Meet the Team
Annie Canto
She/Her
Events and Communications
Annie works at Solid State on our communications team as an events coordinator with goals to build community in our extended network of coops and organizations. Within our network, she mentors Symposia, a youth-led events coop that coordinates projects like the PuSH Youth Cohort, providing access to cultural events for BIPOC Surrey youth. She also has a socially engaged art practice where she makes comics, screenprints, and transforms spaces into community hubs. She loves cooking at 1000 degrees and hiking with her huge dog.
Dionne Co
She/Her
Research and Communications
Dionne Co is a researcher, writer and illustrator born in Manila and currently residing in East Vancouver, BC, on the unceded lands of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh peoples. At Solid State, Dionne is research director and responsible for conducting internal and external workshops on solidarity economics. Dionne is also part of the Communications team, writing our newsletters and contributing to the overall design and creative direction of the organization. Outside of Solid State, Dionne loves reading novels and spending time with her dogs. Check out her work here: dionneco.net
Hafiz Akinlusi
The Black Arts Centre co-director
Hafiz holds a degree in Economics from Simon Fraser University, and is interested in arts, culture, sustainable systems thinking, and how they intersect. Passionate about equity in the arts, he is one of the directors of the Black Arts Centre and a founder of Madebywe. Hafiz works with cohorts at Solid State to develop sustainable revenue and operational models so they can access material resources and have long lasting impact on the communities they serve. Hafiz loves music, and is currently learning (struggling) to play the piano.
Mario Cimet
He/Him
Co-op Developer
Mario is a co-op developer, software engineer, and financial consultant. He works on the Social Finance Hub initiative at Solid State. He co-founded Brave Technology Co-op where he worked as a product developer and software engineer. As a co-op developer he has supported worker and investment cooperatives across BC and Alberta.
Pamela Gutierrez
She/Her
Branding and Communications
Pam is a Venezuelan graphic designer. With a background in fashion and film. She currently works as part of the Communications Team as a brand and web developer. Pam is also part of one of the Cohorts called La Libelula where she handles their social media and participates as a facilitator in their workshops. In her free time she loves to climb, dance, sing and bike around town.
Syed Khawar
He/Him
Communications
Syed is an OG Solid Stater, one of the first members of its first ever cohort. He is now one of the founders and principals of MILIEU co-op, a brand creating sustainable fashion without compromising accessibility or quality. He is a young mogul studying at SFU Beedie, and a member of Solid State’s design and web team.
Anati Manzoul
She/Her
My name is Anati Manzoul, the co-founder of Daily Dose of Blackness media. My role in the cooperative is project director, editor and social media content creator. I am currently studying Criminology at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. My extra curricular activities are editing vlogs for tiktok and working out.
Mahado Mohamed Hassan
She/Her
Co-Director
In addition to her dedication to co-operatives and the cultivation of close-knit communities, Mahado possesses a strong desire to leverage her academic background, which includes a Bachelor of Sciences in Health Sciences and a Master of Public Health (c), to champion the rights and empowerment of racialized and marginalized communities. She has recently co-founded Afiya Care Collective, a non-profit that focuses on the health inequities faced by the Black population of BC. Mahado's aspirations are centered around contributing to the adoption of enhanced practices that promote improved physical and mental health support for BIPOC communities throughout Canada. I love going on long walks, working out, and being by the water.
Arshia Uppal
She/Her
Grant Writer
Arshia Uppal is a grant writer and student researcher. She is currently a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Environmental Sciences. Arshia has co-founded a Surrey-based climate justice non-profit called Climate Recentered that works on creating a community of care built through mutual aid and bringing BIPOC community members to the forefront of climate discussions. Currently Arshia’s work heavily revolves around the idea of incorporating intersectionality and equity into her research and community-based organizing.
Fiorella Pinillos
She/Her
Fiorella is an urbanist, engagement specialist, and activist with extensive experience doing engagement work. Originally from Peru, she left the architecture field to pursue a Masters in Urban Studies at SFU. Since then she has worked at SFU’s Vancity Office of Community Engagement (VOCE) where she engages communities through public programming and knowledge democracy with a focus in arts, social and environmental justice and urban issues.
Katrina Mugume
She/Her
Co-op developer
Katrina Mugume is a Co-op developer at Solid State, a filmmaker, producer, and devoted community advocate who channels her passion for creativity toward impactful change—armed with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film Production from Simon Fraser University's School of Contemporary Arts. Beyond her role as a Co-director at Black School’d education co-operative, Katrina has built and collaborated with influential non-profit organizations like the Vancouver International Film Festival and GEMS Vancouver as well as her own production company Very Vocal Media. Driven by a profound belief in the influence of media, she dedicates herself to utilizing her platform to champion social justice and foster crucial community dialogues.
Mohammed Zaqout
He/Him
Mohammed Zaqout was born and raised in a refugee camp in Gaza - Palestine. He holds a degree with honors in Business Administration and Accounting.
He is the Co Founder and Director of LightWork Consulting Cooperative. Also, Mohammed is leading a graphic, web design, and branding co-op in Gaza called GMC.
