Meet the Guests

in a variety of roles, including with non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations. He has served on various international expert bodies, such as the Global Expert Panel on International Forest Governance (IUFRO), and has been involved in the development of multilateral agreements on climate change and biodiversity. He completed his PhD in Forestry at the University of Toronto.

of the Biology program at Trent University. He has undertaken a variety of forestry field research and writing experiences with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources in Central Ontario, wildlife field research in Algonquin Park with the University of Toronto, relief work in Kenya and Sudan, and natural history education. Interest in improving forest management has led to training as a tree marker, Managed Forest Plan Approver status, FSC auditor training and experience in hands-on forest management with a small sustainable woodlot effort in Quebec.

Ontario or the height-of-land. He has over 30 years’ experience in Forestry and Land Management combined with roles in First Nation advocacy, policy and in leading business development. Currently he serves as the General Manager for Wahkohtowin Development which is a social enterprise held by three First Nations to design pathways to full participation in Forest and Land Management across their respective Territories. The desire is to fulfill inherent land stewardship responsibilities, enhance community well-being and diversification into climate change, and action activities that seek to maintain a sustainable environment in their homelands. David is passionate about cultural revival and investing in the youth-elder intergenerational relationship this is fundamental for emerging Guardian Programs to keep the circle intact for the individual youth but also their interconnectedness and place in this world – Wahkohtowin.

lawyer and consultant. Ana currently works full-time as Deputy Executive Director of a legal aid clinic dedicated to environmental equity, justice, and health. Ana is a former faculty member in the fields of environmental economics, environmental law, and leadership, having taught and researched at various post-secondary institutions, including Balsillie School of International Affairs. She currently holds an appointment as Adjunct Professor, Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, Queen’s University.

protecting wild places. In 1999, after many years of volunteer work for conservation initiatives, Harvey became a full-time conservationist dedicated to national parks, wilderness, wildlife, large landscape and connectivity conservation and climate change. Harvey is co-founder and senior advisor for Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative and Nature Needs Half. He is a frequent speaker at major conservation conferences and universities around the globe. His writing and photography have been published in newspapers, magazines, books, and peer-reviewed journals. In September 2016, Harvey was appointed Chair of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Beyond the Aichi Targets Task Force, which aims to ensure that new global conservation targets beginning in 2020 will effectively conserve biological diversity and halt biodiversity loss. In 2017, Harvey was also appointed to the National Advisory Panel for Canada Target 1, on how Canada can best achieve protection of 17% of its land and fresh water by 2020 to meet Canada’s commitment to Aichi Target 11 under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Harvey has been nominated for the 2018 Indianapolis Prize, the world’s leading award for animal conservation, established to bring attention to the cause of animal conservation and the dedicated people who spend their lives saving the Earth’s endangered animal species. He has been particularly involved in the conservation of grizzly bear through the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative and of plains bison through Bison Belong. Harvey has previously been awarded the Fred M. Packard International Parks Merit Award by the IUCN at the World Parks Congress, the J.B. Harkin Award for Conservation by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, and the Gold Leaf Award by the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas for his lifetime of extraordinary commitment and vision to advance the cause of parks, wilderness, ecological integrity and landscape connectivity in North America and the world. Harvey received an Honorary Degree from the Faculties of Science and Graduate Studies at the University of Calgary in June 2018. He is also a fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. While not working to preserve it, Harvey enjoys spending time hiking and exploring wild nature all over the world. Harvey is fluent in French and competent in Spanish. Harvey Locke has two adult sons and lives in Banff, Alberta, Canada with his wife Marie-Eve Marchand.

constitutionally-protected land and governance rights are recognized and affirmed in the context of negotiations and litigation with the government and industry, and in the development of First Nations’ own laws and governance structures. Amy also provides strategic legal advice to First Nations on ensuring the recognition of their rights in the context of the economic development of their traditional territories. Amy began her career at a large national law firm based in Toronto, where she practised corporate law and commercial litigation for almost five years. She then spent a decade with the federal Department of Justice, where she practiced constitutional and Aboriginal law with a ficus on the litigation or negotiation of Aboriginal Treaty and Rights issues of national scope or potential impact. In her last two years in government, she worked in the area of international cooperation in criminal law, with a particular focus on cross-border prosecutions of child exploitation and national security (terrorism) offences. Amy then left government and re-joined the private sector in 2019, acting for First Nations in a boutique Ottawa-based firm focused on First Nations’ legal issues, before venturing out to start her own firm in 2022. Amy is a Deputy Judge of the Ontario Small Claims Court (Toronto Region) and in that capacity presides over a wide range of civil litigation proceedings.  Amy’s practice includes mediation and the facilitation of dialogue and settlement of disputed, both in her role as Deputy Judge and in her constitutional law practice, where she brings to the table a strong grasp of the perspectives of First Nations, governments, and industry on Aboriginal Treaty rights and their respective rights and jurisdiction to use and protect lands. Amy holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Commerce (Economics) from McGill University. She holds a Certificate in Mediating Disputes from Harvard University, and Certificates in Becoming a Third Party Neutral and Facilitation Skills for Groups in Conflict from the Canadian Institute for Conflict Resolution. Amy is the Chair of the Board of HelpAge Canada (an organization dedicated to supporting vulnerable older people in Canada and around the world). She is also a Safety and Well-being Officer (Disaster and Humanitarian Relief) for the Canadian Red Cross.

