Hello! I recently graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Psychology Research from the University of Toronto. I’m passionate about youth mental health and how humour can be used to support resilience after adversity. My Summer 1 research project explored the relationship between childhood adversity, aggression, and self-regulation — deepening my understanding of the psychological impacts of early trauma. In Summer 2, I led a Leadership-in-Action project at SOS Children’s Villages in Cape Town, where I designed and facilitated a comedy-based mental health program for teens. That experience led me to found HaHaHelps — an organization that uses improv comedy to support youth mental health through accessible, community-led workshops. I'm currently piloting the full program in South Africa, with plans to expand to more communities globally. Please feel free to connect :) Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/younessrobert-tahiri Email: youness@hahahelps.org

I am a college sophomore at the prestigious University of Toronto, Scarborough double majoring in Neuroscience and Human Biology. I am a proud recipient of the Laidlaw Foundation Undergraduate Leadership and Research Scholarship 2023. My research project aims to explore the feasibility of a Deep Learning model to diagnose Alzheimer's disease at an early stage with the help of open-source EEG datasets. Having been part of the winning team at the Ontario Shores x UTSC The Hub's Hackathon, my team won a prize money of $5000 and the opportunity to work closely with Ontario Shores in the future to implement our AI-powered solution to help them navigate their database of internal and external resources more effectively. I work as a Research Assistant at the Therapeutic Interventions for Psychosis Lab at UTSC under Dr Michael Best. I have contributed to monthly article summaries, literature reviews and systematic reviews, in addition to assessing participants for clinical trials. I am familiar with administering a battery of tests, including MCCB, RR, WRAT-5, PANSS6, PSYRATS, BNSS, EEG tasks as well as computer-based tests. I have conducted in-person clinical interviews as well, which helped me understand the level of skill and ethic required while interacting with participants as well as fellow researchers. Some of my other research experiences include my role as a Transcriber for The Scoliosis Success Project at the University of British Columbia, as well as my role as a research student at COBWEB UTSC under Dr Brad Bass. My research interests include Alzheimer's disease, AI in Healthcare, Schizophrenia, fear expression in cases of sociopathy and caregiver stress. I possess extensive volunteer experience as a Youth Ambassador for EKAM foundation. Some causes that I am passionate about include Women and Children's healthcare, Organ Donation as well as Women in STEM. I truly believe that it is important to know who you are before making a decision about what you want to be. Instead of prematurely focusing on one area, I wish to learn, adapt and dive into the future with the determination to grow.

Hello there! My name is Gabrielle Dumé, from the University of Toronto! I am majoring in Biology, with a double minor in Immunology and English. I was a Laidlaw Scholar from the 2023 cohort, and I conducted my research and my LIA surrounding childhood obesity prevention initiatives in Barbados. Outside of my studies, I love writing, reading, running, and, most recently, scuba diving!

Hello! I am a multidisciplinary designer and have been with the Laidlaw Foundation for over five years, working to strengthen our global Scholar community and amplify the impact of our programmes. My work lives somewhere between design, education, and anthropology, usually with sticky notes involved. I studied Human Sciences as an undergrad and am currently doing a Master’s in Anthropology at UCL. Degrees I struggle to explain at parties. Born and raised in Kazakhstan 🇰🇿 Outside of work? Probably in the ceramics studio, wandering aimlessly with a podcast in my ears, attempting a handstand, or watching far too much TV. Big fan of nature and very small bugs.

Hello all! I did my Laidlaw Programme at Durham University between 2019-2021. My research project focused on evaluating the immigration and asylum system of the EU through a case study of the 2015 immigration crisis. Following the completion of my undergraduate LLB degree I moved to London to pursue my postgraduate LLM study at Queen Mary University of London.