Green Careers Week 2023

Green Careers Week aims to inspire students seeking careers in environment and sustainability. Events include sessions by professionals in climate change, environmental consulting and law, and feature alumni who will share their experiences of finding work in their field.

Sustainable Development Goals and Your Career (In person)

Wednesday, March 15, 2023
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
McLennan Library MS-74
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This one-hour workshop is for those interested in learning about the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It will help participants identify the SDGs, explain their significance, and understand implementation opportunities and challenges, particularly in reporting on them. The workshop will also tell participants how they can get more involved in SDG activities on campus and beyond. It will also encourage participants to think about how the SDGs apply to their prospective career paths.

Industry Insider: A Closer Look at Environmental Consulting Careers (Virtual)

Wednesday, March 15, 2023
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
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Speaker: Philippe Dunsky, President, Dunsky Energy + Climate

Bio: Philippe brings 30 years of business and policy experience focused on a singular passion: helping clients accelerate the clean energy transition, effectively, responsibly and at scale. He has the honour of leading a first-rate team of over 50 dedicated professionals, and the privilege of supporting governments, utilities and others across North America.

As a trusted adviser to both executives and policymakers, Philippe helps organizations chart the course toward decarbonization without losing sight of economic imperatives. His experience spans the full array of solutions across both energy supply (primarily electricity systems) and demand (buildings, mobility and industry). His work is informed by three decades of experience assessing markets, designing policies and programs, conducting techno-economic studies, building regulatory frameworks and defining market strategies. He is regularly called as an expert witness at regulatory proceedings.

Philippe is notably adept at storytelling and is a recognized thought leader with a unique ability to bridge technology, market, regulatory and policy spheres. He is a sought-after speaker, an experienced board administrator and is regularly appointed to public interest advisory committees. He is currently Co-chair of Efficiency Canada, was chair of Quebec's Electrification Working Group, and has served on the Electrifying Canada Taskforce, the Resilient Recovery Task Force, and the Canadian Renewable Energy Association and among other positions. Philippe was recognized in 2022 as one of North America’s Top 100 Impact CEOs and in 2021 as one of Canada’s Clean50 leaders.

Industry Insider: A Closer Look at Careers in Climate Change (Virtual)

Thursday, March 16, 2023
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
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Speaker: William Gagnon, Corporate Knights magazine #top30 Sustainability Leaders and Energy Transition Advisor for Médecins Sans Frontières

Bio: William lives in the Canadian Sub-Arctic, in Yellowknife NT where he witnesses the climate emergency on a daily basis: thawing permafrost, higher precipitation leading to buildings collapse, thinner ice shelf, erratic fish population, and more. A building engineer (Concordia University ’17), advocate and campaigner for climate (Cornell, ’19), he specializes in green buildings and decarbonization of the building sector (Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, ’18). He likes working at the intersection of design, engineering, climate advocacy, sustainability and research. He is now pursuing an MSc in Bioresource Engineering at McGill University where he focuses on Carbon Capture & Storage upscaling in the Canadian North.

William is a green buildings expert, and holds the LEED green buildings professional accreditations.

Action feels better than anxiety; William spends most of his time working or volunteering around climate. In recent years, he spoke about climate, ecoanxiety, sustainability and decarbonization at conferences in Alaska, Seattle, China, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, Greenland, Montreal, Yellowknife, and Whitehorse. In 2018, he joined the Corporate Knights magazine #top30 Sustainability Leaders list. William is now the Energy Transition Advisor for Médecins Sans Frontières where he contributes to their 50% emissions reduction target by 2030.

Environment Alumni Panel (In person)

Thursday, March 16, 2023
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Brown Building, room 5001
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Are you an environment student? Or aspiring to work in the environment and have a green career? Come hear how these alum transitioned from school to work, what paths they’ve taken and have your questions answered.

Chantal Menard, Species at Risk Permitting Program Delivery Officer, Environment & Climate Change Canada
B.Sc. (Ag.Env.Sc.) Major Environment (Environ metrics), 2022

Joanna Griffin, Policy Analyst, Environment & Climate Change Canada
B.Sc. (Ag.Env.Sc.) Major Environment (Biodiversity & Conservation), 2018

Bio: Joanna Griffin is a Policy Analyst in the Strategic Policy Directorate at Environment and Climate Change Canada. Joanna's educational background includes a Technical Degree from Vanier College in Environmental and Wildlife Management (2013), an Undergraduate Degree in Agricultural and Environmental Sciences from McGill University (2018), and a Masters in Environmental Impact Assessment from Concordia University (2020).

