Meet the Team

Manvi (she/her) is an activist-scholar with extensive intersectional community organizing experience. She is recognized as one of Canada’s ‘Top 25 Under 25’ environmentalists, ‘Top 30 Under 30’ sustainability leaders and was honoured with the ‘Youth Eco-Hero of the Year’ award in 2022. She co-founded Shake Up The Establishment, a national nonprofit dedicated to climate justice & political advocacy, alongside missINFORMED, a nonprofit focused on health promotion for women and gender-diverse peoples. She serves on numerous advisory committees including UBC’s Robson Square, FES’ The Harbour and Youth Climate Corps. Alongside her advocacy work, Manvi is a published health researcher, frequent public speaker and guest lecturer who works to centre anti-colonial approaches. During her MSc, she investigated barriers towards climate action within the public health sector. Presently, she is a PhD student at University of British Columbia with SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship funding. Her research interests include intersectional health policy making & environmental justice.

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Neha worked on projects focused on sustainability and community well-being, leading to an interest in social and environmental health. She completed her undergraduate degree in Life Sciences at McMaster University, and is currently completing her Master of Public Health at the University of Waterloo. She joined SUTE in 2023 and helps out with funding activities for the organization which led her to her current role of CFO. 

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Mei-Ling is passionate about climate and environmental justice and co-authored Shake Up The Establishment’s self-published book, Practicing Rest, Recovery, Resistance: An Interactive Dreaming Journal. The book is filled with 40+ interactive activities centred on intersectionality, systems-thinking, and radical reimagination to support coping with eco-grief. The book has now sold 500+ copies and has been carried in local, independent bookstores across so-called Canada including A Different Booklist, Another Story Bookshop, Iron Dog Books, Octopus Books, Massy Books, and Upstart & Crow.

Mei-Ling has 4+ years of experience in Canada’s environmental non-profit sector working and volunteering with organizations such as The Jane Goodall Institute of Canada, Shake Up The Establishment, The Starfish Canada, Experiences Canada, the Rexdale Community Hub, Let’s Talk Science, Together | Ensemble at the University of Waterloo, and the UBC Journal for Climate Justice.

She’s a MASc graduate of the Environmental Applied Science and Management program at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU). Her master’s research focused on Migrant Integration in Canada’s Growing Environmental Sector: Barriers and Opportunities for Strengthening Diversity & Inclusion. On behalf of the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Migration and Integration she was awarded a 2-year scholarship to complete this research (total: $20,000). She also holds a BA (Honours) with distinction from TMU’s Environment and Urban Sustainability program with a minor in French Studies. 

Natasha is a Graphic Designer dedicated to conveying an impactful message through a creative and artistic lens. Open to all mediums, Natasha is specially driven in making meaningful designs that evoke emotion and encourage thoughtful reflection.

Iris is an aspiring activist and recent high school graduate. She’s interested in science and the arts, and is hoping to find work supporting underserved communities as a paramedic or pursuing their interests in forensic science/anthropology. Iris participates in social and climate justice at the arts high school they attended (where she studies drawing and painting, graphic design, and non-traditional art), but is always looking to get more involved and have a bigger impact.

Jane is passionate about the environment. She loves learning about ecology, policy, and climate justice. With experience from working with environmental nonprofits and her ongoing studies, Jane hopes to connect others to nature and social justice. She completed her undergraduate degree in the Environment, Resources and Sustainability program at the University of Waterloo and is continuing to study at Seneca College. Jane has been a member of SUTE since July 2023 and was part of the Shake Up Your Community program where she collaborated with the Ontario Climate Emergency Campaign (OCEC) and the Canadian Coalition for Environmental  & Climate Justice (CCECJ).

Mike Redston is a dedicated sales and marketing professional with a passion for driving positive change within the environmental movement. Holding a BCom in Entrepreneurship from the University of Victoria, he brings a robust background in sales including years of experience working in the nonprofit sector. As an outdoor enthusiast who cherishes exploring local forests and mountains, Mike’s commitment to environmental causes is rooted in a deep connection with nature since childhood. When not engaged with SUTE or hiking, Mike finds joy in creating music and pursuing artistic endeavours.

Both an academic and an aspiring environmental activist, Zeina is incredibly passionate about supporting collective action around the disproportionate impacts of climate change and environmental degradation on marginalized communities. In 2023, she completed her Master’s in Environment and Sustainability at the University of Toronto, specializing in the intersection between Social Sustainability and Diasporic & Transnational Communities. Her master’s thesis explored how Toronto’s racialized diasporic communities were able to participate in sustainability via non-profit community centres. At SUTE, Zeina is excited to leverage her traditional and non-traditional experiences, both within and beyond academia, to help create transformative systemic changes around a climate-just future!

Celeste (she/they) is a community organizer, musical artist and wellness practitioner graciously growing roots on Algonquin territory (Ottawa) over the past 8 years, with ancestral roots and lineages in the Bahamas and China (Hong Kong). They’re a passionate dreamer, on a path to nurture creative spaces for care and spiritual guidance, particularly for QTBIPOC youth. This inspires her work as a founding and current member of the Pass the Vibes collective, creating space for Black youth to connect and explore their creativity. Celeste works with sound, movement practice, and alongside the Earth to support folks in reclaiming a deeper connection to their inner magic and to the magic of lands & waters close to them.

Hayley is SUTE’s Chief Development Officer and has been a member of the organization since 2020. She holds a BSc. Hons. in Biology from Queen’s University and MSc. in Plant Agriculture from the University of Guelph. Outside of SUTE, Hayley is a coordinating biologist at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada where she works in the field of integrated pest management and pesticide risk reduction.

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Aarisha has a background in Political Science from the University of British Columbia. All throughout her studies in university, she felt there was a disconnect between academia and collective action until she found herself participating in a global seminar in Peru that introduced her to the concept of Rights of Nature– a concept which would later shape her passion for social and climate justice. Living and learning from the Indigenous Kichwa-Lamista community, that experience not only left an imprint moving forward with her activism but also her way of life on how to hold space. With an interest in decolonizing policies, Aarisha tends to bridge knowledge gaps with on-going education by collectively learning, story-telling and inter-cultural dialogue.