Campus bioblitz keynote and identification workshop

Come learn about local pollinators and how to identify them using iNaturalist.

Programming: 

This event will follow the Bioblitz Sampling Period; all participants are welcome to attend either or both events.

Food will be served at 17:00.

Speaker Bios:

Emma Despland: 

Emma Despland is a professor in the Department of Biology at Concordia and a Fellow of the Science College and the Loyola Sustainability Research Centre. She is also the mother of three children. Her research focuses on plant-insect interactions, the cornerstone of all terrestrial ecosystems, and asks questions about why insects choose the plants they do and about how these choices shape ecosystems. She is also deeply committed to nature education and helping people develop a connection to the natural world.

Ana-Livia Oliveira:

Ana Lívia Oliveira (she/her) is a doctoral student in Biology at Concordia University, supervised by Dr. Emma Despland. Her research explores how urban greenspaces influence insect and plant biodiversity, with a particular focus on fireflies, butterflies, and grasshoppers as bioindicators. She investigates how ecological interactions and community composition shift along urbanization gradients, aiming to understand how cities can better support native biodiversity. Ana Lívia also integrates community science into her work, engaging the public in biodiversity monitoring through projects like Tracking the Twinkles/Suivi des Scintillements.

Nicole Yu:

Nicole Yu (she/her) is a doctoral candidate at the Ziter Urban Landscape Ecology lab. Her research focuses on how green infrastructure can support urban biodiversity, such as pollinators, as solutions towards building ecologically sustainable cities. She works with urban planners and landscape architects to ensure her research findings can inform their green space design and management practices. Nicole also uses participatory science methods in her doctoral research to engage the public in urban biodiversity monitoring.