Hello, my name is Bijaya Dhakal. I am a Health Promotion Practitioner (MPH) and a Registered/Certified Pharmacy Technician with the Alberta College of Pharmacists. I currently work with Alberta Health Services and in community pharmacy, where I contribute to pharmacy services and initiatives, medication safety, and preventive care. Alongside my healthcare and public health work, I have recently started started a personal venture " Preventive Measure Healthlink Inc." focusing on prevention‑driven and community‑centered health initiatives. I serve as the Program Director for the Pharmacy Technician Society of Alberta (PTSA) and volunteer as a Wellness Program Lead with NECASE and MHWS, supporting mental health and wellness programming.

For this symposium, my focus will be on key challenges faced by youth and young adults, including academic pressure, social anxiety, bullying, and identity‑related struggles. These issues often connect to deeper aspects of the self—such as personal beliefs, self‑esteem, self‑trust, and trust in others. Together, we will explore how these perceptions form, the importance of self‑reflection, practical coping strategies, and the local supports and therapeutic resources available to help individuals navigate these experiences. 

Lule Begashaw is a Registered Psychologist with over 12 years of experience supporting individuals and couples navigating trauma, depression, anxiety, and other mental health concerns. Her approach is relational and strengths-based, grounded in honouring each client’s inherent wisdom and capacity for growth. Lule is committed to creating a safe, compassionate, and nonjudgmental space where healing, understanding, and resilience can develop. Throughout her career, she has worked with a highly diverse community, such as immigrants and refugees to Canada.

For this symposium, she will be focusing on the holistic mental health of senior citizens. 

Hi, my name is Sujata Poudel. I completed my Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) with a clinical specialization in Individual and Family Counselling from the University of Calgary. I also hold a law degree from Kathmandu School of Law. For over seven years, I’ve worked in the social services field, supporting individuals and families through a wide range of life challenges. For the past two years, I’ve been serving as a mental health therapist at the University of Alberta and in my private practice, Live Collective Counselling. I’m trained in both short-term and long-term therapy and use a variety of evidence-based intervention approaches. My specialized training includes EMDR for individual trauma treatment and the Gottman Method for couples therapy. I strive to create a safe, compassionate, and collaborative space where clients feel supported, understood, and empowered in their healing and growth.

For this symposium, I hope to redirect our focus toward Couple wellness and explore ways partners can intentionally strengthen their relationship as they navigate the process of assimilation in a new country. Drawing from my training, ongoing learning, and professional experience, I will be sharing practical tools and simple strategies to help couples maintain love, connection, and intimacy amid busy schedules, changing roles, and the unique stresses of life in a foreign land.

I am Hemanta Siwakoti, a Mental Health Therapist with Alberta Health Services, based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I hold a Master of Social Work with a specialization in Mental Health from the University of the Fraser Valley, BC, and an MPhil in Education from Tribhuvan University, Nepal. I am also a certified Naturopath Practitioner and Yoga teacher certification scholar. My approach to mental health is holistic and preventative, grounded in the healing power of nature, lifestyle modification, and the influence of sociocultural factors. My work is informed by both Nepalese and Canadian Indigenous health and healing traditions.

In this symposium, I aim to explore the significance of integrating these two determinants of mental health while aging within the Nepalese biophilic and anthropological lifestyle, reviewing this in the context of scientific innovation in holistic healing and wellbeing. This agenda sheds light on the significance of retiring amid the oriental lifestyle, values, yoga, dhyana, ayurveda, naturopathy, and Hindu and Buddhist practices, which validate our mental health approach as the most sustainable and efficient in the world.