Who we are

SPEAKout was initiated by a group of youth bent on having a positive impact on their community through the art of Spoken Word. It was originally founded by Besma Soltan and Ahmed Nazmi on March 22, 2009. SPEAKout grew strong with the hard word and support of its team members.

Besma Soltan, Founder & General Manager

Besma has lived in three different continents through out her childhood and teenage years, each shaping her personality, views, and interests in life. Arriving in Canada 10 years ago allowed her to bundle all those differences, seeing their strengths rather than weaknesses portrayed beautifully in one multicultural country. Read more

Nermin Moufti, Creative Director

Nermin graduated from the American University of Sharjah (UAE) with a BSC in Visual Communications Design in 2006. She has spent the years since living and working in Dubai, Toronto and New York city as a graphic designer. As corporate brand designer by day – (experimental) graphic artist by night, Nermin has developed a wealth of experience in branding and design fields. Read more

Saalih Shamead, Outreach Coordinator

American by birth, Guyanese at heart, but Canadian by choice. Saalih has grown to love the City of Toronto for all its multiculturalism and the many opportunities that Canada has afforded him, such as visiting the town of Grise Fiord in the Arctic. Currently, he is a fourth year student in the Faculty of Environmental Studies program specializing in Environmental Management at York… Read more

Samera Munir, Event Coordinator

Samera considers herself a true Torontonian, where she was born and raised. Living in Toronto, she has been able to surround herself with amazing people from all walks of life. She loves to bake and with that passion has started her own business. She was introduced to Speakout through a friend and has never looked back. Read more

Sara Takiedeen, Sound and Audio Director

Even though Sara is still in the process of settling in Canada, she still makes time and puts effort to support and help the community in Mississauga and Toronto. Sara, originally from Syria, lived in 3 different regions, the Middle East, North America and South East Asia, learning about different customs and cultures. Read more

Omar Nazmi, Internal Assistant

Live, Love, Laugh. A second year student at the Schulich School of Business (York University), Omar has a keen interest in small startups and social ventures. Having travelled around at young age, Omar can entertain a good conversation in just about anything (from history, politics, to the latest video games), he enjoys competitive basketball and going to the gym. Read more

Erin Whitney Moran, Blog Manager

Whitney is a poet, editor and literary nerd from Halifax, Nova Scotia. While pursuing her Master’s degree in English literatures in Waterloo, Ontario in 2010 she witnessed her first SPEAKout event & has been eager to get involved with the group ever since. Read more

Rahma Shere, Blog Manager

Rahma Shere is a graduate of Sheridan College & McMaster University majoring in Social Work. She works with the deaf and hard of hearing community in Toronto. She is currently in her last level of American Sign Language (ASL). Read more

Hassan Mokdad, Social Media Director

Hassan Mokdad is a 3rd year student at the Schulich School of Business who can always be seen smiling, laughing, and making others happy. He started his career in marketing working as a brand manager for Procter & Gamble. Read more

Lobna El Gammal, Relations Coordinator

Lobna El Gammal’s dream is to be called a writer, doctor, and engineer. Currently studying Chemical Engineering at the University of Toronto, Lobna has a passion for the academics, especially science. Yet she expresses this passion in a unique way – through writing. Read more

Amin El-Naggar, Website Adminstrator

Having been raised in 2 countries, and landing in a third (Canada) not 10 years ago, Amin came to appreciate the humanity in different intellects and demographics. Over the years, he cultivated a love for a multifarious plethora of creative talents, ranging from 3D modelling to mechanics and programming, making it quite difficult to pinpoint his greatest passion. Read more

Yasmine Youssef, Public Relations Manager

Yasmine Youssef is an activist, a traveler and a collector of books and moleskine notebooks (which she just enjoys looking at alphabetically organized in her pretty bookshelves). You can blame her obsession with words and language on her studies as a communications and professional writing student. Read more

Abeer Ba’abbad, Designer

As a social justice advocate and an artist, Abeer is passionate about making a difference in the world. Her artistic/graphic design skills alongside her experiences from her travels around the world help her pursue her dreams and inspire others to do the same. Read more