Press

Please note: this section is currently being worked on. I appreciate your patience as I update this list to reflect a comprehensive history of engagements.

    • May 31, 2026 — Textile Museum of Canada & Restance, “Living Systems: Circular Design, Regenerative Materials & Tech Innovation” Panelist

    • January 31, 2026 — Friends of Global South Asia at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) How do we sustain our cultural identities as a South Asian diaspora in Toronto?” Curatorial & Artist Tour (Host)

    • January 31, 2026 — DesignTO x Collective Futures “Assembly : A Holding Space for Culture” Co-Design & Mapping Workshop (Workshop Leader)

    • January 24, 2026 — DesignTO x Collective Futures “Assembly : A Holding Space for Culture” Opening Reception & Tour (Host)

    • Dec 12, 2025 — Future Communications 2025 Encoded Worlds, York & TMUon Future Diasporas: Culture, Art, Identity, Space & Toronto’s Unaffordable Urban Landscape (Key themes: City imaginaries, Diaspora and migration, Embodied research, Interdisciplinary methods, Multimedia storytelling, Spatial justice) (Presenter)

    • November 19, 2025 — Book Club Toronto Podcast. (Guest Author-Creator)

    • April 23, 2025 — UTSC Working Group: Creative Geographies of Islam and Muslims in Toronto. “Starting Out in the Arts & Culture World: Creative Strategies, Collective Resources & Career Pathways”  (Workshop Leader)

    • April 3, 2025 — ArtBuild Ontario “SPRE 103: Exploring Cultural Land Trusts,” featuring panellists Alycia Shanika & Hannah Fleisher (CCST), Chiyi Tam (Toronto Chinatown Land Trust), Meg Shiffler (Artist Space Trust), and Erika Hennerbury (Senior Cultural Affairs Officer, City of Toronto) [Panelist]

    • March 2, 2025 — EMILIA-AMALIA, “Open Hearing: Dreaming in Dark Times” (Event Speaker)

    • January 15, 2025 — ArtsBuild Ontario’s Creative Spaces Mentoring Network (CSMN). Workshop on Creative Spaces with a focus on community cultural spaces and the organizations that keep them running, building generative and supportive systems, and actionable recommendations. (Workshop Leader)

    • November 2024 — Future Diasporas: Culture, Art, Identity & Space Launch, Community Conversation & Artist Talk (Speaker, Lead Artist-Designer)

    • March 12, 2024 — Emerging Artists & Designers Community Conversation: Needs, Experiences, & Futures in the Cultural Sector (Workshop Host, Organizer & Lead Facilitator)

    • August-December 2023 — Engage.Design.Build. with Tuf Lab at John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, & Design (DFALD) & the Toronto District School Board (TDSB): several visual arts, design, & mapping workshops integrated with school curricula to create community-based design projects (co-lead)

    • August 2023 — Future Diasporas: Culture, Art, Identity, Space & Toronto’s Unaffordable Urban Landscape (MScPl Current Issues Project, Presenter)

    • Apr 5, 2023 — Disability Justice 101 Workshop | Client: Apathy is Boring Apathy is Boring's RISE program youth cohort (Workshop Leader)

    • 2022 — CP Planning Roadmap for Redevelopment Plans to Confront Systemic Racism Launch Event (Host)

    • 2021 — CityHive, City Shapers Public Space Program (Breakout Knowledge Speaker)

    • May 14, 2020 — SFU Public Square, SFU Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, & CityHive, Distant, Not Disengaged | The Arts Matter! COVID-19 Reality, Response and Recovery. (Breakout Session Conversation Catalyst)

    • 2020 — ArtLink x Asian Flaneur present: Future Diasporas: Migration, Art + Identity Panel (Host)

    • 2020 — ArtLink presents: Navigating Arts + Culture in the Age of COVID-19 (Co-organizer, Host, Breakout Room Facilitator)

    • 2020 — ArtLink presents: Grant Writing for Arts + Culture (Co-organizer)

    • March 2020 — Vancouver Plan Consultation: What Future Do You Want for Vancouver? (Facilitator)

    • June 12, 2019 — Artscape, Make Your Voice Heard on Housing! HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan (Workshop Organizer, Host, Report Writer)

    • January 2026 — Assembly at DesignTO A Holding Space for Culture

    • November 2024 — “Future Diasporas: Culture, Art, Identity & Space”

    • March 2020 — UBC Campus + Community Planning & UBC Arts and Culture District: International Women’s Day Equal + EMOWERED “Womb Room” Reflection Space Installation (Lead Organizer)

