From a young age I have been passionate about the outdoors and exploring the natural environment. I love to spend my time hiking, camping, and exploring what the world has to offer. This passion has brought me around the world from Northern Ontario’s backcountry, to China’s interior, and the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island. I believe protecting these ecosystems to be able to pass down what I have experienced to the next generation is crucial. This passion inspired me to pursue the Sustainability Certificate to increase my education on key issues and drive the fight to achieve sustainability.

What is your personal definition of sustainability?

My personal definition of sustainability is balancing using resources to advance our society in the present while limiting usages, allowing future generations to have access to the same resources we did. In regards to resources, I take into account all aspects of life. In my opinion, sustainability includes how we care for the environment, and use financial resources, but also balance in our personal lives. Balance must be found in how we split time between our passions, play, and productivity, as well as managing our health to ensure we pass down opportunities for a successful lifestyle to the next generation.

What role do you see sustainability playing in your professional career?

From very early on in my life I have been passionate about working towards creating a sustainable world. I often question how we can achieve sustainability within the systems we have developed and if a future where we more responsibly use our resources is even possible. With these concerns at the forefront of my mind, I plan to take my values into the workplace. In the business world I hope to take action in whatever position I find myself in. From an organizational standpoint I plan to drive forward a move to sustainability from the environmental standpoint. I will push leadership to adopt more managed consumption in a more sustainable manner and use clean, renewable energy sources to drive operations. From a personal perspective in my career I will pursue sustainable use of my internal resources, managing burnout, and pursuing my interests to shape myself as a productive employee in the long-term. Down the road in my career I also am considering entering the field of law. There I hope to target those who violate the laws in place aimed to achieve sustainability. Through my actions in the field I hope to advance us all towards long-term, sustainable, societal prosperity.

What sustainability projects have you been engaged in?

I have been involved in a number of sustainability projects over my life. I have partaken in several educational trips as a leader with Scouts Canada. On these trips I helped teach youth lessons on respecting, sustainably using, and caring for the natural environment around us. Members were taught how to use materials to create something of value such as a fire to keep warm, but also how to sustainability replace what has been used with initiatives such as tree planting. From a social sustainability perspective, I have engaged in numerous student leadership opportunities but most recently as a Soph. In this position I aided first year university students transition from secondary school. In the role I was taught the skills to help guide students down a path where they could effectively, and sustainability manage a work-life balance between university demands and their personal lives. Personally, I have also pursued opportunities to further my understanding of sustainability initiatives. On the West Coast Trail in B.C. I witness first hand, elevated walkways, composting outhouses, and limited trail traffic designed to protect and sustain the ecosystem for years to come.