How Do I Do This: An Environmental Career Podcast
by Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity
More and more people are waking up to the idea that climate change and the loss of nature (i.e. biodiversity and ecosystems) is real and we need to become better stewards of our planet. Leading many to seek out careers in the environmental field. It is a growing field that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon but it can be a tough one to break into. Hear from top professionals and new professionals alike about how they broke into the industry and what it’s really like to work in the environmental field. Welcome to the wild world of environmental careers.
Episodes
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S06 E05 Samantha Stephens - Science and Conservation Photographer
This week we sit down with Samantha Stephens an award-winning science and conservation photographer and National Geographic Explorer. She uses her photography skills and compelling storytelling to communicate scientific research to highlight the work of conservationists in Canada. To see her work...
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S06 E04 - Peter Simons - Chief Park Naturalist at Algonquin Provincial Park
On this episode we chat with Peter Simons. Peter works for Ontario Parks as the Chief Park Naturalist out of the Algonquin Provincial Park Nature Center! Peter talks about his experiences working in a popular provincial park as well as shares tips and tricks to land an environmental career. Check...
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S06 E03 Zachary Sherker
Today we are hanging out with Zachary Sherker! Zach is a PhD candidate at the University of British Columbia in the Pacific Salmon Ecology and Conservation Lab. He is investigating how small scale barriers affect salmon migration in BC. To know more about the UBC Pacific Salmon Ecology &...
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S06 E02 - Samreen Munim - Field Biologist - Ontario Forest Birds at Risk Program
Today we are joined by Samreen Munim a field biologist with the Ontario Forest Birds at Risk Program (OFBAR) at Birds Canada. The program is focused on the promotion of land stewardship, beneficial forest management practice and the research of at-risk species in Ontario. To learn more about the...
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S06 E01 - Moon Pruvost - Program Director - Hope Mountain Centre for Outdoor Learning
Today we sit down with Moon Pruvost the Program Director at Hope Mountain Centre for Outdoor Learning. Moon chats with us about moving to Canada and starting her career in conservation and outdoor education. Tune in this week as we learn about programs at the HMC, grizzly bear conservation, and...
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Bonus Episode: ELB 2023 Annual General Meeting
BONUS EPISODE! Your regular podcast hosts take the back seat while our ELB co-chair Mara McHaffie hosts a panel of three great science communication experts to chat about making science accessible and how to communicate conservation. She is joined by Jody Allaire of Birds Canada, Jackson Hudecki…
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S05 E09 - Lexi Armstrong - Assistant Conservation Biologist - Nature Conservancy of Canada
Today we sit down with Lexi Armstrong. Lexi is an Assistant Conservation Biologist for the Invasive Species Program at the Nature Conservancy of Canada. Lexi talks about her journey becoming a conservation biologist and what she loves most about her current position! Tune in this week as we learn...
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S05 E08 Josie Vayro, Primatologist, Wildlife Research Lead at Bailey Consulting
Today we sit down with Josie Vayro. Josie is a primatologist by trade and a former instructor at Thompson Rivers University and Calgary University. And has most recently transitioned from academia into the world of consulting. Tune in this week as we learn how she uses her background and passion...
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S05 E07 - Aranya Iyer, Ecologist at World Wildlife Fund for Nature Canada & Co-Director of FREED
Today we are joined by Aranya Iyer, Associate Specialist for World Wildlife Fund for Nature Canada. Aranya is also a co-founder of Field Research and Ecology and Evolution Diversified or FREED for short! Aranya is working hard to limit the barriers for indigenous, black or racialized communities…
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S05 E06 - Stefan Weber, National Seed Strategy Coordinator at the Canadian Wildlife Federation
Today were are joined by Stefan Weber the National Seed Strategy Coordinator at the Canadian Wildlife Federation. By promoting ecosystem restoration, native plant re-vegetation, and combatting "plant blindness", Stefan's work is bringing native Canadian plant species to the conservation…
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S05 E05 - Emily Febrey (Ranger Em), Stewardship Communications Technician
Emily currently works at St. Clair Region Conservation Authority as Stewardship Communications Technician. She helps create wetland, forest and grasslands in the St. Clair watershed and even helps with Species At Risk Work! Emily also has a TV show on Rogers TV called Learn with Ranger Em,...
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S05 E04 Alejandro Prescott-Cornejo - Marketing Associate at Mongabay / Board Member at ELB / Wildlife Photographer
Tune into this episode to hear from Alejandro about his time working in the environmental field from a Marketing perspective. Also hear about his time on the ELB board and experiences running APC Wildlife Photography. https://news.mongabay.com/ Follow Alejandro on Instagram here: @apcwildlife15...
