Grad profile: Advocacy and action

This article is part of a series focusing on the grads of the Dalhousie Class of 2024. Spring Convocation runs from May 21 to 31 in Halifax and Truro. Read all our profiles here in one place as they are published, and for more information visit the Convocation website.

Aditi Sivakumar can vividly recall the moment her advocacy work became something grander than she could have ever imagined.

She was sitting across from Prince William at Kensington Palace in London, UK, having a rather candid discussion about what was next for her.

The then 20-year-old had received a special invitation to London from the Prince of Wales and the Diana Award, a charity established in memory of Princess Diana that honours young people who work to improve the lives of others.

Aditi, who was recognized for her development of wellness kits and resource booklets for women facing gender-based violence and youth facing homelessness in her hometown of Ottawa, Ontario, remembers she explained to Prince William she was thinking of a career in medicine. But when it came to her continued advocacy work, Aditi was uncertain.

“I really had never thought about doing something more” she recalls. “I thought this resource booklet and these packages were it and he [Prince William] just told me to think bigger and dream bigger, and that he felt like I could do something big and anything that he could do to help, he was more than willing.” 

Wasting no time, on the plane back to Canada, Aditi took Prince William’s advice, and began to conceptualize her charity, My Empowerment Platform.

Launching soon after the beginning of the global pandemic and based almost entirely online, the charity was designed to provide support to women and girls facing violence during the pandemic and beyond. Using digital technologies, web applications, and animations, My Empowerment Platform expands upon Aditi’s existing resources to reach users on a national scale.

Aditi’s passion to improve the health and well-being of underserved women and help those facing gender-based violence was ignited during a volunteer position at a domestic violence shelter. Faced with the realization that it was a prominent issue in her community, she knew she had to help.

“When I got to the shelter, I just knew this was going to be my niche—this is the change that I wanted to make,” she says. “I really wanted to look at what I could do to end gender-based violence.”

With this goal in mind, Aditi was driven to a career in medicine, which would provide the opportunity for her to continue her advocacy work and strive to make a difference on both a local, national and international scale.

Since she began medical school, Aditi has spearheaded impactful projects in medicine, including creating a colposcopy pamphlet for HPV and cervical cancer patients, which was accepted by the Nova Scotia Health Authority. She also developed a sexual and reproductive health animation, which has been translated into 10 languages and presented at national conferences. And more recently, she led the creation of a birth unit video funded by She Decides, providing crucial information to diverse populations, which will be translated into 11 languages before its launch.

In the last four years, Aditi and her My Empowerment Platform have partnered with Canada’s Walk of Fame and Loreal Paris, allowing the project to expand and thrive. Thanks to the support of Canada’s Walk of Fame, Aditi was able to select 13 charities nationwide, one in each province or territory and each slightly different, to receive funding and wellness supports.

After founding her charity, Aditi became the first board vice-chair across the world under the age of 30 for the World Health Organization's Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, the world's largest alliance committed to protecting and advocating for the health, well-being and rights of women, children and adolescents.

“It’s been an honour to be a part of a group that involves so many prominent individuals while learning how to expand advocacy initiatives and programming on an international scale,” she says. “And now the fact that I get to go and travel to international meetings, and my input gets taken into consideration, has been really special for me.”

Her position as board vice-chair is not the only recognition she has received for her work. In 2020 she received the Canada’s Walk of Fame Community Hero Award, which recognizes an exceptional Canadian under 30 who positively influences the lives of others and makes a profound impact on their communities and beyond. In addition to a ten thousand dollar donation to her charity, Aditi has received incredible support from the Canada Walk of Fame leadership team in her continued pursuit to end gender-based violence.

“They're always willing to help—whether it's funding, an initiative, mentorship, and when I came up with the idea for the 13 charities, they were fully on board,” she recalls. “They've really helped me grow as an advocate and elevated my mission and goals.”

With all she has accomplished, it’s hard to believe Aditi found time to complete her medical studies. She’s off to the University of Toronto in July to begin her residency in obstetrics and gynecology, a path that she had been thinking of but was reaffirmed by the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Dalhousie with their mentorship and continued support of her advocacy work. In fact, Aditi remarks that her decision to come to Dalhousie is the best she could have made.

“I don't think I would have been the same personally or professionally,” she says. “As a medical student, thanks to this institution, I found the best mentors and the best support system. And although I'm leaving, I'm excited to continue a lot of the relationships that I have made at Dalhousie well into the future.”

Aditi is unsure what that future holds beyond residency, but she recently received some encouragement from the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau. In January she was invited by The Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, as the youngest guest to attend a State Dinner. During a conversation with Mr. Trudeau, Aditi was encouraged to keep a career in politics in mind in the future, and though it was something she had never considered, it gave her food for thought.

“Maybe it’s not so far-fetched to think somewhere down the line I could be the Minister of Women and Children,” she says. “So, I haven’t closed the door on politics, and I don’t know what the future holds, but I do hope that I can continue my advocacy work on a national and international scale, combining it with my passion in medicine.”