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Sustainability Seminar – Panelists Bio 2024

Panelists

Curated by Dr. Bahar Çınarlı for the Turkish-Canadian Society, the 2nd Annual Women’s Art on Women’s Day exhibition is a celebration of the diverse talents and perspectives of female artists. This exhibition serves as a testament to the vibrancy of creativity and the unique viewpoints that women bring to the forefront of the art world. Join us in honoring their talents while championing the ongoing pursuit of gender equality and empowerment. Explore further to learn more about the amazing contributing artists whose works grace this inspiring showcase of female artistry.

Dr. Michael Brauer (UBC)

Sent by Dr. Brauer: “Michael Brauer is a Professor in the School of Population and Public Health at The University of British Columbia and a Principal Research Scientist and Affiliate Professor at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, where he leads the Environmental, Occupational and Dietary Risk Factors team for the Global Burden of Disease. His research focuses on linkages between the built environment and human health, with specific interest in the global health impacts of air pollution, the relationships between multiple exposures mediated by urban form and population health, and health impacts of a changing climate. He has participated in monitoring and epidemiological studies throughout the world and served on numerous committees, including those advising the World Health Organization, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, the World Heart Federation, the US National Academies, the Royal Society of Canada, the International Joint Commission and governments in North America and Asia. His contributions to environmental health have been recognized by a number of career achievement and publication awards.”

Dr. Brauer on UBC website: https://spph.ubc.ca/faculty/michael-brauer/

Dr. Tim Takaro (SFU)

Dr. Takaro is a physician-scientist trained in occupational and environmental medicine, public health and toxicology, at Yale, the University of North Carolina and University of Washington. His research is primarily directed toward the links between human exposures and disease, and determining public health based preventive solutions to such risks. His work includes use of biological and other markers for medical surveillance, exposure assessment, and disease susceptibility with a focus on immunologic lung disease, human health and war, clinical occupational and environmental health and population resiliency in the health effects of climate change. Current research on human health and climate change focus on water quality in BC communities and the interaction of cumulative exposures related to resource extraction and climate change.

Dr. Takaro on SFU website: https://www.sfu.ca/fhs/about/people/profiles/tim-takaro.html

Dr. Farrukh Chishtie (Peaceful Society, Science and Innovation Foundation)

Sent by Dr. Chishtie: “Dr. Farrukh A Chishtie is an atmospheric and earth observation scientist with extensive experience in various experimental and modelling disciplines. He has more than 18 years of research experience, and is presently leading the Peaceful Society, Science and Innovation Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to serving communities affected by climate change and related impacts of air pollution, wars and pandemics.”

Dr. Douglas Courtemanche (CAPE)

Sent by Dr. Courtemanche:

“Dr. Courtemanche’s Planetary Health Bio

Dr. Douglas Courtemanche is a plastic surgeon with a special interest in cleft and craniofacial surgery. A graduate of UBC’s medical school (1983) he interned at Memorial University in Newfoundland, returned to BC for his residency in plastic surgery and completed a craniofacial fellowship at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne as well as a Master of Surgery at the University of Melbourne. He is a Clinical Professor of Surgery at UBC and now brings a little over 30 years of clinical and academic experience to the care of his patients and the support of his colleagues as one of the surgeon leaders with the Cleft Palate/Craniofacial Program at BC Children’s Hospital. Outside of medicine he enjoys cycling, gardening, spending time with family and, time in nature with his border collie. A few years ago he bought an electric cargo bike to replace his car for things like grocery shopping; but had to upgrade some parts to make it more bike and less electric! His other major passion is his work with Doctors for Planetary Health – West Coast, CAPE and WE-CAN, working for social and environmental justice and challenging colonial structures to make the necessary changes in the face of the global climate emergency.”

Dr. Courtemanche on BC Children’s Hospital website: https://www.bcchr.ca/djcourtemanche

Dr. Ozgur Yilmaz (UBC - Director, Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (PIMS)) -- Moderator for the Panel Discussion

Sent by Dr. Yilmaz:

Ozgur Yilmaz is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of British Columbia and the Director of the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (PIMS). His research focuses on the mathematics of information and data. He received his PhD in Applied and Computational Mathematics from Princeton University in 2001. He held a postdoctoral position at University of Maryland, College Park before joining UBC in 2004. Dr. Yilmaz serves on the editorial boards of various journals including Applied and Computational Harmonic Analysis. He is affiliated with several institutes at UBC, including the Institute of Applied Mathematics, Data Science Institute, and CAIDA. Since July 2022, he serves as the Director of the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (PIMS).

Dr. Yilmaz on PIMS website: https://www.pims.math.ca/profiles/ozgur-yilmaz