Fortitude, Service, and Impact: A Conversation with Anil Wasif, Recipient of the 2025 Desmond Parker Outstanding Young Alumni Award

With a strong record of public service, cross-sector leadership, and a strong commitment to community impact, Anil Wasif, MPP (HBA ’17) is a public policy leader bridging local insight with global vision. He currently manages research at Infrastructure Ontario, co-leads the global nonprofit BacharLorai, and serves on Campus Council at U of T Mississauga and the Advisory Board at McGill’s Max Bell School. He is also a writer, public speaker and educator.   

This year, Anil was named the recipient of the Desmond Parker Outstanding Young Alumni Award, a recognition that honours U of T alumni under 40 making remarkable contributions in their communities and professions. 

When Anil Wasif received news of the award, he was on a train gliding from Paris to London. The timing felt deeply personal. He was moving through a period marked by adversity and the absence of someone who had once made any mountain feel scalable. The recognition arrived as a quiet affirmation—one that reconnected him with a lesson he first learned at the U of T Mississauga: resilience. 

“The letter from Principal Gillespie instantly made me reminisce the people who helped me stay the course,” Anil recalls. “It made me think about my family, my professors, my colleagues, and the community we’re building through BacharLorai. Naturally this award belongs to all of them: from Dhaka to Mississauga, through North York, Rouge Hill and Montreal, to New York and Washington DC.”  

For Anil, whose work spans economic policy, nonprofit leadership, mentorship, and board governance, the award is both a personal honour and a professional responsibility. “It energizes my commitment to helping young people unlock their potential—something Desmond Parker modeled through decades of global public service.” 

A Life Rooted in Contrasts 

Anil’s journey to public policy leadership began in Bangladesh, where he was raised between two starkly different family worlds—one urban and administrative, the other rural and agrarian. His grandfathers’ legacies, one as a British civil servant and the other a village farmer turned landlord, exposed him early on to the deep contrasts of access and opportunity. It was this environment that sparked his belief in economic inclusion as the foundation for true social equity.  

His parents, both graduates of Dhaka University, raised him with a powerful sense of purpose. “Our front door was always open,” he says. “That openness shaped my understanding of impact—how it’s often created through small, consistent acts of service.” These early lessons of empathy and sacrifice became core to his identity and continue to guide his decisions today. 

The UTM Catalyst 

Anil chose UTM for its academic rigor, diversity, and stunning natural setting—but also because he was told it wouldn’t be easy. “My best friend warned me that U of T would challenge me. That intrigued me,” he says. The challenge paid off. 

He came to pursue economics, but it was political science and sociology that transformed his outlook. Under the guidance of professors like Spyridon Kotsovilis and the late Lee Ann Fujii, Anil began to think critically about power, institutions, and inequity. “Sociology helped me understand consumerism, equity, and our Indigenous history here in Canada—it gave me language for things I had long felt but couldn’t yet articulate.”  

Opportunities beyond the classroom also shaped his worldview. A study abroad program in Berlin deepened his understanding of multiculturalism and integration, while representing the UTM at the AFS Youth Assembly at the United Nations gave him his first real glimpse into international development work. That early connection has since grown into a long-standing relationship—BacharLorai, the nonprofit he co-founded, is now a three-time exhibitor at the Assembly. 

Policy with Purpose 

Now a public policy leader with a track record of service across government and nonprofit sectors, Anil manages research at Infrastructure Ontario. His team produces evidence-based insights to inform decision-making to enable Ontario’s multibillion-dollar capital plan.  

His days are structured yet dynamic—often filled with over 45 conversations across work, board meetings, and nonprofit leadership. But the pace is intentional. “I thrive in organized complexity,” he explains. “My morning starts with a news brief and a walk to a neighborhood coffee shop to define my top three goals. From there, my commute through Philosopher's Walk park on U of T's St George campus is dedicated to the people who move BacharLorai forward. As I pass by Queen’s Park, my focus shifts entirely to advancing research at Infrastructure Ontario. After work, I enjoy creative expression, either writing long-form pieces or sharing a new recipe with loved ones, who usually enjoy them.”

Yet behind the structure lies sacrifice. At the start of his career, Anil turned down a well-paying corporate role to pursue a minimum-wage internship in government—delivering UberEats on a bike at night and bartending until close just to make ends meet. “It wasn’t easy, but I stayed true to a vision” he says. “And it expanded my perspective on the different starting lines people face.” 

Giving Back to UTM 

Despite his professional demands, Anil has remained deeply involved with UTM. His contributions range from speaking at events, guest lecturing, and judging case competitions to mentoring students and co-developing experiential learning programs. Through BacharLorai, he also provides UTM students with real-world opportunities via the Center for Student Engagement.  

His commitment to U of T’s mission has been recognized through appointments to the Campus Council and Academic Affairs Committee, as well as his role as a Scholar-in-Residence—a program he returns to every summer. 

“I give back because UTM opened doors for me,” he says. “and the people I met there taught me how to push open doors that are closed.” 

Looking Forward 

For new graduates wondering how to stay engaged, Anil offers this advice: “Just show up for people, in real life.” Whether it’s collaborating with a professor, sharing your expertise at a campus event, or mentoring a current student, repeated small gestures over time can leave a lasting impact. 

Anil recognizes that Desmond Parker built a legacy of consistent service in a changing world by staying the course through challenging circumstances. “In a world muted with rhetoric, people remember action.”