15 Montréal women who exemplify generosity everyday
Let’s celebrate International Women’s Day with a look at local luminaries.
This International Women’s Day, March 8, the world is celebrating the unifying theme of Give To Gain, calling for a mindset rooted in generosity, collaboration and shared progress. The theme highlights the power of reciprocity: when individuals, organizations and communities invest in women, opportunities expand, systems strengthen and societies thrive. Here are just a few of the incredible Montréal women who are inspiring change through their generosity of spirit.
Nahid Aboumansour: A Knight of the Ordre de Montréal and a recipient of the Cross for Meritorious Service (Civil Division), Aboumansour serves immigrant women in Québec daily as co-founder and director of social enterprise Petites-Mains.
Nelly Bassily: Anti-racism activist and director of Youth Initiatives and International Relations at DAWN Canada (Disabled Women’s Network Canada), where she works to improve accessibility for young women with disabilities and hearing impairments.
Geneviève Tanguay: The first female CEO of Anges Québec, Tanguay plays a crucial role in the province’s early-stage investment framework, consistently supporting advancements in technology, especially in the life sciences sector.
Dr. Yolande E. Chan: The first Black dean at McGill University, focused on bringing more diversity and inclusion to the program in shaping leaders and entrepreneurs of the future.
Laureen Bardou: The Senior Director of Philanthropy at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Foundation is an executive leader passionate about art, entrepreneurship and philanthropy.
Esther Youte, Stéphanie Jecrois and Carla Beauvais: Co-founders of technology platform Unite Prosper, an initiative of non-profit organization 0rijin Village, equipping entrepreneurs from Black communities with innovative technology solutions.
Doina Precup: An associate professor at McGill University and head of the Montreal office of Deepmind, Precup conducts fundamental research on reinforcement learning, working in particular on AI applications in areas that have a social impact, such as healthcare.
Dr. Joanne Liu: Recipient of the Order of Canada and longtime epidemic fighter with Doctors Without Borders, Liu is a pediatric emergency physician at CHU Sainte-Justine.
Tatiana Zinga Botao: As co-founder of Théâtre de la Sentinelle and an actor herself, she is focused on equity, giving racialized people leading roles in meaningful productions.
Monique Régimbald-Zeiber: Montréal-based artist whose perspective-shifting works on “invisibilized” history has been shown at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. She’s a recipient of the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts.
Natasha Kanapé Fontaine: This Innu slam poet, actress, visual artist and aboriginal and environmental rights activist has published three critically acclaimed collections of poetry and performs worldwide.
Béatrice Martin (aka Cœur de pirate): This popular musician added a layer to her career when she took the helm of Bravo Musique, a record label with an emphasis on inclusivity and respect for artists and their work.
Elle Barbara: Creator of Montréal vogue-ball mainstay House of Barbara, singer-songwriter, performance artist and activist with a message of queer, Black, trans inclusivity.