Meet Namya Syal – ILead’s Communication Assistant!

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Meet Namya Syal (ChemE 1T9), ILead’s Communication Assistant. Throughout the school year, Namya will be attending ILead events and talking with student leaders on campus to explore what leadership means to the U of T Engineering community. Stayed tuned for exciting stories!

1. What drew you to communications?

As an only child and an introvert my communications skills were largely underdeveloped till university. After pushing myself to get out of my comfort zone and trying to bring together my love for reading and writing, I found communications to be an excellent avenue to express my creativity.

2. What communications initiatives are you working on at Skule?

I am currently working on the Skule Documentary, which is exactly what it sounds like! It features the history of Skule from its beginning to now. I am also the Online Editor/Marketing Director for The Cannon!

3. Why is communications important for engineering?

As engineering students I think it is very easy to pass off communications as unnecessary, since we deal with mostly the technical. However, I believe communications is very important in engineering because of this exact reason! It’s important for engineers to be able to convey their ideas and designs to others in an accessible way.

4. What does leadership mean to you?

I’ve written and rewritten this answer half a dozen times already, and also edited the definition in my mind countless times over the years. For me everyone from a street artist to a struggling student to a mom is a leader. I think the act of taking ownership of their life is an act of leadership.

5. What would the world look like if more engineers developed leadership skills?

The Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE) recently ran a campaign called “an engineer was here”. They started this campaign after realizing that the government wasn’t consulting engineers until after defining their problem. So, they sat up a booth on Bloor and Church and spoke to people about the role of engineers in society. Most people were rather surprised by what engineers did, and that they happen to be present in all parts of society! I think all engineers are leaders in some form; however, if more engineers were to tap into their leadership strengths we would probably see more engineers being at the forefront of change and innovation.

6. What is one thing you would take on a desert island?

A multi-tool to crack open coconuts and animals for food, as well as fashion myself some form of shelter and weapons.