Candidate Statements / Déclarations des candidats

(available only in the language of submission / disponible uniquement dans la langue de soumission)

​

 

Lauren Jewett, University of Toronto

​

To The Canadian Association of Geographers Membership,

I’m a 2nd year PhD student at the University of Toronto, Department of Geography and Planning. I completed my BSc at McMaster University (2012) and Master of Geographic Information Systems at University of Calgary (2017). During these degrees I worked within the physical and human geography fields through academic health research positions, private-sector remote sensing firms, and have been a teaching assistant for cultural geography, remote sensing, GIS, and spatial statistics courses. My doctoral research explores spatial methods for measuring access and equity in health service planning, with particular emphasis on disparities in health service accessibility among rural and remote Canadian communities.

I have been a CAG and AAG member the last two years. Additionally, I have been an elected cohort representative to the geography department at UCalgary (2016) and UToronto (2017-2019). Last spring I founded the GeoHealth Network, which is a student-run research group comprised of geography and health/epidemiology graduate students aiming to bridge the health geography knowledge gap. We host free GIS skills workshops, speaker series, and this April will host our first mini-conference.

Through these positions I’ve connected with geography graduate students on issues surrounding admissions, research milestones, professional development, and future opportunities across sectors. I am very familiar with the struggles and anxieties that current geography graduate students face, regardless of field of study, course-based, or interested in working in industry. During my time as CAG Student Councillor I would like to work on the student webpages of the CAG website and divide information into three career-trajectory streams that are specific to current Canadian opportunities: public sector, private sector, and academic. These three streams would have different resource materials that align with the skill qualification requirements of current demand for jobs and updated brief bios of CAG members at different career stages on their paths with advice on successes and failures. Moreover, resources specific to preparing for a competitive academic faculty position application would help ease current anxieties among doctoral candidates. Looking forward to seeing everyone in Winnipeg!

Thank you for your consideration,

Lauren Jewett

PhD Student

University of Toronto

​

​

Michael Kvern, University of Winnipeg

​

I am current an undergraduate student at the University of Winnipeg pursuing a Bachelor of Art (Honours) in Geography. I have been a member of CAG since 2017, and a member of the University of Winnipeg’s Geography and Environment Student Association (GESA) since 2016. Presently I am serving as a Co-Vice-President of the for the 2018/2019 academic year. I was also elected as Student Senate Representative for the University of Winnipeg Student Association for 2018/2019. Since 2017 I have served as a council member for the Manitoba Northwestern Ontario Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and have been a member of their governance committee since 2016. I have also engaged with the community through work I have done with Councillor John Orlikow, facilitating community meetings and outreach.

​

Currently I am conducting a thesis in community energy planning. Through a resilience framework I hope to better understand energy systems and attitudes to energy in Churchill Manitoba, and facilitate the creation of a community energy plan. This process and plan will bring identify gaps in Churchill’s energy, and provide opportunities to increase self-sufficiency and energy security. It will also serve as a model for other isolated communities to manage their energy. I am interested in the fields of community & regional planning, energy, resource management, parks & protected spaces, resilience, and urban geography.

​

As a part of GESA I have strived to create community in the department by helping host and organize several social events annually, and by offering a place for students to network and learn about job opportunities. GESA also awards over $5,000 in grants for student research and projects that have a positive contribution to environmental stewardship and sustainability.  I am also an active member in the department, acting as the student representative on the Strategic Planning Committee. I have served the profession through my work within the University of Winnipeg and hope to serve more directly with CAG as a Student Councilor. I have a wealth of experience with boards and hope to apply it along with my geographical knowledge in news ways with CAG.

​

​

Nicole Goodbrand, Queen's University

​

I am a settler scholar pursuing a doctorate (Ph.D.) in Geography at Queen’s University. I am supervised by Dr. Heather Castelden and supported by her lab, the Health, Environment, and Community Lab. From a background of Urban Planning (MA, University of Waterloo) and Political Science and Sociology (BA, Western University), I found my way to the discipline of geography through a desire to understand Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples deeply rooted in my memories and experiences as a growing up in Brantford, Ontario.

​

My research is a community based participatory research study in a mid-sized city in Ontario, focused on Urban Indigenous Health through a local lens. Community partners drive the project, and the research project itself will provide insight into an essential component of Urban Canada and how cities can be shaped in more equitable and culturally appropriate ways.

​

In addition to pursuing my research and dedicating myself to academic endeavours, I am currently co-chair of the Graduate Student Council for the Department of Geography at Queen’s University. I sit on the Graduate Committee within the department as a representative of my peers regarding graduate geography education at Queen’s University. I’m also currently a member of the Indigenous Planning Perspectives Task Force for the Ontario Professional Planners Institute looking at addressing the TRC Calls to Action and the profession’s role in reconciliation. I am an active student member of the Canadian Association of Geographers, The Ontario Professional Planners Institute, The Canadian Institute of Planners, and the American Association of Geographers attending numerous conferences. I have previously sat on the Ontario Professional Planners Institute’s Student Liaison Committee as a Student Delegate for the University of Waterloo, as well been an active member of various levels of student government. This activity includes roles as President of the Association of Graduate Planners at the University of Waterloo as well as the Health and Wellness Coordinator for the University Students’ Council at Western University. I hope to continue my contributions to my peers and the discipline of geography as the role of Student Councillor on the executive of the Canadian Association of Geographers.

​

​

Trevor Wideman, Simon Fraser University

​

My name is Trevor Wideman. I am a PhD Candidate in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University, and I am running for the position of Student Councillor on the Executive Committee of the CAG. I received my MA in Geography from Queen’s University in 2015, and my BA in Geography from the University of Manitoba in 2013. I study Canadian cities, and my research interests broadly encompass urban geography, urban planning and policy, property theory, and legal geography.

 

My master’s thesis examined the role of place naming and cultural heritage within a participatory planning process in Vancouver. My current PhD study examines the relationship between land use and private property through key early 20th century planning moments in Vancouver and Winnipeg. I look at how planning has used ideas around proper land use to establish, manage, and maintain systems of property in urban settings in Canada, and theorize how such systems might be challenged.

 

I have provided service to geography throughout my degree programs. I have been an active member of the Simon Fraser University Geography Graduate Association throughout my PhD, serving as President (2017), Vice-President (2016; 2017-2018), Department representative (2015-2016), External Relations Committee representative (2017-2018), Appointments Committee representative (2017; Current), and Graduate Student Society representative (Current). As an undergrad at the University of Manitoba I served as representative to the Presidential Advisory Committee (2012-2013), and as representative to the Dean Reappointment Committee, Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources (2012-2013). In addition, I have co-organized sessions at the American Association of Geographers conference, and co-organized two geography graduate student mini-conferences at Simon Fraser University.

 

I have been a member of CAG since 2013. I have been an active participant at CAG national conferences, having presented papers at three of the last four meetings. I also recently submitted a book review for publication in The Canadian Geographer (in review). I am eager to provide service to Canadian geography more broadly through the CAG and believe I would make an excellent candidate for the student councilor position. Thank you for your consideration.