Event

Catherine Boyd Michaud

Project Lead, Ecosystems Unit, CEC

Celia Pigueron Wirz

General Coordinator of Climate Change Adaptation and Ecology, National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change, SEMARNAT, Mexico

With a bachelor's degree in social sciences from Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) and a master's in public policy from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales—Flacso), Celia Pigueron Wirz has more than 20 years of experience in environmental public policy, focusing on biodiversity, climate change and green financing. She has contributed to the strengthening of institutions, including the National Commission for Protected Natural Areas (Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas—CONANP) and has led programs such as Mexico's Special Climate Change Program (Programa Especial de Cambio Climático—PECC). Her experience includes fieldwork in the Mayan and Lacandon jungles and in the Gulf of California, in addition to designing financing mechanisms for conservation. She currently acts as general coordinator for adaptation and ecology at the National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change (Instituto Nacional de Ecología y Cambio Climático—INECC), under the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales—Semarnat).

Trevor Meckley

Scientific Program Manager, NOAA Ocean Service, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science

Trevor Meckley is an ecologist by training, working in NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS). He manages a national interdisciplinary research program called the Effects of Sea Level Rise (ESLR), to understand the impacts of flooding on natural and built environments and to develop best practices for the inclusion of natural infrastructure in coastal protection strategies.

Jordan Veinot

Climate Change Program Manager, Coastal Action

Jordan Veinot is the Climate Change Program Manager for an environmental non-profit organization called Coastal Action, based in Nova Scotia, Canada. As Climate Change Program Manager, she leads a diverse portfolio of projects that includes nature-based solutions, flood mapping, agriculture, and planting initiatives. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Dalhousie University and has a strong interest in the intersection of agriculture and the environment. She is also passionate about community engagement and believes the best climate solutions come from listening to and working alongside local people.

Catherine Boyd Michaud

Project Lead, Ecosystems Unit, CEC

Lucie Robidoux

Head of Unit, Ecosystems, CEC

Curt Storlazzi

Research Geologist, United States Geological Survey

Curt Storlazzi is a research geologist in the US Geological Survey’s Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program who leads a team examining the geologic and oceanographic processes that affect the coral reefs. and assesses the hazard risk reduction they provide. He earned a BSc from the University of Delaware in geology and a PhD in coastal geology from the University of California. He has published over 200 journal articles and reports, is currently an author on two chapters of the United Nations’ Third World Ocean Assessment, and regularly contributes scientific review to numerous countries’ national science foundations.

Pilar Angélica Gómez Ruiz

Senior Researcher, Centro de Investigación Científica de Yucatán

Pilar Angélica Gómez Ruiz is a biologist with a master's degree in biological sciences from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and a PhD from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Ecological restoration of tropical ecosystems is her specialty, in which she has 20 years of experience. Her current research  focuses on mangroves and dry forests, advising the development of participatory restoration processes with local communities. Since 2019, she has been the General Co-Coordinator of the Mexican Network for Environmental Restoration (REPARA). She is also a member and Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner of the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER).

Kirsten Ellis

Coastal Adaptation Specialist, CB Wetlands & Environmental Specialists (CBWES)

Kirsten first became engaged with ecological restoration during her undergraduate degree at Dalhousie University (B.Sc. Honours), finding the restoration of coastal habitats particularly rewarding. She graduated from Saint Mary’s University with a Master of Applied Science, specializing in coastal nature–based solutions. At CBWES, Kirsten is responsible for the development and implementation of nature-based solutions to address coastal hazards. In 2020, she co-founded Rising Tide Nursery, which specializes in supplying native coastal plants for restoration and nature-based projects.  She is grateful for the opportunity to contribute to efforts to build resilient and sustainable coastal communities and ecosystems throughout Atlantic Canada and beyond.

Lucie Robidoux

Head of Unit, Ecosystems, CEC