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As Director, Eric manages multiple projects and partnerships of the initiative including the production of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts. He teaches the footprint-related courses, supports students and project staff, and supports the Footprint Data Foundation as its Secretary-Treasurer. His prior work as a consulting economist has informed governments, industry, think-tanks, and NGOs. His earlier career in public service had him leading the team of economists in the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, after he had worked for the Ontario Ministry of Environment and for Environment Canada.

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As Senior Data Analyst, Peri trains and supports the Data Analysts in producing the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts. She also conducts research on methodological improvements to the National Accounts and applies Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity to other scales.

Peri completed the Masters of Environmental Studies at York University, focusing her studies on sustainability informatics, ecological economics, and urban planning.

• MES Major Paper - Ecosystem Service Payments as a Climate Solution: an examination into Successful Aspects of Ecosystem Service Payment Policy Programs

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Kiona is a Sustainability Data Analyst at the Ecological Footprint Institute based in York university, Toronto. She recently graduated from the Master's in Environmental Studies program and the Business and Environment Diploma at York University. Her academic journey began with an undergraduate Biology degree, focusing on animal physiology and conservation. It has evolved into an interest in environmental sustainability within the private sector after she gained experience in a small business setting. In her master's program, Kiona examined the mobilization of environmentally sustainable practices in the private sector through business sustainability theories, ecological economics, systems thinking, and data analysis. Specifically, she was intrigued by the challenges and the lack of actions addressing Scope 3 emissions in organizations. This curiosity led her to conduct her master's major research on the current and best practices higher education institutions employ to reduce Scope 3 emissions. Currently, Kiona is producing the next edition of GHG emissions and ecological footprint report for York University.

• MES Major Paper - Current and Best Practices for Scope3 Emissions Reductions in Higher Education Institutions – Procurement

LinkedIn

As the Project Assistant, Kaitlin’s work with the Ecological Footprint Initiative supports research mobilization and outreach on the National Footprint Accounts. She also researches applications of the Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity methodology to real-world social and environmental issues.

Kaitlin is currently completing a Bachelor of Environmental Studies degree at York University. Through the Environmental Arts and Justice program, she is pursuing her interests in ecological economics, environmental law, policy, climate justice, and the arts. These research topics are highly applicable to Footprint Accounting, which is what led her to the Ecological Footprint Initiative.

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• • Neha is responsible for assisting with the development of the next edition of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts, which will include research to enhance its methodology and apply its results. Her analysis includes sourcing data, transforming and cleaning it, comparing it to expected models, stewarding computer code and instructions, explaining the significance of results, and troubleshooting issues.
  • For an updated bio, please visit Neha's LinkedIn

• As the Learning Module Editor Beatrice's role is to enhance IEFLL training by developing standalone learning modules and other content that will further the project's goals of increasing knowledge and skills. These help to increase the effectiveness of training enrolled students, and to enable the possibility of training the project's research partners and collaborators.
• For an updated bio, please visit Beatrice's LinkedIn

• As Writer, Editor and Researcher, Bart increases awareness and understanding of the activities and research of the International Ecological Footprint Learning Lab, and about Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity, through the writing of newsletters, research briefs, and data stories, and reviewing/editing written material from other members of the partnership.
• For an updated bio, please visit Bart's Website

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As Dean, Dr Hovorka supports the initiative's growth and development within York and beyond through global partnerships and collaborations. The initiative draws upon many strengths of York's Faculty of Environmental Studies including its interests in sustainability informatics, as the application of computational methodologies to important problems regarding the human use of the planet's regenerative capacity. Dean Hovorka represents York University as a Director of the Footprint Data Foundation and joins with its champions to enhance the global impact of ecological footprint and biocapacity accounting.

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As the founding Chair of the Science Advisory Committee, Dr Victor provides the Footprint Data Foundation with the committee's expert advice on the science underlying the definition and measurement of the Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity and their various components. Dr Victor is an economist who has worked on environmental issues for 50 years as an academic, consultant and public servant. He was Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Studies, Assistant Deputy Minister of the Environmental Sciences and Standards Division in the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, and principal of VHB Consulting and Victor and Burrell Research.

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Dr. Remmel's core research incorporates aspects of spatial pattern, accuracy and uncertainty, and boreal disturbance analyses. He integrates remote sensing, GIS, and spatial analyses to better understand the physical environment. Underpinning his passion for physical geography is GIScience and understanding spatial patterns. Dr. Remmel is a key collaborator with the International Ecological Footprint Learning Lab. He is also the Principal Investigator for the Geomatics for analyzing climate change effects on ecosystems and human populations research cluster.

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As Research Associate for the Ecological Footprint Initiative, Katie defines new research directions, supports knowledge synthesis, and mobilization of the team’s research.

She has a Ph.D. in Social and Ecological Sustainability from the University of Waterloo and a background in complexity thinking and ecological economics which she applies to research on production and labour. She is also a lecturer of ecological economics at the Haida Gwaii Institute.

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Dr Bunch supports the initiative by developing new research capacity and competencies at York. His research falls in the areas of in environmental management, systems theory and methodology, and environment and health. The integrating theme among these is coupled human and natural systems, or social-ecological systems. He has methodological expertise in adaptive management, soft systems methodology, ecosystem approaches, and geographical information systems (GIS) and brings these together in the application of ecosystem approaches to human health and well-being (the ecohealth approach).

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As Chair of the President’s Sustainability Council at York University, Dr de Costa supports the initiative's recognition within York and abroad, and its application to enhancing the sustainability of York University and its broader communities. In his prior role as Interim Dean, Dr de Costa supported the creation of the Ecological Footprint Initiative, the negotiation of collaborations with external partners including Global Footprint Network, and the incorporation of the Footprint Data Foundation. His research and teaching interests are in comparative approaches to Indigenous and environmental politics.

• Produced the 2023 Edition of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts
• MES Major Paper: Revolutionizing the imaginary: Visions for a degrowth future

• Produced the 2024 Edition of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts

Sila’s research interests include climate finance. Sila has a background in finance and worked for a multilateral development bank’s sustainable infrastructure division, focusing on renewable energy investments. She holds a master’s degree in Energy Technology and Management. She is interested in influencing better-informed investment decisions for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

• Produced the 2023 Edition of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts
• MES Major Paper: Analysis of the Quality of the Green Bonds for Climate Action
• For an updated bio, please visit Sila's LinkedIn

Athaven Nithianantha is a joint Master's of Environmental Studies and JD candidate at York University and Osgoode Hall Law School. Interested in many topics ranging from environmental and Indigenous rights to just transitions to a green economy, his passion for more robust environmental policies led him to join the Ecological Footprint Initiative to gain an intimate understanding of the National Footprint Accounts. The NFA is a robust accounting system that provides a more holistic view of environmental degradation, which will allow us to create policies that appropriately address the climate crisis.