Clara A.B. Joseph
Calgary Poet Laureate 2026 – 2028
Clara A.B. Joseph was selected as the eighth Calgary Poet Laureate for a two-year term starting on April 28, 2026. Joseph is a poet and Professor of English at the University of Calgary. Her poetry collections include The Face of the Other, Dandelions for Bhabha, and M/OTHER, which received first place from the Catholic Media Association (US and Canada).
‘Poetry begins in listening, and in the discernment that listening requires. In a city such as Calgary, with its many histories, languages and ways of being, I see this role as an invitation to attend more carefully to one another. I hope to help create spaces where poetry is encountered not as something distant, but as a shared practice of reflection, care and connection. I am honoured to serve this city in that spirit.’
Clara A.B. Joseph
Joseph is also the author of two scholarly books on the history and thought of the Thomas Christians of India: Christianity in India: The Anti-Colonial Turn (2019) and India’s Nonviolent Freedom Struggle: The Thomas Christians (1599–1799) (2024).
As Calgary’s Poet Laureate, Joseph brings poetry to the people through readings, conversations and collaborations with libraries, schools and community organizations. Her work invites communities to experience poetry as a shared practice of listening, reflection and attention to one another.
Read the Calgary Poet Laureate announcement here. More information about Clara A.B. Joseph can be found at:
Email: poet@calgaryartsdevelopment.com
UCalgary: profiles.ucalgary.ca/clara-joseph
Facebook: facebook.com/clarajosephab
Instagram: instagram.com/clarajosephab
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/clara-joseph
