Deepening the conservation conversation: Exploring the connection between biodiversity, wellbeing and inclusion

Jennifer Rae Pierce heads Urban Biodiversity Hub’s Partnerships & Engagement team and is a Steering Committee member. She is a political ecologist and urban biodiversity planner. She is currently working on her PhD at the University of British Columbia on the topic of engagement in urban biodiversity planning. She has an architecture degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology, a Master’s in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University and a Master’s in Environmental Science and Policy from Central European University.

She produced a toolkit on mainstreaming biodiversity and ecosystem services across local governments for ICLEI called the Nature of Mainstreaming. Her research includes international comparative work on urban biodiversity plans as well as onsite research on biodiversity practices in Curitiba, Brazil, and Jerusalem, Israel. She taught environmental philosophy and planning at CEPT University. She has worked with the City of Vancouver as a Greenest City Scholar to develop assessments and recommendations on urban beavers and Canada geese, and also partnered with BCIT to measure the ecological footprint of the city.

As a post-doctoral fellow with the IES, Don’s work focuses on managing the Canadian Parks Collective for Innovation and Leadership (CPCIL). Funded by the Canadian Parks Council, led by IES, and in collaboration with several other institutions, the CPCIL comprises programming and research that will support parks and protected areas leadership and communities of practice across Canada.

Don combines 26 years of leadership in Provincial Parks interpretation, inclusion, and management with research focused on the mental health and well-being benefits of inclusive nature experiences, interdisciplinary research in parks and protected areas, transformative learning and leadership in parks, and the role of protected areas and sacred places in the Anthropocene.

He recently moved to Nexwlélexwem/Bowen Island with his family and free-range kids, who are enjoying discovering the ocean and forests of the west coast.

Nadha Hassen is a doctoral student and Vanier Scholar at York University in the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change. Her research, writing and projects explore health equity in different environments, with a focus on intersectional anti-racism. Her recent work focuses on examining the link between urban green spaces and mental health for racialized populations by exploring concepts like equity, access and belonging.

She has a Master of Public Health from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, specializing in Social and Behavioural Health Sciences. During this time, she was a CIHR Fellow in Public Health Policy and completed the Community Development Collaborative Program. As a health researcher and chronic illness advocate, she enjoys thinking and working at the intersections of research, education, and advocacy. Connect with her on Twitter @nadhassen

Joce Two Crows Tremblay is an Oshkimaadziig Great Lakes métis of Kanien’kehà:ka, Potawatomi, Wyandotte, Mi’kmaq, Ashkénaze and Muskrat French ancestries. They are a 2S Earthworker, tribal seed keeper, Land/Water protector and multi-media artist, working with the community across the Gichi Gaming basin, especially in Tkaronto (Treaty 13, NANFRAN, Dish w 1 Spoon).

Jake Tobin Garrett is a writer, illustrator and public space policy and research consultant. He was previously Park People’s Manager of Policy and Planning and continues to work with the organization as a consultant.