday morning.
Signature talks — tailored to every roomKeynote · Workshop · Fireside
Own Your Story
Why every community needs its own media, and how training young people turns them from subjects of stories into the storytellers.
Code for Community
Building technology with, not for, the people it serves: lessons from putting free services across the GTA one search away.
Keynotes · Workshops · Panels · Fireside chats · Virtual
All talks & formats§ 04 — RecognitionP. 05
Honours &
headlines.
Honours
2025
Community Arts Award
Toronto Arts Foundation — to Street Voices
2025
Youth Entrepreneurship Award
LEGUP Secure Our Wealth Symposium
2023
UN Decade for People of African Descent Award
Ontario Black History Society — for recognition in justice & development
In the press
2019
Ample Labs
“Surviving the Streets as a Kid: Joél’s Story”
2018
CBC News — Start-Up City
“This man started a magazine while living in a Toronto homeless shelter”
Features, honours & program partners
CBC NewsToronto Arts FoundationLEGUPOntario Black History SocietyToronto Public LibraryToronto Arts Council
§ 05 — In his wordsP. 06
My housing situation for me has always been irrelevant.