As an analyst in the Integrated Climate Lens Center of Expertise, Joanna assists a variety of programs in assessing the potential environmental and climate change impacts of their proposals. Ultimately, these analyses help to inform decision-makers as they weigh the various aspects of policies, plans and programs, and help ensure government initiatives are aligned with environmental priorities.

Divya Sharma, Climate Officer, McGill Office of Sustainability
B.Sc. Major Environment (Biodiversity & Conservation), 2012 and M.Sc. Biology, 2015

Bio: Divya is the Climate Officer at McGill, where she supports the University on its path to carbon neutrality by 2040 through various climate action projects on campus, including producing the University’s annual greenhouse gas inventory. Before that, she worked as the Research Assistant for the Neotropical Ecology Lab and Administrator-Researcher for Sustainable Canada Dialogues, a network of 80+ sustainability scholars across Canada seeking to encourage climate action among decision-makers. Divya completed her Master's in Biology at McGill and her undergrad in Environment (Biodiversity & Conservation) in the Faculty of Sciences. She is currently part of the Montreal cohort of Women4Climate, a global mentorship and training program for women acting on climate change.

Daniela Pineda, Junior Impact Analyst, impak Analytics (formerly impak Finance)

Bachelor of Arts: Major in Environment and Development, Double Minor in Anthropology and Urban Systems (2020)

Bio: After Daniela completed her DEC in Environmental Studies, she went on to do her BA in Environment and Development. Today, as a Junior Impact Analyst, she analyzes the social and environmental impact of companies, especially those in the personal goods and healthcare sectors. The analysis is based on internationally-recognized frameworks such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and aims to help clients (i.e. portfolio managers) make investment choices that have desired social and environmental impacts.

Katia Forgues, Research Biologist, First Nation of Quebec and Labrador Sustainable Development Institute (FNQLSDI)
Bachelor of Science: Honours Environment - Renewable Resource Mgmt, Minor Concentration Geography (2020), Master of Science, Biology Thesis - McGill/STRI Neotropical Env. (Feb 2023) 

Bio: I am a young scientist passionate about empowering people to be environmental leaders of change using community-based research. I did my undergrad in environmental Science at McGill and recently finished a master’s degree in biology working on a carbon sequestration and reforestation project with an Emberá Indigenous community in Panama.

Currently, I am working as a research biologist for Ekuanitshit’s Innu Council where I lead statistical analyses to evaluate the impact of climate change on berries on the north coast of the Saint Lawrence River. I also have the privilege of being the co-director of Sustainable Youth Canada, a youth-led NGO bringing together youth from across the country to lead initiatives on an array of topics such as the restoration of green spaces, citizen science, or sustainable consumption.

Nnedimma Nnebe, Analyst Innovative Finance, Global Affairs Canada
B.Sc (Agr.Envi.Sc) Major Environment - Ecological Determinants of Health Domain - Cellular Minor Human Nutrition (2014), Master of Science,Bioresource Engineering (2016) 

MORE EVENTS RELATED TO GREEN CAREERS WEEK

Industry Insider: A Closer Look at Careers at the UN (Virtual)

Monday, March 20, 2023
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
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Interested in learning more about early careers at the UN? Come hear from Idil Uner and get your questions answered!

Idil is an Associate Public Information Officer at the United Nations working in the Office of the Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth (OSGEY) where she supports communications and partnerships efforts to advocate with and for young people across the human rights, sustainable development and peace and security pillars.

Sustainability, Science and Society Alumni Panel (In person)

Wednesday, March 22, 2023
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Burnside, rm TBD
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Alumni:

Emma Melis: GIS Technical Solutions Specialist at Esri Canada

Jane Zhang: Product Marketing Manager at Zapier, Podcast Host of Farm to Future

Emilienne Hamel: Masters Student, Geological and Earth Sciences at McGill University

Clara Payro: Researcher at PBL Planbureau voor de Leefomgeving 

Amelia Murphy; Executive Assistant at Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD)

A Night With Steven Donziger – Exploring Environmental Law and Indigenous Environmental Justice (In person)

Wednesday, March 22, 2023
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Downtown campus, Room TBD
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Please join Desautels Sustainability Network (DSN), McGill Pre Law Society (MPLSS), McGill Environment Student’s Society (MESS), and The Golden Key Honour Society (GKS) for an evening with American attorney Steven Donziger!

Steven R. Donziger is an American attorney known for his legal battles with Chevron, particularly Aguinda v. Texaco, Inc. and other cases in which he represented over 30,000 farmers and indigenous who suffered environmental damage and health problems caused by oil drilling in the Lago Agrio oil field of Ecuador.

Hear his story, ask questions and learn about environmental law and Indigenous Justice with Steven through this facilitated lecture and discussion. All are welcome!