Who We Are

Ever since working in the refugee camps in the war-torn former Yugoslavia in the 90s, Tea made a commitment to serve those whose lives had been unjustly disrupted by conflict. Years later, as she visited Srebrenica as part of her postgraduate studies at New York University and later University of Nova Gorica, Tea realized the profound impact of first-person digital story sharing. In 2013, she received a PhD in Cultural History, specializing in oral history recording, and has since committed her life to healing trauma, empowerment and amplifying the voices of immigrants and refugees. She is passionate about social justice, creating brave spaces, social entrepreneurship and immigrant leadership.

In 2013, Tea co-founded Green Card Voices, an organization that combats stereotypes by empowering immigrants to tell their stories. She and her team has recorded and shared stories of over 500 immigrants and refugees coming from 150 countries and living in Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, New York, California and Georgia. She is the editor of eight books—all award-winning collections of first-person immigrant stories and 2015 Bush Fellow.

Tea is passionate about travel, running, hiking, kite flying, horses and growing vegetables. She is a mom to two amazing pre-teen daughters and two loving and [occasionally] naughty beagles. In the summer, she can be found hiking in the Slovenian Alps and swimming off of the Croatian coast with dozens of members of her immediate and extended family.

tea@greencardvoices.org

aaliyah@greencardvoices.org

Currently, Lyda is managing Ramsey County Legal Advocate Services at Tubman that provides support and information on both criminal and civil court process, safety planning and resources for victim of domestic violence and survivors.

Noran Aly is trained in economics and statistics, and passionate about turning data into stories that drive meaningful stories. Based in Southeast Minneapolis, she leads Evaluation & Data Strategies at Greater Twin Cities United Way, building systems that make evaluation learnings actionable for communities. Her work blends technical expertise with a commitment to equity; designing frameworks that connect numbers and anecdotes into authentic stories and creating tools that empower immigrant communities to learn, thrive, and own their narratives.

Noran holds a Master of Development Practice from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, where she specialized in applied policy analysis and evaluation. Growing up in Egypt as the eldest of six sisters and being raised by a Syrian mother shaped her understanding of resilience and cultural nuance, perspectives that inform her work today. Outside of work, she enjoys coffee, traveling, exploring hidden gems, hiking, and has recently taken up tennis.