“Life is very hard, and our objective as leaders today should be to, in a good way, make life a little easier, a little fairer, in order to reduce hardships for all those with us today or tomorrow. Our goal should be to set up our future relations to do a little bit of the same — all with the hope that we can make the world a little kinder.”

Ermia Rezaei-Afsah

2025 Top 30 Under 30

About

AGE: 24

PRONOUNS: He/Him

HOMETOWN: Tehran, Iran & Calgary, AB

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Calgary, AB

ORGANIZATIONS:

Students’ Union (UofC)
Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA)
University of Calgary Board of Governors
University of Calgary Inclusive Governance Project
University of Calgary Pluralism Initiative
University of Calgary Senate
Calgary Student Alliance (CSA)
University of Calgary Properties Group (Board of Directors)
CJSW Radio
University of Calgary History Students’ Association
Students for Direct Action

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

I am most passionate about:

What specific issue(s) are you working to address, and what motivates you to do so?<br />

I am passionate about issues of social mobility, economic access, and justice and equity. And I believe in taking a holistic approach to these issues as possible. This is why my work has chiefly been focused on issues of food security, health and well-being, affordability, quality education, and diversity and inclusion. Any of these specific factors have a large impact on said issues and often play a large role in determining a person’s quality of life.

These issues lead me in the work I do. In my time with the Students’ Union (SU) I have sought to tackle these issues by advocating to the 3 levels of government and by building services that bridge gaps, for example: by creating the $3 SU Quality Meal (a meal program that provides a filling and hot, vegan, nut-free, and gluten-free meal as a $3 menu item at The Den, the SU’s restaurant); by working with the Office of Student Experience and Support (SES) to expand primary health and mental health services or working with SES to expand student support bursaries; by advocating to the provincial government for reinvest into post-secondary education in order to make it more accessible and affordable for all. Work such as this promotes social mobility: it means that fewer people fall through the gaps and more people are likely to succeed without experiencing more hardship, especially those already at a disadvantage.

What is your foundation?

My foundation and who I am is an amalgamation of everything and everyone I have interacted with and shared my life with. It is a foundation rooted in my relations and developed through my personal experiences.

Without my community, family, partner, friends, and mentors, I would not be the person I am today. And I would not be who I am today without the hardships I have experienced in life. I am an immigrant and a neurodiverse person. I moved to Canada at the age of 10, and this, coupled with my neurodiversity presented me with challenges in life that made integration very hard. It presented me with difficulties in navigating school, friendships, institutions, and opportunities, and often the barriers I faced felt insurmountable. This is part of the reason why I operate the way that I do today—my foundation, history, and community are what ultimately lead to what guides my advocacy: my firm belief that people should not have to experience hardship unnecessarily. It also leads me to my belief that empathy and kindness must be paramount in the way we act and lead and that we owe it to our relations to leave the world a kinder place than we found it.

WHat is your vision for the future?

I am open book and will go where life takes me. However, I am hoping to continue my journey by going to medical school once I have completed my undergraduate education. Medicine (and healthcare at large) plays a gigantic role in the ordering of society by the way that medicine has the power to promote well-being for individuals and communities. For this reason and for my belief in making the world a kinder place, I want to become a doctor to combat health disparities and promote well-being for those who historically were disenfranchised and ignored.

Ermia welcoming new students at the University of Calgary orientation pep rally in September 2024.

Ermia with a Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA) delegation, during CASA “AdvoWeek”, meeting with Vancouver Kingsway MP Don Davies about student issues on the federal level in November 2024.

Ermia interacting with students at the Campus Expo in 2023, introducing them to services and supports at the University of Calgary and the Students’ Union.

Ermia giving an interview for the launch of the UCalgary Community Mental Health and Well-Being Strategy (CMHWS) about the importance of holistic and community-based approaches to well-being and his personal well-being journey in Summer 2024.

Ermia at a rally with the Students’ Union, during a City of Calgary Council vote on the Calgary Housing Strategy, advocating for the passing of the Strategy and overall increase of affordable housing in Calgary’s housing market.