Empowering members of our Black community and promoting the greater public good
Age: 36
Job Title: Co-founder, President and CEO of African Canadian Civic Engagement Council
Dunia Nur arrived in Canada as a refugee fleeing the Somali Civil War. She was six years old. Her family settled in Southern Ontario and did their best to adapt to Canadian life. Nur was acting as translator whenever her mother interacted with a social service or government bureaucracy.
Even at that young age, she says, “I always understood how the systems — the structures and policies and laws — impact a person’s well-being, who they are.”
Following the death of her grandmother when she was 13, Nur’s family moved from Windsor to Edmonton. As a young woman, she realized that running from pain “isn’t always the best coping mechanism.” She decided to devote herself to the well-being of her communities here.
Nur met Cree mentors while completing a dual degree in social work and child and youth care. “I remember the Elders telling me that we’re all Treaty (people), and empowering me to look back into my culture and who I am and to not be haunted or afraid.”
Building on that strong sense of her own heritage, Nur co-founded the African Canadian Civic Engagement Council in 2019. The council’s mandate “to promote the dignity and human rights of all people of African descent” informs activities that range from helping shape the 114 recommendations of Canada’s Black Justice Strategy to encouraging Black people to sit on executive boards to consulting on the selection of Edmonton’s new police chief.
The need for the council’s advocacy has never been more urgent. Nur points to the reality of anti-Black racism in Edmonton and a newly virulent prejudice toward Black communities. Meanwhile, she says, “It’s displaced refugees and African immigrants who made (the 118th Ave) area a vibrant, safe, innovative space.”
For Nur, Edmonton’s rich social fabric — and the central role that immigrants play in weaving it — represents the promise of civic engagement. “For people to feel a sense of belonging and hope, they need to meaningfully contribute to their community.”
This article appears in the November/December 2025 issue of Edify
