From Regent Park to Futurist Fiction

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Saqib Ahsan’s story begins in Regent Park, where he grew up surrounded by the challenges and resilience that define many inner-city neighborhoods. A South Asian Muslim and long-time resident, Saqib credits his personal growth to a network of community support—social services, education programs, and a deep culture of volunteerism. One program in particular, Pathways to Education, played a key role in shaping his aspirations during his high school years. Saquib is also the author of a science fiction novel Voyagers, a futuristic tale set a thousand years after an apocalyptic event. Drawing inspiration from Regent Park, the story’s fictional world of Acadia is shaped by waves of migration, power struggles, and deep structural inequalities. The parallels are intentional. Through speculative fiction, Saqib interrogates the legacy of poverty, the persistence of class, and the hidden costs of urban revitalization.

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