Master of Planning candidate in environmental design (EVDS), Jennifer Black, has been keeping even busier this semester coordinating the faculty’s Sustainability Seminar Series—which invites sustainability professionals to discuss their ideas, projects and career experience in global thinking and environmental stewardship.
With a background in environmental science, Black came to EVDS excited about the interdisciplinary nature of the program and eager to immerse herself in profession. As her involvement in the community grew, she found herself connecting with industry professionals from a variety of fields and started learning about their work.
“My motivation for pursuing my Master’s in planning was so that I could build a career where I can enable people to make sustainability a part of their lives,” says Black. “I have a real passion for educating people about sustainability, and meeting people who share my interests.”
As her connections in the community broadened, it seemed fitting to find a way to engage the sustainability professionals she was meeting with EVDS.
“It is critical that we, as future professionals, develop and maintain a level of understanding of the goals and issues related to sustainability,” says Black. “It is important to take into account individual and cumulative social, environmental and economic implications, as well as short/long-term and direct/indirect consequences of our actions.”
The series enables people on campus to learn and understand the concepts, designs and methodologies of sustainability by engaging practitioners that are solving real-world problems.
“The Sustainability Seminar Series is a commendable addition to our ongoing conversations about sustainability in the faculty, across a range of scales and subjects,” says the EVDS dean, Nancy Pollock-Ellwand. “A great thanks to Jennifer in helping to enrich the conversation around sustainability.”
The series—which is open to the public—has welcomed a number of leading thinkers and practitioners including senior manager at ECO Canada, Elizabeth Watterworth; Calgary Municipal Land Corporation representative, Susan Veres; and the university’s own Dr. Byron Miller from the Department of Geography.
Three presentations remain this semester: Calgary Transit planner, Robb Whyte (March 29) on Effective, Quality Public Transportation Systems; City of Calgary, Joachim Mueller (April 5) on What can Calgary’s Centre City District do to foster sustainability?; and environmental consultant, Jen Silverthorn with the Calgary Fire Department (April 12) on Turning Green into Gold.
Image: ECO Canada’s Elizabeth Watterworth (right), one of the speakers of the Sustainability Seminar Series, which is coordinated by EVDS planning student Jennifer Black (left). Photo courtesy Jennifer Black
Article by Jessica Wallace