Ahmed Ali
Masters in Business Administration in International Business with a Concentration in Emerging Markets
MIB Trieste School of Management
(Rotary Club of Calgary Heritage Park, District 5360, and Rotary Club of Trieste, Italy), 2019-20
 
Ahmed Ali is a passionate and community-driven leader who has pursued a career supporting and developing community capacity in different parts of the world. Before his educational and career pursuits, he began by giving back to various non-profit organizations, such as the Edmonton Africa Centre and Big Brothers and Big Sisters. His drive to see marginalized communities thrive and display their resiliency led him to create several programs, including a youth basketball league, incorporating mentorship by connecting young people with excelling professionals and postgraduate students in the African Canadian community in Western Canada.
 
With an interest in the holistic approach to social systems, Ahmed pursued the study of the development, structures and human social behaviour. His progressive academic pursuits began in Canada's capital by studying at the University of Ottawa and completing an Honours Bachelor of Social Science with a sociology specialization. He advanced his community engagement knowledge by working in outreach positions and direct service roles that worked alongside various vulnerable populations. He was able to develop an empathetic approach by working with newcomers to Canada, racialized youth and persons experiencing homelessness. It was within these complex experiences that challenged Ahmed to pursue a Master of Social Work Degree at Sir Wilfrid Laurier University, where he completed a concentration in Community, Planning, Policy and Organizations.
 
During his graduate studies, he completed an international experience that inspired his global mindset. He participated in supporting forced migrants in Northern Uganda by working alongside survivors of the conflict in the city of Gulu. He worked with internally displaced persons by conducting a program evaluation for services pertaining to mental health, psychosocial well-being, and financial empowerment. In his research, he recognized the impact of microfinance and how it can help enable a community affected by conflict trauma. His research showed the benefits of collective saving and microfinance systems, which in turn helped community members provide educational funding for their children, opportunity to grow additional crops to sell in the market and a platform to come together to build capacity regarding their own mental health. Upon returning to Canada, he led campus-wide strategies supporting international students at the University of Calgary and created inclusive programming for those transitioning to North America.
 
After several years of working with both not-for-profit and for-profit agencies, he champions the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion in all organizations. Similarly, addressing the need for economic empowerment for marginalized communities and finding sustainable community-driven programs create a positive social impact. These intersecting complex systems led Ahmed to become a Rotary Global Scholar and to complete a Master's in Business Administration at MIB Trieste School of Management with a concentration in International Business. During this business and management graduate program, he was able to work with diverse professionals from around the world to apply socially responsible concepts to modern-day business models. His studies focused on applying responsible business principles that drive inclusive economic development and improve institutional effectiveness by embracing diversity.
 
For more information about Ahmed, click here for his LinkedIn page.