Sonya Shikhman, LL.B., Canada

Sonya Shikhman, LL.B., Canada

Sonya Shikhman, LL.B., is the Founder of Shikhman Barristers, a Toronto criminal defence law firm. Recognized in Best Lawyers in Canada for Criminal Defence in both 2024 and 2025, she has spent more than two decades defending individuals facing serious criminal allegations. Known for her fearless advocacy, she believes the justice system only remains fair when it is challenged, tested, and held accountable. In addition to her practice, she teaches Trial Advocacy at Osgoode Hall Law School and regularly provides legal analysis for CTV News and Newstalk 1010. In this episode, Sonya shares the remarkable journey that began long before she entered a courtroom. Growing up in Odessa during the final years of the Soviet Union, she developed an early understanding of government power, injustice, and the importance of standing up for those whose voices are ignored. At just thirteen years old, she told her parents she would become a criminal lawyer. By seventeen, she was knocking on the doors of law offices across Toronto looking for an opportunity. She reflects on the mentors who shaped her career, the confidence that carried her through unfamiliar situations, and the hidden humility that allowed her to keep learning throughout more than twenty years of practice. Sonya also explains why criminal defence is unlike any other profession: representing people who have placed their lives in your hands, challenging the power of the state, and protecting the principles of fairness, due process, and the presumption of innocence. Throughout the conversation, she speaks candidly about leadership, independence, authenticity, and refusing to change who she is in order to succeed. She leaves listeners with a philosophy that continues to guide both her work and her life: be deeply honest with yourself, know exactly why you do what you do, and always let your conscience lead the way.

Jill Saberman, RN, MSN, WHNP-BC, USA

Jill Saberman is a California-based Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner. In her professional practices, Jill focuses on Obstetrics & Gynecology, prenatal care, fertility, contraception and menopause. She values helping women understand their bodies, their health, and themselves.  In this episode, Jill discusses her philosophy of care which includes these words, “I am forever grateful to be in a partnership with my patients” and focuses on being authentic, being a good listener, and creating a safe space for her patients… professional discretion and compartmentalization… thinking about a career in medicine when she was a child because her father was a physician and her mother is a psychologist and a Biofeedback and Stress Management Practitioner… choosing a different path in college and pursuing art classes and film production classes…graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts with a focus on film, video, and photography… stepping away from the film industry and deciding to consider graduate programs after a conversation with her own OBGYN Nurse Practitioner… pursuing a Masters degree in Nursing Science to become a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner… the winding path that that led her to find her sense of personal empowerment and fulfillment… the importance of sharing our stories and of reminding each other that it is okay to make mistakes while also having a sense of grace for ourselves… and her beautiful closing words, “I would just like for women to be mentors for each other. We all have something that can support, guide, encourage, teach, care, and love for what any individual wants to do or be.”

Hassanah Al-Saba, Jamaica

Hassanah Al-Saba is a commercial pilot from Jamaica who loves the beach and ice cream. She completed her training at the Aeronautical School of the West Indies and distinguishes herself as Jamaica’s first Muslim female pilot. She is now 25 years old.  In this episode, Hassanah discusses the importance of perseverance and commitment in paving her life’s path… her interest in becoming a pilot when she was a young girl… loving the feeling of flying… her parents support at a young age, tempered by pragmatism about choosing studies that would yield job security… in her late teens, understanding that flight training was costly and that, at the time, there was no approved flight training available in Jamaica… beginning to study computer science in university and applying to become an air traffic controller… the establishment of the Aeronautical Club of the West Indies and her involvement with the club… continuing to pursue her dream of becoming a pilot with the help of scholarships and part-time jobs while studying… achieving her goal… her commitment to observing other people and learning from their mistakes… the fact that she has not experienced discrimination in her field because of her gender and has, in fact, been supported and encouraged by male colleagues… the experience and responsibilities of actually piloting a plane… how amazing women are in our resilience and our strength… the importance of looking within and knowing that your empowerment comes from yourself… and her closing reminder to us all–“Your career also doesn't define you…I am so much more than a pilot… I found that a lot of people have tied their self-worth to their career. I've seen that and I've again decided I don't want that for myself. I hope other people can also know that that one thing doesn't have to define you. You are worthy as you are.”

Sara Hirsh Bordo, USA

Sara Hirsh Bordo is an award-winning documentary filmmaker of women and girls’ stories. She is the Founder of a female empowerment production company called Women Rising® [https://www.womenrising.com/] and a first-time author.  Sara’s book, Autoimmunity and the Good Girls, How Permission to Put Ourselves First Has the Power to Keep Us Well, [https://autoimmunityandthegoodgirls.com/] is a personal transformation story that reminds women that their healing begins when they give themselves permission to speak up and take charge of their health.  In this episode, Sara discusses her book… the DNA of a Good Girl… her experiences growing up as the eldest and only daughter in a large, Texan Lebanese family… how the birth of twin brothers, when she was three-and-a-half years old, was “also the birthplace of ‘Be a good girl and help mommy,’ and ‘Be a good girl and help daddy,’ and ‘Be a good girl and do this for yourself’… becoming the Good Girl character that her family needed, an archetype that she has since explored extensively in her research for Autoimmunity and the Good Girls [https://autoimmunityandthegoodgirls.com/]… years of long work days, of championing female empowerment on screen and on stages, while caring for others and also  encountering a series of her own serious health challenges and diagnoses… the exploration of choices that would help her restore her health… ancestral healing and the stories her family has told across generations… being married at 24 and the realizations that the end of that marriage sparked… being judged by family values that she had not chosen… a pyramid that she created and called The Identity Immunity Story, a tool that helps Good Girls understand the stories and rules they have allowed to govern their lives… rebellion against family rules and expectations that empower us to rewire Good Girl DNA and reprogram our immune system… the observation that we either live according to the rules that were given to us or we choose to write our own rules… and her closing reminder to us all–“The accepting of the invitation to be truer to you is done one step at a time.”

Jovia Kusiima, Uganda

Jovia Kusiima is a project manager by profession, menstrual justice educator, social impact leader and entrepreneur. Jovia serves as Vice Chairperson of the European Union Delegation to Uganda Youth Sounding Board. She is very passionate about advancing the dignity and accessibility of menstrual justice.  In this episode, Jovia discusses aspects of menstrual justice, including freedom from shame and discrimination, access to pads and safe, clean places to change and discard them, and access to clean water… period poverty and its impact on school attendance… questioning the distribution of free condoms but not free sanitary pads… an auntie who experienced gender-based violence because she asked for pads... fighting to eliminate taxes on pads… the need for menstrual leave in workplaces… building her confidence to speak about dignity, access, and equity… as a project manager, having the  opportunity to work with health workers in the Ministry of Health in Uganda… the importance of monitoring and program evaluation… the opportunity to go to the East African Parliament of Tanzania… being inspired by Lillian Bagala… her transition into a youth leader who speaks about menstruation and menstrual justice in the Parliament at the national level… and her call to action for us all, “We need to keep on sharing our lived realities and stories. Why? Because when people really share their lived experiences, they shift how others understand issues. Storytelling turns private struggles into public awareness. We, as advocates or young people or women, really need to have turned our voices into action. Speaking is powerful, but pairing it with action makes it stronger.”