Meet the Team

Jason Gilliland – Principal Applicant
Dr. Jason Gilliland, is the project’s principal investigator and Director of the Human Environments Analysis Lab. He holds appointments as a Professor in the Department of Geography & Environment, Department of Paediatrics, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, and School of Health Studies at Western University.

Catherine Reining – Project Coordinator
Catherine Reining is a project coordinator at the Human Environments Analysis Laboratory (HEAL) focusing on the ParkSeek project. Her research interests include planning and management in parks and protected areas for human health and well-being, conservation, and environmental education. Catherine holds a Masters of Environmental Studies and Bachelor of Arts in Geography from Wilfrid Laurier University as well as a Bachelor of Education from Brock University. Catherine is also a Lab Coordinator in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University.

Alexander “AJ” Wray – Doctoral Student
Alexander “AJ” Wray is a doctoral student in the Department of Geography & Environment at Western University. He holds a masters in geography from Western University, and an undergraduate degree in planning and environmental assessment from the University of Waterloo. AJ will be studying how people experience parks and recreational facilities using geographic ecological momentary assessment. His research interests are focused at the intersection of GIScience, parks and recreation, and building healthy thriving inclusive communities.

Alyssa Ombac Aglipay – Masters Student
Alyssa is a first-year masters student in the Department of Geography and Environment at Western under the supervision of Dr. Jason Gilliland. She recently finished her undergraduate degree at Western completing an Honours Specialization in Environmental Science. Her research interests include environmental health promotion, urban greenspace, and children’s health. Alyssa is currently focused on measuring the infrastructure and experiential quality of parks and recreational facilities across Canada as part of the ParkSeek project.

Braden Dyce – Doctoral Student
Braden Dyce is a doctoral student in the Department of Geography & Environment at Western University. He holds a masters of business administration from the University of Calgary, and an undergraduate degree in geography from Western University. Braden’s research is focused on the economic effects of parks and greenspaces on both single-family and multi-family residential real estate.

Faith Laing – Masters Student
Faith Laing is an MA student in Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. She holds an undergraduate degree in Geography from Laurentian University. She will be working on Objective 2 of the ParkSeek project, and is looking forward to gaining hands-on experience in the field while helping to implement and attain data for the project’s smartphone app.

Katelyn O’Bright – Masters Student
Katelyn has an undergraduate degree in Biology and Environmental Science from Western University and a graduate certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) from Fleming College. She will be working on the second objective of the ParkSeek project and will be helping implement the smartphone application.

Mhairi Chandler – Masters Student
Mhairi Chandler is an MES student in Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. Her research interests include parks and protected areas, with an emphasis on marine protected areas and policy which will be the focus of her work on the ParkSeek project. Mhairi holds a double degree in Environmental Studies and English from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Rose Hildebrandt – Masters Student
Rose is a MSc student in Geography at Western University studying the accessibility of parks across various populations in Ontario. She will be working on Objective 1 of the ParkSeek project, focused on measuring accessibility of parks across Canada.

Shawna Lewkowitz – Doctoral Student
Shawna is a doctoral student in the Department of Geography and Environment at Western University. She holds an MEd in Adult Education from OISE at the University of Toronto and an undergraduate degree in Psychology and Women Studies from the University of Guelph. Shawna’s research interests include gender, urban studies, participatory research, and community-based learning.

Zahrah Khan – Doctoral Student
Zahrah Khan is a doctoral student in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. She holds a Masters of Environmental Studies in Planning from York University where she researched the ‘Shifting Conceptions of Nature in Toronto’ using case studies of High Park and Rouge Park. Zahrah worked for the Toronto and Region Conversation Authority (TRCA) before her current role as a Policy Planner II for the Town of Stouffville where she leads many of the environmental planning projects. Her research interests focus on parks and the intersection of natural landscapes and the built environment.

Zhe (Jayden) Chang – Masters Student
Zhe Chang is a first-year graduate student in the department of Geography and Environment at Western. She has an undergraduate degree in Physical Geography and a certificate in Geographic Information Science (GIS) from Queen’s University. Zhe’s role on the ParkSeek project is to assist measuring the geographic accessibility of parks and recreational facilities in Canadian cities by using cutting-edge spatial analysis and Geographic Information Science (GIS) techniques.