Our Team
LSF’s team is comprised of a strong Board of Directors representing government, educators, industry, civil society and youth; experienced staff; consultants and partners across the country; classroom teachers; and graduate researchers from leading Canadian universities.
President and CEO
Pamela Schwartzberg
pam@LSF-LST.ca
Read Ms. Schwartzberg's Bio
Pamela Schwartzberg is the President and CEO of Learning for a Sustainable Future ( www.lsf-lst.ca)
Pamela is interested in the challenge of transformational learning to foster a Sustainability mindset–
empowering citizens with, not only the knowledge, but the skills, values, perspectives, and practices to
enable them to positively respond to the increasingly difficult economic, social, and environmental
challenges of the 21 st century. Working at the municipal and provincial levels of government in Canada
and the not-for profit sector, Pamela has contributed to policy development, research and writing in the
areas of sustainable development, education and climate change education through her work with the
Ontario Premier’s Council, the Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy, the Ontario Ministry
of Energy, and Learning for a Sustainable Future. She has provided advice to private sector companies,
universities, and to governments at all 3 levels in Canada, and internationally to the Government of
Aruba, Dominican Republic, Norway and New Caledonia. An environmentalist and planner by training,
Pamela was an undergraduate at the University of Toronto, graduating with her B. A. (geography) in
1979. She received her Masters in Environmental Studies from York University in 1981.
Vice President
Elaine Rubinoff
elaine@LSF-LST.ca
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Elaine Rubinoff oversees project management, fiscal reporting, stakeholder/partner liaison, event management, marketing, communication, and fundraising. Elaine has worked for Learning for a Sustainable Future since 1995. She began as Program Manager providing partnership development and project management until 2002, at which time she assumed the role of Director of Programs and Administration. Elaine also serves as Secretary Treasurer. Elaine’s prior positions include Administrative Assistant in the Legal and Commodities Departments at George Weston Limited and Registered Sales Representative at Richardson Greenshields. Elaine is a graduate of York University.
Director of Programs, Engagement and Development
Sam Gawron
samantha@LSF-LST.ca
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Sam Gawron is a graduate of the Environment, Sustainability & Society and International Development programs at Dalhousie University and the University of King’s College. She’s been at LSF since 2015, where she leads programs to engage Canadian youth and educators in sustainability and climate change learning and action. Sam’s past experience includes work with the Riverdale Immigrant Women’s Centre on their social enterprise cafe, a position on the Toronto Youth Food Policy Council, and participation in various multidisciplinary environmental education programs such as the Upper Grand District’s “Headwaters” program.
Director of Learning, Research and Programs
Jenn Stevens
jenn@LSF-LST.ca
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Jenn Stevens is a graduate of the Masters of Child Study and Education at the Jackman Institute of Child Studies at the University of Toronto. Jenn has worked to empower youth in various capacities through her previous work as the Membership Chair for the OISE branch of the Council for Exceptional Children, Respite Camp Leader at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, and through her student teaching placements. At LSF she works to implement programming, conduct research, and integrate the ideals for a sustainable future into the Canadian school system by working with youth directly and supporting parents and teachers. She is passionate about all things outdoors and is always looking for new ways to integrate sustainable ideals into her life and work. environment and the world around them
Manager of Bilingual Programming and Communications
Geneviève Gill
genevieve@LSF-LST.ca
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Geneviève is a Master’s graduate in biomechanical engineering research at McGill University. She has a Bachelor’s of Science degree from McGill University in Kinesiology. After her post-secondary education, Geneviève transitioned into bilingual science communication and outreach, working closely with the Let’s Talk Science national office for over four years. Her interest in equitable and accessible learning grew out of various community-based programs like STEM Club, Curious Careers, and the Storytime Project. Through the pandemic, she has worked with a variety of teams to digitalize learning to make it more accessible across the country. Genevieve has also worked closely with these programs to integrate sustainability as the learning focus. She hopes to help empower youth with autonomy and various skills when taking on climate action driven projects and learning.
