Our Board

Ontario

Dalya is a P2 practitioner in the field of mental health and substance use health. As a student at McGill University, she dedicated her time to the field of mental health, with a particular focus on peer support and suicide prevention. As one of two Mental Health Commissioners at the Student Society of McGill University, she led efforts to promote mental health services to the undergraduate community; outreach campaigns to reduce stigma and worked to advocate on behalf of students, liaising between the student body and mental health service providers. Her experience as an Executive member of the Peer Support Centre at McGill University equipped her with a unique insight into the struggles of youth in post-secondary settings. She has obtained the SafeTALK and ASIST suicide prevention and intervention certifications, administered by LivingWorks, and has incorporated some of their core principles into training delivered to peer supporters across the campus.

Dalya has also had the honour of serving the greater Montreal community as a member of an active listening and crisis hotline, enriching her foundation of knowledge regarding mental health needs of various sectors of society. As co-chair of the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s Youth Council, she brought an intersectional perspective to the conversation, highlighting the need for equity in mental health care provision, resource allocation and advocacy efforts. She is passionate about meaningful engagement of people with lived and living experience in mental health and substance use health programming, initiatives and policy and advocacy work. She is currently a program coordinator at the Mental Health Commission of Canada, where she overhauled organizational engagement practices with people with lived and living experience and continues to spearhead engagement efforts particularly in her work with community based suicide prevention initiatives.

She brings her lived experience, along with her extensive volunteer and professional experience, to the IAP2 Canada board.