Speaker Series: Dr. Sukaina Dada

Dr. Sukaina Dada is a pediatric occupational therapist with over 16 years of experience advancing the health and well‑being of children, with a focus on reducing inequities affecting racialized and newcomer children with disabilities and their families. As the founder and CEO of SMILE Canada - Support Services, a national NGO, Dr. Dada leads initiatives that create safer, more culturally responsive, and anti‑oppressive supports for children and youth with disabilities.

Dr. Dada holds a PhD in Critical Disability Studies from York University's School of Health Policy and Management, where her research examined the intersection of displacement and disablement. She later completed a visiting postdoctoral fellowship developing an AI‑based search engine to support global disability advocates in collaboration with the UNCRPD Secretariat. She now serves as a Visiting Professor at the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences in Tanzania and an Adjunct Professor at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. She is also the author of Untold Stories of Disablement and Displacement, which brings to life the diverse and complex experiences of Syrian refugees with disabilities in Canada, highlighting intersectional experiences of systemic oppression.