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I'm a Vancouver-based writer, editor and associate producer, with a Master of Journalism from UBC.

My work has been featured on the front page of The Globe and Mail, and in CBC/Radio-Canada, The Georgia Straight, The Vancouver Sun, The National Post, BCBusiness, Healthline, Western Living, Vancouver Magazine, Coast TV and a variety of student publications, radio stations and podcasts across the country. A full portfolio is available on the Articles page.

Georgia Straight •

Maybe we *can* fight fire with fire

As another BC summer unfurls in the shadow of massive wildfire devastation, it’s easy to come to the conclusion that all fires are bad. But a growing community of forestry experts, Indigenous firekeepers, and fire specialists are advocating for controlled burns—which can actually help keep our forests safe.

Cultural burning, also called prescribed fire and intentional fire, does not damage the land, but rather allows it to grow back healthier, says Joe Gilchrist, vice-president and co-founder o
The Globe and Mail •

SFU researchers receive funding to study storing CO2 in porous rock

British Columbia’s goal of slashing greenhouse-gas emissions by 40 per cent within six years would get a boost if the many projects aimed at capturing carbon dioxide from industrial smokestacks or vacuuming it out of the sky prove to be successful. But once captured, all that CO2 still needs to be stored somewhere.

Simon Fraser University (SFU) professor Shahin Dashtgard recently received nearly $900,000 in grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and B.C.’s
The Ubyssey •

The Largest Herbarium in Western Canada

Linda PJ Lipsen opens her office cabinet and pulls out a file folder, containing a photo of a tiny ordinary-looking piece of moss.

It is one of almost a million specimens stored at the University of British Columbia’s herbarium, the largest herbarium in western Canada, and they each provide a uniquely important window into history and climate change patterns.

The moss is almost 200 years old, making it one of the oldest in the herbarium. Most importantly, botanists call it a type specimen...
The Ubyssey •

UBC scientists use mushrooms to help compost human waste

Researchers believe they can use mushrooms to accelerate the work of composting toilets.

Lorena Polovina and Isobel McLean have spent nearly a year tinkering in a tiny basement room at UBC on a novel way to make using the washroom more sustainable. The School of Architecture (SALA) students may not find the place inspiring, but their work has the potential to make a difference in an often-overlooked area of environmental health: waste management.

They’ve been experimenting with mycelium shells...
Georgia Straight •

Vancouver chef tackles food insecurity one meal at a time

TJ Conwi grew up surrounded by food. His grandma owned a restaurant underneath their house in Manila. He considers it part of his culture.

“Just being a Filipino, our greeting is like, ‘Did you already eat?’” he tells the Straight with a chuckle.

Conwi's connection to food didn't lead him to just becoming a chef, but also to sourcing meals for people facing food insecurity. The Vancouver-based chef is featured in The Interceptors, a new documentary following his kitchen consulting company Ono.
Georgia Straight •

Why are there so many strikes these days?

From ports, universities, docks, and hotels to long-term care facilities and even Coca-Cola plants, BC workers have participated in almost a dozen strikes this summer alone. And while it may seem like there are more strikes here than ever before, assistant professor of labour studies at the University of Manitoba Adam D.K. King says that’s not actually the case.

“Strikes are not way up—we’re not in the 1980s or something like that,” King, who also writes a weekly newsletter about labour rights .
The Ubyssey •

Our Campus: Lauren Tjoe is working with dough in and out of the kitchen

The night before the start of the Great Canadian Baking Show (GCBS), Lauren Tjoe sat terrified in her hotel room. Not only is she allergic to gluten and dairy, but she was the youngest baker in her season by nine years.

“I got there and I was so scared,” said Tjoe, a fourth-year Sauder student. “Everyone had so many more life experiences than I had — so much more experience baking and being around food.”
Georgia Straight •

Helm Studios breaks down barriers

Music has always been a significant part of Josh Eastman’s life. But after going to university to study jazz and later becoming a music teacher, he began to notice that his beloved industry felt exclusionary.

“There weren’t music spaces that felt accessible and representative,” he recalls. “They weren’t operating in the way that I felt they ought to be.”

So, he decided to do something about it himself, starting the single-room recording studio that would become known as Helm Studios in 2020. S