Julia Palozzi |
Hi! My name is Julia Palozzi. I use they or she pronouns and am not too picky about which one is used. I was born and raised on Treaty 13 Territory (Toronto), traditional lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat peoples. I am of mixed European ancestry, from Italy, Germany, and Britain. My paternal grandparents emigrated from Abruzzo, Italy and settled in Toronto in the 1950s, and my maternal great-grandparents settled on East and West coasts sometime in the early 1900s. My PhD research focuses on co-developing braided outdoor environmental education programs for high-schoolers (Grades 9 & 10) using community-engaged approaches, with the goal of mapping pathways for integrating environmental education into standard BC curriculum. Despite my current educational focus, my learning journey began in physical geography and meandered to wetland ecology, where I learned about agency and reciprocity from plants as a by-product of my studies. I identify as neurodiverse and also help facilitate peer-support groups for people who stutter and folks on the autism spectrum. I’m deeply privileged to be doing this work on Coast Salish homelands and am grateful for the opportunities to be of service, learn, and grow that come to me through my research and identities. |
Sarah Bird
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My ancestry is of mixed-European descent, with my paternal grandparents being of English and Danish descent and my maternal grandparents being from Zimbabwe and South Africa, but of mixed-European descent (some Dutch, the rest is uncertain). I grew up on Algonquin territory, near Ottawa, Ontario, and have since spent much time on the territories of the Syilx, Squamish, Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh, Songhees, Esquimalt, and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples in British Columbia .
I’m inspired by Earth’s biodiversity and opportunities to learn about and from the world’s ecosystems. In my work, this means working towards conserving and restoring these ecosystems for future generations. I’m a generalist, with a particular passion for the ecology of plants, soils, insects, and related “uncharismatic” terrestrial organisms. My PhD research is focused on the diversity of springtails (order Collembola) in oak meadows. Beyond my research, I’m an avid gardener and crafter that loves to try new things, and spend time outdoors, paint, and take photos. |
Diana Bertuol Garcia |
I am a Brazilian biologist of Italian and Portuguese descent. I was born and raised in the state of São Paulo in southeast Brazil, which encompasses the traditional territories of the Guarani, Kaingang, Krenak and Terena. I love all-things Ecology and am always excited to share that love beyond academia. In the past, I have researched how to develop effective partnerships between scientists and decision-makers in Brazil, and worked several years in secondary Biology education, using problem- and inquiry-based learning strategies to engage students with the natural world. After a few years strolling around Chilean Patagonia as a field instructor for a conservation NGO, I am now excited to come back to research and conduct my PhD research in Environmental Studies at UVic. My research interests span ecological restoration, community ecology, and how ecosystems withstand environmental change. For my thesis, I am studying how the diversity and characteristics of plants in grasslands can influence the capacity of these ecosystems to respond to extreme drought, and what are the implications for their restoration in the face of climate change. When not on the job (and I am grateful that a lot of times also on the job), I love to backpack and get acquainted with the local flora and fauna. You will always find me with my binoculars and a field notebook at hand.
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David Krug |
Hello! My name is David Krug, I’m a queer white settler of mixed European descent (Germanic, English, Scottish, and Portuguese). I was born and raised on the territories of the Mississauga and Credit peoples in what is known as Guelph Ont. I am an MSc student in the Restoration Futures Lab at the University of Victoria, with interests in community-led restoration, native seeds, environmental education, and mine reclamation. In 2023, I relocated to the territories of lək5 ʷəŋ and W̱9 SÁNEĆ people (Victoria) from the lands of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation & Ta’an Kwäch’än Council (W̱hitehorse) and the First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun (Mayo). W̱hile my background is in aquatic ecology, for the past three years, I have been residing and working in the so-called Yukon, supporting community-led restoration efforts alongside the First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun and a local company called Yukon Seed & Restoration Inc (YSR).