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S05 E03 Bailey Consulting
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bailey-environmental-consulting-inc./ Bailey Environmental Consulting Inc. Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S05 E02 Steve Marks - Herpetologist
Scales Nature Park | Reptiles And Amphibians | Ontario Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S05 E01 Meredith Meeker - ELB Chair/ Carleton University
ELB welcomes two new hosts for season 5 Alex Legere and Kandyce Affleck! Our new hosts begin with turning the magnifying glass inwards interviewing our very own Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity Chair and past podcast host Meredith Meeker. This week Meredith chats with us about her experiences...
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S4 E05 Kate Landry - WWF Canada
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S4 E04 Hayley Goodchild - Program Coordinator/Landscape Designer
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S4 E03 Will Van Hemessen - Consulting Botanist
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S4 E2 - Darlene Coyle - Watersheds Canada
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S4 E01 Katy Alambo - Ottawa River Keepers
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3E8 Kandyce Affleck - St Clair Region Conservation Authority
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3 E06 Gregary Ford - Swim Drink Fish and the Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3 E05 Jackie Ho - Protected Places Coordinator at Ontario Nature
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3E4 Tara Bauer - Blue Marble Learning Scene
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3 E03 A Special Careers Pandemic Panel with Sherwin Watson-Leung, Larissa Nituch, Nusha Keygohbadi, and Jessica Steiner
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3 E02 Brian Wilkie - Environmental Law, MNRF
Before starting his career at MNRF, Brian worked as an environmental engineer for six years. He then got his law degree and, for the past 28 years, has worked for the province of Ontario prosecuting natural resources offenses. In his spare time, Brian is also an avid bird watcher. Check out our...
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S3 E1 Tiffani Harrison - Conservation Outreach and Field Biologist
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S3 E0 Season 3 trailer
Check out our website! Home (el4biodiversity.ca) Follow us on social media @el4biodiversity for more updates and events!
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S2 E17 Jennifer Szczerbak - VP of Land Development Ecology R.J. Burnside
Jennifer Szczerbak is the Vice President of Land Development Ecology at RJ Burnside. She has experience conducting sub-watershed studies, environmental impact studies, and greenlands systems planning. In her work, Jennifer loves collaborating across disciplines and improving local biodiversity...
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S2 E16 Christian Friis - Canadian Wildlife Service, ECCC
Spending much of his childhood outside in nature, Christian Friis grew to realize the beauty and power of nature. While attending Mount Allison University, he volunteered for Long Point Bird Observatory. This experience would solidify where he would focus his career - bird conservation. Christian...
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S2 E15 Filip Rakic - Wildlife Health
Filip is a recent graduate from the Wildlife Biology Program at McGill University, where he first began participating in Northern Research within the Humphries Research Group. These opportunities to experience working in Arctic communities inspired him do an MSc with the Kutz Research Group,...
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S2 E14 Bryan Poirier - Manager of Strategic Conservation Policy at ECCC
Bryan Poirier is the manager of strategic conservation policy in the Canadian Wildlife Service, a branch within environment and climate change Canada. In that role, Bryan and his team work to ensure that biodiversity policy and considerations are incorporated into other government priorities and...
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S2 E13 Jenna Siu - Coordinator, Conservation Biology at NCC
Jenna did her undergraduate degree at Queen’s University in environmental studies and biology, and completed a research based Masters at Western University. She is also one of the founding members and a past board member of the Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity. Jenna has experience working with...
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S2 E12 Sherwin Watson-Leung - Program Manager, Aquatic and Wetland Restoration
Sherwin is an aquatic ecologist working with a team to implement restoration projects in the Credit River. With Credit Valley Conservation, Sherwin is a Program Manager of Aquatic and Wetland Restoration. Sherwin’s passions lie with improving & preserving our water resources, empowering others…
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S2 E11 Brenna Anstett - L.E.A.F. Residential Planting Programs Manager
Brenna holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Geography and Environmental Governance from the University of Guelph and has been an ISA certified arborist for 6 years. She has been employed at LEAF (Local Enhancement & Appreciation of Forests) for over 7 years- currently working as a...
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S2 E10 Toby Thorne - Toronto Zoo Native Bat Conservation Program
Toby caught his first bat at the age of eleven and hasn’t looked back. After teenage years chasing the bats of southern England, he studied biology at the University of Oxford and moved to Canada in 2013 for a Research Master’s investigating bat migration, supervised by Dr. Brock Fenton. Since…
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S2 E09 Jackie Hamilton - Greenbelt Foundation
Jackie is senior research and policy advisor with the Greenbelt Foundation, and a previous Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity Board Member. Through her work, Jackie helps to review current knowledge and research, and help apply it to protecting the long term sustainability of the Greenbelt. As an...
