I am a 20-year-old Torontonian with roots in India, Tanzania and Pakistan. I get incredibly excited about food and the joy of a great meal shared with others has no comparison. I have grown up amongst an exceptional range of flavours and I desire to broaden my tastes and eat my way around the world. One of my other great loves is soccer. I played for 8 years of my life and plan on starting again this summer. I follow the English Premier League and regularly get into discussions, both heated and otherwise, with friends who support opposing teams.
Additional Information
Personal Definition of Sustainability
Sustainability to me is a word to describe the long-term success of an action. I usually think about sustainability from a social and developmental aspect, particularly in relation to poverty alleviation. I believe that the most effective solutions to poverty are those that are driven by the people and their environment and not just monetary solutions. The quote "Give a man a fish and he has food for a day; Teach a man to fish and he has food for a lifetime," resonated with me from a young age and encompasses my personal definition of sustainability.
Sustainability-In-Action
I have been a member of Smart Solutions UWO since its inception in September 2011 at Western. Smart Solutions is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about sustainable solutions to poverty and facilitating the implementation of student-generated solutions. Last year, I participated in a pro-bono consulting project with SEVA Canada and Smart Solutions, which involved researching a problem provided to us by SEVA and writing a report outlining recommendations for them. I am currently the Vice-President of Communications, and my job is to effectively communicate club happenings to our members, as well as assisting the rest of the executive team with the planning of events. We are currently organizing a case competition called Build-A-Change, where participating teams of students are required to come up with a solution to a problem in the developing world, given by Amnesty International. The teams will present to a panel of judges and the winning team will have the opportunity to pitch their solution to Amnesty International.
This summer, I will be going to Africa on the Service Learning Trip offered by Ivey. I am looking forward to learning about the culture, political, and socio-economical atmosphere and the similarities and differences from Canadian life.
