Salimah Ebrahim

Journalist

Born in East Africa and raised along the West Coast of Canada, Salimah has travelled around the world to cover some of the most engaging and important stories of her generation.

Based between North America and the Middle East, her assignments, for major print, broadcast and online outlets – including Reuters, CBC Television, The Globe and Mail, The Cairo Times and A & E’s Biography Channel – covering global politics, the White House, environmental security challenges in Africa, international G8 & G20 summitry in Italy, Canada, France & Russia, the war in Iraq & 2008 US Presidential elections – have afforded her a unique view of international affairs.

Combining her journalism and diverse background, Ebrahim is also an accomplished  environmentalist, having spent the past decade  working for the protection of Canada’s white  Spirit Bear and its remarkable habitat in the Great Bear Rainforest – one of the most ecologically sensitive and diverse areas of our planet. Ebrahim knew from an early age that she wanted to promote economic sustainability in environmental conservation, and co-founded the Spirit Bear Youth Coalition – what has today become the largest youth led environmental organization in the world.

With a network of over 6 million members in 64 countries, Ebrahim and the Youth Coalition have enjoyed the support and mentorship from many leading figures – including Robert F. Kennedy Jr and Dr.Jane Goodall – and have concluded, over the past decade, a series of historic land-use agreements between industry, government, first nations and eNGOS that now serve as a model in global conservation efforts. Their campaign to save the spirit bear – named the official mascot of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver – was recently recognized as the most supported conservation initiative in Canadian history. A fellow and graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York, Ebrahim also holds an honours degree in Middle Eastern History and International Relations from Trinity College, University of Toronto. She has been awarded and recognized for her work as both journalist and environmentalist, having been chosen and profiled by CBC Television as one of 25 Canadians who are changing the world; named by Chatelaine magazine one of its 80 amazing Canadian women to watch; and honoured by the World Economic Forum in 2009 as a Young Global Leader. Interested in the intersection of art, science and innovation, she hopes to spend a lot more time knocking on lab and studio doors in the years to come.

"Good teachers give us answers but great teachers - those that shape our lives and stay with us long after our days together - ask us to live in pursuit of the questions."