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S2 E08 David Seburn - Canadian Wildlife Federation
David Seburn is currently the Freshwater Turtle Specialist with the Canadian Wildlife Federation. Previously, he was a consultant specializing in the conservation of amphibians and reptiles. He has written more than a dozen scientific papers on amphibians and reptiles, and in 2020 was presented...
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S2 E07 Natasha Barlow - Birds Canada, Boreal Conservation
Natasha is currently working to facilitate the protection of Boreal birds across Canada, during all parts of their life cycle, as a Boreal Conservation Project Specialist with Birds Canada. She believes that by studying birds, it can allow us to rectify the disconnect between scientists and the...
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S2 E06 Matt Dyson - Postdoctoral Fellow with Wilfrid Laurier University and ECCC
Matt is a wildlife ecologist and a postdoctoral fellow at Wilfrid Laurier University, working with Environment and Climate Change Canada to understand the cumulative effects of disturbance on boreal caribou in Ontario. Matt is interested in how wildlife respond to landscape change and his…
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S2 E05 Kathleen Houlahan Chayer - Ontario Parks
Kathleen is an Interpretive Naturalist in the Discovery Program of Ontario Parks. She has a passion for helping people connect with the natural world and loves when she can share her love of parks with others. She's worked for Ontario Parks for 9 years in various roles including a Frontline...
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S2 E04 - Steve Hounsell Chair of the Ontario Biodiversity Council
Steve Hounsell is a retired biologist who spent his career with Ontario Power Generation (OPG) and the former Ontario Hydro, where he managed their biodiversity programs. Steve, an ardent supporter of sustainability and the conservation of biodiversity, is the Chair of the Ontario Biodiversity...
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S2 E03 - Larissa Nituch - Ontario Ministry of Natural Resource and Forestry
Larissa Nituch is a Science Operations Supervisor with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, leading the delivery of the provincial rabies research and control program. She has worked for MNRF for over 12 years in a diversity of roles related to wildlife research and monitoring,...
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S2 E02 - Gary Pritchard - Indigenous Restoration Ecologist and Engagement Specialist Part 2
Gary Pritchard is an Indigenous Restoration Ecologist and Indigenous Placemaker (Engagement Specialist) from Curve Lake First Nation, and incorporates Indigenous Knowledge Systems into ecosystem restoration and recovery. He has worked with, and traveled to, over 300 Indigenous Communities...
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S2 E01 - Gary Pritchard - Indigenous Restoration Ecologist and Engagement Specialist Part 1
Gary Pritchard is an Indigenous Restoration Ecologist and Indigenous Placemaker (Engagement Specialist) from Curve Lake First Nation, and incorporates Indigenous Knowledge Systems into ecosystem restoration and recovery. He has worked with, and traveled to, over 300 Indigenous Communities...
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S2 E0 - How do I do this? An environmental career podcast Trailer
Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity aims to connect youth and emerging professionals in Ontario with each other, opportunities in the environmental sector, and with the Ontario Biodiversity Council, all the while promoting biodiversity conservation. While this year it might not be business as…
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E13 Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity - A year in review
For the end of Season 1, I sat down with three of our board members, our Chair Thomas McAuley Basai, our Coordinator Kelsey Worboys, and our Treasurer Jackie Ho to look back and reflect on 2020 and what we have to look forward to in 2021. And a huge thank you to you our listener who has tuned in...
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E12 Jovana Shrestha - Urban Wildlife Conservation Network
Jovana Shrestha is a first year student at McGill University studying environmental biology. An aspiring wildlife biologist, artist, and conservationist! She created the Urban Wildlife Conservation Network in hopes of showing others that there are always opportunities to get involved in...
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E11 Brian Millward - Community Stewardship Coordinator
Brian is the Stewardship Coordinator at LEAF - Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests. He holds a Master's of Environmental and Life Sciences from Trent University and is passionate about connecting people to the natural world. Before joining LEAF, he participated in a behavioural study of...
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E10 Shauna Fernandes - Senior Planning Ecologist
Shauna Fernandes is a Senior Planning Ecologist with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. Her role includes implementing the Authority’s ecology interests by providing professional and technical review of applications under the Planning Act, Conservation Authorities Act and…
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About this show
More and more people are waking up to the idea that climate change and the loss of nature (i.e. biodiversity and ecosystems) is real and we need to become better stewards of our planet. Leading many to seek out careers in the environmental field. It is a growing field that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon but it can be a tough one to break into. Hear from top professionals and new professionals alike about how they broke into the industry and what it’s really like to work in the environmental field. Welcome to the wild world of environmental careers.
Hosted by
Emerging Leaders for Biodiversity