Meet the Delegation
ACIC: Mallary McGrath
Mallary McGrath is an elected member of an all female Municipal Council in her rural hometown of Branch, in southeastern Newfoundland and Labrador. In her work as an elected official she advocates for rural services such as access to clean drinking water and youth programming, and in the early 2010’s advocated for access to high speed internet. Mallary believes rural women’s leadership is historical and that women are the natural leaders in rural settings. She believes that working with a group of powerful community leaders who are all female, while networking with many male counterparts, has been a motivational experience for her as her group has demonstrated the effectiveness of women’s leadership in a community. Mallary believes that when women are empowered, entire communities are empowered. Recently, she participated in Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador first Women’s Leadership Summit.
Having previously completed a Bachelor of Arts degree from Memorial University, and then completing her Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of Victoria, Mallary became the Executive Director of Planned Parenthood – Newfoundland and Labrador’s Sexual Health Centre. In this role she was responsible for managing the province’s only Planned Parenthood organization and overseeing clinical services, community education sessions, and working to improve access to reproductive health care. Having gained an interest in personal health privacy while working at Planned Parenthood, she now works as a Regional Privacy Manager within a regional health authority. Additionally, she is a current student at Dalhousie University where she is studying to complete her Diploma in Health Services Administration.
AQOCI: Florence Massicotte-Banville
Young professional in the field of international cooperation, Florence Massicotte-Banville completed a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Feminist studies at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM), before completing a master’s degree in Project Management from ESG-UQAM. Florence has 8 years of experience in the field of international cooperation, including several missions in Africa and Asia. Having a marked interest for the condition of women around the world, she developed a specialization in gender equality and carried out mandates for various Canadian NGOs such as UPA-DI, Cuso International, and Development and Peace. Today, as an International Project Manager at the Fondation Paul Gérin-Lajoie, Florence is responsible for a major project funded by Global Affairs Canada for the education of girls and women victims of conflicts, especially displaced, refugees, and returnees, in Burundi, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
OCIC: Aditi Sivakumar
Aditi is a passionate philanthropist, leader, and advocate for women rights. Aditi serves as a peer supporter where she provides support to women facing violence and helps plan community-based events to raise awareness regarding violence against women and children. She created various programs at a local domestic violence shelter within her community and has delivered numerous speeches at the national and international level regarding the importance of gender equality.
Aditi founded the “My Empowerment (ME) Packs” which are wellness kits containing comprehensive resource booklets for youth facing homelessness and women facing violence. Aditi is the Ontario regional advisor for the Canadian Council of Young Feminists. Aditi is the Director of Gender and Entrepreneurship for the Commonwealth Youth Council. Due to her passion for gender equality, Aditi was chosen as a United Nations Association in Canada youth delegate for the 63rd Commission on the Status of Women. She was selected by the Duke of Edinburgh to facilitate a lunch regarding gender equality in the workplace with Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex and the Her Honor the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario and is assisting the Canadian Teachers’ Federation in the creation of the Student Voice Booklet on Gender Equality.
Aditi is currently working to launch a campaign highlighting the importance of teaching all healthcare students how to screen and assess for domestic violence. Aditi was recently invited to speak to HRH Prince William, Duke of Cambridge at Kensington Palace about her work, and received the coveted 2019 Princess Diana Legacy Award from Lord Spencer in a glittering ceremony in London, UK.
MCIC: Sarah Bonner-Proulx
Sarah Bonner-Proulx is currently the Vice-President Advocacy for the University of Manitoba Students’ Union (UMSU) representing over 25,000 undergraduate students working with all levels of government and administration to promote safe and equitable educational experience for all students. Through this role, she has had the opportunity to work to reduce harms related to sexual violence through outreach, education and policy development. Prior to holding this office, Sarah has volunteered with Manitoba Association for Rights and Liberties working on outreach programs to youth on human rights and gender equity. Sarah hold a BSc in Psychology and Biological Sciences from the University of Manitoba and hopes to pursue Law in the future.
In her spare time, Sarah loves to cook, spend time outdoors, read and travel!
SCIC: Santana Dreaver
Santana Dreaver was selected by SCIC to represent the youth of Saskatchewan as part of the ICN Canadian delegation to CSW64. Santana is a proud member of the Kinistin Saulteaux Nation and Mistawasis Nehiyawak on Treaty 4 and 6 Territories in Saskatchewan. Her Saulteaux-Plains Cree background, people, and communities are what she is most passionate about.
In 2019 Santana accepted an international internship for Indigenous youth in Lusaka, Zambia where she worked with girls and women for 5 months at the YWCA. Much of her interest in international and sustainable development sprung from this internship as her passion for gender equality and women empowerment only strengthened.
Currently Santana is a youth care worker for the White Buffalo Youth Lodge, Bethany Home and the Saskatoon Tribal Council 24 HR homes in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She is serving as an Ambassador of Hope for We Matter until May of this year, working to deliver messages of hope to Indigenous youth. Santana is in her 4th year of a political science degree at the University of Saskatchewan. Having already completed a minor in sociology and a certificate in Indigenous Governance and Politics, Santana is excited to complete her last year of studies before pursing further governance programs.
In her spare time Santana can be found being active and at sporting events. Participating in her culture looks different throughout the year but is something she always makes time for. Travelling and time spent with her and family and friends are what she loves most.