    • March 22, 2026 — Issues Magazine Store, Cover to Cover Mini Magazine Conference

    • March 10, 2026 — It’s Ok Studios, Enfold Ambient Night: A fundraiser dedicated to the harm reduction community

    • February 2026 — Future Diasporas by Alycia Shanika is featured in Jules Lee’s curatorial selection at Art Metropole

    • November 2025 — Future Diasporas Glad Day Queer Art Market
      Holiday Edition Pop-Up

    • June 2025 — Collective Futures Taste of Little Italy Pop-up

    • and many more

CV

    • Apr 2026 - Present — Member, Documentary Organization of Canada

    • Sep 2023 - Feb 2026 — Director, Network Mobilization Lead & Advisory Committee Member, Community & Cultural Spaces Trust

    • Sep 2024-Jun 2025 — Board Member, Capsules Artist Resource

    • Sep 2024-Jan 2025 — Leadership Committee Member, ArtsBuild Ontario SPRE for Arts Spaces

    • Sep 2024-Jan 2025 — Social Purpose Real Estate (SPRE) Reference Group Member, Infrastructure Institute at the School of Cities

    • Sep-Oct 2023 — Infrastructure Institute, Social Purpose Real Estate Organizational Readiness Program (Community + Cultural Spaces Trust representative)

    • Mar-Aug 2023 — Leading Social Justice Collective Fellow, School of Cities & United Way

    • Sep 2020 - May 2021 — Planning Program Review Committee, University of Toronto Department of Geography & Planning

    • Oct - Nov 2019 — City Shapers Cohort Member, Social Isolation Theme, CityHive 

    • Sep 2017 - Apr 2018 — Student Sustainability Council 

    • Sep 2016 - Apr 2017 — Peer Leader, UBC Sustainability Ambassadors Peer Program

    • Jan 2025 - Ongoing — Founder & Co-Lead, Collective Futures

    • Jan 2024 - Jan 2025 — Policy Advisor, Cultural Policy Hub

    • Mar 2023 - Jan 2024 — Founder & Co-Lead, Collective Futures

    • May 2022 - Feb 2023 — Urban Planner, CP Planning

    • Mar 2022 - July 2022 — Research Assistant, Monumental Projects (via Infrastructure Institute at the School of Cities at U of T)

    • Sep 2021 - Feb 2022 — Urban Design Researcher, Creative Communities Commons (CCC), School of Cities

    • Sep 2020 - Aug 2021 — Project Coordinator, 8 80 Cities

    • Sep 2020 - Aug 2021 — Special Graduate Student Advisor, Department of Geography & Planning, University of Toronto

    • May - Aug 2019 — Affordable Housing Intern, Artscape (Toronto)

    • Jan - Apr 2020 — Public Space Animator, UBC Campus + Community Planning

    • Sep 2017 - Jun 2018 — Sustainability Engagement Assistant, UBC Campus + Community Planning

    • Apr 2017 - Aug 2017 — Reservations Office, UBC Conferences and Accommodation

    • Jul 2014 - Aug 2017 — Marketing Coordinator and CEO’s Personal Assistant, AYO Smart Home & AYO Energy Solutions

    • Apr - Jul 2015 — Brand Ambassador, Mosaic Sales Solutions

    • July 2013 - Aug 2014 — Sales Associate, Groupe Dynamite

    • July 2013 - Aug 2013 — Research Assistant Intern, Cleantech Community Gateway

    • 2026 — Stories of Places [name in progress] (Collective Futures)

    • 2026 — Cultural Nodes: The Cultural Map (Collective Futures)

    • 2025-26 — Assembly at DesignTO: A Holding Space for Culture (Collective Futures with BookClub Toronto, Daem ArtHouse, ThirdTakePod & More)

    • 2025-2026 — A Governance Framework for Collective Futures (School of Cities & Multidiscriplinary Urban Capstone Students)

    • 2024 — Provincial Cultural Infrastructure Sustainability Strategy Report & Jurisdictional Scan (Cultural Policy Hub, Policy Advisor)

    • July 2024 — Cultural Infrastructure Resource Guide (Cultural Policy Hub, Policy Advisor)

    • 2023-2026 — Cultural Spaces Mapping (Collective Futures, with support from students Ava Duckworth Pilkington & Maazin Aljahma

    • 2023 — Parkdale Community Planning Study (Parkdale People’s Economy)

    • 2023 — Engage.Design.Build. with Tuf Lab at John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, & Design (DFALD) & the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) (Co-lead experiential learning program)

