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Leadership Team
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Sujane Kandasamy
Co-Founder & Director of Education
Sujane Kandasamy
Co-Founder & Director of Education
Sujane Kandasamy, MSc., PhD is a planetary health focused knowledge translation scientist. She is passionate about the intersections between societal issues as they relate to planetary health, which she aims to bring to our education programs. Sujane enjoys working with youth on hands-on biology and biodiversity workshops and training educators on innovative ways to inspire communication and leadership skills in the classroom.
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Kyle Empringham
Co-Founder & Director of Finance and Fundraising
Kyle Empringham
Co-Founder & Director of Finance and Fundraising
Kyle is a civic engagement specialist with a masters degree from Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management. Kyle hopes to bring guidance and mentorship to The Starfish Canada as it grows and develops into a common source for youth engagement for Canadians. In his spare time, Kyle likes to swim, run and cycle (although has yet to attempt a triathlon).
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Kieryn Matthews
Educational Program Manager
Kieryn Matthews
Educational Program Manager
Growing up on Coast Salish Territory fueled Kieryn’s love of the outdoors and passion for conservation. This led her to get a degree in Environmental Science from Simon Fraser University. Since then, she has been dedicated to building a better world as an environmental educator. Kieryn is working towards being zero waste and her favorite activity is curling up with a good fantasy book.
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Anthony Cho
Editorial Program Manager
Anthony Cho
Editorial Program Manager
Anthony is a soon graduating Communication student at SFU with junior level of marketing and community engagement experience. He is currently a part of the CityHive EnviroLab cohort and working towards circular economy and zero-waste initiatives. His career goal is to pursue the non-profit sector after graduation and help resolve different civic and social issues, specifically climate change and youth engagement.
During leisure time, Anthony enjoys playing tennis and ultimate frisbee with his friends, or diving into philosophical topics and explore his inner world.
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Taylor Lim
Digital Fundraising Lead
Taylor Lim
Digital Fundraising Lead
Taylor is a fourth-year undergraduate student with combined studies in Sociology and Business in the Bachelor + Master of Management Dual Degree Program at The University of British Columbia. Taylor is passionate about community engagement and bridging the gap between sustainability, social responsibility, and business. As the Digital Marketing Manager, Taylor hopes to facilitate engagement and initiate discussions on the importance of sustainability and education within the community. During her spare time, Taylor enjoys hiking, baking, and trying new restaurants around the Vancouver area.
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Kurt Steigleder
Web Development Lead
Kurt Steigleder
Web Development Lead
Kurt is a user experience evangelist with a passion for bringing data into design. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications from Capilano University and an entrepreneurial background, Kurt bridges the gaps between design, data, and development to create solutions directly focused on business goals. When he’s not working, Kurt likes to read fantasy novels, lift weights, and plays lead guitar in two death metal bands.
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Elyse Economides
Editorial Team Lead
Elyse Economides
Editorial Team Lead
As Editorial Team Lead for The Starfish Canada, Elyse is responsible for supporting a virtual team of editors and writers as they work to impact environmental change. She holds a BA in English Language with a minor in Family Studies from the University of British Columbia and a certificate in Digital Communications Strategy from the UBC Sauder Executive Education program. Drawing on more than 10 years of experience managing digital content creation and engaging diverse student audiences, she aims to help young leaders find their voices. As a current Vancouver resident, she loves getting outside and enjoying all the beauty British Columbia has to offer.
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Denise Zhu
Digital Marketing Manager
Denise Zhu
Digital Marketing Manager
Denise is a third-year undergraduate student at Western University pursuing a BA in Creative Writing & English Language and Literature with a major in the School for Advanced Studies in the Arts and Humanities (SASAH). She is passionate about storytelling as a means of inspiring others and is excited to support efforts for environmentalism across Canada. Denise hopes to use her background in digital marketing to facilitate community engagement and promote environmental education in the community. In her spare time, Denise enjoys creating digital art, reading webcomics, and working on her YA novel.
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Ryan Krause
Fund Development Manager
Ryan Krause
Fund Development Manager
Ryan is a dual degree student in the juirs doctor and honors business administration programs at Western University who has a passion for environmental and social sustainability. Through his work as Fund Development Manager, he hopes to further The Starfish’s ability to inspire young people to be environmentally focused and drive social change. During his spare time, Ryan loves to go on runs, play music, and chase sunsets.
