For the past few years I have found that at speaking engagements people are reading the only bio they can find on the internet, which is approximately six years old and refers to now-defunct organizations. An appropriate bio is the following - please use this or some version of this:
Justin Podur is a writer and editor for ZNet (www.zmag.org), part of Z Communications, an alternative media organization dedicated to political analysis and support for movements for social change. He has reported from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pakistan, India, Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Israel/Palestine, and Mexico, and writes on North America as well. He has written for Z Magazine, Frontline (India), New Politics, New Left Review, rabble.ca, and other publications and is part of the Pueblos en Camino collective (www.en-camino.org). He runs a blog (www.killingtrain.com), and is based in Toronto.
What are these speaking engagements? In recent years I have spoken on the following topics:
-The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
-Colombia & Venezuela
-Canadian foreign policy (and indigenous issues)
-Israel/Palestine (and Middle East politics more generally)
-Afghanistan, Pakistan, India
-Haiti
-Race/Antiracism
-Alternative media/journalism
-Environmental issues
-Globalization, economics, imperialism & anti-imperialism
I can talk on most things that I write about - these are the talks that I get invited to do. If there is an audience that will benefit from it, I will speak for expenses (having read George Monbiot's book, "Heat", I increasingly think traveling long-distances to give talks is ecologically unsound and prefer to speak around where I live, and I guess I would encourage others to book speakers who are local). I currently have an income from non-political work, so I seek honoraria and donate them to cash-strapped social justice organizations (usually OCAP).