What is the initiative?
My initiative is a community-based food program for refugees and families living in transitional housing in Rexdale. Rooted in food justice, health equity, and community building, it aims to provide shared kitchen access, cooking classes, cultural food gatherings, and employable skill-building opportunities. For those experiencing displacement, kitchens can be more than places to prepare food. They can also be spaces of comfort, familiarity, and cultural connection. Through this project, I hope to create a space where community members can gather to nourish themselves not only through food, but also through storytelling, skill-building, and collective care.
What is your connection to your chosen community?
My connection to Rexdale stems from having grown up here and continuing to live in the community today. It is a community that has raised me and continues to shape who I am. During my dietetic training, I completed a placement at the Rexdale Community Health Centre, where I worked with many refugee clients living in transitional housing. That experience deepened my understanding of the barriers many community members face in accessing food and other basic supports. Food is a basic human right, and it is important to me that members of my community have dignified access to safe, nutritious, and culturally inclusive food.
What are you looking forward to this year?
I am most looking forward to building relationships and learning alongside my cohort as well as members of my community. I am excited by the possibility of creating a space where people can come together to cook, share stories, exchange knowledge, and build a sense of connection and belonging. I am also looking forward to growing through the process myself, especially by strengthening my ability to adapt to community needs and to build something that is shaped by the voices and priorities of the people it is meant to serve.