addition to overseeing the operations of WCS Canada, Justina is involved in research and policy activities associated with land use planning and large mammal conservation in northern landscapes. Having worked for years in African and Asian tropical forests, North America has been her predominant geographic focus over the past two decades. Justina has been appointed to numerous government advisory panels related to policy development for species at risk and land use planning in Ontario and Canada. She was the co-chair of the Terrestrial Mammals Subcommittee of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) from 2009-2017 and is currently a member of the IUCN Taskforce on Biodiversity and Protected Areas. She has been editor or author of 3 books and numerous peer-reviewed articles, and is Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto (Faculty of Forestry) and Trent University (Biology Department) and Research Associate at the Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Biology at the Royal Ontario Museum.

governments, citizens, industry and communities to protect wilderness and come up with solutions for nature and communities. Anna is a graduate of York University’s Master in Environmental Studies Program and she also holds a Hon. B.Sc. in Biology from McMaster University.

regulation of the timber trade. His current work focuses on the international forest biomass industry and on forest degradation in Canada. He is based on the territories of the shíshálh Nation on the Sunshine Coast, British Columbia and is originally from the United Kingdom.

with a focus on land and water defense, wildlife, and climate justice. Her current work focuses on old growth and forest protection, as well as challenging the forest biomass energy sector. She splits her time across Musqueam, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, Ktunaxa, Sinixt, and Syilx territories in British Columbia.

volunteer-based community group Conservation North in Lheidli T’enneh territory.

Indigenous-led land and water governance. Check out some of her collaborative projects: a short video series about the Land Back Movement; a short video series about Treaty Promises, and numerous blogs and op-eds. Most of her work is collaborative.

governments to protect Canada’s boreal forest. She has a PhD in forest sciences, where she researched approaches to mitigate the impacts of industrial logging on boreal caribou. She has taught in the Indigenous Learning department at Lakehead University and is committed to supporting Indigenous rights to self-determination, Indigenous-led conservation, as well as advancing land back initiatives. Boan works remotely from her office just outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Institute for Climate Solutions. She is also a Fire Behaviour Analyst and Fire Effects Monitor in-training for prescribed fire operations. Her research aims to understand how the legacies of colonization, fire suppression, and fuel accumulation have shaped fire regimes, and how the strategic application of treatments and management can restore fire-adapted landscapes. Through this work, she collaborates with a diverse group of knowledge holders to help shape management, policy, and the next generation of fire research.

author of seven books, for which she has won several awards. She has reported for a wide range of international and Canadian media, both from Africa and from Canada. She writes about healthy environments, food and farms, forests, the climate crisis and greenwashing, extractive industries, corporate capture and neoliberalism, environmental rights and social justice, and about genuine progress that does not harm the planet’s climate, people, and biodiversity.

position of Director, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto. In this position, Kim is responsible for leading the largest municipal strategy in the country to plan, protect and expand Toronto’s tree canopy. Kim has extensive experience in all elements of parks and forestry planning and management.  Progressive career experience includes Manager, Forest Policy and Planning, Project Manager of Toronto’s Parkland Strategy, Supervisor of Forest Policy and Standards, Urban Forestry Planner with Tree Protection and Plan Review, and Natural Environment Specialist with Forest and Natural Environment Management.  Her past range of responsibilities included the design and implementation of ecological restoration projects,  project management of the design and build of parkland trails to large scale natural area master planning. She was the Chair, Board of Directors of Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) Wildlands League from 2009 -2015, and acted as Secretary from 2006 – 2009.  A veteran of leadership training and volunteer management, Kim is a graduate of the Young Conservation Professionals Career Development Initiative through the University of Guelph.  She also earned a Master of Environmental Studies from York University and an Honours Bachelor of Environmental Science from the University of Guelph. Kim’s passion is focussed on Toronto’s ravine system and tree canopy, the wildlands of Ontario and Canada’s network of protected lands.

International, and Human Rights Watch, as well as two war crimes courts. She was knighted as a Chevalier de l’Ordre du merite for her pioneering efforts to curb deforestation in high-risk commodities with an emphasis on cocoa, palm oil, rubber, cattle, and soy industries. She has worked in over 30 countries, is widely published, speaks 9 languages, and is a graduate of Yale Law School.

Environmental and Conservation Sciences from the University of Alberta and a Masters of Environmental Design from the University of Calgary. Katie has worked in Canada and Latin America for university research projects, nongovernmental organizations, and environmental consulting companies. She has an in-depth understanding of conservation, ecology, campaign and strategic planning, community engagement, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. Katie is an avid hunter, angler, and gardener and spends as much time as she can in the backcountry and the back yard, discovering the wonders of nature and our place in it.

in biology and evolutionary biology from University College London (UK), The University of Groningen (Netherlands), and Université Montpellier 2 (France). He moved from the UK to Alberta in 2014 and soon fell in love with the province, its people, and its wild spaces. Josh believes that effective conservation, protection, and access to our natural spaces must be a priority for our society. Outside of work Josh loves to cook, garden and spend time hiking, scrambling, and climbing in the mountains.