Faces of WISEST: Ehlam Iftikhar

Living in a rural community with limited opportunities to pursue my love for science, I was eager to go to my first SET Conference in grade 10. This transformative event left me in awe as it exposed me to the vastness of the STEM field through engaging activities, inspiring mentor panels, and informative professional development seminars. Fast forward to today, after attending/volunteering at SET Conferences from 2019 to 2023, partaking in the 2020 SRP, and being in my final term on the WISEST Youth Council, I can undoubtedly say that WISEST has greatly influenced my academic journey. 

During the SRP, I researched the dewatering and consolidation behaviour of the oil sands tailings in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Not only did this experience influence me in choosing a research-based undergraduate degree, but also to make more sustainable actions in my community. I have helped create an aquaponics shrimp/fish farm for the Permaculture Group at the UofA and am also a Master Composter Recycler at the Edmonton Waste and Management Centre. Furthermore, I have started helping out at Edmonton’s Reuse Centre for DIY Thursday workshops. 

In terms of research, I am pursuing a thesis-based Honors Physiology degree at the UofA and am soon studying lipid alterations during Parkinson’s disease. I am also an active member at the Rehabilitation Medicine Robotics Lab and work closely with the Stroke Ambulance. Looking ahead, I aspire to continue my research career in the healthcare field, driven by WISEST's values of lifelong learning, community engagement, and sustainability.