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Memorial University Om Prakash Yadav Master's Student (WP1) Mr. Om Prakash Yadav, trained in dentistry and specialized in public health dentistry (both from India). Mr. Yadav recently finished his second master's in community health at MUN. He is the recipient of the Shree Mulay Community Health Graduate Award, the Mitacs Research Training Award, and the Fellow of the School of Graduate Studies award at MUN. Additionally, he received the "Medal of Merit" award at the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network Web Seminar 2020 for his remarkable presentation on the distribution and mapping of persistent organic pollutants in a variety of environmental matrices throughout Europe. He assisted Drs. Atanu Sarkar and Desai Shan with two research projects as a research assistant during his master's program. He collected and analyzed approximately 100,000 data points for research examining spatial and temporal patterns in the distribution of various environmental contaminants across Europe. Additionally, he collaborated with Dr. Shan on a large study project that examined rising issues in Canadian marine governance. Mr. Yadav defended his master's thesis, "Risk perceptions of occupational noise exposure and its effects on the health of fish harvesters in Newfoundland and Labrador: A mixed-methods research."

Jamie Skidmore Co-investigator (IWP4) Dr. Jamie Skidmore is a Full Professor in the Department of English at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, where he teaches practical classes in theatre and film production, including courses on directing, producing, design, and technical theatre. He is also the coordinator of the Diploma in Stage and Screen Technique. He is an award-winning theatre artist, who has been working in theatre for over thirty years as a director, designer, playwright, producer, technician, and more. He has worked professionally in B.C., Ontario, and Newfoundland and Labrador; as well as in Vermont, USA. He is a co-founder of the Isle aux Morts Theatre Festival, and a founding member of the St. John’s Shorts Play Festival. His work as a playwright includes Song of the Mermaid, which toured the island of Newfoundland, and Our Ancient Family , which toured Labrador in partnership with the NunatuKavut Community Council. He has trained in puppet design, construction, and manipulation with the New England Puppet Intensive and Puppets in Prague. He has trained as a mask designer with the Sartori family, the foremost mask makers in the world. His puppet show creations include A Fish Tale: A Lantern Puppet Play , which he wrote and designed giant lantern puppets for the production; and The Brass Button Man , a shadow puppet play, which he lead and co-created. He has also run puppet building workshops, teaching youth and young adults how to build lantern puppets and shadow puppets.

Memorial University Erin Pearson Master's Student (WP2) Erin Pearson is a Master of Science student based in St. John’s, NL, co-supervised by Dr. Carissa Brown and Dr. Joel Finnis. She grew up on the west coast of the island, where her curiosity and love of nature inspired her to complete the Forest Resources Technician diploma at College of the North Atlantic. She went on to obtain her Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Forestry at the University of New Brunswick, which fostered a desire to return to Newfoundland and an interest in studying forest- and tree level responses to climate change at Memorial University. Erin’s work with FOCI focuses on the role of urban forests in the face of climate change through i) gaining a better understanding of how urban forests alter local climate, and ii) exploring how changes in local climates will influence the health and ecological integrity of urban forests.

Memorial University Muhammad Sabah Ud Din Ersum Master's Student (WP1) More to come.

Memorial University Nelson Graham Research Assistant (WP9) More to come.

Memorial University Aya Khaled Ibrahim Co-op Student (WP3) More to come.

Memorial University Maryam Foroutan Master's Student (WP9) More to come.

Nancy Dahn Co-investigator (IWP4) Dr. Nancy Dahn, F.R.S.C., is a University Research Professor at the School of Music, Memorial University. Her expertise is in violin performance and, with her ensemble Duo Concertante, she has performed over 600 recitals throughout North America, Europe and China, recorded 12 acclaimed commercial CDs one of which won a JUNO and three of which won ECMAs, and commissioned over 65 new Canadian works. She is also the founder and Co-Artistic Director of the chamber music festival The Tuckamore Festival which recently celebrated its 19th season. With Duo Concertante, she has been the impetus for many interdisciplinary collaborations including projects with Vincent Ho (Maples and the Stream), Chan Ka Nin (Late in a Slow Time), Andrew Staniland (The Ocean is Full of its own Collapse) and has a proven track record of bringing to life new works of art which combine music and dramas supported by strong artistic vision, careful planning and fundraising, and skillful execution. Committed to outreach, she has also performed for over 3000 school age children across NL in a program focusing on mental illness, marginalization and disability, as well as in Germany through the Rhapsody in School program. Dr. Dahn’s primary role in the FOCI’s IWP4 will be as violinist performer in the dramatic musical work created by playwright Robert Chafe and composer Randolph Peters.

