Cultural Bridge Builder

Ajay Puri’s friends call him the Masala Man. It’s a fitting moniker for an individual who adds considerable ‘spice’ to all the community and social events he organizes.

In fact, his extensive volunteer work brings a kind of zest to communities and organizations that typically don’t work together. In 2009, for example, Puri co-founded Bridge to a Cool Planet with two community organizers to help bridge a mainstream environmental movement in Vancouver with people in the South Asian community. His efforts saw 8,000-plus people taking part in an all-day call for action that looked more like a festival than a protest, on purpose.

“Instead of a rally, I wanted to make it more fun, more inclusive. Any movement or social cause needs to have that light,” explains Puri, a 29-year-old doctoral student at the School of Population and Public Health at University of British Columbia. “We could have protested with megaphones but we wanted to make it more like a parade or festival. We’re just changing the terminology so that all people, all communities, all ages and all diversities are welcomed.”

The event was an impetus for the creation of two spin-off groups also co-founded by Puri. One of them, Rangi Changi Roots, seeks to assist non-profits to better engage with culturally diverse communities and assist multicultural immigrant agencies to become more environmentally sustainable.

“[Puri is] famous for connecting like-minded people who maybe didn’t think they were like-minded, a skill that makes him particularly skilled at networking in Vancouver,” says Lara Honrado, co-founder of Rangi Changi Roots.

Indeed, his networking abilities have helped to create a host of other grassroots groups, including Canadians for Obama, East of Main and the Ethno-cultural Health Research & Community Network of BC, which is establishing an association of researchers who advocate for further funding and resources for ethnically diverse groups. For the past eight years, he’s also worked in the health sector in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with at-risk groups, such as sex workers, the homeless and people with mental illness. Most recently, he joined the board of PIVOT, a committee that seeks to empower underprivileged people through accessible legal representation.

“I try to challenge agencies to let communities be empowered,” says Puri. “How? By bringing them to the table, getting them involved—we don’t just hand out free things but we inform them about resources, we invite them to meetings and ask them for their involvement…that’s what gets an idea moving.”

With the Masala Man on their side, many more ideas are sure to gain momentum.

—Fina Scroppo