Staff

During his time working with LGBTQ/2S community-based organizations in Toronto, Osmel focused his work on developing policy and procedures, strategic planning and program design in the non-profit membership-driven sector.

Osmel is excited and honoured to advance the vision and mission of QMUNITY and strongly believes in the power of inclusion to affect lasting social change

She holds a BA in English and Ethnic Studies from Mills College (Oakland, CA – the traditional territories of the Ohlone and Yokuts peoples) and an MA in English and Queer Studies from Simon Fraser University (Burnaby, BC – the unceded lands of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations) and is an accredited Sommelier. Her connection to QMUNITY goes back to the mid 1990s, when she met her first “real” girlfriend at a QMUNITY (then The Centre) youth group. She lives in East Van with her wife and large, lazy dog.

Joel brings over 10 years of experience in group facilitation, adult education, curriculum design and public speaking to his role at QMUNITY.  Most recently, Joel completed a Certificate in Dialogue & Civic Engagement from Simon Fraser University. Course learnings provided him with the opportunity to enhance his skills and abilities to bring groups of people together to have difficult conversations and co-create new knowledge and innovative solutions to address complex issues.

When Joel isn’t waxing poetic about queer revolutions or addressing the toxicity of misogyny, you might find him on some sports fields (oh, the irony) tossing a plastic, flying disc or kicking around a soccer ball.  His main mode of transportation is cycling, and he frequently pines for the long Vancouver summer days so he can try to survive ill-planned and under-prepared day-long bike trips.

Meera completed her undergraduate and graduate degrees in social work in Toronto and  spent the first half of her career in the non profit sector. This included a crisis line for assaulted women, homelessness and housing, and HIV/AIDS. Within health care Meera has worked in hospitals and palliative care in Vancouver.

Today Meera is working on her PhD (Taos Inst. and VUB Brussels) looking at the connection that takes place between queer therapist and queer clients, and was strongly influenced by her work at Qmunity in developing this research.

Meera moved to Vancouver from Toronto in 2012. She loves the fresh air, the energy of the trees and the spirit of the ocean, all that is BC. Meera’s work and life experiences have taught her that there so much more to people than what meets the eye. “We are such complex and powerful beings, able to move through transformative change at unexpected moments of our lives”.

This practice has taken him across Ontario and British Columbia and at times has given way to severe caffeine induced bouts of existential woe and narcissistically questionable self-reflection.

Rana is a Master Trainer for two global programmes developed by the British Council – “Active Citizens” and “Leadership in Community Development” – and has delivered trainings in Syria, Lebanon and Turkey.

Rana holds a Bachelor in Business Administration, an executive Masters Degree in Psychosocial Support and Dialogue from the Lebanese University, and a Diploma in Social Training and Interactive Methods, from the Academic University for Nonviolence and Human Rights in the Arab World “AUNOHR University” in Beirut, Lebanon. She completed several academic programmes for peace builders around the world.

This list includes a programme with the Center for Justice and Peace summer in the Eastern Mennonite University, Virginia, United States, where she attended courses on Conflict Analysis, Narrative Discourse, Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience, and other similar programmes in South Africa. Rana also worked with international trainers from different counties like: Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Morocco, South Africa, Italy, Denmark, United States and the United Kingdom.

Christen has worked with QMUNITY for the past two years as a PrideSpeaks facilitator, alongside pursing an Associate Degree in Biology at Douglas College. Her work in classrooms and as the Pride Liason for the Douglas College Student Union, as well as her extensive volunteer and event management experience has helped to prepare her for the role of Special Events and Community Outreach Coordinator. She is looking forward to making more connections with the queer community here in Vancouver, especially with other QTBIPOCs.

Christen is also passionate about environmental science and conservation. She and her partner try to lead a zero-waste lifestyle in their East Vancouver apartment. She spends her free time re-reading Maya Angelou, pretending to be a model for Vancouver Fashion Week, biking around Main Street and trying new Caribbean-style recipes.

[email protected] was one of the first to introduce to The Canadian Federal Court and the United Nations how de-homosexualization clinics in Latin America oppress the LGBTQ2S+ community by means of torture under the disguise of Rehabilitation Clinics. [email protected] helped marginalized communities become more visible through activism, storytelling, and education.

[email protected] has inspired others to become more active in the community, and has helped many organizations in Ecuador and Canada be more inclusive.  [email protected] believes that kindness can make a better world for everyone and leads by example.

Han has a trio of Bachelor’s Degrees in Social Science, Film and Performance and strongly believes in the importance of a diverse range of experiences being represented by, for and about young people. In their free time Han can be found going for long runs without appropriate rain gear, reading feminist dystopian fiction and inflicting affection upon ambivalent cats.

Ziggy has been involved with Qmunity for over six years through the Pridespeak program, where he got to see first hand how important queer stories and history told by queer voices can be for youth who are feeling isolated. This is something he carries with him into the Coordinator role, always making sure to balance Big Picture thinking with the impact of an individual.

She is also an author, advocating for better representation in media as she writes the kind of stories her younger self had always needed. Lots of dragons, and cool monster girls, and queer kids getting happy endings.

Tamara was born and raised in Syria, before moving to Vancouver to the unceded territory of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations in 2018, she lived and worked in Dubai as an Architect. She is happy to be putting use to her skills set and experience for the benefit of the local LGBTQ2S community, that she now calls her own.

Driven by her love and passion for design, Tamara enjoys the creative process of interpreting ideas and concepts into creative visuals. She takes it even further outside the work place where she often practices sketching and drawing, creating unique tattoo designs drawn by the beauty and complexity of the art of tattooing.