51社区黑料

How far would you go to pursue your dream? Dannah DeSouza left her home in India, and her career as an architect, to come to Canada and study at 51社区黑料鈥檚 Urban Studies Program. While in the program, DeSouza has not only excelled at her studies, but has become president of the Urban Studies Graduate Student Association (USGSA), a teaching assistant in large undergraduate courses, and conducted community focused research in New Westminster that focuses on inclusive and accessible wayfinding design. Her leadership skills and commitment to her work have won her the Urban Studies Alumni Award for Community Engagement.

Coming to a new country to study can be very challenging. For some students, just completing their studies and excelling academically would be enough. However, DeSouza always knew that she wanted to be part of the USGSA and take on a leadership role.

鈥淚 wanted to get into the association, but I was unsure of the role I would take on,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 began as secretary, and I was able to observe former USGSA presidents Carolyn Deady and Pok Man Tong.鈥�

DeSouza has taken on leadership roles in the past, as well as completed a leadership course, so when the presidency became vacant, she was ready to step into it.

鈥淚f I see an empty anything, I feel like it鈥檚 my job to fill it up,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hen Pok stepped down because he wanted to finish his thesis, I thought, there鈥檚 an empty space that needs to be filled.鈥�

Her focus as president has been to help foster a sense of community among students, especially those who have come from abroad and may have difficulty meeting people. For example, the USGSA puts on friendship-building events once or twice a month. The association is also trying to build connections between 51社区黑料Urban Studies students and alumni that go beyond getting reference letters from the latter.

鈥淩ight now, we are working with two alumni and trying to organize a walk in the neighbourhood, DeSouza says. 鈥淲e are looking for different networking opportunities for different people because we all come from such different backgrounds.鈥�

Professor Annika Airas praises DeSouza for her work with the USGSA.

鈥淒annah鈥檚 work has been crucial in rebuilding connections after the pandemic, bringing together both international and local students, fostering strong relationships between students and faculty with the Urban Studies community.鈥�

In addition to being president of the USGSA, DeSouza also works as a teaching assistant (TA). She has guided students in the 100-level classes, Introduction to Planning (Plan 100) and What is a City? (URB 101).

When working with first-year university students, DeSouza focuses on being approachable and understanding. She recognizes that university can be intimidating to students who have just graduated from high school. DeSouza also found school challenging.

鈥淚 grew up with ADHD,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 struggled in school because my teachers didn鈥檛 understand why I could not understand something, or I could not sit straight and quietly in one place. I see these students and recognize that they all have different capabilities and opportunities and that I can help them learn more, learn the subject, but also learn about themselves.鈥�

DeSouza鈥檚 research also demonstrates that she is committed to helping people, including those who are neurodiverse. Her thesis focuses on designing accessible wayfinding boards to help the public get to New Westminster鈥檚 new aquatic and community centre, , which replaced the long-standing .

鈥淚t鈥檚 in a place that is not well-connected to any of the SkyTrain stations,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not easily accessible to people coming from Queensborough, either. My idea is to get people to use New Westminster鈥檚 already popular active transportation route called the Crosstown Greenway that runs parallel to the site.鈥�

To get people to the Crosstown Greenway, DeSouza鈥檚 design incorporates boards placed outside of bus stops, next to schools in the vicinity, and near seniors鈥� centers. She wants to make the boards accessible to new immigrants who may not speak English, children under the age of 13, senior citizens, and people who are neurodivergent.

To do that, she will make certain design choices in terms of the type of maps that are created, the kind of typefaces that are used, the colours that are chosen, the cleanliness of the design, etc. Guiding her through this process is Dean Gibson, New Westminster鈥檚 Director of Parks & Recreation and Dr. Tiffany Muller Myrdahl. DeSouza will also have an opportunity to present her wayfinding boards to New Westminster city staff to get their feedback.

鈥淭hey can all look at the project through their individual lenses,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t will be different if you鈥檙e in the engineering team or the transportation side. My design will be like a toolkit where teams can take different parts and apply or integrate it in some way.鈥�

DeSouza hopes this process will begin in the spring when she finishes her project. After graduation, she would like to work with one of the cities in Metro Vancouver.

 鈥淚 am very interested in working for communities. I want to work with people and for people, so being able to work with a city government would be great. However, there are also a lot of urban design firms that are doing really great work. I like outdoor space design. I also like transportation and housing. Urban Studies gives you a platform to just go into everything, which is great.鈥