Samiha Sharif (she/her) holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Development Studies from McGill University. A first-generation immigrant settler woman of color in Tkaronto, Samiha believes that all her work must begin with listening, proceeding with kindness, and be rooted in community-centered principles. 

 

Samiha has been the Manager, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, and a Senior Manager, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility at Grand Challenges Canada. As an anti-oppressive social worker, Samiha has a diverse community background working with marginalized communities in many different settings: universities, an Inuit community, an Indigenous student center, an elementary school for Deaf children, as a social worker at a pediatric disability hospital, as a grief group facilitator, and a counselor. Working in the community has taught Samiha to prioritize a cultural humility lens, to always proceed with significant consultation, and to weave an intersectional lens thoroughly. Having been a practicing psychotherapist, and registered social worker at Hello Leena serving the immigrant BIPOC community, Samiha prioritizes a trauma-informed strength-based lens, health conflict resolution, and the value of consistent accountability in all her work.

 

As a Diversity and Inclusion consultant, Samiha has experience working with clients in the non-profit, tech, education, healthcare, and corporate sector creating training, programs, and policies to foster belonging for employees. Samiha works from a community-led intersectionality lens to help clients with creating and implementing strategic plans, recruitment, retention, discrimination reporting, anti-oppression training creation and facilitation, executive coaching, and stakeholder engagement. Samiha uses data-driven evaluation strategies to assess the effectiveness of all programs, policies, and initiatives to drive accountability that can foster work cultures with psychological safety.