I’m Salina, and here’s my story. My family went bankrupt when I was little, so words like “problem-solving” and “drive” frequently came up at the dinner table. Therefore, I grew up with a mindset of embracing lifelong learning and fueling my ambition to utilize my skills and experiences to make a positive impact on the lives of others. Fast forward to the present day, I became a 2x founder, a self-published author, an entrepreneurship club president and a YouTube content creator with a focus on entrepreneurship and social impact. 

What is your personal definition of sustainability? 

I’ve always thought sustainability meant being “eco-friendly” or “green” until I first joined my high school’s MINGA Social Justice Club and became vice president where I found a new definition of sustainability: creating sustainable change. This shaped my understanding of sustainability being centered around social impact to improve quality of living for oneself and others. This means doing what is possible within one’s means to make a positive difference while balancing both profit and impact to create change that has a lasting impact. 

What role do you see sustainability playing in your professional career?

After reading past alum experiences in the article 5 Reasons to Consider Ivey’s Sustainability Certificate, one quote stood out to me; balancing purpose and profit. This perfectly encapsulates the balance I hope to maintain with sustainability and social impact in my career. As someone who’s interest in business stemmed from entrepreneurship in social impact (nonprofit) fields, I see this as being the higher purpose of the initiatives and jobs I undertake in my career.  

Entering university, I was more entrepreneurial-focused rather than sustainability but through leading and joining sustainability and social impact initiatives, I realized how entrepreneurial pursuits can also improve individuals in their day to day lives. With this year’s theme, in my career post-graduation, I hope to first gain technical skills and expertise to, ultimately, apply them down the line in a social entrepreneurial venture. Therefore, it is with this hope that I am able to pursue a position with a focus on sustainability or social impact consulting. 

What sustainability projects have you been engaged in?

In today’s society, the implications of race never go unnoticed. The lack of East Asian representation, especially in business and media, initiated the creation of my book “East Asian Girls Can…” on Amazon KDP. This book empowers girls like myself to pursue their dreams despite stereotypes. It ranked #30 in Asian Literature genre, as well as CBC Toronto and OMNI Television TV interviews. Since its 2020 publication, I sold 40+ copies worldwide and taught a 5-week seminar to 30+ students, titled “Creating A Book People Will Read.” Amidst educational disparity with online learning, I founded Just For You Tutoring, a nonprofit organization providing free virtual tutoring. I led an international executive team of 50, partnered with TNO, Toronto's largest newcomer agency and Harvard's Nonprofit Education Coalition. We made 500+ matches, 250+ tutors and impacted 30,000 youth from 30+ countries. Finally, I spoke on CTV for a TV interview with 30+ positive customer testimonials. 

Please list any sustainability-related interests you want to explore during the certificate. 

I would like to pursue sustainability in the AI and entrepreneurship sphere as with the increase in digitalization, how do traditional social and sustainable initiatives weave themselves and thrive in this changing environment.