Art~Healing~Transformation
My path into public service began in community spaces — as a founding member of both Montreal Serai and Festival Accès-Asie, working to create platforms where diverse voices could be heard and celebrated. Through these organizations, I learned the art of bringing people together across cultural and generational lines, fostering dialogue and understanding in Montreal's vibrant multicultural landscape. This early experience of building bridges across cultural divides would become the foundation of my approach to policy work in the federal public service.
For more than three decades, I served Canada in roles that carried me from the frontlines of immigration service delivery to providing advice and expertise at the domestic and international level, from building consultative mechanisms to sitting at tables where policy and legislation were drafted.
What drew me to government was the possibility of systemic change — the chance to move from advocating for marginalized communities to creating the policies and programs that could serve them with dignity and fairness. At Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, I found myself at the intersection of law, humanity, and belonging, working on initiatives that would help shape how Canada welcomes newcomers and defines citizenship.
Through my involvement in various major public policy development projects in the areas of immigration, refugee protection, citizenship and multiculturalism, I learned that effective policy requires more than technical expertise — it demands open and honest collaboration, deep listening, cultural sensitivity, and the ability to hold multiple perspectives simultaneously. Each briefing to ministers, each stakeholder consultation, each legal framework was an opportunity to weave together competing interests into solutions that honored both program integrity and human dignity.
My work took me into international forums such as the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the Intergovernmental Consultations on Migration, Asylum and Refugees, and the International Civil Aviation Organization, where I represented not just Canadian interests but our values of inclusion and respect. These experiences reinforced my understanding that policy is ultimately about creating conditions where people can flourish.
The mentorship aspect of leadership was a critical element for me — recognizing that lasting change happens through people, not just programs. I sought to create spaces where staff could bring their whole selves to complex work, understanding that diversity of thought and experience strengthens decision-making.
Today, I carry this journey forward — weaving together the policy maker and the artist, the strategist and the seeker of transformation — toward new forms of service, expression, and connection. The skills of deep listening, consensus-building, and holding space for difficult conversations translate directly into ceremony and creative practice. The commitment to inclusion, respect, and human dignity that guided my policy work continues to shape how I approach transformation — both personal and collective.