Indigenous Ecology Lab
BSc in Forestry in Forest Resources Management from the Faculty of Forestry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada Canadian Institute of Forestry Gold Medal Award; Graduating Student with best all-round record in professional forestry throughout university career. Elected President of the Forestry Undergraduate Society 2021-2022
I would say a combination of meeting Dr. Grenz, wanting to advance my education, and working with St’át’imc Government Services (SGS) led me to grad school. I always knew I wanted to go back to school at some point but wasn’t exactly sure to what extent, focus, or degree. It wasn’t until I met Dr. Grenz and Virginia Oeggerli in-person through a work meeting, to introduce their work and research to communities, that I began considering some ideas for potential grad school options.
The experience of working with members of the IEC in a professional capacity first, not as a student, allowed me to truly appreciate the steps and efforts they take to ensure proper engagement and collaboration with communities. Furthermore, seeing positive outcomes from their work and involvement on the ground really intrigued me. So fast forward a few months after many conversations with Dr. Grenz, SGS, and my family, a plan was sorted so I could continue as an employee with SGS while conducting my MSc.
Hiking, cold-dips, paddleboarding, good food
My proposed research aims to center St’át’imc worldview, knowledges, values, and needs to inform the restoration, revitalization, and stewardship of mule deer habitat following wildfires while addressing St’át’imc sustenance needs.
My primary research questions are (1) To what extent can a St’at’imc-led mule deer stewardship program enact ecological reconciliation for food sovereign futures? And (2) in that context, to what extent can we prioritize more informed Indigenized perspectives and policies over colonial assumptions and economic drivers?