Leadership

Teaching & Facilitation

As a facilitator and educator, I have developed programs and courses, created and curated content, and facilitated workshops, both remote and in-person around design, DEI, career empowerment, and leadership, with a strong focus on BIPOC and underrepresented audiences. 

Navigating Your Career in a Nonprofit: How to Advocate for Yourself and the Causes You Believe in 

  • CLIENT: The Wilderness Society
  • TIMELINE: February-March 2023
  • ROLE: I co-developed and co-facilitated a workshop for a group of 16 BIPOC mentees in The Wilderness Society’s internal mentorship program. Bespoke content and materials were designed around what the nonprofit industrial complex is, how to move past it, and tips and strategies to advocate for, and advance their careers.

Taking Ownership Over Your Career: An Inclusive Leadership Workshop for Social Justice Leaders

  • CLIENT: City University of New York
  • TIMELINE: November 2022-January 2023
  • ROLE: I developed and facilitated a workshop for participants completing the leadership for democracy and social Justice fellowship programs at City College. Fellows were engaged in individual reflections and interactive activities and provided with tools, templates, and resources to apply learnings and advance their careers.

Intro to Figma Foundations

  • CLIENT: Klick Health
  • TIMELINE: December 2021-March 2022
  • ROLE: I developed and facilitated a four-module Figma foundations course, training a total of 100 creatives at Klick Health on how to use the tool to collaborate effectively in their teams, in order to achieve consistency and continuity in their outputs. 

Using Human-Centred Design to Develop Youth Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa

  • CLIENT: Planned Parenthood of Ghana (PPAG)
  • TIMELINE: September-October 2021
  • ROLE: I developed and facilitated a 3-day Human-Centred Design training in Ghana for program officers and representatives working on youth programming in sub-Saharan Africa. The training included lessons on HCD fundamentals, case studies, and hands-on interactive activities that allowed participants to apply their learnings. 

UX Design Bootcamp

  • CLIENT: Juno College of Technology
  • TIMELINE: September-December 2020, February-April 2022
  • ROLE: I taught an 8-week design bootcamp to over 20 students covering topics such as UX research, product design, and accessibility. I led students through lessons and interactive exercises and worked with them to support project work.

Writing

My background is in humanities, photography, and journalism. I have worked as a freelance journalist in Iran, Bosnia, and Canada. I was the Head of Content at UPFRONT, a startup dedicated to changing confidence for women. As a writer, my work spans photo essays, articles, profiles, and thought pieces around design, culture, current affairs, and DEI, which can be read on Thousand&One’s blog.

Speaking

I have spoken at conferences, events, and on panels, and have been interviewed on a wide range of topics, including creating inclusive spaces and designing products and services for underrepresented communities.