Top Row L-R: Kassie Burns, Anmol Burmy, Alexa Dolsky, Dana Harris Middle Row L-R: Shannon Heaney, Erin Isaac, Madison Lepp, Sydney McIntyre Bottom Row L-R: Zeal Pandya, Sebastian Roa, Evan Rodenburg
On June 11, 2024, 11 students will graduate from the Master of Sustainability program at Brock University! These students have worked incredibly hard throughout their studies and have participated and thrived in various Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) initiatives and programs. On behalf of the ESRC, we are honoured to have been a part of each of their academic journeys and cannot wait to hear more from these students in the future!
Kassie Burns joined the SSAS program in 2022 after completing her undergraduate degree at Brock. Kassie was in Scheme A of the program and completed her MRP research under the supervision of Dr. Marilyne Carrey, titled “Strategies for Enhancing Community Science: A Sustainability Science Narrative”. Kassie also completed a co-op position as a summer student with the Niagara Parks Commission and worked as a Research Assistant with the now-complete Charter with Facilities Management partnership. In addition to her studies, Kassie participated in the Mapping New Knowledges Conference at Brock, and was a co-recipient of the Rotary Club of St. Catharines Environmental Sustainability Graduate Scholarship.
Anmol Burmy joined the SSAS program in 2022 from Toronto Metropolitan University. Her MRP research focused on flood resilience and was titled “A Flood Tale of Two Cities: St. Catharines and London, ON” and was supervised by Dr. Diane Dupont. During her time as a SSAS student, Anmol took on the role of Project Manager for a consulting project with her fellow students for the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority. The results of this project will continue to be used by the NPCA for years to come. Anmol also completed a co-op position as a Planning Employment Surveyor with the Halton Region and was recently hired by the Township of North Stormont as a Junior Development Planner after successfully completing AMTCO’s Prime on Planning course with honours.
Alexa Dolsky joined the SSAS program, virtually, from Alberta in 2020 and was one of the first students to join Scheme C of the SSAS program! Her MRP research was supervised by Dr. Ryan Plummer and titled “Applying an adapted sustainability framework to three government hydrogen roadmaps”. Throughout her time in the SSAS program, Alexa maintained a role with the Government of Alberta and is currently working there as a Senior Policy Advisor.
Dana Harris joined the SSAS program as part of our third cohort in 2016. Her thesis research, titled “Characterizing intra-annual xylem cell formation and circadian cycle dynamics of Jack Pine (Pinus Banksiana) in the Northern Boreal Forest, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories” was supervised by Dr. Michael Pisaric and successfully defended by Dana on October 5, 2023. While completing her studies, Dana won the NSERC Science Exposed competition in 2018 and participated in several international conferences, including AAG in Boston, MA and the Le Studium conference on wood formation in Orleans, France. Dana also worked as an environmental officer at the Gahcho diamond mine in the Northwest Territories and currently works as a Fish and Fish Habitat Biologist with the Government of Canada. She currently lives in Yellowknife with her family.
Shannon Heaney joined the program, virtually, from Alberta in 2021 and completed her thesis research under the supervision of Dr. Ryan Plummer. Shannon’s thesis was titled “Tactics to Engender Participation in Collaborative Environmental Management” and was successfully defended on October 20, 2023. During her studies, Shannon worked as a research assistant on the now-complete Excellence in Environmental Stewardship Initiative partnership with the Niagara Parks Commission. Shannon was also a recipient of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and the Joan P. Nicks Sustainability Scholarship. She was recently hired by the University of Alberta’s Sustainability Council as a Project Planner – Special Projects.
Erin Isaac joined the program in 2022 and completed her MRP, titled “Spotting Potential Threats: A Tool to Inform the Proactive Management of Invasive Insects on a Regional Scale” under the supervision of Dr. Marilyne Carrey. Erin completed a co-op work placement as a Climate Change Intern with the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) and also worked as a Research Assistant with the now-complete Brock-Lincoln Living Lab partnership. Erin was also a recipient of the Rovinelli Family Bursary and the Brock Horizon Scholarship. She is now working as a Project Assistant in Natural Asset Management with Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA).
Madison Lepp joined the program in 2021 and completed her thesis research under the supervision of Dr. Jessica Blythe. Her thesis, titled “Advancing Resilience and Equity in Canadian Municipal Climate Adaptation” was successfully defended on January 25, 2024. During her time in the SSAS program, Madison worked as a Research Assistant with the now-complete Charter with Facilities Management partnership and participated in the Mapping New Knowledges conference. Madison was also the successful co-recipient of a WWF Go Wild Grant with fellow SSAS alum Alexandra Cotrufo. They used these funds to start the Brock University Seed Library, which has been an incredibly successful initiative for the university.
Sydney McIntyre joined the program in 2022 and completed her MRP research, titled “Paper Parks or Protection: Evaluating Atlantic Canada’s Marine Protected Areas” under the supervision of Dr. Jessica Blythe. Sydney completed a co-op work placement with the Niagara Parks Commission as an Environmental Education and Stewardship Student and continued working in this role while completing her research. She also worked as a Research Assistant with the now-complete Excellence in Environmental Stewardship Initiative partnership and was a co-recipient of the Rotary Club Environmental Sustainability Graduate Scholarship. Sydney is now working for the NPCA as the Coordinator for the Niagara River Remedial Action Plan.
Zeal Pandya travelled from Ahmedabad, India to join the SSAS program in 2022. She completed an MRP titled “Climate Change Vulnerability Analysis: A Case Study of the Town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada” under the supervision of Dr. Marilyne Carrey. During her time in the program, Zeal completed a co-op work placement with the Ontario Department of Environment, Conservation, and Parks as an Environmental Officer. Her position was extended, and she completed her placement over the course of two terms. Zeal was also a successful recipient of the Ontario Paper-Thorold Foundation Graduate Award.
Sebastian Roa travelled from Bogota, Colombia to join the SSAS program in 2021. His thesis research, titled “Understanding youth attitudes, preferences, and the role of cultural values on intention to use carbon labels on food products: a case study of Argentinian and Canadian consumers” was supervised by Dr. Gary Pickering and successfully defended on September 12, 2023. Sebastian later published his thesis research in the journal Sustainable Production and Consumption and worked for Liberty Utilities, where he was tasked with supporting their ESG strategy. During his time as a SSAS student, Sebastian presented his research at the Mapping New Knowledges conference, served as a Brock International Student Ambassador, and was a successful recipient of the 2022 Spring Fellowship award.
Evan Rodenburg joined the program in 2022 and became a member of Dr. Julia Baird’s Water Resilience Lab to complete his MRP research under her supervision. His MRP was titled “Understanding the Dimensions of Climate Change Misinformation”. As a Scheme A student, Evan completed a co-op work placement and was hired by Brock’s Facilities Management department as a Sustainability Data Analyst working on Brock University’s STARS submission.
In addition to our 11 SSAS graduates, we’d also like to offer our sincere congratulations to the 11 undergraduate students who will be graduating with a Minor in Environmental Sustainability, several of whom were successful recipients of the TD Bank Group Scholarship in Environmental Sustainability: Cameron Burgess, Kiara Calder (scholarship recipient), Ruth Elysee, Lea Formicuccia (scholarship recipient), Julia Gardner, William L’Ecuyer, Taylor Partel, Vikki Rossiter, Suel Sakha, Aryan Tiwari, and Naomi Tufts (scholarship recipient).
Congratulations to all of you, and best wishes in your future endeavours!
