Bridging Divides To Lead The Charge For Racial Justice

Noura Mansour is an experienced strategist, community organiser and advocate with background in education and politics. Noura’s passion for racial justice and commitment to building people power are deeply rooted in her personal lived experiences as a Palestinian woman, academic training in politics and professional journey. As an educator, organisational consultant and a strategist, Noura has worked with civil society and grassroots organisations on campaigning and advocacy in Palestine, South Korea and Australia.

Describe your career trajectory and how you got to your current position.

My career path has been deeply shaped by my identity and experiences as a Palestinian Muslim woman. From childhood, I was confronted with questions of injustice and inequality – not as abstract concepts, but as daily realities. This lived experience of colonisation as an Indigenous person became the lens through which I understood the world and ultimately determined the direction of my professional life.

Growing up in a household where both parents were educators instilled in me a fundamental belief in the power of learning and knowledge-sharing. Education wasn’t just valued – it was seen as a tool for understanding, resistance, and change. This foundation gave me both the analytical skills and the conviction that systemic issues could be addressed through informed action.

My professional focus on community and movement building emerged organically from this background. Having experienced marginalisation firsthand, I understood the critical importance of coalition work – of finding shared values across different communities and building bridges even when our specific struggles might differ. This wasn’t theoretical for me; it was survival and strategy.

Throughout my career, I’ve drawn strength from multiple sources. My community in Palestine remains my deepest well of inspiration, reminding me why this work matters and keeping me connected to the grassroots reality that drives change. My partner serves as both my closest advisor and strongest supporter, providing the strategic thinking and emotional sustenance that sustains long-term advocacy work.Most importantly, my two sons represent both my motivation and my accountability. They remind me daily that this work isn’t just about addressing past injustices – it’s about creating a more equitable world for the next generation. Every professional decision I make is filtered through the question of what kind of world I’m building for them.

This combination of personal experience, educational foundation, community connection, and family motivation has created a career trajectory focused on systemic change through collaborative action. My path hasn’t been linear, but it’s been consistent in its commitment to justice work rooted in lived experience and sustained by community solidarity.

Can you tell us a bit more about what the organisation is all about?

Democracy in Colour is an organisation that advocates for racial justice by identifying the various manifestations of racism in society and providing targeted and strategic interventions that centre the voices and lived experiences of racialised and marginalised communities. The work we do is built upon a rich legacy of community organising, personal sacrifices and collective wins of the anti-racism movement across the world. We have several programs and campaigns running each year, including our Climate Justice Program and Anti-Racism Training, as well as our upcoming youth leadership program, Thriving in Colour.

Take us through a typical day of work for you.

A typical day for me starts early with getting the kids ready for school – making sure they have everything they need, breakfast sorted, and any last-minute homework questions answered. After the school drop-off, I usually catch up on the news to stay informed about current events, which is particularly important given the nature of our work in activism. Once I’m settled at my home office, I check in with my team to see how everyones doing and what priorities we’re tackling that day. I am extremely lucky to be working with a team of committed professionals whom I learn from every day. We’re a fully remote team, but I make it a point to maintain that personal connection and supportive atmosphere. A big part of my morning involves going through emails and responding to urgent matters, coordinating with team members, and keeping projects moving forward.

Throughout the day, I’m very intentional about encouraging my team to take regular breaks and practice self-care. The activism space can be emotionally demanding and mentally draining, so I regularly remind everyone to step away from their screens, take walks, or do whatever helps them recharge. We’ve built a culture where taking care of yourself isn’t just accepted – it’s expected and supported. Even though we’re geographically scattered, we’ve created systems to stay connected and maintain that supportive team dynamic. Whether it’s quick check-ins, virtual coffee breaks, or just making sure people know they can reach out when they need support, fostering that sense of community and care is a huge part of how I approach each workday.

What is the biggest challenge you’ve encountered in your career, and how did you overcome it?