ACGC: Amanda Ncube
Amanda is a Zimbabwean native, who grew up in Alberta, Canada. She is a graduate of the Community Support Worker program at Norquest College, and is currently in her final year of a Social Work Diploma program.
Amanda has worked with diverse populations in various organizations including, the Edmonton Food Bank, Catholic Social Services in the immigration and refugee department, Jellinek Society supporting recovering individuals, and as a Food ambassador at the hospital and at a senior care facility. In addition, she coordinates dialogues between immigrant women to facilitate inter-generational discourses about life experiences.
Some of her notable experiences include being involved in numerous grassroots projects such as providing sanitary pads to marginalized women both locally and internationally. She prides herself in working from a non-intrusive and strength based approach to build capacity while maintaining the privacy of those she helps and advocates Amanda is an avid reader, a self proclaimed food connoisseur who loves to try out the Edmonton food scene and takes every opportunity to travel to escape the long and cold winters of Edmonton.
NCGC: Nicole Lawson
Nicole is a member of the Tetlit Gwich’in Nation who is motivated by community engagement, youth empowerment, climate action, and personal growth. She values connecting with the land and learning from elders in the NWT and northern Canada. By day, Nicole works for the Government of the Northwest Territories as a human resource assistant in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Nicole is also involved in motivational speaking, youth engagement and maintains a blog (Goalbyme), which she uses to tell her stories in hopes of inspiring others.
Nicole has recently been a part of Leading Change Forum, Youth Climate Lab, Cando’s Economic Development Youth Summit, Starfish Canada, SevenGen Energy Youth Summit and completed a 4-month internship in Cambodia with the Cambodian Indigenous Youth Association.
In her spare time, Nicole enjoys the outdoors and doing activities like camping, fishing, and canoeing in the beautiful landscape that surrounds Yellowknife. She loves to travel and is always planning the next adventure which brings her all around the world – she loves learning new cultures, eating new foods and meeting new faces from different backgrounds. Nicole is a wellpreneur, spending considerable effort on her entrepreneurship and wellness journey, and continually seeking personal growth by attending conferences, summits, and gatherings followed by giving back to her community, with volunteer work.
Nicole inspires to use the opportunity to attend the 64th Commission on the Status of Women to network and build on her current passion for women’s empowerment and leadership and to bring the knowledge she gains back to her community to help others. Nicole is excited to learn, develop and promote gender equality in Canada’s northern regions upon her return. She hopes to use the session as a motivation to plan and put into action activities to advance gender equality and the rights of women and girls.
BCCIC: Chesa Abma
Chesa is a proud member of Xwsepsum (Esquimalt Nation). She carries Frisian ancestry on her mother’s side and Lekwungen, Interior Salish, and mixed European ancestry on her father’s side. Spending the majority of her life on Vancouver Island, she has a deep love for her home territory and community.
For over five years, Chesa has had the honour of working with children and youth in the Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ territories and Aotearoa (New Zealand) within education and the arts. Through her personal experiences as an Indigenous youth and the work she has done, Chesa has developed a strong desire to uplift future generations so they can flourish.
Currently, Chesa is working as an Intern with the Indigenous Youth Internship Program. Her placement is with the Ministry of the Attorney General, and she is working with the British Columbia Prosecution Service as an Indigenous research and policy analyst.
On her educational journey thus far, thanks to the support of her nation, Chesa has achieved a certificate in Indigenous family support and a diploma in Indigenous studies from Camosun College. Chesa continued her studies at Royal Roads University where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in professional communication. Her educational aspirations for the future are to pursue Indigenous law with the intent to gain knowledge that can be applied to addressing the needs of her people.
In her spare time, Chesa loves being with her friends and family, cooking and eating delicious food. Additionally she loves dancing and spending time outdoors running, hiking, and fishing.
We switched directions after the cancellation of the trip to New York, seven members of the ICN Youth Delegation represented their regional or provincial Councils at a Youth Forum at the Senate of Canada, in Ottawa, on March 9-10.
The intent of the Youth Forum was to allow a chance for youth participants to meet with parliamentarians, discuss CSW and Beijing+25 engagement, and develop further youth opportunities in multilateral spaces.
Originally, the Youth Delegation was to attend CSW64 ‘Beijining+25: Realizing Gender Equality and the Empowerment of All Women and Girls. Due to rising concerns about the pandemic and based on an UN advisory in March, the trip to New York was canceled.
About CSW64 and the delegation:
The Sixty-Fourth Commission on the Status of Women will convene at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, United States from March 9-20, 2020. The Inter-Council Network is pleased to announce its delegation of Canadian youth from across the country, to attend select days of the session. Each of the ICN’s eight Provincial and Regional Councils selected one delegate, who has demonstrated experience and knowledge of women’s rights and gender equality.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most progressive agenda for the human rights of women and girls to date. Endorsed by 189 states at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China in 1995, the Platform for Action is recognized as “a defining framework for change” that catalyzed unprecedented political will and recognition of the rights of women and girls. This year is also the fifth year since the international community adopted the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
The focus of the session will be on the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly. The review will include an assessment of current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women and its contribution towards the full realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Youth play an integral role in the international community’s efforts of achieving sustainable development and gender equality. Therefore, the eight ICN Youth Delegates will actively participate as representatives of their respective region and Council. Follow the Inter-Council Network’s social media channels to support and engage with these youth, as they journey to the United Nations headquarters.
