Yara Leadership Society

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Yara Leadership Society

Yara Leadership Society is committed to identifying and celebrating Iranian-Canadian women leaders and providing a platform to advance Iranian-Canadian women.

Yara engages both women and men in the pursuit of its vision: lead together, strong together.

06/11/2026

AI Investor and Female VC Hero, Yasmin Razavi, 36 has landed on Forbes 2026 Midas List: No.13 on the top 100 venture investors.

Back in 2023, when most traditional VCs hesitated to back Anthropic, the company behind the Claude family of A.I. models, because it had no public product or revenue, Yasmin saw the team’s undeniable genius and made a daring $75MM investment in Anthropic. She led a $450 million round that valued at $5 billion. Anthropic last raised at $380 billion in February 2026 and now is in talks to raise at a valuation over $900 billion. She holds the rare distinction of being the only investor with a coveted board seat at Anthropic, anchoring her influence at the center of the global frontier AI race, and also led the Series B round for remote hiring platform Deel in 2020, which was last valued at $17.3 billion in an October 2025 funding round.

Yasmin grew up in Tehran before coming to Canada in 2006 at age 16. A self-described math whiz, she decided to pursue engineering instead of the traditional family occupation (every female in her family is a doctor). She completed her engineering degree at the University of Toronto, worked as a consultant at McKinsey and earned an MBA from Harvard. She started her investing career with Index Ventures in London. In 2017, she joined Spark Capital as General Partner and has been a phenomenal force in global tech investing.

Now based between New York and San Francisco, Yasmin’s story serves as a blueprint for investors. Her leap of faith $75MM investment has turned into $75 billion AI gold. Her early bet stands as a masterclass in growth-stage conviction.

06/08/2026

As we kick off Pride Month, and reflect on World Environment Day last week, Yara is featuring Ranah Chavoshi who specializes in aquatic toxicology and phycology, the study of seaweed.

In 2022, the then Simon Fraser University student co-founded a seaweed startup company called PhyCo Technologies with fellow scientist Stacey Goldberg with a mission to reduce plastic waste, and a partnership with multiple Indigenous Nations in BC, Ranah’s marine biotechnology company focuses on developing an earth-digestible and non-toxic bioplastic for the Canadian agri-foods sector, made from local seaweed. The inspiration to do this hit during the pandemic when her research sites were closed. She decided to see if she could use seaweed to create a natural, fully compostable plastic alternative that functions like plastic without polluting the environment? Two First Nations supply seaweed for R&D, earning direct funding for harvesting efforts. Ranah is also developing a pilot project to remove invasive seaweed from the local environment of another Indigenous Nation and utilize it to make seaweed-based plastic. The primary focus on intensive R&D is paying off, as they perfect seaweed-based plastics’ formulation, production processes, and properties.

In 2024, Ranah was recognized as an Emerging Leader on Canada's Clean50 Award and in 2026, the 33-year-old made The Peak's annual Emerging Leaders list which recognizes Canadians under 40 who are making a notable impact in their field.

As a first-generation Iranian Canadian and a q***r woman of colour in science, Ranah has faced her share of hurdles. But like her beloved seaweed, Ranah Chavoshi is resilient. As she has observed, “being a female scientist, or even a female entrepreneur, people underestimate you, frequently. Most people don’t expect me to know so much about the natural world, and seaweed in particular, or even business, for that matter. So, I think that definitely comes with its challenges but it’s also an advantage, because when people underestimate you, it’s when you can surprise them the most.”

06/04/2026

We woke up to the sad news of an Iranian icon passing away: Marjane Satrapi died of sadness a year after losing her husband, the love of her life, Mattias Ripa. She was 56.

Through her graphic novel, “Persepolis”, Marjane brought global attention to the events of the Islamic Revolution as seen through the eyes of a young girl in Tehran. She was a multi-talented, multi-lingual, award-winning artist and a leading figure in French culture.

Her voice reached far beyond the page, steady in its defense of freedom and of the women of Iran.

06/01/2026

. This month, we honour the power of authenticity, visibility, and the courage it takes to lead as your full self. At Yara Leadership Society, we celebrate the 2SLGBTQIA+ members of our community whose voices, stories, and leadership strengthen us all. Here’s to building spaces where everyone can rise with dignity, safety, and pride.

05/28/2026

World-renowned Iranian-American OB/GYN Dr. Thais Aliabadi and her co-host Mary Alice Davidov won a Gracie Award for the SHE MD Podcast in the Audio Podcast – Lifestyle category.

Born and raised in Iran, Thaïs Aliabadi came to California at age 17. She went to high school not knowing any English. In 1998, she graduated Suma Cum Laude from medical school at Georgetown University. Practicing since 2002, she is the official gynecologist for various royal families and numerous celebrities. “Dr. A” as she is affectionately known, has delivered the babies of Rihanna, Khloe Kardashian and Hailey Bieber. She diagnosed Olivia Munn with breast cancer, Tiffany Haddish with endometriosis and Florence Pugh with polycystic o***y syndrome.

After her own brush with breast cancer (and a double mastectomy), Dr. Aliabadi, the mother of four girls, made it her mission to educate women on how to take ownership of their health.

Now in its 2nd year, SHE MD (which stands for “Strong Healthy Empowered) is a weekly podcast that aims to educate women about common overlooked medical conditions through honest and empowering conversations with Dr. Aliabadi’s famous patients, other celebrity doctors or authors who discuss everything from endometriosis to preeclampsia to egg-freezing to menopause.

