Rasha Al-Katta

Rasha Al-Katta is a prospective MA Candidate at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. As the 2011 Chair for United Way Ottawa's Youth Action Panel, and as a current member of the United Way Community Investment Committee, she participates in the allocation of resources in community-building projects. She is also a Research Assistant with the University of Ottawa’s collaborative international research project (funded by the International Development Research Centre), examining youth social capital formation in Canada, El Salvador and Nicaragua. As part of this project, she presented on a panel at the International Conference on the Rights of the Child, held in commemoration of the 20th Anniversary of the United Nations. Rasha also served as Nominations Co-Chair of the 2010 Spirit of the Capital Youth Awards after being a recipient in 2009, and was the 2012-2013 Youth Chair of Youth Ottawa's Board of Directors. Fluent in Arabic, English, French and now learning Spanish, Rasha works as a Saturday Language Teacher with OCDSB's International Languages Program.

She has been featured on Rogers TV, Metro News, CFRA Radio, Talk Ottawa and CBC, and has received many honours in recognition of her philanthropy and leadership efforts. Namely, the United Way Community Builder Award, where her name was engraved on Ottawa City Hall's Wall of Inspiration, the Ontario Volunteer Service Award and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal. She was a delegate at the National Model United Nations conference in New York City, to discuss issues at the forefront of international relations, and recently completed a study abroad term in Geneva and an internship at the Permanent Mission of Canada to the Office of the United Nations. Following her time abroad, she summited Mt. Kilimanjaro as part of WaterCan’s Expedition Team, to raise awareness & funds to combat the global water and sanitation crisis.