|
||||||||||
 |
|
Speakers at the Conference A Diversity of Perspectives — that’s what speakers at this year’s RCEN conference will be offering participants. Biodiversity is a wide-ranging topic. Different groups of people have differing ideas about how biodiversity should be protected and what the values of ecosystem services are. Speaker Bios |
|
 |
Sarah Arnold Sarah Arnold is a recent graduate in Natural Resource Management. She has led on-the-ground conservation and rehabilitation projects in her native Australia, as well as currently volunteering for Les Amis de la Montagne in Montreal; whilst concurrently gaining experience in resource economics and sustainable management, particularly of remote regions. Some of her favourite projects have included creating safe migration corridors for the endangered Western swamp tortoise; helping plant a white pine on Mount Royal; and researching the Inuit beluga hunt in Nunavik. An avid traveler, she has now turned her gaze towards Canada's North, where she hopes to work in the field of cooperative management of Arctic wildlife resources. |
 |
Caleb Behn Caleb is of Eh Cho Dene and Dunne Za ancestry and entering second year law at the University of Victoria. Prior to entering law school Caleb was a ‘Lands Manager’ for his home communities in Northeastern BC, working to protect the Treaty 8 First Nations interests in one of the most intensely industrially developed regions in Canada. His projects included planning, negotiating, and implementing Impact-Benefit Agreements with proponents as well as ensuring culturally appropriate and timely direct community engagement regarding all aspects of resource development. As a traditionally trained hunter, fisherman and trapper Caleb hopes to work on international regulation of geoengineering using traditional Indigenous teachings from Treaty 8 Elders, after law school. |
 |
Roelof Boumans Roelof Boumans received his doctorate degree in 1994 as a ecosystem ecologist at the Department of Oceanography and Coastal Systems at Louisiana State University, USA. Dr. Boumans joined the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics as an Associate Research Scientist in 1996. His work at GIEE focused on processes from various ecosystems that take place at the landscape level within the Patuxent River watershed, and the development of landscape modeling protocol to structure ecological data into a temporal and spatially relevant database structure. At present, Dr. Boumans is the director for Afordablefutures, a leader in the design and application of ecosystem-based management tools to include the Multiscale Integrated Model of Ecosystem Services. |
 |
Stefanie Bowles Stefanie Bowles is a Senior Policy Researcher with the Government of Canada’s Policy Research Initiative (PRI). She recently returned from a Fulbright scholarship in Washington, D.C. where she conducted research on North American regional engagement in the UN Marrakesh process on Sustainable Consumption and Production, based out of the Worldwatch Institute and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Her work contributes to PRI’s Pathways to a Low-carbon Society in Canada project. Stefanie graduated from the London School of Economics in Environment and Development (Distinction) and from the University of Toronto in Peace and Conflict Studies (High Distinction). |
 |
Ian L. Campbell Ian Campbell has a BA in Mathematics and a Master’s degree in Economics. Since 1986, he has worked for the federal government, except for a year spent with Ducks Unlimited Canada. His experience includes market research, environmental assessments and farm income stabilization programs. He is currently responsible for developing policy on Environmental Goods and Services and other environmental issues within the Agri-Environmental Services Branch of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. |
 |
Howie Chong A certified emissions expert, Howie Chong has been working with companies and organizations for nearly a decade in helping them assess and manage their environmental footprint, with over five years of experience in greenhouse gas emissions accounting, carbon markets and international climate policy. Howie has spoken at international conferences on climate change, carbon markets and climate policy and has worked with clients across Canada. He has served with several environmental organizations, including four years on the Board of the Sierra Club Canada. In 2008, How-Sen was named one of Canada’s Future Environmental Leaders by Green Living Magazine for his work as an entrepreneur in the new green economy. He holds a degree in environment and political science from McGill University. |
 |
Bob Collins Bob Collins is a carpenter by trade, a farmer by vocation, and a writer by accident. He and his wife Ann have farmed on Vancouver Island for 35 years. For the past thirty years they have farmed 68 riverside acres in the Alberni Valley, where they have produced: milk, grass-fed beef, pastured poultry, berries, and vegetables. They also breed Canadian horses. The farm is a Conservation Partner with The Land Conservancy and is committed to biodiversity and riparian and wetland protection. Bob has written four books and has twice been short-listed for the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour. He is currently working with Alberni Valley Transition Towns Society in the cause of food localization. |
 |
Ahmed Djoghlaf An Algerian national, Dr. Djoghlaf has pursued a distinguished diplomatic career that has included postings with the government of Algeria and UNEP. Executive Secretary of the CBD since 2006, he was named to his previous position as Assistant Executive Director of UNEP in 2003. He was the General Rapporteur of the Preparatory Committee of the UN Conference on Environment and Development, as well as Vice President of the Negotiating Committee on the Framework Convention on Climate Change. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Nancy, France, as well as four post graduate degrees including Master of Arts, Government and Politics from St. John’s University, New York and a Law degree from the University of Algiers. |