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Niyonella Kamera
Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Manager
Niyonella Kamera
Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Manager
Niyonella is an undergraduate student at Western University and the Ivey Business School pursuing a dual degree in International Relations and Business Administration with a Certificate in Sustainability. She has always had a passion for environmental sustainability and uplifting underrepresented youth voices. Niyonella one day hopes to use her education to advocate for the inclusion of young people’s perspectives in environmental legislation. In her spare time, Niyonella enjoys baking, reading, and playing music.
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Meha Shah
Director of Programs
Meha Shah
Director of Programs
Meha brings over a decade of program management & leadership experience in the civic tech and education space. She is currently Manager, Delivery at Code for Canada where she supports government teams with building inclusive digital products. Prior to that, she worked on fellowship programs in the education and nonprofit space, focused on bringing diverse talent to schools that need them most and ensuring that students have access to a high-quality education. Meha also holds a MSc in Social Policy and Development from the London School of Economics and a BA in Economics from Queen’s University.
In her free time she loves to travel, bake and binge-watch TV shows. -
Micaela Yawney
Digital Marketing Manager & Editor-in-Chief
Micaela Yawney
Digital Marketing Manager & Editor-in-Chief
Micaela is a writer, poet, and adventurer with 3 years of experience working within the field of sustainability. Her undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo has led her to research and work which revolves around storytelling, sustainability education, sustainable fashion, emotional attachment to clothing, and mindful consumption.
When she’s not working on dismantling the patriarchy, you can find her as one of the voices behind the Sierra Youth Podcast, leading the Global Innovation Story Map Project at Threading Change, or in the woods, finding solitude in nature. She is currently working on her first collection of poetry that will appear sometime in 2022. Her poetry is rooted in gratitude and love for the natural world, along with speaking to the intuitive and sensitive souls of the world, and the heartache and heavy feelings that come with being such a person.
Micaela is an avid outdoors-woman, storyteller, daydreamer, food-lover, and sustainability advocate. You can follow along with Micaela’s adventures at micaelayawney.com .
Board of Directors
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Guillaume Courcy
Board Chair
Guillaume Courcy
Board Chair
Guillaume is an experienced program manager with an engineering background and a MBA from HEC Montréal. He has a passion for turning ideas into reality, a commitment to support sustainable development, and an aspiration to have an impact on the mobility sector. As a citizen of the world, Guillaume believes mobility is a vector for peace, in complement to education and communication. These are the values that drive his engagement in The Starfish Canada, and the other educational or program development roles he takes on.
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Laura Chang
Board Director
Laura Chang
Board Director
Laura is a design strategist, marketing professional and seasoned account manager with extensive, multi-sector experience. Her generalist skill set is grounded in a Political Studies degree from Queen’s University and a post-grad certificate in Public Relations from Humber College. Laura is focused on leveraging her experience consulting on strategic initiatives, communications, and stakeholder management to help other exceptional organizations tackle meaningful challenges. In addition to her work at The Starfish, Laura is passionate about the civic tech space and a keen advocate of tech for good.
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Clarissa Huffman
Board Director
Clarissa Huffman
Board Director
Clarissa is a community and sustainability planner with a passion for discovering and pushing the leverage points that exist within decision-making contexts to move towards more sustainable communities. Her role as the Environmental Coordinator at the City of Port Coquitlam means she spends most of her time developing and implementing environment and climate change policy for local government using strategies that are equitable and resilient. She believes firmly that educated opinions are critical to evidence-based policy making. At Royal Roads University, her graduate research focused on the local government role in community sustainability and climate action. Finally, she believes that to truly commit to growth, one must also be ready to gracefully acknowledge when mistakes are made, and when we need to ‘unlearn’ internalized harmful habits and beliefs. In sum, her vision is for a future generation of Canadians who, with passion, strong leadership, and bold action, can build and reimagine communities that are diverse, multigenerational, and climate resilient. You can often find her curled up with her knitting or at the climbing gym, but her favourite pastime is exploring the west coast (from the Lower Mainland to the North Yukon) with her Alaskan Husky, Nymeria and her son, Wren.
