I grew up on the west coast of British Columbia (unceded territories of the Katzie and Stó:lō First Nations), I enjoyed the privilege of  growing up surrounded by trees, mountains, and wildlife. I spent a lot of time outside, and developed a strong attachment to our natural environment. True story: when I was in Grade 1, my mother received a call from my teacher who told her I had started a protest to stop other children from stepping on ants. As a child, I wanted to be a voice for wildlife and nature, encouraging others to care about other species we share this planet with. I *might* have also been a bit of a troublemaker, but in the best way possible!

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Not surprisingly, I pursued a career in biology, ecology, and conservation. I am one of the 2013 alumni of the Fish, Wildlife, and Recreation program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. That two-year program really opened my eyes to the possibilities in the wildlife conservation field, so I continued my time at BCIT and in 2015, I received a Bachelor of Science degree in Ecological Restoration.

 

After four intense years of undergrad, I decide to take some time to gather professional experience. I worked on several contracts related to bird and conservation research (click here for my full CV). These opportunities took me across BC, Alberta, and Jamaica!

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In 2018, I joined Dan Mennill's lab at the University of Windsor to master the sciences. For my MSc research, I traveled to Costa Rica and collected recordings of birds to better understand how they respond to changes in an endangered tropical forest ecosystem (click here to read more about that research). I successfully defended my thesis in the summer of 2020 (and published my first-ever scientific paper!).

 

I surprised myself during my quest to become a Master: I really liked asking questions, solving them, and communicating the answers. So in the fall of 2020, I started a PhD. Similar to my MSc, for my PhD, I am again looking at how birds respond to changes in their environments, but now I'm focusing on wetlands and waterfowl in Atlantic Canada. So you could say that I'm on my way towards becoming Ducktor Kiirsti Owen (#sorrynotsorry).

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Beyond my academic pursuits, I'm also super passionate about community involvement and volunteerism. I'm currently the Vice-President of WildResearch, a Vancouver-based non-profit whose mission is to "build, train, and educate a community that contributes to conservation science." I'm also involved a couple of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committees (with WildResearch, NSERC ResNet), I participate in lots of community science initiatives, and I'm a Big Sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colchester! Learn more about my volunteering on my CV page.  I love encouraging people of all ages to learn more about biology, wildlife, and nature. I enjoy talking to children, students, naturalist clubs (and anyone who will listen!) about birds and wildlife research. I am always seeking opportunities to share with others and encourage them to be excited about biology!

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It's important to acknowledge the considerable privilege I've experienced in being able to follow my dream career path and travel to other countries. I realize not everyone is afforded this privilege, often due to discrimination against race, sexual orientation, gender, physical abilities, and financial situation. As a descendent of European settlers, I acknowledge my privilege and how I have benefited from it. I will continue to engage in equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in STEM because we all benefit from a more supportive and accessible scientific community. If you would like to know what I'm currently working on to increase EDI in science, feel free to reach out!

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I am an uninvited visitor on the unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq. I am grateful for the opportunity to live, work, and play in Mi'kma'ki.