GRADUATE STUDENT FELLOWS:
Julian Evans is a PhD candidate at the University of Western Ontario in the department of Theory & Criticism and has taught existentialism at Vancouver Island University. His research is concerned with embodiment, imagination and philosophical ecology. He is interested in how attention to animal voices, specifically the meditative practice of learning to interpret bird languages, can awaken new forms of environmental awareness and place-based connectivity. He creates sound art compositions from audio field recordings he makes in wild places, around his neighborhood, and everywhere in-between. .
Contact: jevan27@uwo.ca
Ness Houghton is an MA student at the University of Victoria pursuing an interdisciplinary program in philosophy and law. Her research interests include critical animal studies, applied ethics, environmental studies, and feminist theory. Ness’s thesis explores the way in which the lives and bodies of dairy cows are commodified, oppressed, and appropriated in contemporary Canadian food production spaces. Ness completed her undergraduate degree in environmental psychology and applied ethics at the University of Victoria and is currently working on a textbook chapter for an upcoming textbook on Psychology and Nature by Robert Gifford.
Contact: vhoughton@uvic.ca
Angelica Ramoutar is an M.A. student at the University of Western Ontario in the Department of Geography and Environment. Her research interests include environmental governance, critical animal studies, industrial agriculture, and biosecurity. Angelica’s thesis explores the policies and regulations that manage industrial agriculture practices in Canada. Angelica completed her HBSc at the University of Toronto in Environmental Science with a double minor in Sustainability and Environmental Management. She enjoys reading mystery books, listening to music, and going on hikes on her free time!
Contact: aramout2@uwo.ca
Ruthana Slob 
completed her Bachelor of Theatre at the Amsterdam University of the Arts and a Master of Education in Arts at the University of the Arts Utrecht. Ruthana had the opportunity to work with professional (international) performing arts companies, art schools and art funds, as well as in policy making with (local) governments and as a researcher with multiple research institutes. Ruthana also holds multiple degrees in life coaching and runs a practice for children, adults and professionals. In her practice she works with a wide variety of methods, including art-, nature- and animal assisted interventions. Ruthana’s drive to support the space where performing arts, animal studies and social change come together has led her to a doctorate program in Applied Theatre at the University of Victoria. With her (practice-based) research Ruthana explores how applied theatre can play a role in bringing awareness to the interconnectedness of all life on earth.
Contact: ruthana@uvic.ca
Liz Williams is a PhD student in Environmental Psychology at the University of Victoria. Her research focuses on relationships between humans and other species, broadly and in the context of wildlife conservation and trade, pet-keeping, and ecotourism. She draws on social psychological theories to examine inter-group relationships between species (e.g., speciesism), as well as perceptions of environmentalists and pro-environmental behaviour in human communities. Liz also volunteers at the BC SPCA, working with rescue dogs and coordinating volunteers. Liz holds a BA Honours degree in Psychology from the University of Winnipeg, and a MSc in Resource Management and Environmental Studies from the University of British Columbia.
Contact: williamsliz@uvic.ca
Tayler Zavitz is a PhD candidate, sessional instructor, and teaching assistant consultant and coordinator in the Sociology department at the University of Victoria. Her current research area is Political Sociology and Social Movements, with a specific focus in Critical Animal Studies. Her PhD research focuses on the repression of animal activism in Canada, the expanding criminalization of dissent, and what this means for the future of animal activism in Canada. She also holds a Masters degree in Critical Sociology, with a focus in Critical Animal Studies, from Brock University. She is the current Social Media Coordinator for the Animals & Society Research Initiative at the University of Victoria, as well as a peer reviewer for the Journal for Critical Animal Studies.
Contact: tstaneff@uvic.ca
- Current graduate students of Canadian academic institutions who are researching animal law or animal studies and wish to become an ASRI Graduate Student Fellow, please contact aasri@uvic.ca.
GRADUATE STUDENT FELLOWS – ALUMNI:
Dr. Ranjana Basu 
completed her doctoral program at Royal Roads University. She has practiced social work for a number of years and her research titled “Linking Animals, Social Justice and Social Work” aims to create a pathway for social workers to consider the wellbeing of non-human animals in their practice. She is interested in action research related to reshaping of animal-human relations and countering speciesism. Ranjana received her Masters of Social Work degree from the University of Toronto and a BSc in Biology from Carleton University.
Contact: ranjanatf@gmail.com
Publications:
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- Basu, R. (2022). Relationships between human and nonhuman animals. In Charles, G., Gharabaghi K., Hyder, S., Quinn, A. (Eds.), The Implications of COVID-19 for Children and Youth (pp. 18-20). Routledge.
Ellen Campbell (she/her) JD, MA, BA (Hons), completed her JD in the Faculty of Law at the University of Victoria. Prior to attending law school, Ellen received a Master’s in Interdisciplinary Studies. Her SSHRC-awarded thesis focused on colonialism and racism in conservation and animal law enforcement by nonprofits, for which she completed five months of field work on two Sea Shepherd campaigns. She has also worked with Radical Action with Migrants in Agriculture as a legal advocate, researcher, and videographer. She is also a member of Coalition on Indigenous Perspectives on Animals, Plants, and the Land and North American Association for Critical Animal Studies. Ellen spends her days off at RASTA Sanctuary, with Pacific CELL, or doing videography, and activism, but the activity she enjoys most is hiking with her partner, Conrad, and her (furry) girls, Bella and Kenzie.
Contact: ellencampbell@uvic.ca
Holly Cecil holds a Master’s degree in Art History & Visual Studies and a BA (Hons) degree, with a double major in Anthropology and Art History & Visual Studies (University of Victoria). Her SSHRC-funded Master’s research project, conducted at the University of Oxford and in London, examined the critical role of livestock agriculture on climate change, and the key role of documentary films in bridging the persistent social awareness gap, and was awarded the 2019 Lieutenant Governor’s Silver Medal at the University of Victoria. Employing filmmaking to conduct and share research, her interests span a broad range of critical animal studies addressing exploitation of animals, human-animal relationships, interspecies empathy and cooperation, and social movements promoting plant-based dietary initiatives.
Contact: cecil@uvic.ca
Publications:
- The iAnimal Film Series: Activating Empathy Through Virtual Reality (2021) 6:1 Screen Bodies. Open Access: https://bit.ly/3qTf8RM. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3167/screen.2021.060105
Dr. Krista Hiddema is the Executive Director of For The Greater Good where she consults with animal protection organizations on matters of organizational development, strategic planning, and board governance. Krista holds a doctorate in social sciences where her research focused on the need to utilize ecofeminist principles in matters of board governance within the animal rights movement, with an emphasis on economic health, ecological health, and social health. She holds five other degrees in human resources, was formerly a partner at an employment law firm, and was also the vice president of human resources for an international software company.
Contact: KristaValerieHiddema@gmail.com, website: drkristahiddema.com
Sam Skinner, BA(Hons), JD, LLM (Osgoode Hall Law School), recently defended their LLM thesis “Doomed to Fail: Ag-gag and the Canadian Charter” in August 2021. Their academic articles have been featured in the Animal & Natural Resource Law Review, the Global Journal of Animal Law, the Journal of Critical Animal Studies, and have been featured multiple times at the Canadian Animal Law Conference. Having previously worked with Animal Justice and Humane Canada, Sam now joins the University of Toronto Faculty of Law as an Animal Law Research Associate.
Contact: sam.skinner@utoronto.ca