Mr. Kamyar Arjomand
Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School, London, Ontario/University of Western Ontario

Kamyar was an active member of the Multicultural Committee at Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School and started the Baha’i Club there to promote cultural awareness and break down social barriers between students. He helped organize a March 21st anti-racism assembly last year and a “Racial Unity” workshop for a conference on human rights. As a member of the London Dance Workshop, he has been promoting unity in diversity for the last seven years. The dance group won the 1999 Baha’i Award for excellence in the promotion of racial harmony in London, Ont.

Two years ago, Gurneesh founded the Multicultural Committee at Notre Dame Secondary School. As part of this committee, she organized the school’s Heritage Festival, which raised awareness of the school’s cultural diversity. The festival has been successful in promoting respect, tolerance and an appreciation of other cultures. Gurneesh was actively involved in the World Issues Group that raised awareness of social justice issues and undertook actions to work for positive change through fundraising and educational campaigns.

As co-chair of Students Together Against Racism (S.T.A.R), Jessica promoted anti-racism at Sinclair Secondary School by organizing events including a March 21st Elimination of Racism Campaign and Black History Month. She is a trained leader with the Durham District School Board’s Anti-Racism Program and was a counselor in the 2001 S.T.A.R. camp. Jessica helped with the production of a documentary “Stop Racism” on the topic of racial intolerance and children. In 2001, Jessica won the Student Recognition Award for Personal Excellence from the Durham District School Board.

For the last four years, Manraj actively promoted anti-racism through the Durham District School Board’s Students Together Opposing Prejudice and S.T.A.R. programs. Manraj was a senior counselor with the S.T.A.R camp from 1999 to 2002. He was also a member of S2ARC (Senior Student Anti-Racism Commission) and a member of the school board’s Ethnocultural Advisory Committee. Manraj is a recipient of the City of Pickering’s Youth Leadership Award and the Durham District School Board’s Student Recognition Award for Personal Excellence.

Lana was president of Amnesty International at St. Joseph’s Morrow Park High School where she organized various campaigns that promoted awareness of human rights. She is also the co-founder and chairperson of Amnesty International’s Toronto Youth City-Wide Group in which she organized a conference on the topic of refugee rights. Lana was the pavilion leader for the “International Day” celebration at her school at the Light of Nations’ pavilion, which promoted racial equality and justice. She was the recipient of the Graduating Student Award from her school.

As the founder of Lester B. Pearson High School’s Multicultural Society, Amrita promoted diversity and education on human rights issues. The society’s work included organizing assemblies, fundraisers, forums and presentations. They also presented messages of peace and inclusion in the school’s morning announcements. Amrita has written about human rights issues for local and national publications. She also spoke to the Halton District School Board of Trustees this past February about multiculturalism and discrimination in school. Amrita is the recipient of the 2001 OPC Principal’s Award for Student Leadership.

May was the founder of the One Planet Club at Richmond Hill High School, which promoted tolerance and harmony among the diverse cultures present at the school. She also hosted regular gatherings at her home to discuss how to eliminate racism at school. May was a key organizer of Unity in Diversity week at school and events promoting March 21st as the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. She is the recipient of the Anti-Racism Award from the York Region District School Board.

Adam created the Diversity Council at Upper Canada College to celebrate cultural diversity. He played an instrumental role in obtaining his school’s recognition of the council as an independent body of students. The council is now an integral part of the student government. As part of the council, Adam helped organize a student dance to celebrate Diwali and organized celebrations of Chinese, Jewish, Christian and Ukranian cultures. Adam is also the founder and coordinator of UNICEF Canada’s Youth Advisory Council. He is the recipient of the Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award.

For the last three years, Geetha was actively involved with Grrls Coalition, which promoted gender equality at Woburn Collegiate Institute. The group’s activities included organizing a visit to a women’s shelter and providing a forum for students to discuss equity issues and body image. She was also a Volunteer Student Mentor at the Toronto District School Board’s SMILE Multicultural Leadership Camp where she taught leadership skills and facilitated discussions among students dealing with equity issues. In 2001, Geetha was a keynote speaker at the school board’s Diversity Network Conference.

Sandra has been educating youth on oppression issues with the Youth Action Network through anti-racism and anti-oppression workshops. She is the editor of “Rock the Boat” newsletter and writes a column for the Youth Action Forum magazine on issues facing young women of colour. Sandra helped organize an anti-racism conference at Heartlake Secondary School and had an integral role in Black History Month celebrations. She was also a member of the Student Council Spirit Committee at her school.