Featured Students & Alumni
Meet some of the amazing undergrads, graduate students and recent alumni who have dedicated their studies to building a sustainable world.
If there is someone or a group you think deserves the spotlight, let us know! Email sustainability@ualberta.ca.
“They just make so much sense”: Getting on board for fuel cells.
Elizabeth Gierl is a fifth-year electrical engineering student who is passionate about green technology and the issues surrounding climate change.
Student’s ingenuity saves thousands of litres of water in chemistry labs
Campus Saint-Jean student Alex Schoeddert built a water recycling system that will save up to 7,200 litres of water each year in in his campus’ chemistry labs.
Garnet Borch: Stronger communities, deeper belonging
University of Alberta Engineering alumnus shares how he works sustainability into his work, life and community.
Sustainability bears fruit for ALES grad
For Nikki Way, setting up a campus farmers’ market in her first year was a taste of success that influenced the rest of her degree.
Northern Exposure: Experiencing field school in the Yukon
Jenna Bell takes you along for the ride, learning about conservation and Indigenous issues in Whitehorse and Kluane.
Nurses to the front! Maya Reshef Kalogirou confronts climate change in the E.R.
Maya Reshef Kalogirou is a registered nurse and University of Alberta PhD student who is paving the way for climate action in her profession. Her field work investigates Alberta nurses’ perceptions of climate change, and how the hospital setting impacts a nurse’s ability to practice environmental stewardship.
Pipeline pics and public pedagogy
Carrie Karsgaard maps the Instagram communities contesting the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion.
The Climate Change Comedian
Former University of Alberta student, Mav Adecer first tried stand-up on his neighbours in International House (he bombed). Five years later, his unique show about climate anxiety debuted at the Edmonton International Fringe Festival.
Spinning up electric buses
Flywheels could charge City of Edmonton electric buses faster, changing the way sustainable transit is powered in Canada and around the world.
How this graduate landed a dream job two months out of pharmacology
Stephanie Lunn landed a fantastic research specialist job at a leading Canadian medical cannabis licensed producer just two months after completing her PhD.
Student helps Stantec Tower rise above the crowd
Workers in Edmonton's Stantec Tower will benefit from health and wellness recommendations made by a University of Alberta chemical engineering graduate student Nirwair Singh Bajwa.
Breastfeeding moms need support at work and school
There’s a lack of supports for breastfeeding mothers at the University of Alberta and throughout Edmonton, according to nursing PhD student Shela Hirani. She did an assessment of the university’s breastfeeding facilities and policies, as part of Sustainability Scholars.
Financing a better future
Matthew Davis developed a green renovation program that would provide property owners funds to invest in upgrades for energy efficiency and greenhouse gas mitigation.
Are we throwing away more food than we think?
Amanda Evans spent last summer sorting ripe garbage as part of a waste audit and found that study participants produced an average of 5 kilograms of food waste a week—some as much as 19 kilograms.
Sustainable developments
Scott Boyce jumped at the opportunity to create a sustainability plan for the Edmonton Valley Zoo, knowing it would provide an interesting background for his master's thesis in conservation biology, and make contacts for his career.
Measuring social sustainability in affordable housing
Certificate in Sustainability alumna Meryn Severson puts social sustainability into practice at Capital Region Housing.
Protecting Heritage in the face of Climate Change
Certificate in Sustainability alumna Vada Antonakis headed back to school to connect the dots between heritage buildings and climate resilience.
On the Front Lines of Urban Resilience
Certificate of Sustainability alumnus Ranon Soans is helping build stronger communities in Edmonton.