The biggest challenge I’ve encountered in my career has been navigating the intersection of multiple identities in professional spaces – being a woman, being Palestinian, and often being the youngest person in the room. Each of these brings its own set of obstacles and stereotypes that I’ve had to learn to work through. As a woman, I constantly found myself in that impossible balance of being either “too much” or  “not enough”. If I was assertive and direct, I was labeled as aggressive or difficult. If I was collaborative and diplomatic, I wasn’t seen as leadership material or was considered too soft for the tough decisions. It felt like there was no winning – the goalposts kept moving depending on what was convenient for others.

Being Palestinian added another layer of complexity, where I had to deal with preconceived notions and stereotypes about my background, my motivations, and my perspectives. People would make assumptions about my politics, my values, or my approach to work based solely on my identity rather than my actual contributions and capabilities. Then there was often being the youngest person in leadership meetings or decision-making spaces, where my ideas would sometimes be dismissed or I’d have to work twice as hard to establish credibility that others seemed to receive automatically.

I overcame these challenges by focusing on building genuine relationships and letting mywork speak for itself. I learned to navigate different cultural contexts by really listening and adapting my communication style while staying true to my core values. Most importantly, I surrounded myself with mentors and allies who saw my full potential and helped amplify my voice when needed. I also realised that my diverse perspective – being a young Palestinian woman – actually brought unique insights and approaches that strengthened our team and our mission.

If you could go back in time, what piece of advice would you give yourself as you first embarked on your career?

If I could go back to when I first started my career, I would tell myself: trust yourself more. Early on, I spent so much time second-guessing my instincts and looking for validation from others before making decisions. While its absolutely important to consult with others and build on the knowledge and experience that already exists – you don’t need to reinvent the wheel – ultimately, you have to be comfortable making your own decisions and standing behind them. I wish I had understood sooner that my perspective and judgment had value, even when I was newer to the field. The other crucial piece of advice I’d give my younger self is to learn early how to take breaks and truly rest. I used to think that working constantly and pushing through exhaustion was a badge of honour or proof of my dedication. But I learned the hard way that sustainable impact requires sustainable practices. Rest isn’t lazy – it’s strategic. Taking breaks isn’t selfish – it’s necessary for doing your best work over the long term. I wish I had built those habits of self-care and boundary-setting from the beginning, rather than having to learn them after burnout. Your career is a marathon, not a sprint, and you need to pace yourself accordingly. Taking care of yourself isn’t just good for you – it’s good for everyone who depends on your leadership and contributions.

How do you unwind after work?

In the activism space, especially when you’re passionate about the work and theres always more that needs to be done, the concept of truly switching off can feel almost foreign sometimes. But I’ve learned that finding ways to step back is absolutely essential, not just for my own wellbeing but for being effective in the long run. When I do manage to unwind, I’m drawn to nature – whether that’s a walk in the park, hiking, or just sitting outside and breathing fresh air. Theres something about being in natural spaces that helps reset my mind and reminds me theres a bigger world beyond the immediate urgency of our daily work.

Time with my family and friends is huge for me. Having those conversations and connections that aren’t centred around work helps ground me and remember what I’m ultimately working toward – creating a better world for the people I care about. Those moments of laughter, shared meals, or just being present with loved ones are incredibly restorative.

I also love reading, particularly books that transport me somewhere completely different from my day-to-day reality. Whether it’s fiction that lets me escape into another world or books that expand my thinking in new directions, reading gives my mind a chance to wander and process in a different way. The challenge, of course, is actually making time for these things and not feeling guilty about stepping away from the work. It’s an ongoing practice, but I’m getting better at recognising that these moments of restoration actually make me more effective, not less.

What was the last thing you watched, read or listened to?

I’m currently reading a book called “One Day Everyone Would Have Been Against This” by award-winning novelist and journalist Omar El Akkad. It’s not a light read but it’s so compelling and such a timely one for today’s readers. It’s particularly relevant to my life and the work that I do. The book is helping me think about how to stay committed to what’s right even when it’s not popular, while also being strategic about how we communicate and build the broad support that lasting change requires.