Meet our Team

Lab manager, Geography & Environment

With over 18 years of experience as the Laboratory Manager of Geography & Environment, Erika Hill brings a wealth of expertise in chemical, nuclear radiation, and biological laboratories. She has spent over a decade with the Western Hazmat and Confined Space Team, ensuring safety and efficiency in complex environments. Erika has supervised and trained hundreds of graduate and undergraduate students in diverse laboratory and field techniques, including paleolimnology, micrometeorology, hydrology, geomorphology, aquatic biology, dendrochronology, biogeography, and spatial ecology.

Outside of her professional pursuits, Erika is an avid hiker and camper, finding inspiration in the great outdoors. She also enjoys creating stained glass art, blending her scientific and creative passions.

MSc Student, Year 3

Aviva is an MSc student in Geography and the Environment. She completed her BSc Honours in Biological Sciences, at the University of Guelph in 2024. Aviva is interested in environmental sustainability, phosphorus management, water quality, and climate change impacts. Her thesis focuses on how phosphorus dynamics in urban agriculture and stormwater ponds may be impacted by flood mitigation and adaptation strategies related to climate change in London Ontario.

In her free time, Aviva enjoys spending time outdoors, hiking, camping, and spending time with friends and family.  

PhD Student, Year 3

Arielle graduated from Western University in 2024 with a BSc in the Honours Specialization in Environmental Science program. In September 2024, Arielle joined the RESTORE lab as a Master of Engineering Science student and upgraded to a PhD under the co-supervision of Dr. Clare Robinson and Dr. James Roy to continue her education. She is also a part of the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program at Western with Dr. Metson as her advisor. 

Research assistant, May 2024-December 2026

Leanne is currently completing her MA in the Department of Geography and Environment. She holds a BA Honours in Environment and Urban Sustainability from Toronto Metropolitan University. Leanne’s research focuses on socio-political tensions within urban agriculture. Passionate about urban community development, she is especially interested in how urban agriculture sites may serve as spaces for promoting urban citizenship and social cohesion. Her work in the SRM lab is for projects in collaboration with Dr. Thoukaleyska, examining the role of green infrastructure in mid-size city planning, as well as resident experiences.

Leanne enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including canoeing, hiking, and camping.

Research Assistant, May 2026 - April 2027

Dania is a fourth-year Medical Sciences student specializing in Honours One Health. Over the summer, she explored the effects of weather variability on nutrient losses from urban agricultural systems. Every week she helps monitor the SRM living lab on campus by collecting water samples and other data during baseline data and storm events.

Outside of school, she likes bouldering, reptiles, music, and trying new things outdoors.

Research Assistant, May 2026 - April 2027

Angela is a fourth-year undergraduate student, pursuing a double major in Biochemistry and Microbiology & Immunology. She will be exploring nutrient concentrations in Medway Creek and helping with living lab sampling.

In her free time, she enjoys playing video games, hiking, and baking, and recently taken an interest in birdwatching.

MA student, year 1

Brittney completed her Honours BA double major in Geography and Environment and Indigenous Studies in 2026. As a Denesuline and Anishinaabekwe with mixed settler ancestry who grew up off-reserve, Brittney understands firsthand what it is like to be an urban Indigenous person with limited land access. This past summer, with Drs. Golkar-Dakin and Metson, she worked on finding and identifying, and geotagging our plant kin in local urban environments. She also researched and documented their traditional uses, including medicinal, structural, ceremonial, and culinary. Brittney will also support garden plots at two SOAHAC sites.

Outside of school, Brittney enjoys trying to squeeze as many plants as she can into her backyard's permaculture food forest and spending time with her family.

BSc Student, September 2026-April 2027

Sophia is a second-year BSc student in Scholars Electives Honours Specialization in Geography and Environment. She is interested in sustainability, climate and hydrology. Her research project will be focused on urban nutrient cycling and water quality.

In her spare time she loves being outside, reading, and working out.

PhD student, Year 1

An completed her master’s degree in Geography at the University of Guelph in 2026. During her master's, she explored the environmental impacts of vertical farming using Life Cycle Assessment and Semi-structured interviews. With her interests and passions in urban agriculture and resource circularity from multidimensional as well as interdisciplinary perspectives, her dissertation work will focus on quantifying greenhouse gas emissions from urban agriculture in the GTA through the TOsustain project using both physical and social an sciences approaches.

In her free time, she loves going for a walk, dancing, and spending time at home with nice coffee and books.

PhD student 2nd year. Artist, September 2025-2026

Danielle is a PhD candidate in Art and Visual Culture. Her research and creative practice focus on geological time, sustainability, and care, challenging anthropocentric views and bridging scientific, domestic, and environmental narratives. With the SRM Lab, Danielle contributes through creative experimentation and photography, bringing an artistic lens to the rhythms and transformations of the Living Lab. She holds a BFA from Toronto Metropolitan University and an MFA from Western. Her cross-disciplinary practice draws on photography, painting, folk art, and craft traditions. Dr. Metson is also on her PhD committee.

When not in the studio, she spends time with her kids, traveling, and searching for sources of colour in the landscape.