 |
Elizabeth Dowdeswell Elizabeth Dowdeswell’s eclectic public service career has spanned provincial, federal and international borders and transcended traditional disciplinary lines. Ms. Dowdeswell served as Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program and Under-Secretary General of the United Nations, and also as Assistant Deputy Minister of Environment Canada. Ms. Dowdeswell is a visiting professor in genomics and global health at the University of Toronto and was appointed a Pierre Elliot Trudeau Foundation mentor. She holds a Master of Science degree in behavioural sciences from Utah State University, a Bachelor of Science degree in home economics, a teaching certificate from the University of Saskatchewan and, nine honorary degrees. |
|
Floris Ensink Floris Ensink, détient une maîtrise en gestion de la biodiversité de l'Université de Wageningen, aux Pays-Bas. Il a travaillé plus que 3 ans à la gestion de nature dans un contexte agricole pour le gouvernement provincial de Limburg et pour le ministère néerlandais d'agriculture. Depuis 4 ans il s'est installé à Montréal ou il poursuit ses études en environnement, santé et gestion de catastrophes à l'Université de Montréal. En plus de travailler à l'organisation de la conférence annuelle du RCEN, il est membre du conseil d'administration du Mouvement Interculturel pour l'Environnement (MIE) et il s'implique pour l'organisme à but non lucratif FEM-International. |
|
Stefania Fortugno Stefania Fortugno is an environmental lawyer practicing in Saskatoon. She earned her Bachelor of Laws degree with Distinction (LL.B.) from the University of Saskatchewan and a Master of Laws degree in International Environmental Law (LL.M.) from McGill University, Institute of Comparative Law. She has extensive experience working on uranium, nuclear energy, nuclear weapons and high level waste issues in Canada. In 2003 Stefania received a provincial environmental activist of the year award for her public interest environmental litigation, challenging the Atomic Energy Control Board’s licensing of the JEB pit uranium waste tailings facility in northern Saskatchewan. She represented the Inter-Church Uranium Committee Educational Co-operative in the Federal Court of Canada, Trial and Appellate Divisions, and the Supreme Court of Canada. In January 2010 she appeared as an expert witness before the Saskatchewan Legislative Standing Committee on Crown and Central Agencies provincial energy inquiry. |
|
Benoit Girouard Benoit Girouard is currently the President of Union paysanne. In the past, he founded the Union biologique paysanne, a group of organic producers within the Union paysanne. Founder of the Fête bio paysanne, he became involved with TOHU to develop this event, the largest of its kind in Canada. For five years, he managed two ultra-diversified vegetable farms on the island of Laval, using plants and medicinal herbs in companionship. He subsequently developed a technique for raising rabbits on pasture that eventually became his business. Benoit has taught courses Ecological market farming and Small organic fruits at the Centre de Formation Agricole de Mirabel, and has taught the Small livestock organic farming course for the past 3 years at the same school. |
|
Andrew Gonzalez Andrew Gonzalez is a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at McGill University and the holder of a tier II Canada Research Chair in Biodiversity Science. Prior to that, he spent 4 years as an Assistant Professor at the University of Paris VI, France. He obtained his PhD from the Department of Biology, Silwood Park at Imperial College, London. He is currently leading a project to create a Centre for Biodiversity Science in Quebec that will bring together more 50 researchers to foster collaboration and knowledge transfer to both government and public. |
|
Stefan has worked for the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) as project officer on the negotiations on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD). He has also worked as associate in the areas of sustainable agriculture, genetic resources for food and agriculture, and linkages between international regulations on biodiversity conservation. He is also a writer for the Earth Negotiations Bulletin, a reporting service on international environmental negotiations. Stefan has followed the negotiations on an international regime on access and benefit-sharing since 2003. He completed his Ph.D. on institutional interplay in global environmental governance at Humboldt University, Berlin in 2007. |
|
Marie Lagier Marie Lagier has worked at Stratégies Saint-Laurent since 2006 and is Executive Director since January 2010. Previously, she led an international career at the World Water Council, where she was responsible for creating an information portal on worldwide water resources. She has also collaborated in planning and communication for the World Water Forum in Kyoto (2003) and Mexico (2006). She holds a bachelor's degree in Agricultural Economics from McGill University and a master's degree in marine resource management from the Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR). Stratégies Saint-Laurent is a non-profit organisation that brings together priority intervention area committees (ZIP committees) and Quebec environmental groups who have at heart the St. Lawrence. |
|
