2026 Faculty of Environment Alumni Awards announced

Douglas Jones (BES ’93) has spent his career reimagining where and how children learn. As principal of Limehouse Public School, he has helped embed outdoor and sustainability-focused learning throughout school life, building on an interest first sparked during a Waterloo co-op term in outdoor education. His leadership has helped Limehouse earn EcoSchools Platinum certification for five consecutive years while influencing educators and school leaders well beyond his own school.

Dr. Reiko Omoto (PhD ’13) is a professor, researcher, farmer and lifelong learner whose work bridges scientific research and the knowledge of people who live and work closest to the land and sea. From fisheries and food systems to rural sustainability, her research across Japan, Southeast Asia and the United States explores how global approaches can learn from local knowledge and lived experience.

Dr. Jo Fitzgibbons (MES ’19) has built a career at the intersection of research and professional practice. A planner and researcher with the City of Vancouver, she brings together ecological science, community knowledge and planning practice to help bring more nature to the city and shape healthier urban environments. Her work is grounded in the belief that better environmental decisions emerge when different perspectives and ways of knowing have a meaningful place in the conversation.

Dr. Kate Linden (PhD ’18) is an ecological economist, educator and community-engaged researcher challenging conventional ideas about how we define progress. Now an Associate Professor at Cape Breton University, she works alongside communities on issues ranging from rural aging to ecological footprints. Across her work, she returns to the same idea: lasting change depends less on speed and optimization than on care, relationships and the communities that sustain them.

Adam Clark (BAS ’06, MArch ’09) has created a bridge between Waterloo classrooms and real-world city building. Through years of collaboration as a project client, guest lecturer, critic and mentor, the City of Kitchener urban designer has given students opportunities to tackle active planning challenges while bringing their research and ideas into municipal decision-making. That relationship has contributed to projects including Growing Together, Kitchener’s award-winning framework for growth around its ION light rail stations.

KEEN Footwear has supported Faculty of Environment students and community partners for more than a decade. Through scholarships, internships, co-op experiences and conservation partnerships, KEEN has helped students put their learning into practice while increasing the capacity of organizations working to protect ecosystems and communities. Its longstanding partnership demonstrates how investing in students can extend environmental impact far beyond campus.

Matt Merko, Director, Insights & Engagement Canada, will accept the award on behalf of KEEN Footwear.