    • 2023 — Holding Space for Racial Justice: A profile piece of racialized stewards and knowledge holders of community land trusts (CLTs) | Canadian Network of Community Land Trusts (CNCLT) & Interview representatives from
      Toronto, ON: Little Jamaica CLT, Chinatown CLT, Vancouver, BC: Hogan's Alley CLT, Nova Scotia: Upper Hammonds Plains CLT, Down the Marsh CLT, Weymouth Falls CLT. (Researcher, Interviewer, Writer)

    • 2023 — Banquet Halls & Co-located Cultural Spaces Mapping with Sneha Mandhan (Data analysis, visualization, mapping)

    • 2022 — Roadmap for Redevelopment Plans to Confront Systemic Racism (Roadmap) solution application to the CMHC's Housing Supply Challenge (HSC), CP Planning (Fund Application Editing Support)

    • 2017 / 2018 — Robin Woods Community Development Brochure (Design Lead)

    • Please note: this section is not fully updated. Please check back soon.

  • Direct Teaching / Mentorship:

    • Jan 2026-present: Maazin Aljahma (Social Entrepreneurship), Project Coordinator, Collective Futures

    • Sep 2025-May 2026: Multidisciplinary Urban Capstone Project (MUCP), School of Cities at the University of Toronto Governance Framework for Collective Futures

      • Kalyani Duva (Urban & Environmental Studies)

      • Mahroo Mansouri (Daniels Architecture)

      • Liyan Shahin (Daniels Architecture)

      • Kelly Situ (Rotman Commerce)

    • May-Aug 2025: Ava Duckworth, University of British Columbia (Urban Studies), Intern with Collective Futures

    • 2024-2025 Outside Reader: Swati Dash, University of Toronto Master of Science in Planning, Temporary and Meanwhile Use of Space: Opportunities and Lessons for Urban Planning

    Occassional Teaching / Mentorship:

    • Sep 2024-May 2025: Multidisciplinary Urban Capstone Project (MUCP), School of Cities at the University of Toronto for Community & Cultural Spaces Trust survey

    • 2023-present: various students, emerging artists/designers, and aspiring urban planners in the OCADU, TMU, UofT and various school communities

    • Graduated Nov 2022 — Master of Science in Planning, Concentration in Social Planning & Policy, Urban Design, University of Toronto

      • Key Courses: Planning for Change: Community Development in Practice; Anti-Colonial Planning; Urban Design Studio; Workshop in Planning Practice; Community Consultation & Urban Design; Planning Decision Methods I & II

    • Graduated May 2020 — Bachelor of Commerce, Specialization in Real Estate, Minor in Urban Studies; University of British Columbia

      • Key Courses: Real Estate Development, Government & Business, Innovation Design Studio, Urban Land Economics

    • Sep - Dec 2018 — Study Abroad at Universiteit Leiden | Leiden, Netherlands

      • Sustainable Development: Big Issues New Answers, Resilient Cities

    • April 23 - May 3, 2026 — Selected Participant, PASS IT FORWARD Initiative, National Film Board of Canada at Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival

    • April 20, 2026 — Invited Participant, Mayor’s Culture Summit, Toronto

    • Fall 2024 — Invited Participant, advice shared: Creative City Network of Canada in partnership with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO,Tools for Change: Approaches to Truth & (Re)conciliation and IDEA for Municipal Arts and Cultural Workers

    • Nov 24, 2023 — Invited Participant, advice shared: Monumental Projects and the City of Toronto, “The Need for Space” Culture Plan Community Conversation, recommendations compiled into “What We Heard” report

    • 2026 — DesignTO Awards: Honorable Mention for Assembly : A Holding Space for Culture

    • 2025 — Top 10 Bestseller at Issues Magazine Shop for Future Diasporas

    • 2024 — Featured Contributor in Spacing Magazine Issue 68: State of the Arts in Toronto

    • 2023 — Leading Social Justice Collective Certificate of Competion, School of Cities and United Way

    • 2022 — Edie Yolles Award in Urban Planning (2022) (In honour of Edie Yolles, Director of That’s My Baby, 1984)

    • 2022 — Geography & Planning Research Fellowship

    • 2021 — Peter Walker Planning Scholarship

    • 2021 — Royal Bank Fellowship in Public & Economic Policy

    • 2021 — MSc Planning Professional Master's Bursary

    • 2020 — Planning Master Recruitment Award

    • 2020 — UBC CCEL Chapman & Innovation Grant

    • 2019 — NAIOP Real Estate Challenge Award

    • 2019 — 1st Place, NAIOP Local Case Competition

    • 2018 — UBC Go Global International Learning Award

    • 2014 — Betty Spalton Scholarship