ENV Grads, are you curious about non-traditional career paths and careers outside of academia? Are you interested in how you can leverage skills from your degree after graduation? Do you want an opportunity to connect with Faculty of Environment Grad Alumni?
The Faculty of Environment and EGSA are hosting a virtual alumni networking night on March 2nd from 5 to 6:30PM. Come meet with 8 former graduate students from the Faculty of Environment who will talk about their experiences after graduation and the skills that helped them along their career paths. There will be the opportunity to talk with graduates from specific industries including public, private, and academia. Look forward to seeing everyone there!
Meet the panelists:
Panelist bios
Dr. Nadia Charania (MES ’11, ERS | PhD ’15, Social and Ecological Sustainability)
Senior Lecturer in Public Health and Co-Director of the Centre for Migrant and Refugee Research at Auckland University of Technology based in Auckland, New Zealand
Dr. Charania is passionate about preventing infectious diseases among marginalized populations. Her background is in health and environmental sciences and previous research efforts primarily focused on improving local influenza pandemic preparedness with remote and isolated Canadian First Nations communities using community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches.
She moved to Auckland, New Zealand and joined AUT University in early 2015 where she is involved in a range of teaching, research and service activities. Nadia has research expertise in the areas of migrant and refugee health, child and youth health, immunisations, vaccine-preventable diseases, infectious disease prevention and control, community engagement, innovation and health care delivery. She specialises in critical, qualitative and participatory action research with a focus on community participation and knowledge translation. Her research programme is primarily directed towards reducing health inequities related to infectious diseases faced by marginalised populations, such as migrants and refugees.
Dr. Maureen Reed (PhD ’91, Geography)
Distinguished Professor and Assistant Director Academic, School of Environment and Sustainability at University of Saskatchewan
UNESCO Chair in Sustainability, Reconciliation and Renewal
Dr. Reed is a proud alumna of the University of Waterloo. She is internationally recognized for her work on governance for conservation and sustainability and an expert on gender and forestry in the global North. She has recently conducted research on how gender and culture affect response and recovery from wildfire. She works primarily with UNESCO Biosphere Regions, forestry communities and Model Forests, and Indigenous communities.
She has received recognition for her research, student supervision, and engagement with communities from the Canadian Association of Geography, SSHRC, University of Saskatchewan, and the YWCA.
She presently serves on a National Steering Committee for Gender Equity in Forestry. If you want to learn more about why Dr. Reed is passionate about Biosphere Regions, please view the documentary series, “Striking Balance” : https://strikingbalance.ca/
Odunayo Moses Onifade (MSC ’20 Geography)
Freelance Data Scientist
Odunayo works with a team of diverse collaborators relating to topics in Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Computer Vision, Natural Language Processing, etc. He volunteers with The Foodbank of Waterloo region and mentors a student through BigBrothers BigSisters of Waterloo region in-school mentoring program.
Odunayo is the President of the newly formed University of Waterloo African Alumni Association, a role he started recently with the aim to create a network that gives back and mentor graduate students of African descent. In his free time, He enjoys watching his favourite team Manchester United F.C play and documentaries.
Scott Bohachyk (MDP ’14, Development Practice)
Director of Ocean and Climate Literacy at Ocean Wise
Scott's professional career has mainly involved work with the United Nations Association in Canada and Ocean Wise. At UNA-Canada, Scott played a lead role in securing $20M of funding for national and international youth-led environmental/development programs. He led the design, implementation and evaluation of these programs in addition to leading government relations strategy for the organization at the federal level. His work with Ocean Wise has focused on strategic planning, management and funding of Ocean Wise's Ocean and Climate Literacy work, which reached over 500,000 Canadians in 2020.
One of Scott's current interests is the development of high-performing teams, specifically how to foster the communication, empowerment and respect for teams to do their best work.
Dustin Carey (BES ’13, Geography | MCC ’15, Climate Change)
Capacity Building Officer, Climate Innovation program at Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM)
After receiving his Master of Climate Change degree, Dustin Carey applied his understanding of climate science to the fields of climate adaptation and natural disaster resilience at the municipal scale. Specializing in flood mitigation and municipal asset management, Dustin has led national training programs to enable local governments to better respond to climate risk. He is the author of the Climate-Resilient Asset Management chapter of the United Nations’ Managing Infrastructure Assets for Sustainable Development Handbook and is the Secretariat co-lead of the Municipal Climate Services Collaborative.
Michelle Samson (BES '11, Geography | MAES '12, Local Economic Development)
Economic Development Officer at City of Vaughan
Michelle Samson, Ec.D., is an Economic Development Officer with the City of Vaughan, Ontario, where she is responsible for economic development marketing and business development city-wide but with a particular emphasis on the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre (VMC), the downtown Vaughan is building from scratch. Her work for Vaughan and other communities has been recognized by international economic development and marketing associations.
Michelle is a graduate of the MAES in Local Economic Development program, a certified economic developer, and a three-term director on the board of the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO). Her multi-disciplinary background includes roles in economic development consulting, international trade, professional development, communications, and broadcast journalism.
Rob Rappolt (MA '15, Planning)
Project Planner at WSP in Canada
Rob Rappolt is a land use planner with WSP Canada Inc., based in Kitchener, ON. He regularly contributes to a range of planning policy assignments throughout Ontario in smaller, mid-size, and larger municipalities in both rural and urban contexts. His diverse experience and interests include statutory planning exercises such as official plan reviews, comprehensive zoning by-law reviews, growth management strategies, community improvement plans, and Municipal Class Environmental Assessments, among others. He is also a P2 practitioner, holding a certificate from IAP2 (International Association for Public Participation) in Foundations of Public Participation, including Planning and Techniques for Effective P2. In this capacity, Robert regularly contributes to developing and implementing innovative and tailored approaches to public engagement strategies for a range of municipal clients and projects.
Rob's current professional passions include building community capacity through land use planning exercises, enhancing local economic development opportunities, and creating a more accessible built environment through his role on the City of Cambridge Accessibility Advisory Committee. Rob holds a Master of Arts in Planning from the University of Waterloo ('15), and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Geography and Environmental Studies from McMaster University ('09).
Iman Hassani (MES '18, Sustainability Management)
Iman Hassani, Head of ApplyProof at Applyboard Inc.
Iman Hassani is the Head of ApplyProof, where he leads the innovative development of educational technology, business processes, and partnerships with institutions and education stakeholders. Iman has a track record of leading multi-disciplinary, cross cultural, and geographically dispersed teams, and driving transformational change.
Iman is passionate about synergizing people and resources to provide technological solutions in education for students, institutions, and government alike. He draws his expertise from his Master’s degrees in Business, Management, and Sustainability, from the University of Waterloo and the University of Tehran, as well as a bachelor’s degree in Engineering.