People Category: Board of Directors

Executive Director, The Low Entropy Foundation

Ahmad is a Financial Advisor with over a decade of experience working with high net-worth families and institutions. In his personal life, he has seen the impacts that mental health can have on individuals, families, and communities, which has made him a passionate advocate for mental health awareness and recovery. Through his work and personal experience, Ahmad brings a unique perspective to the financial governance of the organization.

Previously to serving on the CAI board, Ahmad served on the Board of Directors for the North Shore branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association and the HOpe Centre Café at Lions Gate Hospital.

Program Manager – Community Transition Teams Program, BCMHSUS

Kam has over 17 years experience working with marginalized and vulnerable populations struggling with substance use and mental health issues.  She brings a unique perspective as she has experience in working at the local community level, health authority/regional level and at the provincial level within government to support and expand much needed mental health and substance use services and programs across the province. She is currently the Program Manager for the Community Transition Teams Program with BCMHSUS. Her own personal experiences and background, allow her to approach her work and life with a lens centered on equity, justice, inclusion, and diversity.

Joanna (Jo) is a leadership advisor and lawyer specializing in the areas of labour relations, human rights, administrative fairness and transformative justice. Jo provides progressive leaders with strategic advice, policy development and restorative engagement processes that support their work for a more just and healthy society.

Her legal expertise is in the areas of labour and employment, administrative justice and human rights law.  She has advocated for her clients in forums ranging from labour arbitration boards to the Supreme Court of Canada.  She was managing partner at a boutique labour and employment law firm in Vancouver for many years before she founded Rise Leadership.

Jo is a skilled mediator, facilitator and convenor of important conversations and community engagements as well as a certified leadership coach and zen chaplain and practitioner.

Manager for Operations and Community Engagement, Tres Community Solutions

My name is Vanessa Tong, an immigrant from Hong Kong, fortunate to call the beautiful ancestral unceded lands of the scəw̓aθən (Tsawwassen), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), and other Coast Salish peoples home. Alongside being a proud mother of three uniquely wonderful children and a devoted owner to a hound and feline companions who act like dogs, I find solace in nature, basketball, hockey and creating a diversity of foods to share with loved ones.

Currently I am pursuing a Masters of Public Administration in Community Development at the University of Victoria. In addition, I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with an extended minor in Asia Canada Studies from Simon Fraser University, and a Diploma in Leadership Recreation from Langara College. Presently, I serve as the Manager for Operations and Community Engagement at Tres Community Solutions, a social purpose-driven enterprise, where I collaborate and work with others on municipal social development projects and initiatives.

With over two decades of experience in supervisory and coordinator roles within municipal community services and recreation, my passion lies in inclusive practices addressing pressing social issues. I am deeply committed to advancing neurodiversity, LGBTQ2S+ rights, homelessness, newcomer integration, Indigenous rights, and mental wellness. As a dedicated advocate, I am honored to lend my voice and expertise as a board member with CAI, actively driving transformative projects that foster inclusivity and equity within teams and communities.

Noallan is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) with over 16 years of experience. I am the owner and CEO of N. Naicker & Associates Inc., located in Port Moody, BC, where I serve clients throughout the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario. I lead a team of six dedicated professionals.

Before starting my own firm, I worked as a controller for a private company, which later became publicly listed. For over a decade, I managed financial reporting for multiple global divisions, handled tax compliance, and collaborated with auditors to prepare internal audit documentation.
In addition to my work, I am committed to community involvement. I have served on not-for-profit boards and am currently the external accountant for a Vancouver-based not-for-profit organization. I hold a bachelor’s degree in accounting from BCIT, earned my CPA designation in 2008, and completed a three-year in-depth tax course, which is only available to CPAs and lawyers, in 2018. I am also pursuing my Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP) designation.

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family. I have been married for nearly 30 years, and we have four grown children and two grandchildren. In my free time, I enjoy camping, golfing, walking, and ATVing.

Sandra Martin Harris is from the Wet’suwet’en Nation of the Laksilyu, Little Frog Clan and is a member of the Witset First Nation.

Sandra has worked as an Indigenous community developer, social development advisor, treaty negotiator and planning mentor. She loves community development work, and community and watershed planning, especially in collaboration with Knowledge Keepers, language carriers and youth. Sandra is also an Indigenous Focusing Complex Trauma (IFOT) and Reiki practitioner working with health, social and justice front-line workers. This work helps her provide support for intergenerational trauma, grief and loss, and lifts up land-based approaches for wellness. Sandra is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Northern British Columbia.