Diversity at Work Conference: Immigrant Women and the Workplace (Panel) SfCarchive
Channel: SkillsforchangeArchive SfC
Date: 2012-11-27

"From immigration to success" panelists:

HON. JEAN AUGUSTINE (Fairness Commissioner for Ontario):

Hon. Jean Augustine was appointed as the first Fairness Commissioner for Ontario in March 2007. The Office of the Fairness Commissioner oversees licensing in 40 regulatory bodies for Ontario professions. The commissioner's mandate is to ensure that registration practices are transparent, objective, impartial and fair. 

The Office of the Fairness Commissioner is an independent agency of the government of Ontario, with the goal of ensuring that people are treated fairly when they apply to become licensed professionals in one of Ontario's regulated professions -- no matter where they were trained. This goal is widely supported in Ontario, and reflects the principles and core values of the people of this province.
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CETA RAMKHALAWANSIGH (National Chair, The Word On The Street Canada; Former City of Toronto Manager, Diversity Management and Community Engagement):

Ceta Ramkhalawansingh worked at Toronto City Hall for three decades prior to her retirement in 2010. She was responsible for pioneering many ground-breaking equity and human rights policies making Toronto a social justice leader.

During the 1970's, Ceta was a co-founder and lecturer in Women's Studies, University of Toronto and worked with school trustees at the Toronto school board to develop anti-racism and multicultural policies and programs.

Currently, Ceta is the National Chair, The Word On The Street Canada; President, LEARNXS Foundation; Principal's Appointee, Innis College Council; New College Alumni representative, College of Electors and is the Honorary President, Grange Community Association. She also serves on the boards member of: Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care, Toronto Community Foundation, Friends of Fort York. She is a member of: Advisory Committee, Community Worker Program (George Brown College), Community Heritage Award jury (Heritage Toronto), Public Policy Award committee (Couchiching Institute) and Grange Park Advisory Committee.

Previously, was the boards or committees of: University Settlement, Cecil Community Centre, InterCede, United Way, YWCA Toronto, MATCH International Centre, Grange Area Housing Co-op.

She has received several awards including the New Pioneers Award (Skills for Change), the Arbor Award (University of Toronto), Person's Day Award (Women's Legal Education and Action Fund and Women's Intercultural Network), Access and Justice Excellence in Equity Award (Council of Agencies Serving South Asians).

Her academic qualifications from the University of Toronto include a BA, MA, a graduate
Diploma in Child Studies and residency requirement towards a Ph D at OISE. Ceta has
contributed to several publications and prepared numerous reports on equity, human rights and social justice issues.
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Dr. EKATERINA ROGAEVA (Associate Professor (Department of Medicine, Neurology division) Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases (T CRND), University of Toronto):
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SADIA RAFIQUDDIN (Jeanne Sauvé Scholar):

Sadia Rafiquddin works at the intersection of human rights, advocacy and storytelling using a combination of policy research, photography and videography. Born in Sargodha, Pakistan and raised in Mississauga, ON since the age of five, Sadia's early exposure to human rights violations and inequality motivated her to pursue a life devoted to social justice.

Sadia's desire to alleviate the impact of HIV/AIDS was sparked as a participant in the 2006 WUSC International Seminar in Botswana. In 2007, she returned to the region to conduct ethnographic research on the social and cultural impact of HIV/AIDS on grandmothers in the township Katutura, Namibia. She has been an accredited journalist at G8 Summits in Russia (2006), Germany (2007) and Japan (2008) and contributed to more than 16 research reports for the G8 Research Group.