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Marie Louise Aastrup
Board Director
Marie Louise Aastrup
Board Director
Marie Louise Aastrup is an environmental geographer with a focus on the social and human dimensions of nature conservation. She has research experience working on various conservation issues across North America and Europe and is currently concluding her PhD from Memorial University which focuses on the social implications of establishing a new protected area in Romania. Her educational background includes a B.Sc. in geography and geoinformatics from the University of Copenhagen and a M.Sc. in sustainable resource management from the Technical University of Munich. When not in front of a computer working towards a sustainable future, Marie Louise loves experimenting in the kitchen, painting, and exploring the beautiful island of Newfoundland.
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Alvinia Lao
Treasurer
Alvinia Lao
Treasurer
Alvinia is a financial analyst who provides decision support to directors and business partners through financial planning and analysis. Having had the opportunity to work on a number of rapidly growing products and teams in the telecommunications and technology sector, she is committed to delivering data-driven insights that drive organizational growth. Alvinia holds a Bachelor of Commerce in accounting from the University of British Columbia.
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Samia Sami
Board Director
Samia Sami
Board Director
Samia is an electrical engineer with demonstrated experience in sustainable energy, electricity grids, and engineering design. After graduating from the University of Saskatchewan, Samia is committed to bridging her two passions, sustainability and engineering, to integrate environmental stewardship into engineering projects. Samia is currently working for SaskPower where she is designing transmission stations. Samia supports equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in her community. As a member of the Starfish Canada Team, Samia is excited to participate in sustainable development and youth empowerment. At home, Samia can be found appreciating memes, camping, travelling, admiring science and tech innovation, doing exercise, and hoarding succulents
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Sebastian Muermann
Board Director
Sebastian Muermann
Board Director
Sebastian Muermann is a Program Officer at the McCall MacBain Foundation. There he manages the delivery of several scholarship programs for different levels of study. He is a multi-disciplinary community organizer and policy professional, originally from British Columbia, but now based in Montréal, Quebec. For five years, Sebastian gained progressive experience in the public service, across three federal departments, leading to a role as a Senior Economic Analyst in Strategic Policy at Global Affairs. Sebastian is a graduate in the inaugural MPP cohort of the Max Bell School at McGill University, and completed a bilingual Honours Degree in Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Ottawa as a Loran Scholar. He is passionate about global education, climate change, and youth empowerment. He currently volunteers with two non-profit organization, and as the former Vice-Curator of the Montreal Global Shapers Hub, with a focus on local/global projects in climate as well as equity and inclusion
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Nicole Odo
Secretary
Nicole Odo
Secretary
Nicole is from Fredericton, New Brunswick, currently pursuing her Master of Science in Civil Engineering. She has experience in project management, process improvement and communications, and enjoys leveraging her experience in these areas to further the organizations she volunteers with. Nicole has always been passionate about the environment and sustainability, which lead her to becoming involved with The Starfish Canada. In her spare time, Nicole enjoys highland dancing, hiking, yoga, strength training and reading!
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Blake Bunting
Board Director
Blake Bunting
Board Director
Blake is a founder, business development director, solar PV project manager, and environmentalist. His technical background, stemming from degrees in mechanical engineering and computer science, paired with his commitment to researching and understanding innovative cleantech solutions worldwide, has given him the tools to address how young Canadians want to contribute to the growth of the green economy. Blake is focused on the democratization of impact finance, passionate about directly engaging with young investors and industry stakeholders through the development of GoParity Canada, which recently awarded him one of Canada’s Top 25 Environmentalists Under 25. As a young entrepreneur himself, Blake is outgoing and eager to bring anyone interested into the world of impact investing, breaking down barriers to accessibility for young Canadians
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Soomin Han
Board Director
Soomin Han
Board Director
Driven by her passion for climate justice and her lived experiences, Soomin has been engaged in climate work with a focus on intersectionality, youth engagement, and gender equality. Currently as a GreenPAC parliamentary intern, she is working with MPs championing climate justice and gender equality on Parliament Hill. She is pursuing her Bachelor of Environmental Studies at the University of Manitoba, and has worked with various environmental and justice-oriented non-profits, community organizations, and advocacy groups. She attended CSW61 (Commission on the Status of Women) and UNFCCC COP25 (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties) to advocate for gender equality, climate justice, and youth engagement in international policy spaces, and was named Top 25 Environmentalists under 25 by The Starfish Canada.
