Please note that the titles and descriptions that accompany each Trailblazers photograph are dated to the launch of the exhibit, March 2006, and will not be updated.
"I went to law school in order to be assured of a job and income security. What I came out with was a political perception of what law does and what law can be used for, and a deeper understanding of the way law shapes our society."
Nitya Iyer '86
Partner, Heenan Blaikie (Vancouver)
Equal Pay Commissioner for the Northwest Territories
Truly an independent thinker and one of the first South Asian women to graduate from the U of T Faculty of Law, Nitya Iyer has forged a path true to her own values and vision, often defying the mainstream. Throughout her career she has been a forceful advocate for human rights and equality in academe, the public sector and private practice. As an advisor and consultant to governments and employers, Nitya has helped to shape human rights and pay equity policies. In 2004, she was appointed the first Equal Pay Commissioner of the Government of the Northwest Territories for a four-year term, and previously was a full-time member of the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal. Nitya has written extensively on human rights and equality, and currently practises law in Vancouver in the areas of constitutional law, human rights and pay equity. Not one to become complacent, she continues her struggle to understand what equality means in the context of the diversity and dynamics of Canadian society.
See more of the Trailblazers Exhibit
