Biography

Hello! It's nice to meet you! My name is Alex, and I am a human geographer by training and passion with a background in international development studies. I am a proud alumni of UNBC (MA, International Studies, 2011) and completed my doctorate at Queen's University (Geography, 2018). I was fortunate to be supervised by Dr. Catherine Nolin (Chair, Department of Geography, Earth, and Environmental Studies, UNBC) and later co-supervised with Dr. W. George Lovell (Professor Emeritus, Queen's) during graduate degrees. The versatility of these degrees opened many personal and professional doors for me, and I enjoy sharing these experiences with others.

During my graduate degrees, my research focused on Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities’ experiences with, and resistance to, imposed forms of development. To amplify the voices of those living with development, I published in both academic and non-academic spaces such as the Journal of Latin American Geography, Harvard’s ReVista Magazine, TeleSur, and Upside Down World. I try to engage the public in topics of Indigenous, human, and environmental rights through photography and public speaking. Some of my published images related to the struggle of the Indigenous Q’eqchi’ Maya of Guatemala and their resistance to the Fenix nickel mine (El Estor, Guatemala) have been featured at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (Winnipeg, MB), The Guardian, and Lo Donna (an Italian women’s magazine). I completed my dissertation in 2018, but continue my activist academic work in multiple ways post graduation.

I am a contributing author in the book "Testimonio: Canadian Mining in the Aftermath of Genocides in Guatemala" co-edited by Catherine Nolin and Grahame Russell (October 2021). I was able to return to Guatemala in November of 2022 with both editors and other contributors for a follow-up delegation revisiting communities as part of transnational solidarity efforts.

I am currently an adjunct assistant professor in the Masters' of Earth and Energy Resources Leadership (MEERL) at Queen's University, where I teach two courses per year. As a professor in this online program, I embrace new learning platforms and technology, and revel in opportunities to engage with students for both their studies and career aspirations.

I am the co-chair of the board of directors for MiningWatch Canada - a national non-profit that works in solidarity with Indigenous peoples and non-Indigenous communities who are dealing with potential or actual industrial mining operations that affect their lives and territories, or with the legacy of closed mines, as well as with mine workers and former workers seeking safe working conditions and fair treatment.

Finally, during the work week, I am a staff manager at the Arthur B. McDonald Canadian Astroparticle Physics Research Institute (McDonald Institute). My primary responsibilities are to advance Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization within the astroparticle physics network to the benefit of decades-long research experiments in Canada. I also bring a geographical perspective to the table for cross-disciplinary conversations among researchers and partner institutes.

When not working or teaching, you will find me out in the apiary working with bees and mentoring others on the practices of beekeeping.