I am a second year PhD candidate at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, located at the University of Saskatchewan. My dissertation focuses on how Canadian cities are approaching sustainability as a policy problem, and in the process turning this somewhat abstract concept into a set of operational imperatives. I am particularly interested in narrative approaches to understanding the processes and outputs of public policy; in short, how do the stories we tell to justify and promote our actions actually shape the range of options we will seriously consider?

I'm also one of the directors of the Policy Shop, a student-run consultancy which provides pro-bono research, strategic, and analytical services to community groups in Saskatoon. Basically, we are taking a community service-learning approach to the study of public policy, and have incorporated community partnerships into several classes thus far. Our students get research and project management experience, and our community partners get professional-quality material for free. We are always looking for new partners, so if your group has been sitting on a project because you lack the funds to hire a consultant, please get in touch with me.

Over 2013, I will be presenting at the annual conferences of the Canadian Political Science Association and the International Association for Research on Service-learning and Community Engagement. Say hello if you spot me, and if you're not already a member, join me on Kiva!