涩里番

Annelies Koch-Schulte, SSMU

Annelies is an undergraduate B.A. & Sc. student in the program Sustainability, Science, & Society with a minor in Economics. Originally from Manitoba, her passion for climate justice is rooted in her love of the natural world and her desire for a sustainable future. She has been volunteering as an SPF ambassador for the past two years and in 2022, chaired the YES Committee during the SPF's referendum. As part of the governance council, she hopes to offer constructive and informed guidance rooted in her understanding of the student body to reflect student perspectives and optimize the fund's impact.

Emma Zgonena, SSMU

Emma is an undergraduate in the Interfaculty B.A. & Sc. program, majoring in Environment and minoring in Statistics. Originally from suburban New York City, she sees both urban and natural spaces as essential to sustainability. She began her studies at the Macdonald campus before transferring downtown, gaining a broader, interdisciplinary perspective on environmental issues. Emma has served on the Macdonald Campus Student Society Internal Committee, worked as a campus ambassador, and now volunteers as a 涩里番 SPF Ambassador. She also hosts the Research and Sustainability Network (RSN) podcast. As a member of the SPF Governance Council, Emma is committed to supporting the longevity and success of sustainability projects, especially in emerging fields.

Elea Demetriou, MCSS

Elea Demetriou is an undergraduate BSc. (Ag.Env.Sc.) student majoring in Life Sciences, with a specialization in Animal Health and Disease. Elea鈥檚 passion for conservation has led her to explore sustainability in agriculture, veterinary medicine, and global health. Elea has worked at the 涩里番 Dairy Farm, where she had the opportunity to learn about farm management and sustainable food systems. She has assisted veterinarians in the South African bush on conservation-centered wildlife care, as well as in a veterinary practice which strengthened her understanding of community-level animal health needs. Her laboratory work on diseases affecting individuals in underdeveloped countries has reinforced her dedication to equitable, sustainable health solutions. As a member of the SPF Governance Council Elea hopes to bring a multidisciplinary perspective rooted in environmental stewardship, animal welfare, and global sustainability.

Shiqing Gong, PGSS

Shiqing is a PhD student in the Department of Integrated Studies at 涩里番. As a member of the Leadership and Learning for Sustainability Lab, Shiqing鈥檚 research focuses on understanding the experience of youth, particularly those from rural or marginalized communities, on sustainable development. She examines intersectional factors, such as gender and socioeconomic status, that influence youth participation, and exploring transformative educational approaches to mobilize youth-led actions in sustainability.

Before joining 涩里番, Shiqing worked as a project coordinator at the UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED) and PEER China. In these roles, she led initiatives to promote youth engagement in advancing rural education and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She facilitated youth seminars and workshops to amplify young people鈥檚 voices and actions and organized capacity-building programs tailored to empower youth as changemakers.

Christie Lovat, Academic Staff

Faculty Lecturer, Bieler School of Environment

Christie is an alumni of the Macdonald Campus of 涩里番, and a passionate advocate for the role of communication in science and climate education for the public. She has an interdisciplinary background in wildlife biology, with a particular focus in plant ecology and the conservation of American chestnut (Castanea dentata). More recently, she has developed interests in the psychology of motivating action against climate change, particularly at the scale of the individual and local community, and in the historic progress of scientific theory. She is a firm believer that the future of environmentalism depends on citizen engagement and a proliferation of diverse local-scale initiatives.

Stephanie Posthumus, Academic Staff

Associate Professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures

An associate professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Stephanie Posthumus teaches European environmental literature and climate fiction at 涩里番. A pioneering scholar of French ecocriticism, she has also published in the fields of animal and plant studies and has been involved in various projects in the emerging area of the digital environmental humanities. She loves working in her local community garden and hiking with her furry and not so furry companions.

Jonathan Rousham, Administrative Staff

Senior Manager, Student Housing and Hospitality Service

Jonathan heads the facilities team that provides operational and physical improvement services to residences and food service locations at 涩里番. Their responsibilities include management of the energy portfolio and development and execution of capital improvement projects. In this context the team actively pursues identifying and developing energy saving projects, and in the execution of all projects, ensures that sustainable products and practices are pursued vigorously. Jonathan hopes that he can bring some expertise gleaned from this experience to help assess and qualify new applications for SPF funding.

Sarah Heiberg, Administrative Staff

Associate Director of Change Management, New Vic Project

Sarah is leading the people side of change for 涩里番鈥檚 New Vic Project that will create a new interdisciplinary academic complex dedicated to sustainability systems and public policy. She also leads the project鈥檚 Indigenous engagement efforts to make the New Vic a more welcoming and culturally safe space. Sarah has spent most of her career managing sustainable development projects in the not-for-profit, intergovernmental and higher education sectors. She is a certified change practitioner with a Master of Environment and Business degree from the University of Waterloo.