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Laurence Audette-Lagueux
Board Director
Laurence Audette-Lagueux
Board Director
An entrepreneur at heart, Laurence is currently Director of Operations for Continuums, a consulting firm based in Montreal. After graduating specializing in the management of cultural organizations, Laurence turned to the universe of entrepreneurship, and creative and technological industries. Passionate about collaborative economy and participatory finance, she co-founded, in 2016, Ouishare Montreal, a think tank on the transformation of society through digital and the sharing economy. Since she sat on the advisory committee of the Working group on the collaborative economy of the MEI, Laurence is interested in the creation of public policies to better manage innovative and disruptive initiatives. In the fall of 2019, she had the opportunity to be invited to participate in the prestigious program International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) which led her to discover the four corners of the United States. Laurence participated in the development of several startups and nonprofits. She currently sits on the Board of Directors of the cooperative startup EVA and Ouishare Montreal.
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Sami Sekhon
Board Director
Sami Sekhon
Board Director
Sami is a values-based leader who is passionate about transforming communities to improve wellbeing for historically underrepresented populations. She holds a Bachelor in Kinesiology from UBC and an MBA from the Sauder School of Business. She finds joy in bringing diverse people and ideas together to generate innovative solutions and is always seeking ways to uplift those who may not see their full value and potential. She is currently working as a Public Sector Transformation Consultant with Deloitte Canada and hopes to continue to build the reach and impact of The Starfish Canada as a Board Member.
Editorial Team
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Charlotte Lee
Editor
Charlotte Lee
Editor
Charlotte is a graduate of the Health Information Science program at the University of Victoria, and now works in the healthcare technology sector. She has spent most of her life on the West Coast of Canada, where she enjoys getting out and exploring its scenic beauty. She believes that tackling environmental issues is an essential way to improve the state of many other problems that exist in society, such as inequities in health. Some of her other interests include books, brews (both beer and coffee), cabins, exploring, and hiking.
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Christine Séguin
Editor
Christine Séguin
Editor
Christine Séguin (she/her) lives in Limoges, Ontario, traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishnaabeg People, with her two cats and partner. Christine is a freelance Editor and full-time Production Coordinator with the Medical Council of Canada. When she’s not working, Christine loves reading, moving to music, and crafting.
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Dorothy Dinh
Editor
Dorothy Dinh
Editor
As a graduate from the University of British Columbia with a double major in Biology and Food, Nutrition and Health, Dorothy aspires to educate others on environmental sustainability. In addition to editing for the Starfish, Dorothy is a research assistant, piano teacher and volunteers for several organizations. Moreover, she will be pursuing higher education as she is interested in exploring other educational interests. For leisure, Dorothy adores camping, overlanding, and road trips with her boyfriend.
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Jennifer Hong
Editor
Jennifer Hong
Editor
Born and raised in Vancouver, Jennifer is currently studying Forest Sciences at UBC with a specialization in Forest Ecosystem Services. Jennifer, with a passion for health and forestry, is eager to use her research to show how maintaining a close connection with nature can help improve overall health. She is passionate about getting individuals outside to develop their own passions for the outdoors and to spark feelings of stewardship in order to help combat climate change. She has worked for Parks Canada developing community outreach programs for all age ranges and has led a team of high school students in environmental restoration activities for the City of Surrey’s Salmon Habitat Restoration Program. Jennifer also strives to maintain a global perspective in her work which has found her working for Singapore’s National Parks Board and, currently, analysing energy policy solutions for Environment and Climate Change Canada in Ottawa. In her spare time, Jennifer enjoys nerding out over movies and tv shows in addition to eating copious amounts of sushi, tacos, and dessert.
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Kaitlyn Nightingale
Editor
Kaitlyn Nightingale
Editor
Kaitlyn Nightingale was born and raised in the Okanagan Valley and is currently attending Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia for Communications, New Media, and Global Studies. She has been passionate about the environment from a young age and now hopes to use her communications skills to help educate others about sustainability, ethical consumer habits, and the impacts of climate change. Kaitlyn also enjoys travel, hiking with her golden retriever, photography, camping and reading.
