ABOUT US
My name is Karima Ramji, and I am blessed to have been a visitor and an uninvited settler on the traditional territories of the lÉ™k̓ʷəŋən, Songhees, Esquimalt and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples for several years. I have been working in the field of intercultural competency development since 2009. Based in Victoria, BC, I am certified by the Cultural Intelligence Center, LLC, as a CQ Certified Advanced Professional and have received permission to use the term "CQ" commercially.
I am a strong advocate of pluralism, which means that I embrace diversity as a way to strengthen our community. I apply this approach to the world of work in multiple contexts, including community and non-profit organizations, private business and government, and other educational organizations.
As a CQ professional, I can work with you and your team to provide the "software" to be effective, respectful and collaborative in diverse cultural contexts. Developing your organization's CQ helps further employees' personal and professional development, while having the added benefit of contributing to your organization's diversity, inclusion and pluralism priorities.
EXPERIENCE & PUBLICATIONS
Outside of Ramji Consulting, I serve as Associate Director, International, Indigenous and Strategic Initiatives at University of Victoria's Co-operative Education Program and Career Services. As part of my work, I have developed and facilitated cultural intelligence curricula for post-secondary students and delivered CQ workshops for professional development events and conferences.
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Through my work at UVic, I contribute extensively to research that explores the impact of intercultural competency in the working world. Recent publications include a co-authored chapter on UVic's Intercultural Competency Development Curriculum in T. Bowen, T. & Drysdale, M.T.B. (Eds.), Work-integrated Learning in the 21st Century: Global Perspectives on the Future (International Perspectives on Education and Society, V32), Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing Limited, 2017.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
My dedication to contributing to a pluralistic world extends to my work in community. An active volunteer, I believe in contributing my time and expertise toward bettering our local and global community. The World Partnership Walk (WPW) provides me the opportunity to volunteer locally to have a global impact. The WPW engages Canadians in addressing the United Nation’s #1 Sustainable Development Goal: Global Poverty. I and am very proud to have helped raise over $750,000 for Aga Khan Foundation Canada's (AKFC) international development projects during my two terms as Chair of this event from 2010-2012 and 2018-2019. Read about the diverse team I led to achieve our goals for WPW 2019.
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Volunteering in Tajikistan to help develop the University of Central Asia’s co-operative education program was a special treat. While there, I also had the opportunity to see first hand the impact of the work of AKFC. Read about it, and my other contributions to the Times Colonist’s Spiritually Speaking blog.