Michael Leveille Michael is a science teacher who has gone above and beyond his professional responsibilities to encourage meaningful environmental education and action amongst his students. Michael formed the Macoun Marsh Committee to protect significant marsh land at a national capital cemetery. He founded BiodiversityMatters, an organization created to promote biodiversity-related initiatives on a global scale. Michael was also the driving force behind the Second International Youth Symposium on Biodiversity, involving over 100 youth from nine countries, which developed a youth accord that has since been translated into 25 different languages. Presently over 4200 supporters from 66 countries have signed on to the Accord that will be presented at the 10th Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Japan later this year. |
 |
Benoît Limoges Benoît Limoges received a master's degree in biology from the University de Montréal in 1987. He has worked for various NGOs in Quebec, Africa and Latin America. For the past six years, he has worked at the Quebec government’s Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs. After working for the creation of protected areas, he is now coordinating the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Quebec. |
|
Brennain Lloyd Brennain is a community organizer and public interest researcher and writer in northeastern Ontario. With 25 years experience working with community organizations, Brennain has worked primarily with environmental, peace and women’s organizations, and as a facilitator and adult educator supporting public participation in environmental and natural resource decision-making and various planning processes. |
|
Larry McDermott A member of Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation, Larry McDermott served as an Ontario municipal politician for 28 years including as the first national rural chair of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. He is currently Executive Director of Plenty Canada, a non-profit organization devoted to environmental protection and healthy communities, and Co-chair of the Canadian Environmental Network's Biodiversity Caucus. |
|
Drew Mildon Drew Mildon is a lawyer with Woodward & Company, LLP, a BC-based law firm that works for First Nations governments and environmental NGOs. Drew holds an MA from the University of British Columbia and an LLB from the University of Victoria. Along the way to finding out he was a lawyer, Drew was at times: a maid, a lifeguard, a park ranger, a shoe-maker's assistant, an assistant epidemiologist, a teaching assistant and general gadabout. His primary areas of practice are resource law, business associations, contracts and First Nations rights and title. Drew is a member of the BC, Alberta and Yukon bars. |
|
Sylvie-Nuria Noguer Sylvie-Nuria is Senior Manager in Deloitte’s Corporate Responsibility and Sustainable Development team in Montreal. She has 19 years experience in project management, consulting and auditing in environmental and sustainable development among businesses in different sectors (oil and gas, energy, mining and quarrying, tourism, transportation, automotive, distribution, consumer products). She helped develop the first compendium of good practices of Canadian companies in biodiversity, launched in June 2010 by the Canadian Business and Biodiversity Programme. |
|
Emmanuel Prinet Emmanuel Prinet is Executive Director of the One Earth Initiative, a research and advocacy organization based in Vancouver that promotes sustainable consumption and production at the local, national and international levels. He holds a MSc in planning from UBC. He lived seven years in France to work on European and international sustainability issues, and has developed working relationships with the French Government, the European Commission, the OECD and the UN. He currently sits on the National Advisory Committee that guides the development of a Sustainable Consumption and Production Framework for Canada. In 2010, he was selected by RCEN to be on the official Canadian delegation to the UN's 18th and 19th Commission on Sustainable Development. Emmanuel is an avid outdoor enthusiast who enjoys rock-climbing and telemark skiing. |
|
Virginie Provost Virginie Provost is a marine biologist who graduated from l’Université du Québec in Rimouski. She has worked as a naturalist guide at the National Museum of Miguasha and at the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals (GREMM), in Tadoussac. In addition, she served as a research officer for the Parks division of the Kativik Regional Government (KRG) in Kuujjuaq. In October 2007 Virginie entered the Côte-Nord du Golfe Priority Intervention Zone (ZIP) Committee as a Project Officer. During her time as project officer she contributed to the establishment of several projects, one of which being the Characterization Guide of the Coastal Habitats of Interest in the Mingan Region. In September 2008 Virginie was appointed as the Director General of the Côte-Nord du Golfe ZIP Committee. |
|
Anne Rochon Ford Anne Rochon Ford is the Co-Director of the National Network on Environments and Women’s Health (NNEWH) at York University, a research centre that conducts policy-based research on the impact of the environment on women’s health. NNEWH has been involved in the past year in trying to bring a gender-based analysis to the issue of chemicals management in the federal government, as well as to policy work on water. She is also the Coordinator of Women and Health Protection, a national working group that undertakes research and advocacy work on women and pharmaceuticals. She has previously worked in varying capacities as a researcher and advocate for women’s health and has published in the areas of midwifery, breast cancer, menopause, assisted human reproduction and various facets of women’s prescription drug use. |
|