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Manushi Gera
Editor
Manushi Gera
Editor
Manushi completed a double specialization in Computer Science and Commerce from McMaster University. A federal public employee for 7+ years, editing for Starfish satisfies two of her passions: perfecting the written word and taking actions to preserve nature. She continues to enhance circular life cycles of things and processes, grow plants, visit farmer’s markets, journal, meditate, and enjoy long nature walks where she stops often to stare at and smell the flowers.
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Melissa Ray
Editor
Melissa Ray
Editor
Melissa Ray is a registered early childhood educator with over 10 years of experience in the field. She possesses a B.A. in English along with various diplomas and certificates and has over five years of proofreading/editing skills. Melissa enjoys reading, listening to music and learning new languages (French at the moment). She fluently speaks two languages and is conversational/beginner level in two.
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Sara Caissie
Editor
Sara Caissie
Editor
Sara holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the UBC Sauder School of Business, specialized in Marketing. She has 11+ years of experience in the marketing industry, both with advertising agencies and brands. While based in Vancouver, Sara is an explorer in travel and in life, always looking to try new things.
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Tamiza Nanji
Editor
Tamiza Nanji
Editor
Tamiza Nanji is a recent PhD graduate of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology program at The University of British Columbia. She previously attended McMaster University in Ontario where she actively engaged youth through science and residence life. She currently resides in the beautiful British Columbia and enjoys long walks with her adopted dog, yoga, as well as ongoing learning through personal and professional development.
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Veronika Lewis
Editor
Veronika Lewis
Editor
Veronika is currently a Microbiology and Immunology undergraduate student at UBC. Other than school, she works as a high school math tutor for an autistic student and enjoys this position very much! In her spare time she loves being out with her friends or spending time in nature exploring Vancouver’s outdoors. Veronika decided to join The Starfish as an editor because she believes that by working together with other people, our collective small efforts can together make a huge difference especially when it comes to the environment!
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Aish Ravi Shankar
Writer
Aish Ravi Shankar
Writer
Aish is a recent graduate from Toronto Metropolitan University with a B.Sc in Environmental Biology. Currently, she is the Editorial Program Manager at The Starfish Canada and an ambassador for Sierra Club’s Breathe Easy project. She is passionate about making a difference in the world of sustainability and climate change. When she’s not growing her collection of houseplants, she enjoys indulging in a good book.
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Alexander Cressman
Writer
Alexander Cressman
Writer
Alex is a passionate outdoorsman from Ottawa with a degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo. He’s worked on numerous environmental conservation and ecological restoration efforts, and writes about ecology, energy and sustainable development. Hobbies include plant identification, exploration and Live Action Roleplay.
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Alicia Richins
Writer
Alicia Richins
Writer
Alicia Richins is a Sustainability and Social Impact Consultant based in Toronto, and a fierce advocate of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In her day job, Alicia leads Partnerships and Standards development at the Common Approach, and volunteers with Leading Change Canada as Director of Strategy & Governance. A dual citizen since birth of Canada and Trinidad and Tobago, Alicia holds a Master in Environmental Studies, and a BA in Economics and Social Science, both from York University. Alicia loves writing about the intersections of climate with other social and economic issues.
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Amber Rose Alupay
Writer
Amber Rose Alupay
Writer
Amber Rose (any pronouns/elle) is an undergraduate student at the University of Winnipeg studying Honours History and Environmental Studies. They are passionate about the interactions between intersectionality and environmentalism in urban settings, particularly within the Canadian prairies. In their free time, Amber Rose enjoys indoor gardening, digital painting, and drinking tea. -
Ana Yellapa
Writer
Ana Yellapa
Writer
Ana is an environmental activist and science enthusiast. She enjoys educating others about important social and environmental issues, as well as inspiring meaningful change. Ana’s passion for environmental advocacy was sparked when she learned about the devastating effects of climate change. In her spare time, Ana enjoys reading, playing with her puppy, swimming and traveling. -
Ashley Kim
writer
Ashley Kim
writer
While still currently finishing off her last few years in high school, Ashley Kim is striving to become an environmentalist. She keeps herself busy through her schoolwork and when she has the chance, by hanging out with her friends. Ashley would like to continue her passion through writing with The Starfish, while learning more about environmentalism through the process.
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Bartosz Osiecki
Writer
Bartosz Osiecki
Writer
Bartosz is a Master of Science graduate from the University of Toronto’s program in Geography. He specializes in air quality and wildfire emissions, and has a strong interest in the role of climate change in exacerbating these issues. He hopes that through his passion for environmental writing he can help drive progress on the current environmental crisis.
