Staff

  • Dr. Sybil Seitzinger

    Executive Director

    Dr. Sybil Seitzinger is the Executive Director of the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions.

    Dr. Seitzinger joins PICS from her position as executive director of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) based in Stockholm, Sweden. Prior to that, she was director of the Rutgers/NOAA Cooperative Marine Education and Research Program and visiting professor at Rutgers University in the US. She served as president of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography from 2006-2010.

    Dr. Seitzinger’s work at the IGBP involved facilitating and integrating the work of scientists and researchers across Africa, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe on global environmental change. As a pioneering scientist, her work at Rutgers centred on land-atmosphere-ocean biogeochemistry, with a focus on changes in the global nitrogen cycle and how humans are affecting it.

    Dr. Seitzinger holds a PhD in biological oceanography from the University of Rhode Island, is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and has been awarded an honorary PhD from Utrecht University in the Netherlands.  She is highly cited, with more than 130 peer-reviewed publications to her credit.

    C.V.

    Phone Number: (250) 853-3595

  • Dr. Ged McLean

    Associate Director

    Dr. Ged McLean brings over three decades of academic and industry expertise to PICS. He spent 13 years as a professor of mechanical engineering at UVic, including four years as director of the Institute for Integrated Energy Systems (IESVic). In 2002, he founded Angstrom Power Inc., later owned by BIC Inc., where he developed state of the art fuel cell systems. McLean has been lead inventor in more than 80 patents with research contributions in areas including design methods, energy systems, art databases, embedded systems and image processing.
    Dr. McLean holds BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees in Systems Design Engineering from the University of Waterloo. He was formerly the director of strategic planning with IESVic and science adviser for the Institute for Breakthrough Energy Technology. He also sits on the advisory council for UVic’s School of Environmental Studies and the advisory board for CanAssist.

    Phone Number: (250) 853-3676

  • Sara Muir-Owen

    PICS Program Manager, University of British Columbia

    Sara Muir Owen has a BSc in Agriculture and a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of British Columbia. She has more than 10 years of experience in sustainable community planning and has worked in Vancouver, Aspen, CO and Santa Fe, NM. She has been involved in numerous award-winning projects including the Canadian Institute of Planners’ 2010 Planning Excellence Award for the “City of North Vancouver 100 Year Sustainability Vision.” In 2010, Sara joined PICS as the UBC program coordinator.

    Phone Number: (604) 822-4644

    Website: http://www.sustain.ubc.ca/pics

  • Nastenka Calle

    Program Manager, Simon Fraser University

    Nastenka Calle Delgado is the PICS Program Manager at Simon Fraser University (SFU). She has a Master of Sciences degree in Environmental Health Sciences with specialization in Environmental Quality from the University of South Carolina (Columbia, USA), and a Master of Sciences in Environmental Engineering from the University of New Orleans (New Orleans, USA). Nastenka obtained her bachelor’s degree in Geological Engineering from the Polytechnic School of Ecuador (ESPOL).
    Her professional strengths and areas of knowledge are focused on air and water quality, environmental planning, environmental auditing, environmental impact assessment, GIS and environmental modeling, hydrology and waste management, and environmental management system implementation.

    Phone Number: (778) 782-8834

    Website: http://www.sfu.ca/climatechange

  • Michelle Connolly

    Program Manager, University of Northern British Columbia

    Michelle Connolly has worked as a coordinator, a biologist, a technical writer, a researcher and a field technician for federal, provincial and local governments, academia and non-governmental organizations. She has a BSc in forestry from UBC and an MSc in forest ecology from UNBC. Michelle loves the wild landscapes of northern BC and is proud to be representing UNBC with PICS.

    Website: http://www.unbc.ca/pacific-institute-for-climate-solutions

  • Robyn Meyer

    Senior Communications Officer (Currently on leave)

    Since 2009 Robyn Meyer has been managing PICS communications and outreach for specialist and general audiences, as well as media. Previously Robyn worked as a senior press secretary in the New Zealand government. Hailing from a media background, Robyn's journalism awards include the 2001 New York Festival Environmental Gold World Medal Award for her radio documentary on the Pantanal, the New Zealand Radio "Best Documentary" 2004 Award, and awards plus a scholarship to cover Nepal’s civil unrest. As a former chief reporter, she managed RNZ national newsroom staff.
    Robyn has a BA in politics/ history and a Post-graduate Diploma in Journalism from the University of Canterbury. Her career in media and communications has seen her work in Canada, London (UK), New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, Thailand, the US, Bolivia, and Europe.  She is passionate about her work with PICS and about the role of communications in helping advance society to a low-carbon future.

    Phone Number: (250) 588-4053

  • Jennifer Kwan

    Senior Communications Officer

    Jennifer brings more than a decade of expertise to PICS as a communicator and former journalist. She began her career as a reporter in small and large newsrooms across Canada including the Yukon News and Toronto Star before moving to global newswire Reuters, where she covered capital markets, treasury, policy and regulation during the financial crisis. There, she also helped set the news agenda for the Reuters Canada, U.S. and U.K. websites. Jennifer has worked in strategic communication roles involving government, industry, client and media relations in the finance and university settings. She holds degrees in political science and journalism, as well as the CFA Institute’s Investment Foundations Program and Canadian Securities Course certifications. Her volunteer experience includes steering committee roles with the Canadian Cancer Society/CIBC Run for the Cure and Women in Capital Markets.

    Phone Number: (250) 853-3626

  • Leigh Phillips

    Science Writer

    Leigh Phillips is a science writer and European Union affairs journalist who reported from Brussels for almost a decade. He has written for Nature, the New Scientist, the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph, the Globe and Mail, the New Statesman, Scientific American, and the EUobserver, amongst other outlets. His first book, ‘Austerity Ecology & the Collapse-porn Addicts: A defence of growth, progress, industry and stuff’ was published by Zero Books in Fall, 2015. His second book, 'The People's Republic of Walmart', co-authored with Polish-Canadian economist Michal Rozworski, will be published in 2018 by Verso.

    Phone Number: (250) 853-3677

  • Nancy Chan

    Executive Assistant

    Nancy joined the PICS team in July 2013 but has been working at UVic since 1983 with the Engineering and Computer Science/Math Co-op and Career office. She's very excited to be part of a team that is helping to shape climate change policies!

    Phone Number: (250) 853-3595