campus climate action summit 2022

Tuktuyaktuk Knowledge Keeper

Charles is a traditional knowledge Holder who grew up in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region in the Western Arctic. Charles coached minor hockey for 25 years and was also part of Brighter Futures with kids. He did whale harvesting for several years with his wife Ida, prepared whales, and still teaches those who are eager to learn his traditional knowledge and harvesting practices, passing down the knowledge from one generation to the next. He has been captain for bowhead tagging for six years for Alaska Fish and Game in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

Youth Engagement Intern
with The Climate Reality Project Canada

Rosalie (she/her) is currently pursuing an honours bachelor's degree at McGill University in geography: urban studies with a minor in environment. Throughout her life and academic career, she has learned about sustainability and the environment through a multidisciplinary lens which has led to a great passion for sustainability and social justice. Rosalie believes that community engagement and grassroots organizations are essential in tackling the climate crisis and creating better inclusive communities. She is particularly interested in zero-waste, transport systems, and sustainable urban life.

Former co-spokesperson of La planète s’invite à l’Université and Master's candidate in political science

As part of his Master's degree in Political Science, Marouane has been studying, since 2018, the conservative media discourses in Quebec on the climate movement, which has recently seen the emergence of new symbols such as Extinction Rebellion and Greta Thunberg. Marouane is also a teaching assistant at the University of Montreal and is involved in the climate justice movement in Montreal as a co-spokesperson for the Coalition étudiante pour un virage écologique et social (CEVES). He served in this capacity until August 2020 when he helped launch the political action and pressure group Vert la Gauche. He is also the former co-spokesperson of La planète s'invite à l'Université.

Ph.D. at Law w/LATAM subject matter expertise / Lecturer & Businesswomen | Lobbying, Public Affairs, Government Rel / Former VP Mex Council on Foreign Affairs / Co-author Climate Abandoned. Democracy in crisis

Solange is a certified coach by Blue Thinking International. Lego Serious Play coach, certified by Global Managers. Solange is an international speaker and has a mixed background as an Executive in multinational companies such as Pfizer and Kraft Foods, a writer and academic, and as a businesswoman in the Public Affairs business for 20 years. She joined BTI to expand coaching activities in Canada. She is a lawyer with a Masters from York University and a Ph.D. with honors at Law School, UNAM. Solange has been a columnist at El Universal newspaper for 14 years and has several contributions to radio and TV programs as international and political affairs analyst. She is co-author of Amazon's best-seller book “Climate Abandoned” (chapter Climate Crisis & Future of Democracy). She was a VP of the Mexican Council on Foreign Affairs (Comexi) and now she is its Mexican Delegate in Canada. She has been invited to dictate conferences and workshops in many countries such as Albania, Germany, India, Morocco, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, the UK, US, among others since 1998. In 2006 she was appointed United Nations Organization (UN) Youth Spokesperson for the Millenium Development Goals. TEDx Conference "Democracy in crisis and climate change".

Community Climate Hubs Manager
for The Climate Reality Project Canada

Hope (she/her) is a recent graduate of the University of King’s College, with a combined honours in Environmental Science and Contemporary Studies (and a minor in Sustainability). While working with her local students’ union and other student societies on campus, Hope learned how to organize around students’ issues, Indigenous rights, climate justice, and access to affordable and nutritious food. She is continuing her organizing work as the Community Climate Hubs Manager at the Climate Reality Project Canada. In her free time, she likes to make dumplings and crochet.

Campaigns and Advocacy Coordinator at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus Students’ Union

As the former Nova Scotia Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students and past President of the King’s Students’ Union, Li Xiao (they/them) is passionate about free education and climate justice! Li is currently pursuing their MA in History with a specialization in Ethnic and Immigration Studies at the University of Toronto. Their research interests revolve around social movements, racial identity, and the environment.

Chair, Climate Reality Project Campus Corps at University of Waterloo

Ceileigh McAllister is currently studying Environment, Resources, and Sustainability at the University of Waterloo. She is very involved in campus organizing through many avenues. Currently, she is the co-chair of the Sustainability Literacy Initiative, a senator, and a student leader and committee member in the reduction target project at Conrad Grebel University College. When she is not wearing her activism hat, you can find her cooking vegan food, walking her dog Coco, tending to her garden, or very occasionally doing schoolwork.

Manager of Bagida’waad Alliance

Natasha Akiwenzie is the manager of an Indigenous environmental not for profit group called Bagida’waad Alliance. Bagida’waad Alliance was formed to do research on the waters of Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, to encourage youth to hear the stories of the Elders about the fish and to do more active stewardship of the lands & waters. Natasha is a member of the Lac Seul First Nation and lives at Neyaashiinigmiing with her husband and three sons. They were a sustainable fishing family that caught whitefish and lake trout in the waters of Georgian Bay. Natasha became a trained Climate Reality Leader in July 2020.