R4R Program Manager
Debbie Miller
debbie@LSF-LST.ca
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Deborah has thirty-two years of experience in education. She spent twenty-seven years as a French Immersion teacher and five years as a teacher librarian and technology support teacher in the Pembina Trails School Division. Deborah has served on divisional and provincial committees focused on curriculum development, textbook reviews and social justice programs. She enjoyed collaborating with teachers to foster students’ critical thinking and inquiry skills while encouraging teachers and students to explore sustainable development themes and concepts in their classrooms. Recently retired from education, Deborah has been part of the Resources for Rethinking teacher team since 2007 and has currently taken on a management role for Resources for Rethinking. She enjoys spending time in Pinawa surrounded by the boreal forest, wildlife and incredible natural beauty of the area.
Indigenous Program Intern
Morgan Mannella
morgan@LSF-LST.ca
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Morgan Mannella is an Anishinaabe of settler and Italian immigrant descent. She graduated from University of Western’s affiliate college, King’s
University College, with an Honours Bachelor of Arts, Double Majoring in English and French studies, in 2022. She is also a graduate of Nipissing University’s Consecutive Bachelor of Education program, in the Intermediate/Senior division, as of 2024. Morgan was a Research Fellow at Western University’s Head & Heart Program in 2022, where she learned about
Indigenous pedagogy and research methods. She produced a research output based on her experiences as a reconnecting Indigenous student and as an assistant to an Indigenous faculty member. At LSF, Morgan is responsible for the implementation of Indigenous knowledge and perspectives in programming and hopes to unite Indigenous and Western ways of thinking into climate action and
sustainability.
Sustainable Future Schools Coordinator
Soraya Fouda Ebangue
soraya@LSF-LST.ca
Read Ms. Fouda Ebangue's Bio
With an MSc in Public Policy from Queen Mary University of London, Soraya brings nearly a decade of experience in international development, specializing in development finance. She also holds an AMI certification for children aged 3-6 and has actively contributed to numerous projects advancing the SDGs, particularly in primary education.
At LSF, Soraya is dedicated to advancing this mission as a Sustainable Future Schools Coordinator. She aims to support schools across Canada in implementing the SDGs beyond the UN target goal.
Communications And Marketing Specialist
Madysson David
madysson@LSF-LST.ca
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Madysson is a student at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, majoring in Marine Biology. Passionate about ocean conservation, Madysson has been an advocate on social media for many years, raising awareness and engaging with a broad audience. In addition to her studies, she teaches cetology in elementary schools, inspiring young minds to appreciate and protect marine life. Through her educational and advocacy efforts, she is dedicated to fostering a deeper understanding and respect for our oceans.
Consultants
Atlantic Provinces, Curriculum Specialist
Jim Petrie
Read Mr. Petrie's Bio
Jim has spent 26 years in the public school system as a teacher and department head. Since leaving the classroom he has served as Director of the New Brunswick Global Education Project, New Brunswick Director of Project WET (Water Education for Teachers), Consultant for CRB Heritage Project, Consultant for the Global Classroom Initiative (GCI), Consultant for Learning for a Sustainable Future (LSF), Assessor for the Canadian Heritage Program, Lecturer in UNB Faculty of Education and Chair of UNICEF New Brunswick. Jim has contributed to curriculum development in both New Brunswick and the Atlantic Provinces and has helped shape much of the social studies curriculum provincially and regionally. He has participated in a number of study groups including the Holocaust and Hope Study Tour of Germany, Poland, and Israel, the Keizai Koho Study Tour of Japan, the NATO Study Tour of France and Belgium, the United States Peace Institute in Washington and the International Development and Research Council Costa Rica Study Tour.
Curriculum Specialist
Chris Porter
chris@LSF-LST.ca
Read Mr. Porter's Bio
Chris retired from teaching in 2006 after 32 years as a teacher and principal. Most of that time was spent at Tantramar Regional High School in Sackville, New Brunswick where he helped establish The Tantramar Wetlands Centre, well-known nationally for its innovative approach to environmental education. He has served on provincial curriculum committees, led regional workshops for science teachers and in recent years has spoken to public audiences across Canada about the value of experiential approaches to teaching. Since retiring from the public school system, Chris has held part-time positions with St. Thomas University’s Faculty of Education and Mount Allison University’s Coastal Wetlands Institute. In addition to managing Resources for Rethinking, he continues to enjoy working directly with teachers through his involvement with LSF and the Tantramar Wetlands Centre.
