Advisory council
The Advisory Council offers wise counsel on strategic opportunities for the School of Environmental Studies. Composed of experienced professionals from private, public and non-profit sectors, the Council meets twice a year.
Frank Arnold
Principal, The Pinch Group, Victoria
Frank heads The Pinch Group, a member firm of Raymond James Ltd. The Victoria-based investment advisory practice focuses on socially and environmentally responsible investment solutions for both individuals and institutions.
Founded by Brian Pinch, a now retired investment planner who was one of the early practitioners of SRI in the Greater Victoria Area, Pinch Group specializes in showing clients how socially responsible investing can be both profitable and helpful to the environment. Today, the firm manages more than $100 million in assets; most are in the SRI sector.
Frank also serves on the board of Living Carbon Investments, the Land Trust Alliance of BC, and the Dogwood Initiative, and sits on the fundraising & communications committee of the Habitat Acquisition Trust.
He holds a BSc in Environmental Studies and Mathematics from the University of Victoria.
Roy Brooke
Principal, Brooke & Associates
Roy Brooke is Principal of Brooke & Associates, a BCorp-certified consulting firm that supports organizations and communities in successful transitions to sustainability and resilience.
Roy has held leadership positions in Canada, Europe and Africa. His experience spans urban and organizational sustainability, national politics, international development, and humanitarian affairs.
Between 2003-2011 he worked for the United Nations, including the World Health Organization, United Nations Environment Programme and UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, mostly based in Geneva, Switzerland, and in 2008/09 in Kigali, Rwanda, where he was UNEP’s Environment Programme Coordinator.
Locally, Roy served as Director of Sustainability for the City of Victoria between 2011-2013.
Conrad G. Brunk
Professor Emeritus, University of Victoria
Conrad Brunk is Professor (Emeritus) of Philosophy and Environmental Studies at the University of Victoria, and former Director of the Centre for Studies in Religion and Society at UVic. His areas of research and teaching include ethical aspects of environmental and health risk management, risk perception and communication, value aspects of science in public policy, and philosophy of religion.
Dr. Brunk is a regular consultant to the Canadian government and international organizations on environmental and health risk management and biotechnology. He was a member of the Environment Canada/Health Canada Chemical Advisory Committee, and Vice-President of the Science Advisory Board of Agriculture Canada. He served as Co-Chair of the Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel on the Future of Food Biotechnology, and as a member of the Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee.
He is a founding member of the International Forum for TSE and Food Safety and served on the Council of Canadian Academies Expert Panels on Nanotechnology and on Integrated Testing of Chemical Pesticides. He is a former member of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Expert Advisory Committee.
He is co-author of Value Assumptions in Risk Assessment, a book exploring how moral and political values influence scientific judgments about technological risks. He has co-edited several other books, including The Ethics of Cultural Appropriation, Acceptable Genes, and Designer Animals. He has authored numerous articles in journals and books on ethical issues in technology, the environment, law, religion, and professional practice.
Professor Brunk holds a PhD in Philosophy from Northwestern University.
Arthur (Art) Hanson, O.C.
Distinguished Fellow, Institute for Sustainable Development (resides in Victoria)
Following seven years as President and CEO, Art is a Distinguished Fellow of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). In this role, he provides initial guidance, conducts research, and offers advisory services on innovation for sustainable development, environment and economy relationships, biodiversity, oceans, and international development to a number of organizations around the world.
Previously, Art was Professor and Director of the School for Resource and Environmental Studies at Dalhousie University. Prior to that, he worked with the Ford Foundation in Indonesia. He served two terms on Canada’s National Round Table on the Environment and Economy (NRTEE) and was Canada’s Ministerial Ocean Ambassador with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for four years.
Dr. Hanson served for ten years as a member of the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and as a Mentor in the Trudeau Foundation. He has provided advice to the Office of the Auditor General of Canada since 1990 and has chaired various national and international initiatives. He initiated several major international development activities in Southeast Asia, and currently is a Member and Lead Expert of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). He is currently chairing a Working Party on Biotechnology, Sustainable Development and Canada’s Future Economy for the Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee.
He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Victoria and an MSc degree in Zoology/Fisheries from the University of British Columbia, and a PhD from the University of Michigan in Fisheries Ecology and Natural Resources.
Gerard (Ged) McLean
President, McLean Technology Management
Ged spent 12 years as a professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Victoria, including four years as Director of the Institute for Integrated Energy Systems.
In 2002, he founded Angstrom Power. Now owned by BIC Inc., Angstrom developed micro hydrogen fuel cell technology for portable power applications, including novel fuel cell architectures, hydrogen storage components, hydrogen generation systems and microfluidic controls. BIC is now developing accessory products for handheld portable electronics including smart phones, tablet computers cameras, and industrial devices.
Ged has extensive experience in PEM fuel cell systems design, with over 50 patents and applications for inventions in stack topology, manufacturing and manifolding. He holds BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees in Systems Design Engineering from the University of Waterloo.