Édith Tessier Roy Edith Tessier Roy has been an environmental project manager for several years. A daily eco-citizen, she is active in many projects related to environmental education. She studied industrial design at the Université de Montréal, concentrating her work in ecological design. At Action RE-buts, she organized the Semaine québécoise de réduction des déchets and Expo 3R. She was also coordinator of the organization for nearly three years. Within the team of Eco Entreprises Québec, she also organized the Produire et consommer autrement symposium. Meanwhile, Edith continued studies in environmental education at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Her expertise lies primarily in the environmental management of waste, source reduction, ecodesign and raising awareness by organizing events and rallying movements. |
|
Jean-Patrick Toussaint Jean-Patrick Toussaint works as Chief, Scientific Projects within the David Suzuki Foundation (Quebec). An ecologist by training, he holds a Ph.D. in Plant Biology and Soil from the University of Adelaide in Australia, as well as experience as a postdoctoral researcher in environmental microbiology at the INRS (Institut Armand-Frappier). With many years of international experience in research, Mr. Toussaint has published his work in various scientific journals and is also a reviewer for six international journals on plant biology and environmental microbiology. Since 2009, he has been an official presenter of the film "An Inconvenient Truth," by training received from Al Gore on climate change. |
|
Kathleen Usher Kathleen Usher is the coordinator of Evergreen’s Quebec Office. She holds a BSc in Environmental Biology from McGill University and a BEd in Outdoor and Experiential Education from Queen’s University and is currently a McGill Education PhD candidate and a supervisor and instructor within the Faculty's teacher training program. Kathleen is conducting research on how to confront the issues and dire consequences of what is popularly known as Nature Deficit Disorder through positive action environmental education programs. By deepening the connection between people and nature, and empowering Canadians to take a hands-on approach to their urban environments, Evergreen is improving the health of our cities—now and for the future. |
|
Shannon Walsh Shannon Walsh is a Montreal-based filmmaker and writer. Her first feature documentary, H2Oil, traced the human and environmental costs of Alberta's tar sands. Her films have been released theatrically in Canada and the UK, broadcast nationally and internationally, and screened at festivals around the world. She has been the recipient of numerous awards, fellowships and prizes. Walsh received her doctorate at McGill University, where her research investigated the rise of social movements in post-apartheid South Africa through the ethnography of everyday practice. |
|
Susan Walsh Susan Walsh is the Executive Director of USC Canada, one of Canada’s oldest international development organizations. Susan initially worked at the Unitarian Service Committee as a Program Officer in the late 1980’s. Before returning to USC Canada in 2004, she served at the helm of the World Food Day Association and worked with Canadian Lutheran World Relief as that agency’s Director for Latin America Programs. Susan holds degrees from Simon Fraser University and a doctoral degree from the University of Manitoba where she focused on the resilience strategies of indigenous peoples. She currently sits on the Board of the Civil Society Alliance for the International Convention on Biological Diversity. |
|
Mark Wonneck Mark Wonneck has worked as an Ecologist with the Agricultural Ecology Unit of the Agri-Environment Services Branch of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) for about 5 years. Prior to this he held a variety of positions in the Branch, including 5 years as the Director of its Southern Alberta Region. He also worked many years as a private environmental consultant prior to joining AAFC in 1993. He has a BSc. in Zoology and a Master’s Degree in Natural Resource Management, both from the University of Manitoba. His recent research focuses on pollinators and pollination services, and the role of biodiversity in agricultural production systems. |
|
Stephen Yamasaki Having completed a B.Sc. in agriculture and a Ph.D. in forest science, Stephen worked from 2000 to 2004 as a post-doctoral fellow in the field of sustainable forest management and landscape modeling at McGill University, UQAM, and Laval University. From 2004 to 2008, he was research scientist at the Institut Québécois d'Aménagement de la Forêt Feuillue, focusing principally on climate change impacts / adaptations, conservation design, and integrated cumulative impact assessments in forested landscapes. From 2008 to 2010, he worked in Washington, D.C. with New Forests, a private-sector funds management company investing in ecosystem services. There he was responsible for the biological and financial modeling of ecosystem investments (carbon, biodiversity, water quality). He has recently returned to Canada and has established EcoTerra Solutions, a consulting company specializing in the strategic planning of sustainable development. |
|
Alberto Yanosky Alberto Yanosky has over 20 years of professional experience and extensive experience in teaching and consulting. His areas of specialization include nature conservation and biodiversity in particular, population and community ecology and methodologies in ecoregional, environmental and water systems (wetlands) as well as environmental parameters adequacy and sustainability of various human actions. He has developed his career with professional interventions in several South American countries, mainly in the MERCOSUR countries, and outside the American continent. He is currently CEO of one of the most prestigious institutes of Paraguay's biodiversity and is part of the boards of directors of several international organizations. |
© 2010 Canadian Environmental Network |