Nisa Malli

Nisa Malli is a researcher, writer, and policy wonk who has built her career both inside and outside the public service. Currently, she leads Delivery Policy for the Canadian Digital Service, bringing 15+ years experience in public policy, applied research, program delivery, and service design. Previously, she managed the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship’s Innovative and Inclusive Economy program, leading research on digital literacy/access, tech policy, and the tech sector. She was a City of Toronto Urban Fellow, helped start the Privy Council Office’s Impact and Innovation Unit, advised the Deputy Ministers’ Committee on Policy Innovation, and ran a library-based digital literacy program for seniors, newcomers, and job seekers.

As a policy advisor and patient-researcher on Long COVID, she has focused on the impacts on workers and the workforce and the service design of public health and government supports. This has included roles as a member of the Long COVID Patient-Led Research Collaborative, Ontario Health’s Post-COVID-19 Condition Expert Panel, and the University of Toronto Rehabilitation Science Research Network for COVID.

Her first book, Allodynia (Palimpsest Press, 2022), was long-listed for the Pat Lowther Award and the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. Her chapbook, Remitting (Baseline Press, 2019) won the bpNichol Prize.