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Bodhana Sivagurunathan
Writer
Bodhana Sivagurunathan
Writer
Bodhana Sivagurunathan is a junior at Centennial Collegiate Vocational Institute in Guelph, ON. Her life revolves around her family, nature, DECA, school, and basketball and she wouldn’t have it any other way. She aspires to start-up her own green business, while pursuing a career in biomedical engineering.
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Charlotte Taylor
Writer
Charlotte Taylor
Writer
Charlotte Taylor is an undergraduate student at the University of British Columbia, pursuing an Honours degree in English Literature. She has written a number of short stories, one of which, Calm Before the Storm, won first prize in the 2019 Islands Short Fiction Contest. She also enjoys writing blog posts on her personal website, about environmental and digital sustainability. If you would like, you can read more of her portfolio at: charlottetaylor.work. -
Chris Chan
writer
Chris Chan
writer
Chris is an environmentally conscious grade 9 at St George’s school in Vancouver. He enjoys sports, model u.n, and regularly competes at local business competitions.
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Claire Ehlert
Writer
Claire Ehlert
Writer
Claire has always enjoyed spending time in nature and exploring new places as much as she can. She has a degree in Environmental Governance from the University of Guelph where she combined her passion for the environment with her love for travel, with a focus on studying the potentials for sustainable tourism. Claire has lived and worked in many places around the world but she is now making her home in the beautiful province of Nova Scotia. -
Danielle Saele
Writer
Danielle Saele
Writer
Danielle was born and raised in North Vancouver, British Columbia. From a young age she spent the majority of her time playing in the natural surroundings of the North Shore mountains. This fuelled a passion for the environment leading her to later pursue a bachelor of science in natural resource conservation from the University of British Columbia. As an editor, she hopes to share her passion for the environmental movement with writers on the starfish team. She currently lives in Coquitlam, B.C. where she enjoys yoga, hiking, camping and biking.
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Edris Formuli
Writer
Edris Formuli
Writer
Edris is a 17-year-old from Toronto with a passion for the life, health and environmental sciences. During his free time, you can catch him reading non-fiction, spending time with his bird or going on long hikes by the Rouge River. He hopes that his writing will bring awareness about the severity of the climate crisis, and inspire the progression to a greener and more sustainable future.
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Harshil Ahir
Writer
Harshil Ahir
Writer
Harshil is a student at Wilfrid Laurier University studying data science and financial risk. Harshil is passionate about sports and sustainable living. Connecting these two together is something he feels can bring in important change. In his free time you can catch him watching MMA or football!
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Jessica Lee
writer
Jessica Lee
writer
Jessica writes to connect her audience to meaningful stories she finds in articles, books, graphic novels, film and television. Her love of stories sprouts from her studies in english literature and creative writing for her Bachelor of Arts at the University of British Columbia. She is currently working on her editing certificate at Simon Fraser University to improve her skills as a writer and editor. When she is not writing, Jessica spends time catching up on a television show or film, researching high-intensity interval training workouts to try, or learning Japanese.
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Kieryn Matthews
Writer
Kieryn Matthews
Writer
Growing up on Coast Salish Territory fueled Kieryn’s love of the outdoors and passion for conservation. This led her to get a degree in Environmental Science from Simon Fraser University. Since then, she has been dedicated to building a better world as an environmental educator. Kieryn is working towards being zero waste and her favorite activity is curling up with a good fantasy book.
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Lily Nordgren
writer
Lily Nordgren
writer
Lily is a high school student with a passion for writing. With the opportunity to volunteer at The Starfish, she hopes to engage people with local and global environmental efforts. In her free time, she enjoys visiting the library, hiking with her cat, and learning about herbalism.
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Maheep Mahil
writer
Maheep Mahil
writer
Maheep Mahil is an author and a high-school student. He wrote his first book, The Dagger at Jackson Drive, at age 14, and he continues to write on his personal website. He is passionate about the climate and, with his love for writing, he advocates for environmental responsibility. In his free time, Maheep reads fiction novels and enjoys the company of his family.
