PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Hani is the Founder, President, and Executive Director of the Canadian Advisory of Women Immigrants (CAWI). Hani immigrated from a small town in Pakistan and settled in Regina, Saskatchewan. Hani completed her B.Sc. in Psychology at McGill University, and she is now pursuing a Master of Science in Epidemiology at McGill University. Moreover, Hani serves as the Co-Chair of the Youth Working Group at the Canadian Partnership for Women’s and Children’s Health and as a Youth Advisor for UNICEF. Hani is passionate about sexual and reproductive health, access to healthcare, and the well-being of vulnerable populations.

TREASURER

Ana is the Canadian Advisory of Women Immigrants’ Treasurer and serves on the Board of Directors. Ana is a second-year law student at the University of Sherbrooke who wishes to pursue immigration law and has previously focused their research on the sociological impacts of policy on Canadian immigrant populations during their studies in political science at McGill University.

VICE PRESIDENT

Rehma Khan is a Master of Science in Public Health student at the University of Alberta specializing in Health Promotion and Socio-Behavioural Sciences. She recently received her Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Psychology from the University of Alberta. Her work focuses on promoting initiatives surrounding sexual and reproductive health advocacy and improving health outcomes for immigrant women and girls. She is passionate about creating culturally sensitive learning materials and developing programs for students with diverse learning needs.

DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND EDUCATION

Ksenia Kholina is a family medicine resident physician, registered dietitian, and critical health researcher based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Drawing upon her professional and academic work, as well as personal experience of immigrating to Canada, Ksenia serves as a Director of Research and Education at the Canadian Advisory of Women Immigrants (CAWI). Ksenia is passionate about women’s health, mentorship, and community work.

DIRECTOR OF FUNDING & DEVELOPMENT

Sheraz is a second-year Master of Public Health student at the University of Alberta, with a particular interest in global health and communicable diseases. Drawing on her experiences as a second-generation immigrant, she is passionate about helping create spaces where immigrant women can feel empowered and have opportunities to pursue their interests.

DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Francyves recently graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Critical Studies in Equity and Solidarity and double minors in Political Science and Writing and Rhetoric. She hopes to pursue community development in higher education. Drawing on her experience as a former immigrant and woman of color, she is passionate about mental health, body image, and community empowerment and growth initiatives, particularly in creating spaces where girls and women can be empowered to find their voice, identity, and confidently walk in their purpose.

LEAD TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPER

Rita studied Computer Science and Psychology at McGill, and is currently leading the development of the digital toolkit for the Canadian Advisory of Women Immigrants’ Sexual and Reproductive Health Campaign. She's from Hangzhou, China, and is currently based in Toronto. She enjoys building new software tools, solving programming problems, and learning about both neurological and philosophical perspectives on dreams, emotions, child development, free will, and Positive Psychology.

TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPER

Injoon Youn graduated from McGill University with a B.A. in Computer Science and a minor in Sociology. He is a South Korean immigrant based in Montreal, passionate about LGBTQIIA+ rights and front-end web development and design. He strives to create stunning and dynamic UI and is currently assisting in developing the digital toolkit for the Canadian Advisory of Women Immigrants’ Sexual and Reproductive Health Campaign.

RESEARCH & EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Zara is currently a Master of Public Health student at the University of Alberta and completed her Bachelor of Science Honours at the University of Guelph. She is a second-generation immigrant and is extremely passionate about sexual and reproductive health and rights in faith-based and immigrant communities in Canada.

RESEARCH & EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Harini Aiyer (she/her) has a PhD in Community and Population Health Sciences from the University of Saskatchewan. Harini also has a Masters of Health Science in Reproductive and Cancer Biology from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, USA. Her research examines the areas of health equity, anti-oppressive methodologies, global health, and health professions education. She draws on her experiences as an immigrant in Canada, while being mindful of the relative privileges and power dynamics in the spaces she navigates– both within and outside academia.

RESEARCH & EDUCATION VOLUNTER

Yuvika Dandiwal completed a Bachelor of Arts (Honours Psychology) at McGill University in 2022 and since then, has been involved in various mental health research and advocacy roles, including being a health ambassador for South Asian Health Alliance (SAHA). Drawing from her experiences as a first-generation immigrant in Canada, she is passionate about researching and advocating for immigrants' mental health.

RESEARCH AND EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Jessica completed her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Statistics at McGill University and is now pursuing a Master of Science in Epidemiology at McGill University. She is passionate about applying her quantitative background to support research regarding women’s and sexual health and is very excited to be a research assistant with the Research and Education Team this year!

RESEARCH AND EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Radha Maradiya is a current medical student at the University of Alberta. She recently completed her Master's in Public Health, specializing in Epidemiology at the University of Alberta. Born in India, she immigrated to Canada when she was three years old. She is incredibly passionate about advocating for sexual and reproductive health education and rights for vulnerable immigrant populations.

RESEARCH AND EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Marianna Kovtun is an LPN and a student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology at MSVU in Halifax, NS. Marianna also has a background as a medical student from Ukraine. In her free time, Marianna enjoys engaging in fulfilling activities like traveling, snowboarding, and exploring new experiences. She is a huge advocate for comprehensive sexual health and gender equality, which aligns with her current role in gender-affirming care. Her biggest dream is to attend medical school and become a doctor.

RESEARCH AND EDUCATION VOLUNTEER

Shubhangi completed her bachelor's in psychology with honors from India and is currently pursuing her master's in educational psychology at McGill University. Her research interests lie in the environment/nature, civic engagement, and social-emotional learning largely in the field of education. She is also interested in learning and making a contribution to improve the lives of immigrants who may be faced with a lack of access to resources, and struggle in several domains of their life including health and overall well-being. After all, every drop of an effort constitutes an ocean of hope, vision, and opportunity for others!