"You are good enough because you try even when it is hard and you want to give up. Keep going. "

Laiba Nasir is a student, researcher, and community advocate passionate about the intersections of healthcare, technology, and equity. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Community Rehabilitation and Disability Studies at the University of Calgary. Her academic and professional work focuses on disability justice, chronic disease management, and the responsible integration of artificial intelligence in public health.

Laiba is a published researcher with two academic contributions in disability studies, exploring themes such as intersectionality, accessibility, and systemic barriers in healthcare. She also conducts research in rheumatology and cardiology, where she studies left ventricular dysfunction in patients with systemic sclerosis using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. In parallel, she is developing an innovative health-tech startup, MayTech, which empowers users to interpret their own biometric and lab data to create personalized, autonomous care plans, especially for communities facing barriers to accessing medical professionals.

Outside of research, Laiba is an award-winning debater and currently serves as the Director of Training for the University of Calgary Debate Society. She has earned over 30 competitive speaking awards and mentors students across Canada in debate and public speaking. Her leadership and advocacy work in mental health, accessibility, and youth engagement earned her the City of Calgary Youth Award in 2024. Laiba has been a delegate to the National Youth Forum, she is a volunteer at the Distress Centre, an scholar at the Canadian Centre for Disability Studies (Eviance), and a strong advocate for everything she believes in.

• PURE Summer Studentship Award 2025
• Diefenbaker Cup Finalists, 5th speaker 2025
• Fall Open Champions, Top Speaker 2024
• AP Scholar with Distinction 2024
• City of Calgary Youth Achievement Award 2024
• Youth of Distinction Award in Advocacy 2023
• First Alberta Alternative to Team Canada Debate Tryouts 2023
• Uhuru Worlds British Parliamentary Debate Tournament Schools Champions 2023
• Harvard World Schools Debate Octofinalists 2022
• Top 20 Under 20, Compassion Award 2022
• University of Pennsylvania World Schools Tournament Quarter finalists, 5th Speaker 2022

Publications

• Wolbring, G., & Nasir, L. (2024). Intersectionality of Disabled People through a Disability Studies, Ability-Based Studies, and Intersectional Pedagogy Lens: A Survey and a Scoping Review. Societies, 14(9), 176. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc14090176
• Wolbring, G., Nasir, L., & Mahr, D. (2024). Academic Coverage of Online Activism of Disabled People: A Scoping Review. Societies, 14(11), 215. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc14110215