Hi.
I'm a designer, researcher, and cultural planner. My practice prioritizes collaboration, community, wit, and empathy. I don’t vibe with sole authorship - in my home we co-create.
I’ve been involved in many projects, including public art installations, urban design masterplans, program evaluation research, and design-thinking education. My research focuses on cultural heritage, racialized urban peripheries, place-keeping and anti-displacement.
I am completing my Master of Science in Planning at the University of Toronto where I have received multiple awards and contributed to a number of research and knowledge mobilization projects. Previously, I received a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from the Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design where I specialized in the technology of architecture and urbanism.
Get in touch: Email, Instagram, LinkedIn
On The Land Where I Practice.
I currently live in Tkaronto (Toronto) in the Dish With One Spoon Territory, on the traditional territories of the Wendat, the Anishnaabeg and the Haudenosaunee, and the Treaty lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
I was raised for the first 16 years of my life in the United Arab Emirates to a Pakistani Father and Bengali Mother. I attended a British international school with students from all over the world. Due to various migrations and displacements, both my parents and all of my grandparents have each lived in at least 3 or more countries over their lifetimes. This isn’t the place to unpack the complexities of how all of these cultures interfaced, conflicted, and coalesced, but the point is - to be rootless is in my blood; the threads tying me to any specific land are brittle and frayed.
After settling on Turtle Island, I began to learn the importance of our relationships to land, and the stories of how this land has been violently stolen from its traditional caretakers. While I ended up on these lands due to my own histories of colonialism and displacement, I acknowledge my role as a settler in continuing the legacy of colonial violence here.
As a non-Indigenous racialized person, I strive to think critically about the impact of my actions on Indigenous communities. I recognize the injustices faced by the Indigenous peoples of the lands I settled on. I strive to centre Indigenous voices and take direction from Indigenous communities. I strive to stand in solidarity and take action to bring justice for Indigenous peoples at home and globally.
I was raised for the first 16 years of my life in the United Arab Emirates to a Pakistani Father and Bengali Mother. I attended a British international school with students from all over the world. Due to various migrations and displacements, both my parents and all of my grandparents have each lived in at least 3 or more countries over their lifetimes. This isn’t the place to unpack the complexities of how all of these cultures interfaced, conflicted, and coalesced, but the point is - to be rootless is in my blood; the threads tying me to any specific land are brittle and frayed.
After settling on Turtle Island, I began to learn the importance of our relationships to land, and the stories of how this land has been violently stolen from its traditional caretakers. While I ended up on these lands due to my own histories of colonialism and displacement, I acknowledge my role as a settler in continuing the legacy of colonial violence here.
As a non-Indigenous racialized person, I strive to think critically about the impact of my actions on Indigenous communities. I recognize the injustices faced by the Indigenous peoples of the lands I settled on. I strive to centre Indigenous voices and take direction from Indigenous communities. I strive to stand in solidarity and take action to bring justice for Indigenous peoples at home and globally.