Zahra is a Senior Planner at the City of Vancouver, leading the implementation of the City’s Embodied Carbon Strategy. This strategy envisions a construction economy that is healthy, equitable, circular, and carbon-positive. She manages a range of projects aimed at advancing the City's embodied carbon policies and regulations, working in collaboration with a diverse array of internal and external stakeholder groups.

Holding a Master's in Advanced Studies in Architecture from the University of British Columbia (UBC), Zahra specializes in reducing embodied carbon emissions, life cycle assessment, mass timber construction, and circularity practices. Her previous roles have included serving as a research manager at UBC and the Zero Emissions Building Exchange (ZEBx), as well as a senior advisor at Mantle Developments, where she focused on assessing embodied carbon and decarbonizing buildings and portfolios.

Zahra is an active contributor to industry and peer-reviewed publications, presents at events and conferences, and volunteers with notable organizations such as the Carbon Leadership Forum of British Columbia (CLF BC) and the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) Embodied Carbon Technical Advisory Group.