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Our Team

MEET OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS

These are the faces behind IWOO.

Sara Alimardani

Past President

Arezou Amin

Board Member

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Dr. Fariba Bashiri

President

Ghazaleh Bozorgmanesh-Fard

Board Member

Marjan Haghighatfar

Board Member

Ghazal Mardmomen

Board Member

Behnaz Moein

Board Member

Mina Rohani

Board Member

Shohreh Sabbaghpour

Board Member

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Afsaneh Vakilian

Board Member

Hoorakhsh Yousefzadeh

Board Member

Roya Nazifi

Board Member

IWOO

Bita Momeni

Board Member

Dory Noorafkan Headshot

Dory Noorafkan

Board Member

MEET OUR STAFF

They are why we are still standing

Dr. Noushin Khavarian

Programs and Services Coordinator

Leili Panahi

Bookkeeper

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Addres: 1761 Sheppard Ave. East, Ground Floor, Toronto, ON M2J 0A5
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Sara Alimardani

Sara Alimardani is a public and political affairs professional. She currently serves as Senior Advisor to the Mayor of Mississauga, Bonnie Crombie. Between 2013 and 2018, she served as Director of Operations and Strategic Initiatives in various ministries for the Government of Ontario.
Her political career includes managing a number of provincial and federal elections, and most recently she ran a leadership campaign for the Ontario Liberal Party.
She joined IWOO’s board of directors in 2016, and has served as President of the Board since January 2019. She has co-chaired the 2017, 2018, and 2019 White Dove Gala.
Sara holds a Masters in International Relations from Vrije University in the Netherlands, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
Her ambition for IWOO has been to serve and empower those with limited resources to access better socio-economic opportunities for themselves and their families.

Arezou Amin

Arezou Amin is an up-and-coming film and television writer. She also recently completed a course in film and television production at UCLA, and founded her own production company, Rebel Key. Her aim is to bring to life stories about young women in transitional phases in their lives. Prior to this, her professional life included stints as an administrative professional, and as the copy editor for Persian Tribune magazine. She holds a Master of Arts in Translation from the University of Geneva and a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from the University of Toronto.

Dr. Fariba Bashiri

Dr. Fariba Bashiri joined the Iranian Women’s Organization of Ontario as a member of the Board of Directors in 2016, taking on the role of Director of the Human Resources and Mental Health Committees as of 2017. She has held various roles, including a Medical Doctor, university instructor, researcher, as well as social and human rights activist in Iran. Fariba graduated from Tabriz Medical School and worked as a physician for more than 20 years in Iran. She has dedicated her career to empowering women and girls to overcome barriers and to reach their health and full potential. Fariba came to Canada as a skilled worker immigrant in August 2011 and joined IWOO as a member and workshop facilitator in 2014. She also graduated from studies in Homeopathy and Weight Management from England and Canada. Fariba currently practices as a Mobile Examiner and Alternative Practitioner in Toronto. She has 3 children and 3 grandchildren.

Ghazaleh Bozorgmanesh-Fard

Ghazaleh is currently a business account manager with RBC and an MBA student at Wilfrid Laurier University. She has been a board member of IAUT, Iranian Association at the University of Toronto for three years, and volunteering with Working Women Community Centre, University Settlement, and the Tirgan Festival. Ghazaleh has been teaching at the University of Calgary and a research assistant at the University of Toronto and University of Saskatchewan. She holds a master’s in biotechnology from the University of Tehran. Her interests include singing, languages, psychology, health and fitness, trail hiking, and screenwriting and short stories.

Marjan Haghighatfar

Marjan Haghighatfar is a Real estate agent and her passion is working with homebuyers to find their ideal home or investment. She also worked at TD Bank as a financial advisor and customer service manager. Marjan has over a decade of experience in mortgages, refinancing, and educating clients on investments and financing options.

She holds a BSc in business management and is a fully licenced mutual funds advisor. She is fluent in Arabic, English and Farsi.

Ghazal Mardmomen

Ghazal is an experienced government relations consultant with a flair for policy development, advocacy awareness and stakeholder relations. She currently works for the Canadian Automobile Association where she leads advocacy campaigns and implements strategies to establish policy changes with the municipal and provincial government with a primary focus on transportation, alternative mobility and road safety. In her time in politics, Ghazal worked for three Ministers in the provincial government serving under various capacities. She holds a HBA in Political Science specializing in women’s rights and a MA in International Development Studies with a special focus on women’s reproductive rights and population policies.

