Bio

Layla Belmahi is passionate about supporting and connecting individuals, organizations and institutions to achieve greater social justice. She is currently a Manager of Cities at Tamarack Institute for the Communities Building Youth Futures program. Outside of work, she is also President of the Montreal Intercultural Council. Layla discovered the power of collective impact in Morocco, when she co-founded the Woman Choufouch (Slutwalk Morocco) movement to fight violence against women. In Montreal, she first studied Communication & Cultural Studies (BA) at Concordia University and then completed a Master of Arts in International and intercultural communication at UQAM (Université du Québec à Montréal). Her Master’s thesis focused on the perception of identity of Black Montrealers, with a postcolonial historical perspective. During and after her studies, Layla worked in communications and project coordination for key actors in Montreal social development or on research projects related to immigration, gender, and youth. She has helped launch the Maison de l’innovation sociale and has worked with the Montreal Neighbourhood Round Tables Coalition.