Under the guidance of Dr. Nancy Shackelford and in collaboration with YSR, my research focuses on supporting the development of local Indigenous and community-led native seed and plant production systems. The aim is to bolster restorative land action, economic reconciliation, and environmental justice. My research delves into understanding how Indigenous knowledge(s) and western scientific understanding have been applied throughout so-called Canada to foster the growth and success of Indigenous and community-led native seed supply systems. I am committed to adopting an imperfect and heart-centered approach to this research, acknowledging my position as a settler scholar. I strongly believe in the power and importance of relationship building as a fundamental component of this work and look forward to connecting with amazing individuals in this field. Beyond my academic pursuits, I find joy in spending time on any one of my many bikes, playing in and on the water, and cooking for my friends and family |
Hannah Gentes |
Tansi - tawâw! My name is Hannah Gentes, my pronouns are she/they, and I am of mixed Saulteaux-Métis and European ancestry. My fathers family comes from the Chartrand, Lamoureaux, and Desjarlais families from the Duck Lake and St. Laurent Métis settlements in Manitoba. My mothers family is three generations removed from England, France, and Germany from the Regan family. I grew up on Stoney Nakoda territory in the Alberta rockies, but have been a grateful visitor on the unceded and unsurrendered lands and waters of the lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples for 10 years.
I completed my Bachelor's in Humanities at UVic in 2022, completing a double major in Indigenous Studies and Environmental Studies. I am an MSc student co-supervised by Nancy Shackelford and Jeff Corntassel, contributing research to the Campus As Living Lands (CALL) project. My research focuses on the health dynamics of Indigenous-managed wetland social-ecological systems, with a focus on culturally important wetland plants. My research project is the re-introduction of Indigenous management practices to a degraded and unmanaged site on campus, with the intention of creating space for Indigenous students, staff, and community members to interact with the land, find home, and have access to culturally important medicines and foods. I am passionate about native plant care, Indigenous land and water stewardship, community-led restoration, and land based learning. In my spare time, I enjoy whitewater paddling, hiking, making music and art, eating lots of good food, and laughing with people I love. |
Sam Ahler
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My name is Sam Ahler, I use they/them pronouns right now, and I was born in what is now Wisconsin—the traditional territories of the Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Potawatomi, Dakota, and Ojibwe Nations. I am of English and German descent and my family immigrated to North America in the 1720s. I have Bachelor’s Degrees from the University of Wisconsin - Madison in Conservation Biology and Environmental Studies, with a minor in LGBTQ+ Studies. I worked in oak savannas, tallgrass prairies, and on temperate lakes. As a PhD student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at the University of Colorado - Boulder, I work with Katharine Suding and Nancy Shackelford in the mixed grass prairies along the Front Range of Colorado. I now live and work in the traditional territories of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Ute, Apache, Comanche, Kiowa, Lakota, Pueblo and Shoshone Nations. In collaboration with the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield Farms, I study the impact of small-scale environmental conditions on grass establishment, growth, and survival. In addition, I study vegetative—or clonal—methods of reproduction in grasses to better understand individual and population persistence and the mechanisms linking population-level dynamics to ecosystem-level processes. |
Julia Sinclair |
Julia Sinclair (she/her) is a research assistant for the Restoration Futures Lab focused on creating an interactive and accessible database for the Global Restore and Global Arid Zone Project. Julia is a white settler fortunate to live, study and work on the traditional territory of the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples. Passionate about restoration and environmental data, Julia is currently completing a computer science and environmental studies undergraduate degree at the University of Victoria. Having grown-up in Brisbane, Australia, the traditional territory of the Jagera and Turrbal peoples, Julia loves the ocean and is often found at Cadboro Bay or, in winter, the local pool.
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Nancy Shackelford |
Hello! I am an Assistant Professor in the School of Environmental Studies and the Academic Director of the Restoration of Natural Systems Program. I was born and raised in West Texas, in traditional Jumano and Apache territory. I've been an uninvited guest in these territories for around ten years. My experience with restoration is diverse, from the scrubby woodlands of Texas, to the grasslands of Colorado, to the amazing cedar and fir forests on our local coastline. I have a deep, abiding, unshakeable love for data, knowledge, and leveraging our shared work to continually enhance restoration outcomes. I gravitate towards terrestrial restoration in experimental and observational science, but am continually expanding my integration of the social, human sides of restoration.
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