| Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, March 12, 2021 | 5:00PM - 6:30PM | Online Event, Online Event |
On Friday, March 12th, 2021 from 5 – 6:30 PM EST the Munk School will be hosting an online panel event in the spirit of the International Women Day celebration. The event is titled “Women Breaking Ceilings”. The panel will be composed of high-ranking women in government and in the private sector that will shed light on how they overcame barriers to access and navigate professional spaces often deemed inaccessible to many women. Moreover, this event aims to showcase trailblazing women in our economy and government to hopefully inspire and encourage women at the Munk School and beyond.
Bios:
Senator Wanda Thomas Bernard
Senator Wanda Thomas Bernard is the first African Nova Scotian woman to be appointed to the Senate of Canada, representing the province of Nova Scotia and her hometown of East Preston. Senator Bernard champions issues impacting African Canadians and people living with disabilities. She is particularly invested in human rights, employment equity, and mental health. Through her involvement in community projects, her social work career, her time with Dalhousie School of Social Work, and now her work in the Senate and as Deputy Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights, Senator Bernard has maintained a deep dedication to social justice and racial justice. Senator Bernard advocates for reparations for the historic and continued anti-Black racism impacting the lives of African Canadians in her work.
Dr. Sarah Saska
Dr. Sarah Saska (She, Her, Hers) is the Co-founder and CEO of Feminuity, a global strategy firm that partners with leading technology startups through Fortune 500 companies to build diverse teams, equitable systems, and inclusive products and company cultures. Before co-founding Feminuity, Sarah led pioneering doctoral research at the intersection of equity, technology, and innovation. Her research highlighted the need for companies in the technology and innovation sector to centre ethical and equitable design and became the inspiration for Feminuity. Since then, Sarah has twice been named amongst the Women’s Executive Network’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada and on Culture Amp’s list of “Diversity and Inclusion Leaders You Should Know.” She is a powerful TEDx speaker, and she has been featured on CBC’s The National and Fast Company for her straightforward and actionable approach to the work.
Sylvia Parris-Drummond
Sylvia Parris-Drummond is the CEO of the Delmore “Buddy” Daye Learning Institute. Her work in education and the community is rooted in core Africentric Principles. She has a successful history of collaboration with the communities and stakeholders with whom she has worked. Through her extensive public sector involvement, Ms. Parris-Drummond has gained a deep understanding and appreciation for what it takes to conduct policy analysis, oversee publishing projects, and develop and implement education product and develop anti-racism and social equity transformation programs. Known for getting things done in a thoughtful, respectful and engaging way, she has been actively involved across a broad range of community initiatives and organizations such as Akoma Family Centre and Holdings, FEEDNS, the NS Early Childhood Intervention Services, the Black Business Initiative Community Investment Fund and the NS Mass Choir. She has worked for both municipal (Halifax Regional Municipality) and provincial governments (Departments of Education and Justice) as well as the Nova Scotia Community College. Sylvia is proud that during her time at provincial government she founded and was supported by sistahs to develop the African Canadian Women in the Public Service (ACWPS). Ms. Parris-Drummond holds a Masters of Arts in Life Long Learning – Africentricity, a Masters of Education – Curriculum, and a Bachelor of Science, Home Economics / Education.
An-Noûra Compaoré
An-Noûra Compaoré is passionate about changes and movements focused on long-term development, auto-sufficiency of developing nations, women equality. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of British Columbia (UBC). Upon her arrival in Vancouver from Burkina Faso, she introduced innovative foreign policy ideas, development analysis plans, and arts. Her passion for developing countries led her to present her research about the effects of foreign aid and foreign direct investments on corruption in Sub-Saharan Africa. This earned her the UBC Undergraduate Research Award. Compaoré is currently pursuing her Master of Public Policy at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. She is one of the co-founders and co-president of the Munk School Black Student Association. She was a pro-bono consultant at the Public Good Initiative and Equity Diversity Public Policy Initiative. Her love for women uplifting led her to organize one of the first International Women Day celebrations at UBC and International Women Day inspired panel event at the Munk School.
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