Learning Innovation Consultant
Pamela Gibson
pgibson@LSF-LST.ca
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Pamela is a longtime educator with years of classroom experience who continues to work in schools. She also supports teachers in their journey by working with them in PD settings. She believes in supporting and enabling students to connect to the world through meaningful projects -helping them to get out into the communities they live in and to become actively involved. By learning in the land, the natural world, and their cultural communities come alive. Young people become well-grounded, connected, invested and whole. From a very young age, children want to contribute and to understand their world. Pamela helped pioneer a whole school approach to teaching the curriculum that uses the local natural, cultural, and built communities as the vehicle for understanding and meeting the expectations in the curriculum in a holistic way.
Research Consultant
Karen Acton
kacton@LSF-LST.ca
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Karen Acton (PhD) is an educator with over 30 years of experience in both the elementary and secondary panels as a science teacher, department head, principal, and Ministry of Education officer. As the former environmental sustainability lead principal in her school board, she championed policy and procedure changes, promoted outdoor learning, and supported schools to successfully achieve 100% EcoSchools status. Karen’s doctoral thesis focused on revealing the supports and barriers of environmental teacher leadership. She teaches graduate courses at Western and OISE, and continues to follow her passion to help spread the word on the importance of environmental education and climate justice.
Workshop Facilitator
Lynn Bristoll
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Lynn Bristoll has worked for the Peel District School Board for 31 years in a variety of capacities. These include teaching in the primary and junior divisions, teacher librarian, board consultant and elementary vice-principal and school principal. During her career she was a member of numerous writing teams, developing supportive teaching documents and worked for a stint for a publishing company. Recently retired as principal from a school advocating learning outdoors and piloting LSF’s “Sustainable Future Schools”, she continues to promote the value of these approaches as a means of integrating the numerous demands placed on educators. Personally Lynn enjoys hiking, reading and gardening, and looks forward to extending her travels.
Workshop Facilitator
Susan Elliott
selliott@lsf-lst.ca
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Susan Elliott is an educator, program lead and professional development (PD) facilitator in K-12 classrooms for public and independent schools. Her doctoral research in authentic assessment and curriculum has guided her in supporting diverse learners as a special education teacher at several school boards, including the Toronto District School Board-operated school at the Hospital for Sick Children. She was Executive Director of the Learning Forum at The Toronto French School (TFS) until 2020, leading a support services team and overseeing Guidance and Wellness, Learning Strategies and Resource, Technology and Libraries.
Susan has lifelong passion for connecting children to nature through inquiry and action. She collaborates with students, faculty and communities on nature-based learning, projects and conferences. She has taught the specialist AQ in Environmental Education at OISE-UT (University of Toronto) and is co-author of a teaching guide, Connecting the Dots: Key Strategies that Transform Learning for Environmental Education, Citizenship and Sustainability.
Her work with Learning for a Sustainable Future includes writing and developing articles. Her recent contributions include an article published by EDCan: A Whole School Approach to Teaching the UN Sustainable Development Goals: Making Your School Culture the Catalyst for Change and the LSF resource Thinking Forward: Toolkits for Building Classroom Communities in a Pandemic World.
Workshop Facilitator
Paula Gallo
pgallo@lsf-lst.ca
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Paula is a consultant specializing in Participatory Design and Engagement, with a commitment to building sustainable and inclusive communities. She works with diverse stakeholders and multi-generational communities across Canada, designing innovative engagement experiences and child-friendly spaces. She is committed to embedding participatory climate action approaches in projects with children and youth, and designs programs and resources for educators and organizations across Canada. She co-created UNICEF Canada’s Rights Respecting Schools Initiative and Climate Change Guide Evergreen’s Climate Ready Schools program and RecreatePlace’s Child-Friendly Engagement approach. Paula has a Masters’ in Planning and taught secondary school in Toronto for 10 years. She also taught a Master of Landscape Architecture course on Tactical Urbanism at the University of Toronto focusing on climate mitigation and biodiversity in cities.
Workshop Facilitator
Janice Haines
jhaines@LSF-LST.ca
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Janice has been teaching for approximately 20 years and provides leadership in developing community partners to meet learning objectives. She has taught kindergarten to grade six and is passionate about learning outdoors. Her goal as an educator is to empower children so that they love learning, and become engaged citizens that create their future with sustainability in mind. A smart woman once told her that you can’t fall in love with something you have never met so “Get Outside”!
