The Team
Sophie Wilkinson
Sophie Wilkinson (she/her) is the founder of the Fire and Ecosystems Research Lab. She received her BSc and MEnv from the University of Leeds, UK., and her PhD in Ecohydrology from the School of Earth, Environment and Society at McMaster University.
Sophie has conducted extensive field seasons and has field sites across Canada. She also works with a number of research groups in the UK and Europe. She is a keen science communicator and is frequently called upon to address the media regarding wildfires and forest and wildfire management issues.
Sophie loves the outdoors and cares deeply about our planet. She is thrilled and very grateful to be able to do a job where she can share that passion with students and collaborators while progressing our understanding of fire and ecosystems.
Quinn Barber
Quinn Barber is a PhD Geography student studying remote sensing of peatland moisture and wildfire vulnerability. He worked with the Canadian Forest Service for a number of years before returning to school to complete a PhD. He is employed by the Canadian Forest Service and holds a MSc in Forest Sciences from the University of Freiburg, Germany. Quinn lives in Edmonton, and in his spare time he enjoys mountain biking with his family, including a mandatory ice cream stop.
Edmund Strachan
Edmund is finishing his second year in the Master of Resource Environmental Management program at Simon Fraser University (SFU). Edmund has a background in fire, forest, and wetland ecology. He is passionate about increasing the resiliency of ecosystems through conservation and sustainable management practices. He is dedicated to promoting inclusive and accessible science to the general public.
Edmund holds an Associate degree in Social Service Work from Seneca College, a technical diploma in Restoration of Natural Systems from the University of Victoria (UVIC), and a Bachelor's degree with a Major in Interdisciplinary Studies from Capilano University. He is a registered biologist in training with the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists.
Daphne van de Wetering
Daphne is in her fourth year as a student in the Bachelor Resource and Environmental Management program. Her professional experience includes working with the BC Wildfire Service as a co-op student and as a research assistant studying carbon emissions in peatlands post-wildfire, this year she is working with Parks Canada in Jasper National Park. Daphne is interested in ecological restoration as well as the effects of climate change on ecosystems. Outside of school, Daphne loves reading and anything outdoors, especially back-country camping and kayaking.
Adam Scott
Adam is now entering his 2nd year in the Masters of Resource and Environmental Management programme. Adam graduated from the University of Guelph in 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science, majoring in ecology. Now, Adam is studying fuel loading and fire risk in a novel fire smart treatment.
For the past three summers, Adam has worked for the Thousand Islands National Park as a part of the resource conservation team. With Parks Canada, he developed his interest in wildfire and the research questions surrounding it. Outside of the lab, Adam enjoys snowboarding, travelling, photography, camping, and raising service dogs.
Eli Hacker
Eli is a third-year student pursuing an honours degree in Resource and Environmental Management, a minor in Indigenous Studies, and certificates in Sustainable Development and Indigenous Research. He is interested in the cultural and scientific connections between Indigenous peoples and fire stewardship. He is also interested in how resource and land management policies can be improved to mitigate wildfire risks. In his spare time, Eli serves as the president of the REM undergraduate student union. He loves kayaking, cycling, camping, and travelling with his girlfriend.
Eleanore Krieger-Pottruff
Eleanore earned her BSc from the University of Toronto, specializing in Forest Conservation Science and Conservation Biology, with a minor in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Eleanore has worked as a research assistant studying mountain pine beetle and forest fire interactions in BC and identifying fire weather ignition conditions in Alberta peatlands. She is currently working towards a Masters of Resource Management, with a thesis using remote sensing to study drivers of burn severity in extremely large fires across Canada. Outside of the lab, Eleanore has spent 5 seasons planting trees in Ontario, Alberta and BC.
Matthew Syvenky
Matthew is studying towards an Honours Bachelor of Environment, with a major in Resource and Environmental Management, a minor in physical geography, and a certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Matthew is passionate about how invasive species influence post-fire ecosystem succession and fuel loading. Outside of the lab, Matthew enjoys scuba diving, backpacking, and camping. He is involved in many community and was recently announced a Faculty of Environment Changemaker!
Elizabeth Arango Ruda
Elizabeth is a research associate with the Fire and Ecosystems Lab. She gained her PhD from the Centre for Climate Change at McMaster University where she quantified carbon dynamics in managed forests. Elizabeth has a varied skill set built from experiences in forestry research in her home country of Columbia as well as southern Ontario. Elizabeth is currently working to operationalize the Peat Moisture Code.
Amanda Bakalarczyk
Amanda is pursuing an MSc in Remote Sensing, with a focus on quantifying the drivers of burn severity and below-ground carbon loss from smouldering combustion in managed peatlands. Amanda has a varied background, including many years of working as a chef, undergraduate degrees in fine arts and computer science, and a stint in the fire group with the Canadian Forest Service. In her spare time, Amanda enjoys knitting, thrifting, travelling, and making terrariums.
Nata Culhane
Emma Tutt
Nehal Dhadral
Nehal came to SFU as a transfer student from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, where she grew up. She has just graduated from the Faculty of Science’s Biological Sciences Department with a concentration in ecology, evolution, and conservation. When Nehal moved to BC in 2021, she saw how badly wildfires were affecting BC's amazing and beautiful biodiversity. Seeing the influences of wildfires motivated Nehal to change her degree from a cellular-focused biology program to environmental biology. Nehal hopes to spread the word of the climate crisis through her future career in education. Outside of school, Nehal has her second-degree black belt in taekwondo, loves to go on sunset walks, and shopping. If she’s not out in nature, you’ll probably find Nehal in a movie theatre somewhere.