Meet the Co-Founders

Herleen Arora (she/her)

Co-Founder and Managing Director

Herleen is an educator, community leader, researcher and consultant. She co-founded the collective several years ago with fellow change makers, and is passionate about designing spaces, programming and research that supports the social and economic mobility of women and gender diverse communities across the South Asian diaspora.

Ayesha Syed (she/her)

Co-Founder

Ayesha (MEd, OCT) is an educator, anti-racism consultant, and community leader who is committed to holistic and pragmatic approaches to equity and community advocacy.  Ayesha leads organizations in racial literacy, inclusive education and programming, and anti-oppressive leadership; she coaches systems on iterative approaches in change management that predicate anti-racist collaborations working alongside minoritized communities to advance community mobilization and social justice.

SAWC Team

Almeera Khalid (she/her), Project Manager

Almeera is a public policy consultant and holds a MSc in Forced Migration and International Development from the University of Oxford. Almeera is a tri-sector policy professional--with experience in civil society, the private sector and UN entities. She specializes in migration, human rights, and gender, and has worked with UN agencies and research institutions. She is passionate about addressing social and political issues and is a strong advocate for gender justice.

Rajvi Mehta (she/her), Graphic Designer and Communications Coordinator

Rajvi is a dedicated Graphic Designer specializing in visual design, branding, UX, digital content creation and design for social good. She believes that design serves as a universal language that can spark dialogue and create meaningful connections. By infusing elements of culture into the designs, she strives to celebrate diversity and amplify underrepresented voices within the community.

Sudipra Saha (she/her), Flourish Project Coordinator

For over 5 years, Sudipra has exemplified great leadership in working with students, faculty, alumni, staff, and stakeholders. She is passionate about supporting underserved communities by increasing access to education and career development opportunities. Sudipra has extensive experience in delivering coordination services and implementing programs, events, and initiatives supporting women in Ontario. Her passion for empowering women and her extensive experience in accelerating growth bring her to this role, where she will foster growth and learning for young South Asian women and gender-diverse individuals.

Seema Taneja (she/her), Research Advisor and Consultant

Seema is an evaluation consultant who uses a community approach to metric development. She has been able to work across sectors developing and building the capacity of data knowledge and comfort.

SAWC Community Advisors and Partners

Advisors and Collaborators

Akosua Alagaratnam

Ritika Arora

Shagufe Hossain

Zaina Gohar

Amar Nijhawan

Surabhi Jain

Antu Hossain

Kavita Dogra

Program Partners

Flourish - Workthrough

Thrive 2025 and ERP - Laadliyan 

ERP - York Region Women’s Foundation 

Didi Creative Fund - Tamil Women Rising and Didihood

SAWC Financial Partners and Funders

  • Agincourt Community Services Association (ACSA)

  • Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF)

  • Region of York