Lead Mentor for British Columbia for Climate Reality Canada and Climate Reality Leader

Judy has dedicated many years to youth engagement and climate leadership. In 2008, she founded a non-profit organization, YesBC (Youth for Environmental Stewardship) to empower young people as environmental leaders. In 2008, Judy was trained by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore to be a Climate Reality Leader and since 2009, Judy has been Climate Reality's Lead Mentor in BC, providing mentorship to hundreds of Climate Leaders. In 2012, climate scientist and IPCC Lead Author Dr. Andrew Weaver asked Judy to be campaign manager in his bid to become the first Green to be elected in the BC Legislature. Since his historic election in 2013, Judy worked with Andrew Weaver and ran his campaign for re-election in 2017. Recently retired from her work with the Legislative Assembly of BC, Judy and her husband Perry live in Victoria, BC, where they raised 2 sons and love the natural beauty that surrounds them on Vancouver Island. Now she can devote more time to work as a mentor and ally to young people, who are leading us all to a sustainable future.

Divest Canada Coalition is Canada’s largest group of students calling for their universities and colleges to divest from fossil fuels and invest in a Just Recovery. They are a coalition of 30 groups from institutions across Canada. In this Summit, you will be hearing from Shadiya Aidid, Guy Brodsky and Michelle Marcus.

Shadiya is a member of Divest Canada's coordination team, and a Student at Lakehead University, where she helped lead the divestment campaign and achieve a divestment commitment from the board in the winter of 2020.

Guy is a senior undergraduate at the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability at the University of Waterloo. Guy is a coordinator with the Divest Canada Coalition, a core member of Fossil Free UW, and an organizer with Banking on a Better Future.

Finally, Michelle is a UBC student and divestment activist, located on the unceded lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples. As an organizer with Climate Justice UBC (formerly UBCc350) for the past 4+ years, she led the successful campaign for UBC to declare a climate emergency and commit to fully divesting from fossil fuels in December 2019. Now, she is pushing UBC to go beyond divestment by investing in just climate solutions and using its institutional power to advance climate justice. As an organizer with the recently launched Divest Canada Coalition, she is committed to sharing divestment learnings, empowering other student organizers across the country and leveraging the collective power of our movement to revoke the social license of the fossil fuel industry and advance a just future for all.

Greater Sudbury Fridays For Future Activist and Climate Reality Leader

Alex (she/her) is passionate about stopping biodiversity loss and runaway climate change. During her time in academia, she completed an MSc in Climate Change, Development, and Policy, an LLB in Laws, and a BA in Sociology. In her current position as Executive Director of Climate Caucus, she feels lucky to work full-time on climate change, biodiversity, and social justice in local governments, with the hope of building a better future for everyone.

Policy Analyst, Domestic Campaigns and Francophone Communities at Climate Action Network Canada

Before joining CAN-Rac, Caroline was a climate policy analyst at Équiterre, where she supported the organization’s federal and provincial government relations. Previously, she worked as a social impact consultant at Credo, a certified B Corp, advising clients such as the City of Montreal, Hydro-Québec, La Tablée des chefs and Computers for Success Canada. In 2018, Caroline represented Canadian youth at the Charlevoix G7 summit. She holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the National University of Singapore and a B. Soc. Sc. in International Studies with a minor in Law from the University of Ottawa. In her spare time, she plays outside, makes bread, and obsessively follows Québec reality TV.

Academic, Amazigh artist & community organizer

Salma Tihani is an academic, Amazigh artist, and community organizer that centres her work around supporting youth in climate spaces. She currently holds her MA in Education and Society and a BA in International Development. Her research focuses on education for sustainability with a justice lens. Salma also does a lot of facilitation, project management and program design work focusing on equity, diversity and inclusion for K-12 to postgraduate students. Salma has previously worked with McGill University, the United Nations Association in Canada, the Canadian Space Agency, and various other NGOs

Climate Activist and Educator

Hi! My name is Karishma, and I am a 24-year-old climate activist & educator living in Canada. I have participated & organized protests, fundraisers, and lobbying events for many causes, but particularly for the Old Growth movement in Western Canada. I put out weekly action items through my social media page, as well as educating on topics such as fast fashion, sustainable food systems, waste management and more. I believe that we can enact change in our own individual spheres while continuing to stand up to government & extractive industry. Our power lies in community. I love connecting with other young people with a fire for ensuring a liveable planet. Thank you for having me.

Climate Organizer with Banking on a Better Future

Chloe Tse (she/her) is a youth climate justice organizer with Banking on a Better Future and a student at the University of Toronto. Born and raised in so-called Toronto, her work focuses on developing local grassroots organizing capacity to pressure the Big 5 Banks and other institutions to divest from fossil fuels.

Sustainable Travel CoordinatorSustainable, University of British Columbia

Gavin Esdale was a mining engineering student at UBC, then he left. Then he learned how to work as a cook, then he left that too. Then he started learning about sustainability and finally found something he didn't want to leave. He obtained his Masters in Sustainability from Brock University and he's now employed at UBC in a new position working to find ways to help university staff reduce the impacts of their travel, especially from flying. He considers himself a sustainability generalist and is always more than happy to learn about and talk about virtually any aspect of sustainability.