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Micaela Yawney
Writer
Micaela Yawney
Writer
Micaela Yawney (she/her) is a writer, poet, adventurer, and digital nomad with four years of experience working within the field of sustainability. Her undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo has led her to research and work which revolves around storytelling, sustainability education, environmental journalism, and vulnerability. You can find her as one of the voices behind the Sierra Youth Podcast, Advisor to the Global Innovation Story Map Project at Threading Change, or in the woods or up in the mountains, finding solitude in nature. She is currently working on her first collection of poetry that will appear later in 2022. Her poetry is rooted in gratitude and love for the natural world, along with speaking to the intuitive and sensitive souls of the world, and the heartache and heavy feelings that come along with being such a person. Micaela is an avid outdoors-woman, storyteller, daydreamer, food-lover, and sustainability advocate. You can follow along with Micaela’s adventures at micaelayawney.com.
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Mollie Symons
Writer
Mollie Symons
Writer
Mollie is an undergraduate student at Memorial University (MUN) where she studies political science and history, as well as sustainable rural community development. She is passionate about emotional, wonderment centred connections with nature, and her favourite authors on this subject include Robin Wall Kimmerer, Robert Macfarlane, and Anna Koska. When not reading or writing, Mollie loves swimming in the ocean, exploring coastlines, and marvelling at trees. -
Natalie Weder
Writer
Natalie Weder
Writer
Originally from BC, Natalie grew up with a love for mountains and rain. With a degree in biology, she’s driven to respond to our environmental and social crises. She’s eager to empower youth by sharing news of promising solutions and challenges, and is particularly interested in the future of food and water systems. She works as a lab scientist in Nova Scotia.
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Nicole Howes
Writer
Nicole Howes
Writer
Nicole (she/her) is a third-year undergraduate student at the University of Waterloo studying Biochemistry with a specialization in Biotechnology. She is passionate about finding ways microbes can be used to create more sustainable systems and is currently looking at their ability to degrade plastic. -
Nora Alsafi
Writer
Nora Alsafi
Writer
Nora is a MSc student at the University of Alberta studying how climate change is affecting freshwater ecology in the subarctic. She is passionate about bridging the gap between climate science and action. After graduating from her bachelor’s degree, she spent a year teaching English abroad; she has also dipped her toes in environmental consulting, outdoor education, nature guiding, and agricultural research. In her spare time, she likes to read sci-fi, paint, do yoga, and hike. -
Rebecca Kempen
Writer
Rebecca Kempen
Writer
Rebecca is a graduate of the University of Guelph with an Honours Bachelor of Arts and Science degree with a double minor in Zoology and Geography. She is passionate about photography, kayaking, vegetarian cuisine, and sharing her knowledge about the biophysical environment. This novice naturalist is a passionate science communicator that enjoys topics surrounding human impact on the environment and solutions for positive individual to global improvement. She is forever inspired by the work and practices of Aldo Leopold, known as the father of wildlife ecology. -
Victor Xu
Writer
Victor Xu
Writer
Hi, my name is Victor, and I am currently a Grade 9 student in Toronto. I am passionate about studying climate change and writing about potential solutions to our current climate crisis. I enjoy reading and writing climate fiction short-stories and novels as well as advocating for sustainable living.
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Victoria DePaulo
Writer
Victoria DePaulo
Writer
Victoria obtained her BSc in Biology from McMaster University and her graduate certificate in Environmental Management and Assessment from Niagara College. Through her educational and personal experiences, she has gained a passion for sustainability and engagement. As a writer, she is interested in educating the public in an accessible and engaging way. She currently lives in Toronto, Ontario where she enjoys walking by the lake, playing video games, and spending time with her cats.
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Victoria Lim
Writer
Victoria Lim
Writer
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Victoria Russu
Writer
Victoria Russu
Writer
Victoria is a young writer with a general focus on nature in her written pieces, in both creative and non-fictional writing. She is passionate about marine conservation, and enjoys playing beach volleyball, dancing, swimming, planting, sewing, and trying out water sports. She is fluent in English, French and Russian, and would like to deepen her knowledge of other languages, with time.
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Zhaleh Esmaeili
Writer
Zhaleh Esmaeili
Writer
With a Master’s degree in English Literature, it is only natural to love reading, writing and editing. I also believe in leaving the world better than we found it and I will do my share by living conscientiously or maybe writing about things that I am passionate about including the environment. I aspire to learn more everyday and be a better human and writer.