Bachelor of Arts & Business (Co-Op) • Political Science, Minor in Economics, Specialization in Global Engagement • University of Waterloo

• Read Nate's article on the TSSS here

Bio

Nate grew up in Oakville, Ontario and was raised in a family with strong values of  hard work and responsibility. These values were brought to the University of Waterloo. Nate was in the cooperative program in his undergrad and worked at organizations such as the Ontario Ministry of Finance, eHealth Ontario, TDL Corp, and a tax firm. Nate didn’t particularly enjoy business and economics as it was being taught and decided to switch his focus to political science where he enjoyed the philosophical aspects of competing ideologies. Nate was particularly affected by a few political science courses that highlighted the inequality between industrialized and developing countries and how certain ideologies, assumptions and institutions have led to compounding issues societal and environmental issues. Nate travelled to Singapore for a semester abroad and visited many countries throughout Southeast Asia. These travels highlighted solvable issues and a need for responsible business and accountable governance. After completing his undergrad degree, Nate went to British Columbia where he worked on organic farms and travelled down the west coast. At one farm, he set record for most pounds of blueberries picked in one day. In BC, Nate volunteered in a Native territory where a First Nation is protecting traditional lands from pipeline development. These experiences highlighted that humans can have a positive impact on each other and the biosphere when products and processes are designed intelligently with nature as a model and source of inspiration. 

Nate has enjoyed every minute of the MScSM experience and completed a fantastic internship at the Works Design Communications as a Sustainability Analyst. In the internship, Nate lead a research project for trends and best practices in sustainability reporting and analyzed over 100 companies. He also contributed to consulting projects by conducting materiality analysis and stakeholder research, and developed reports that aligned with GRI G4 guidelines, United Nations Global Compact, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and the OECD guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. 

In his final year, Nate is focusing his research on the circular economy. He is also VP External on MSEC and is the graduate student representative on the UTM Campus Affairs Committee. He holds down jobs writing blogs and managing social media for a real estate firm in Oakville, and also writes for the Halton Food Council. In his spare time Nate enjoys playing guitar, vegetable gardening, reading, nature photography and species identification, biking, hiking, and canoeing in back country parks. 

Nate's MScSM Internship: The Works Design Communications

(For a closer look, download here)