It’s that time of year again! We are thrilled to have these outstanding summer students join our team at Pillar and we look forward to a great summer ahead.
Hailey Budgell (she/her)
Hailey is a Research Intern with Pillar Nonprofit Network and Innovation Works. Hailey is currently attending Huron at Western, doing an Honors Specialization in Globalization Studies and a Minor in Political Science. As a student, Hailey is passionate about exploring globalization and its connection to social activism as a means to imagine a more inclusive world. This passion for global activism has come from travel, a year-long exchange to Norway, and riveting conversations with people from all around the world. She has been fortunate to explore her interests through various forms of volunteering, both at Huron and in the London community. Most recently, Hailey completed a volunteer placement with Atlohsa where she created graphic materials for cultural awareness training modules for non-Indigenous service workers.
In Hailey’s free time, she finds herself cozied up with an herbal tea, a good book, and some acoustic music. Don’t be mistaken, though! While she does enjoy a cozy Sunday, Hailey is always up for a new adventure as well. She believes that everything in life is about balance.
Sydney Binns (she/her)
Sydney Binns is a third-year student at Laurier University in the Bachelor of Business Administration program. Sydney is the incoming Marketing Assistant. She was immediately drawn to the position, as she has been enrolled in many marketing and design courses at Laurier which she has found to be interesting and areas of the program which she is passionate about. Sydney is eager to join the Pillar team to gain both experience and skills in marketing while working with the community.
Sydney will be graduating from the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University Waterloo, Ontario with her Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), minoring in Economics in 2023. She is also the Co-President of the Black Students of Lazaridis (BSOL) Waterloo, Ontario. BSOL aims to create an inclusive space where students who recognize as a member of the Black Community can get industry insights, share resources, and connect with individuals within the corporate world. She also served as their Co-Head of Marketing in 2021- 2022.
Rebekah Rodrigues (she/her)
Rebekah Rodrigues is a recent graduate of the Honours Specialization in International Relations program at Western University and will be entering her first year of law school at Western in September. Having worked with various non-profits in a volunteer capacity in the past, Rebekah hopes to broaden her understanding of non-profit management and operations through her summer internship with Pillar serving as the Resource Development Assistant.
Shawn Wu (he/him)
Before obtaining an accounting and finance certificate at Ryerson University, Shawn finished his Bachelor of Health Sciences degree at McMaster University, and Graduate Diploma in Business at Queen’s University. He first started his journey towards social impact when he co-founded The Human Book Collection, a social initiative focused on promoting empathy, dispelling bias and prejudices, and fostering meaningful connections through storytelling. He then later joined Biosa Technologies (a biotech R&D start-up) as a business development associate working on various eco-friendly projects in multiple capacities (e.g. marketing, fundraising, HR). While working with startups, he realized that capital fundraising is crucial for startup growth, so afterwards, he joined Front Row Ventures as a Portfolio Support Associate, learning more about the VC industry while supporting start-ups in their journey. Through Social Innovation Academy, he hopes to better understand the social finance space and how he can contribute to both social enterprises and communities. Shawn is joining us as the Social Finance Analyst.
Lanxin Jiang (she/her)
Lanxin is a 4th year student at Western University completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in business management and specializing in finance. She brings experience working in youth employment, immigrant employment, female entrepreneurship, Indigenous reconciliation, and sustainable foods. Lanxin has worked for various nonprofit organizations in the past, including World Education Services, AIESEC, and Youth Challenge International. Outside of her studies, you can find Lanxin on a hiking trail, drawing in her sketchbook, or learning a new language. Lanxin is very excited to join the Social Innovation Academy fellowship team, and explore more types of ventures in the social impact space! Her role this summer is the Impact Consulting Associate.
Grace Estrada (she/her)
Born and raised in Ecuador, Grace immigrated to Canada to develop and apply her passion for the development of communities, who, through understanding, respect, valuing, and successful leveraging of the diversity of their members, could be empowered to reach their true potential and prosperity. Believing in the power of learning, dialogue, and commitment to change historically unjust social systems, and after experience working in community outreach and engagement, Grace chose to start B.A. in Community Development. Now in her fourth year, Grace is delighted to contribute to Pillar Nonprofit Network, as Equity and Inclusion Research Assistant under the supervision of Dharshi Lacey, Director, Equity, Inclusion & Governance.
Mekhalaa Muraly (she/her)
Mekhalaa Muraly will be working as a Research and Communications Intern at CityStudio London and Pillar Nonprofit Networkduring Summer 2022. She is going into her third year at Huron at Western University, and she is doing an Honours Specialization in Economics along with a Major in Finance. Mekhalaa is passionate about gaining experience in quantitative research, equity research and impact investing. She is also involved in interdisciplinary research learning, where she has had the opportunity to undertake independent research projects and dive into learning more about public policy development and welfare economics. In her free time, she enjoys socializing with friends and family, keeping fit, binge-watching thriller and action movies, and volunteering in the local community. Over the last two years, Mekhalaa has been involved in the Volunteer YA club at Huron as the Vice President of Finance, and she has had the opportunity to engage in community service initiatives at Huron and in London.