Memorial University Jacopo Fragasso Postdoctoral Fellow (WP1) More to come.

Dalhousie University Gillian Kerr Postdoctoral Fellow (WP6) Dr. Gillian Kerr joined the Dalhousie team in August 2020. She will be coordinating the work of the Rural Futures Research Centre and training and supervising students. She will also be working with the FOCI Work Package 6 team on collecting and disseminating research on the climate change perceptions across Atlantic Canada. She is also adjunct faculty at Royal Roads University in Victoria, BC where she teaches environmental and ecological economics for decision-making. She recently completed a postdoctoral fellowship at McGill University in the RESNET research group on ecosystem service research and application across Canada. Her doctoral thesis, “Market-Based Approaches for Environmental Governance: Exploring the Implementation Gap in Alberta” explored governance issues that have impeded that application of MBIs for environmental objectives in Alberta. Her research interests include ecosystem services theory and application for sustainable communities, and the application of ecological economics to enhance sustainable futures. She has recently moved to Halifax from Edmonton, Alberta.

Shameem Islam Co-investigator (WP1) Dr. Shameem Islam has over nineteen years of experience in the fields of marine, offshore and arctic engineering with technical expertise in both physical and numerical modelling, particularly for harsh environmental conditions. Dr. Islam has carried out various ocean and naval architectural engineering-related research and development projects throughout his career, focusing mainly on numerical modelling of ships and propulsion hydrodynamics and acoustics. Dr. Islam’s current research interest includes ice-waves-structure interactions modelling and marine propulsion and noise measurements and modelling. Dr. Islam’s research work has been disseminated through more than ninety publications and presentations at various international journals and conferences, including several editions of the SNAME Transactions, RINA Transactions, ISP, OE, JNAME, JSR, JSDP, and OMAE Journals. Dr. Islam is a member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME), the International Society of Offshore and Polar Engineers (ISOPE) and the Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Newfoundland (PEGNL). In addition, Dr. Islam is a member of the Government of Canada interdepartmental working group of Ocean Noise and represents Transport Canada in the international Cooperative Ship Research (CRS) initiatives. Dr. Islam has completed his Doctoral research at the Memorial University of Newfoundland in 2008. Dr. Islam is co-investigator in Work Package 1: “Improving safety and environmental footprints of marine vehicles by design and operation.”

Joel Finnis Lead (WP2, IWP2) Dr. Joel Finnis is an associate professor with the Department of Geography at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Originally trained in the Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences, his interests have gradually expanded from climate dynamics and machine learning applications to include research at the intersection of the natural and social sciences. Recent efforts include development of novel hazard climatologies; analyses of marine forecast application, communication, and implementation; and critical reviews of climate perception research. His work is currently used to inform climate adaption efforts in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and is central to a provincial adaptation training program (Building Climate Resilience). With Drs. Ron Pelot (Dalhousie) and Amber Silver (SUNY-Albany), Dr. Finnis coleads the Coast and Ocean Risk Communication Community of Practice (CORC-CoP), a network of scholars, practitioners, and stakeholders motivated by a common interest in reducing the impact of hazards on coastal communities and industries. The current proposal will build in these recent activities, incorporating Finnis’ expertise in coastal and ocean hazard mitigation, climate change adaptation, and science communication into a broader analysis of coastal sustainability and long-term planning. Dr. Finnis is the lead of FOCI research Work Package 2 (WP2) and Integration Work Package 2 (IWP2). He is spearheading research activities connected to WP2.1 (Forecasting for diverse needs) and co-leading WP2.2 (Utility of Climate Guidance Products) and WP2.3 (Trees as Natural Infrastructure for Coastal Adaptation), with Daraio and C. Brown respectively.