Born and raised in Toronto, Julie has lived all her adult life in York Region just north of the city. After raising her son, she left a career in Merchandise Management to pursue her passion for life-long learning. With a love for geography and the ability to create mental maps for the world around her, Julie earned a BA in Geographic Analysis. An interest in place, space, and their importance guided Julie’s undergraduate research on the flow of craft beer in Ontario from producer to consumer.

An interest in the Canadian Arctic led Julie to then pursue a Masters Degree in Environmental Applied Science Management. She did her thesis on the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and traditional Inuit Caribou Knowledge in Gjoe Haven, Nunavut. GIS provides a foundation for mapping and analysis, which helps us to understand patterns, relationships, and geographic context.

Currently, she is in the midst of her PhD research on Food Security and Food Sovereignty. For this research she is taking a deeper look at the social and economic impact of a Growing Dome in Arviat, Nunavut – this is what brought her to Green Iglu!

Julie joined the team in 2018 as the Lead Researcher, with a keen interest in education. In addition to her work for Green Iglu, Julie is a contract lecturer at the University of Winnipeg teaching Statistics for Environmental Analysis.

A busy lady to say the least, we are so fortunate to have such a passionate and knowledgeable individual on the team. We are looking forward to sharing more about her research with you!