Christine Lintott
Principal, Christine Lintott Architect, Victoria
In 2009, Christine established her own architectural firm having departed as a partner with the Victoria-based studio of Merrick Architecture. Her small scale, resilient practice is devoted to serving exceptional clients who seek to embody more sustainable approaches to the built environment.
Christine is a LEED accredited professional, a certified Built Green Builder, and a registered Architect practicing in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. She serves as the Victoria coordinator of (and mentor for) the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada’s Syllabus Program and is a past board member of the Cascadia Green Building Council and the International Living Future Institute.
Christine holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and Geography, a Master of Architecture, both from the University of British Columbia, a Certificate in Urban Agriculture from the University of Guelph, and is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Biomimicry through Arizona State University and Biomimicry 3.8. Her most recent studies include enrollment in the Biomimicry Professional cohort, a group of international participants seeking leadership training in Biomimicry, with the final designation of Biomimicry Professional upon completion.
Sinclair Philip
Co-owner, Sooke Harbour House, Sooke
Since 1979, Sinclair has co-owned the Sooke Harbour House, a hotel and restaurant just outside Victoria renowned for serving local, seasonal, wild foods, and the foods of the region’s indigenous peoples. The inn has also been the recipient of several awards for sustainability, including Four Green Leaf Status from Audubon International, the highest eco-rating in British Columbia for a hotel.
Sinclair is also the co-founder of the Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands Slow Food Convivium and a co-founder of Slow Food Canada. He is presently a member of the Canadian National Slow Food Board, and has been the Canadian representative to the International Slow Food Board in Italy for the last nine years.
An active supporter of the Slow Food University, his restaurant has presented Canadian dinners in the framework of Salone del Gusto in Italy. He has also written several articles for the Slow Food Canada journal and was awarded honourary status in the Confrérie du porc noir de Bigorre in 2006 in France with Carlo Petrini.
Sinclair is a board member of the Southern Vancouver Mycological Society and specializes in edible mushrooms and their cuisine, and he is knowledgeable of the edible seaweeds of Vancouver Island. He was one of the very first recipients of the Nation’s Table Award from the Governor General of Canada.
Sinclair received his PhD from the University of Grenoble, and holds post-graduate degrees in Political Science and Economics.
Clark Roberts
Chief Representative, Gowlings International, Beijing
As the chief representative of the Beijing office of Gowlings International, Clark serves as the Canadian law firm’s liaison for clients and prospective clients in China who are interested or engaged in cross-border trade, investment, and other Canada-China business opportunities. His practice focuses on a broad range of corporate transactions and regulatory compliance matters particularly in the areas of mining, oil and gas, and intellectual property.
He advises Canadian and international clients on a diverse range of matters including acquisitions and divestitures, resource development issues and government regulatory affairs. Clark is a former partner of Gowlings’ Vancouver office where he advised clients on strategic government relations and public policy.
Previously, Clark was general counsel to the B.C. Liberal Caucus and worked for an international law firm in Taiwan, specializing in corporate commercial law and financial services. He holds a BA in Communications from Simon Fraser University and an LLB from McGill University.
Gurdeep Stephens
Director of Special Projects, Nature's Path Foods Inc.
Gurdeep Stephens is the Director of Special Projects at Nature’s Path Foods Inc. She was born and raised in Vancouver, and then moved to Chicago to obtain her BA and MA at the University of Chicago in Biology and Biopsychology, co-authoring a scientific article as an undergraduate. She then spent a year doing doctoral studies in Developmental Neurobiology at the University of Barcelona and lived for thirteen years in Europe.
Gurdeep has sung professionally, performed around Europe and made several recordings. During her sojourn in Europe, Gurdeep developed the export market for Nature’s Path’s organic breakfast foods. She is passionate about conservation, sustainable agriculture and food security. She published two award-winning books in 2014 and 2015: “Wood Storms, Wild Canvas: The Art of Godfrey Stephens” and “This Earth Is Ours: 30 Organic Years Along Nature’s Path."
Sarah Webb
Active Transportation Project Management Specialist, Victoria
Sarah Webb has been a sustainability professional for more than a decade. She is currently the Active Transportation Project Management Specialist at the City of Victoria, BC.
Previously she headed up the CRD's Active Transportation Program for several years, supporting 13 local governments and 3 electoral areas in accelerating infrastructure and programs to increase the use of cycling, walking and public transit.
Her other previous professional experience includes Royal Roads University, the University of Victoria, the Ministry of Advanced Education, the Canadian Urban Transit Association, and the Centre for Urban Innovation.
Sarah studied Environmental Studies and Biology at the University of Victoria, is a Certified Sustainability Professional and is currently completing the Commuter Choices Certificate with the Centre for Urban Transportation Research at the University of South Florida.
In addition her role on the Advisory Committee, Sarah is an active volunteer with Modo, The Victoria Tool Library, UVic SPOKES program and Theatre SKAM.