Workshop Facilitator
Judy Halpern
jhalpern@LSF-LST.ca
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Judy Halpern, (MEd.) a qualified teacher of more than 25 years, created The Magic Suitcase: a literature-based Environmental Education program, in 1996. Her research involved using picture books to teach content, specifically in the area of science. Judy currently teaches pre-service teacher candidates at the Faculty of Education at Wilfrid Laurier University, is a workshop facilitator and consultant for Learning for a Sustainable Future, is the Coordinator for the Educator and Leadership Institute in Nepal and is a Sustainable Happiness Facilitator. A walk in the woods, sharing wonderful books and stories, fuels her passion for the importance of environmental education and her own natural curiosity.
Workshop Facilitator
Nathalie Lauriault
nlauriault@LSF-LST.ca
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Nathalie Lauriault has had numerous opportunities to teach in many different settings; from the French Immersion program in the public system, to independent schools in Canada, England and France. Throughout her teaching career, she has maintained a high level of competency in current educational research. She is the co-author of the book Tool for Teaching Conceptual Understanding-Elementary (2017). She is an educator who is dedicated to hands-on, experience-based learning for nourishing creative and curious minds. She encourages a positive attitude to learning by engaging students in inquiries and developing their awareness of the process of learning so that they become lifelong learners. In her spare time, Nathalie dances, bikes, hikes and practices Power Yoga.
Workshop Facilitator
Michele Martin
mmartin@LSF-LST.ca
Read Dr. Martin's Bio
Dr. Michèle Martin is a climate change and sustainability education consultant and leads professional development programs in English and French for teachers in Canada and New Caledonia, organized by Learning for a Sustainable Future.
Michele Martin holds a PhD in Environmental Studies from York University, specializing in education for sustainability. She has over thirty-five years experience as an environmental and sustainability educator both in Canada and in the Seychelles Islands, with the last ten years focused more specifically on climate change education and capacity building.
Michele lived in the Seychelles Islands for over 20 years, where she worked in curriculum development, pre-service and in-service teacher education, and taught at the University of Seychelles. Michele also helped to found the non-profit organization Sustainability for Seychelles and is still involved in the NGO’s projects to promote climate smart and sustainable practices among schools, businesses, and communities.
Currently, in addition to her work with LSF, Michele is a consultant on climate change education and capacity building, and her clients include the Toronto District School Board, the Commonwealth Parliamentarians Association, Project Learning Tree Canada and the World Bank. She is also a contract faculty member for the Global Studies Program at Wilfrid Laurier University.
Workshop Facilitator
Laura Myers
lmyers@LSF-LST.ca
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Laura Myers has been teaching in Hampton, N.B. for more than 30 years. She has taught middle and high school, served as the UNESCO school lead and was responsible for Instructional leadership. After watching “Before the Flood” on Earth Day in 2017, she decided it was time to explicitly incorporate climate change into her math classes. The students in her grade 11 class decided they wanted to build a greenhouse and what developed after that was a sequence of events leading to the HHS greenhouse, the creation of the Climate Action Team, being featured in Canadian Geographic, building a food forest, and many other climate action initiatives. In 2019, Laura was trained as a Climate Reality Leader through the Climate Reality Project. In June of 2022, she decided to retire from classroom teaching and join the LSF team as a facilitator, helping middle and high school teachers to address curriculum through the Sustainable Development Goals and climate change education.
Workshop Facilitator
Melanie Williams
Read Ms. Williams' Bio
Melanie has been teaching English, history, and social science at the secondary school level for the past 15 years. She specializes in finding ways to connect classroom learning to practical, real-world applications, as demonstrated in her work for Women4Climate Toronto, and the 6th International STEM in Education Conference hosted by the University of British Columbia. Melanie encourages her students to feed their curiosity and never stop learning. She is currently completing a Master’s program in Interdisciplinary Studies at York University, some of her work for which has been published in the social studies journal, The Councilor (2021), as well as in the critical literary anthology, Blowing Up the Skirt of History (2021).
Workshop Facilitator
Jacqueline Whelan
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Jacqueline began her teaching career in Montessori Schools 25 years ago. Her work with the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has focused on guiding her students through place-based, inquiry-based learning, emphasizing outdoor experiential learning. She is a certified Forest School Practitioner passionate about integrating authentic nature-based learning experiences into her practice. As a French as a Second Language and Social Studies specialist she has developed workshops and resources for teachers focused on environmental inquiry, social justice and decolonizing the curriculum. She has taught at the Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa and is a writer and AQ instructor for the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario.