The Gracie Awards, established in 1975, honour women in media in the US celebrating programing created by, for, and about women. It is presented annually by Alliance for Women in Media Foundation (AWMF).

05/26/2026

The need to protect Iranian writers and preserve the cultural life they help sustain has never been more urgent. Amid a deepening crisis for free expression in Iran where writers face the long-standing repression of their own government, heightened concerns for the well-being of political prisoners following the US-Israeli hashtag and threats by President Trump on April 6th that Iranian civilization “will die,” PEN America announced that the recipients of the 2026 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award were Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee and Ali Asadollahi, writers who “embody the courage and creativity it takes to express their viewpoints openly in the face of unrelenting persecution.”

Writer, poet, and human rights defender Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee has faced more than a decade of harassment, detention, and repeated imprisonment for her writing and activism. First arrested in 2014, she has since endured a cycle of release and re-arrest. In April 2023, following her arrest during the 2022 hashtag protests, she was sentenced again for 5 years. She remains jailed in Evin prison.

Ali Asadollahi is an internationally acclaimed poet and member of the Iranian Writers’ Association (IWA). He was caught up in Iran’s crackdown on writers after the 12-day war in June 2025 and again, after the countrywide demonstrations, violent crackdown and internet blackout in January 8/9, 2026. Mr. Asadollahi was violently arrested at his home, denied access to a lawyer, faced multiple lengthy interrogations, was subjected to physical abuse and pressured to make a forced confession before being released on bail in mid-March 2026.

The Barbey Freedom to Write Award, established in 1987, recognizes writers who are in jail at the time the recipients are selected, and who have been targeted for their expression.

05/21/2026

In Iran, is a symbol of hospitality, an expression of warmth, a catalyst for conversation and community. In Iranian households, the samovar (or kettle) is on all day and the act of brewing (steeping) is an integral part of life. May 21 is and we celebrate how tea brings us together by featuring two inspiring tea success stories.

Ahmad Tea was established in 1986 by British Iranian Rahim Afshar. Drawing on the knowledge and experience of three generations of tea blending and tasting, he named the brand after his father, and he started the business as a tea shop in England. Driven by a vision to sell exceptional tea Rahim and his brothers Karim and Ebrahim, were determined to inspire tea drinkers with a passion for quality, backed by Rahim’s personal guarantee “I will not sell anything I will not drink at home”. Forty years in, Ahmad Tea now offers their products to tea lovers in more than 80 countries, across six continents and since 2015, the company has collected 22 Great Taste Awards.

Toronto-based tea retailer, Sloane Fine Tea is a testament to the power of passion and resilience of its founder, Hoda Paripoush. Her family fled Iran and lived in India before coming to Canada as religious refugees. She grew up experiencing both Indian and Iranian cultures where tea is the beverage of choice. Hoda left her graduate studies in naturopathic medicine to pursue tea destiny. She is amongst the elite group of the first certified tea sommeliers in North America. Her travels have taken her throughout India, China, Japan and Taiwan in search of the finest full-leaf teas, farms from which Sloane tea is sourced. It is blended and packaged in Canada (in biodegradable tea bags made in Canada). For Hoda, now the mother of four, all roads have led to tea.

05/19/2026

Dr. Soheila Pashang is a registered social worker and psychotherapist with over three decades of experience in mental health practice. She began her career as a frontline practitioner in 1990 and transitioned into academia in 2008, bringing an integrated perspective that bridges clinical practice, research, and teaching. Her work and publications focus on intersectional, trauma-informed approaches and equity, grounded in a critical lens on health and well-being. Dr. Pashang maintains a private psychotherapy and consulting practice www.pashang.ca and serves as a board member of the Ontario Association of Social Workers, where she contributes to leadership and advocacy in the profession.

05/14/2026

Representing Canada at the 61st International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia 2026 is Abbas Akhavan. The exhibition entitled Entre chien et loup – literally “between dog and wolf ”– evokes the indeterminate nature of twilight, when distinctions blur and a wolf might be mistaken for a dog. The Canadian pavilion has been converted into a greenhouse for Victoria water lilies, referencing the plant’s prominent display in the Crystal Palace during the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. It was during Queen Victoria’s reign that Canada was established (confederated as a dominion of the British Empire in 1867). Reflecting on how plants, animals and cultural symbols shift meaning across histories and geographies, the exhibition addresses the fugitive and imaginary qualities of national narratives. The flowers in Akhavan’s installation will grow and blossom during the Biennale, which ends in early November, transforming the pavilion into a living display.

Born in 1977 in Tehran, Abbas Akhavan immigrated to Canada during the Iran-Iraq war. He studied Art History because he realized that art is the only topic that touches on every single topic of the world. He is the recipient of the Fellbach Triennial Award (2017); Sobey Art Award (2015); Abraaj Group Art Prize (2014); and the Berliner Kunstpreis (2012). He currently works and lives in Montréal and Berlin.

The is one of the world’s most prestigious art events. Every two years, countries present artists in both permanent and temporary national pavilions, spread through the Giardini. The National Gallery of Canada (NGC) commissioned the work which was curated by Kim Nguyen. Akhavan was unanimously selected as Canada’s 2026 representative for the Biennale.

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