Shivneel Reddy
He/Him They/Them
Community Resource Manager
Shivy is a Community Resource Manager at Solid State. Working towards bridging gaps within our communities and providing innovative personal and professional development workshops. They graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Child and Youth Care Counseling from Douglas College and continue to create a practice that supports the integrity and needs of youth and children alike. As a Tamil-Fijian on Stolen Turtle Island, Shivy hopes to create spaces for racialized folk and queer individuals in hopes that his definition of community can come to reality. “Community is the relationship we have in the reliability of knowing someone has your back, that people come together when celebrating achievements and adversities alike, Community means love”.
WeiChun Kua, 柯伟俊
He/Him
Co-op Developer
WeiChun is a second-generation stateless Chinese from Brunei. He was deeply involved in student and climate advocacy at SFU. Notably, he played a pivotal role in SFU350’s eight-long year campaign, where they successfully pressured SFU to fully divest its $650 million endowment fund from fossil fuels. He is still active in migrant organizing with Migrant Students United at SFU and currently works as a coop community organizer. Weichun’s hobbies are climbing and basketball
Anthonia Ogundele
She/Her
Anthonia is the founder of The Ethos Lab. As a trained planner and disaster response professional, she was a member of the Northeast False Creek Stewardship Committee, igniting the reimaging on Hogan’s Alley. In 2016 she turned a storefront-facing closet into the Cheeky Proletariat, located on Carrall Street, which is an accessible and inclusive space for the free expression of all people. Her daughter has opened her eyes to see the city in a new way and support future generations.
Emily Chan
She/her
Researcher
Emily is a researcher, designer, and community organizer. She strives to work towards a just and inclusive future by centring and contributing to equitable community driven initiatives. She holds a Bachelor of Design from OCAD University and Masters of Library and Information Studies from University of British Columbia. Outside of work you can find her cycling, running, reading, cooking, and travelling.
Jshandeep Jassal
She/Her
Co-Director
As a passionate learner, Jshandeep embodies an extensive academic background in Sociology which she is further developing as a current student at UVic. She is an advocate for creating safe spaces for racialized youth and families through an intersectional feminist lens. She mentors a group of Punjabi youth who are striving to strengthen intergenerational connections in their community.
To wind down, Jshandeep enjoys taking care of her dogs and birds as well as creating beautiful knitted and crocheted artwork for her loved ones.
Naisha Khan
Co-op Developer
Naisha Khan is a coop developer, artist, climate justice organizer, and full-time UBC business student. They are a second-generation Bangladeshi settler from so-called Surrey, BC. They started and work with Climate Recentered: a group of Asian femme building a climate movement to practice joy and center BIPOC lived experiences, who recently just held our first climate fair fest that handed out over 400 bags of groceries to the community. They also co-founded Change Course (formerly Banking on a Better Future), and have worked with climate groups Sustainabiliteens, Climate Strike Canada, Climate Justice UBC, David Suzuki Foundation, and Be the Change Earth Alliance. At Solid State, Naisha develops coops/businesses centering marginalized people to build their own enterprises, primarily but not exclusively in the form of worker co-operatives. In their free time, Naisha likes to play the flute!
Suraya Hakimi
She/Her
Cook
Suraya works as a cook for the Solid State team and has a great love for cooking and more-so baking! She is an ambitious chef that is constantly inspired by new recipes and is always eager to learn. As a student, Suraya was really interested in diplomacy and studied Law at the University of Kabul, Afghanistan. Following her move to Canada, she pursued her passions for cooking and continued to work in shops as well as her own home bakery business. During her free time, Suraya loves spending time looking after her home garden and crocheting.
Matt Hern
He/Him
Co-Director
Matt Hern (he/him) is a co-founder and co-director of Solid State and has led many other community projects. He works directly with all our cohorts + is responsible for finances and administration. He continues to lecture widely and his books and articles have been translated into nineteen languages. Matt is a white settler living on xʷməθkʷəy̓əm territory.
Sadie Couture
She/Her
Grant Writer, Audio Production Mentor
Sadie is a media producer, educator, and scholar and a PhD candidate in Communication Studies at McGill University. At Solid State she supports cohorts interested in audio production, and works with the fundraising team generating opportunities for individual cohorts and for Solid State as a whole. Sadie is a settler of mixed European descent living in Tiohtià:ke/Montréal and on xʷməθkʷəy̓əm territory in Richmond.
Her hobbies are Quilting, running, gardening, printmaking, and baking.
Syeda Mahalaqa
She/Her
Cook
Syeda Mahalaqa is the cook at Solid State. She studied Fine Arts at GC College in Lahore, Pakistan. She has volunteered in programs such as teaching art therapy to young kids at the Gangbaksh Rehabilitation Centre, involved in Pakistan Girl Guides, and she carried her commitment to positively affecting her community in Canada by building her team working and management skills while working at a care home in Surrey. She now is involved in providing fresh homemade food for the wonderful members at Solid State so they can continue to work and make a positive impact around them.
