Our Staff
Sume Ndumbe-Eyoh
Executive Director
Sume Ndumbe-Eyoh is the Executive Director of the Black Health Education Collaborative and an Assistant Professor in the Clinical Public Health Division at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.
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Sume provides strategic consultations to organizations as principal of Another World Lab. She holds a Master of Health Sciences in Health Promotion and Global Health from the University of Toronto. Hailing from Cameroon, she is grateful to live, work and play in Turtle Island and is committed to working towards decolonial futures.
Nkwanzi Banage
Research Assistant
Nkwanzi Banage is a final-year undergraduate student pursuing an Honours B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Economics at McGill University, where she serves as the President of the Black Students’ Network of McGill.
She is of Ugandan and South African descent, and her research interests lie in sub-Saharan politics and Africana studies, with a focus on public policy, health equity, anti-racist frameworks, race relations, and Black advocacy.
Raha Mahmoudi
Program Specialist
Raha Mahmoudi (she/her) is a Program Specialist in Black Health and Anti-Black Racism Education and Research with the Black Health Education Collaborative (BHEC). She is guided by visions of a world where Black flourishing is the norm, not the exception, and where everyday acts of care—practised as a daughter, friend, and neighbour—are central to collective wellbeing.
Raha’s community engagement has included working with the Thorncliffe Park Urban Farmers, West Neighbourhood House’s Adult Learning Program, Revera Retirement Residence’s Recreation Program, Health Access Thorncliffe Park’s Community Ambassadors, Thorncliffe Park Public School’s Pediatric School Clinic, and most recently the Pride and Remembrance Run. Alongside her professional work, she supports researchers and students with grant development and graduate applications. Raha holds a Master of Public Health from McMaster University.
Outside of work, you can find Raha tending to her plants, slow crafting, or spending time at the public library.
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Lydia-Joi Marshall
Program Manager
Lydia-Joi Marshall is a proud Caribbean Canadian woman and a passionate advocate for health equity. Drawing on her background in biology and human genetics, she works at the intersection of community, research, and systems change to advance anti-Black racism and anti-oppressive practice.
Through multidisciplinary research, international facilitation, and public speaking, including as a TEDx Toronto speaker, she challenges individuals and organizations to examine inequities and reimagine more equitable futures.
Whether working in the lab, partnering with communities, or travelling the globe, Lydia-Joi is committed to fostering connection, collective action, and meaningful change.
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Carole Matchuindem
Program Specialist
Carole (she/her) is a Program Specialist with the Black Health Education Collaborative (BHEC), driven by a commitment to health equity, program evaluation, and community-centered public health practice. She believes that meaningful change happens when research, programs, and communities are connected through care, rigor, and collaboration.
Carole's work spans program design, implementation, and evaluation, as well as health promotion and equity. She holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) and is currently a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) candidate at Université de Montréal.
Outside of work, Carole enjoys writing romance stories, and dancing to Latin and African-inspired rhythms.
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Kuuku Quagraine
Administrative Assistant
Kuuku Quagraine is an accomplished research and policy analyst with over a decade of experience supporting governance, operations, and organizational systems across the non-profit and public sectors. In his role as Administrative Assistant at Black Health Education Collaborative (BHEC), he provides high-level administrative and operational support to leadership, contributing to the organization’s efforts to advance health equity and improve outcomes for Black communities across Canada.
Kuuku has supported senior leadership at organizations including the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, Toronto West Local Immigration Partnership, Global Affairs Canada, and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. He brings a strong commitment to equity, human rights, and community-centered approaches, playing a key role in strengthening internal systems and supporting BHEC’s mission.
He holds a Master of Global Affairs from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in International Relations and Development Studies from the University of Windsor.
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Dr. Talata Sawadogo-Lewis
Program Specialist
Talata (she/her) is a behavioural scientist committed to understanding why people do what they do and think what they think, and leveraging those insights to advance health equity from any and all angles. Her work has centered marginalized communities in Latin America, Africa, and the United States, and is informed by the belief that underlining our interdependence is the key to advancing collective well-being.
She holds a BSc in Food Chemistry from McGill University, a Masters in International Public Health from the University of Sydney, and a PhD in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.
Zahra van Gaalen
Research Assistant
Zahra van Gaalen holds a BHSc from Carleton University, with a concentration in Global Health. She has experience in policy and community-based research, programming for Black and Indigenous youth, and nonprofit sector marketing.
Her research interests include intersectional approaches to women’s health equity and advancing the health of Black communities across Canada, with a focus on health intervention implementation, health education and knowledge translation, and health systems and policy.
Javiera-Violeta Duran Kairies
Program Specialist
Javiera-Violeta (she/her) is a Program Specialist at the Black Health Education Collaborative (BHEC). She holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Toronto.