Behnaz Moein

Behnaz is a registered social worker who has more than 10 years of experience working in client-centered positions and passion for social work. Behnaz has worked extensively with individuals of culturally diverse backgrounds who have experienced homelessness, domestic violence, separation issues, mental health issues, addiction, unemployment, disabilities and immigration issues.
Behnaz is passionate to work with the principles of anti-oppression and equity in responding to the service needs of individuals and work toward removing systemic barriers and creating opportunities for positive change. Behnaz also has passion for community development and she has been involved with communities by conducting workshops.

Mina Rohani

Mina immigrated to Canada in 2007 and continued her education at the University of Waterloo. She received her PhD in Management Sciences at 2014 and started teaching organizational behaviour and theory at the University of Waterloo. Experiencing difficulties of settlement in a new country made her interested in IWOO. First, she worked as a volunteer and later joined the board of director from 2015-2017. During this period, she successfully worked on different grant applications and programs. She currently works full time as a product manager in Fin-tech industry and teaches part time at the University of Waterloo.

Shohreh Sabbaghpour

As a businesswoman with an engineering background and over 15 years’ business experiences, Shohreh Sabaghpour stands at the forefront of the fastest moving technology industry trend: LED Lighting Solutions. She has established her own company, Lumesmart Inc. base on the vision Making Peace by Saving Nature from Effects of Global Warming in 2013.
Shohreh is a Proud Recipient of the Iranian Women Organization of Ontario (IWOO) of Science/ Technology/ Innovator Award in 2017. She is a board director and leader of women committee at Canada China Trade Innovation Alliance (CCTIA). She was selectively chosen as the Business Ambassador of Richmond Hill.

Afsaneh Vakilian

With a Bachelor and Masters in Accounting and Finance, Afsaneh has spent 35 years in the field of accounting and financial affairs, holding various positions from accountant to director of finance across various firms, including CEO of her own firm.

When she joined IWOO in 2016, she brought over 22 years of experience as CEO and shareholder of her own firm in Iran, three years of Canadian experience as a manager, as well as five years of financial management experience at a non-profit organization.

Hoorakhsh Yousefzadeh

Hoorakhsh is an Investment Advisor at a leading Financial Institution. He has over 12 years of experience managing investments and wealth strategies for clients. He holds the highest distinction in the investment management profession – the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation from CFA Institute, United State and the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM) designation from Canadian Securities Institute, Toronto, Canada. He graduated with Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Thompson River University BC, Canada and Business Information System (BSc) from University of East London.
Prior joining his current employer, Hoorakhsh worked for a major Canadian bank, helping to manage approximately $600 million in investments on behalf of clients.
Hoorakhsh is a member of CFA Institute and a member of the Toronto CFA Society.

Roya Nazifi

Roya Nazifi is a public and international affair professional. She currently works as the Parliamentary Procedures and Logistics Clerk of the Senate of Canada. Roya began her professional journey in international relations and diplomacy through working with Diplomatic Missions in Iran for 6 years and was involved with accomplishment of several humanitarian projects of the United Nations Mission in Iran. Prior to her current career, Roya worked in several research institutes including International Policy Studies, Public Governance International and the School of Human Rights and Conflict Studies of the University of Ottawa.

Roya’s curiosity and ambitions made her explore different educational areas including Translation Sciences, Education, and Political Science. She recently earned a post-graduate degree in Public and International Affairs from the University of Ottawa and focused her research on Iran’s regional policies. 

Her motivation to join IWOO was to contribute to the valuable mission of “promoting solidarity and collaboration among women”.

Bita Momeni

With a rich employment history in retail banking, marketing and the legal industry, Bita brings a plethora of experiences and a diverse skillset to the IWOO team. Bita holds a BBA from the Schulich School of Business, York University. During her undergrad, she was the recipient of the Iranian Women’s Organization of Ontario Scholarship.  She is currently a product marketing manager with experience working in cross-functional roles such as Customer Information Systems, B2B, Business Development, and Product Development. She brings a broad and diverse experience and skillset to IWOO with her variety of work and volunteer experiences within Canada and abroad. Bita’s passion for fitness, specifically figure skating has allowed her to experience coaching and mentoring opportunities with the sport. She is excited to contribute to the success of IWOO and continue learning and developing in this new role.

Dory Noorafkan

Dory has been in the world of health, wellness and fitness since 2007, and teaching mindfulness practices since 2015. Her formal education includes post-secondary studies in Anthropology and Psychology (BAH) and her Master’s Degree in Leadership and Organizational Behavior (MBA). She is E-RYT certified from Yoga Alliance International, over 1000 hours of training in Functional movement, Yoga and Mindfulness Meditation. She owns her own fitness and wellness facility.

Dory inspires to help people develop better physical wellbeing that could translate into healthier mindset & Lifestyle providing support and guidance to create a safe space for growth, awareness and self-compassion. Dory’s values are aligned with IWOO’s goals to provide support and raise the social, economic and educational status of women in her community. 

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