It’s Getting Hot In Here

This story is part of an ongoing series: Vanity Fair: The Untold Stories

Growing up in a small town helped give me a sense of place and the opportunity to imagine what the rest of the world was like. When we’re young, we only ever see our possibilities, not our limitations. It’s a good philosophy we should never outgrow: If we don’t put limitations on what we can do, then our opportunities are endless.

The fashion and media industries are and have been a great tool for me to communicate larger sustainability topics. We all wake up in the morning and get dressed. That is a universal commonality that we all share, so why not use it as a tool to connect us to greater issues, like environmental health, conservation, climate change and social justice?

Because of my involvement in fashion, most of my work has been associated with sustainability in the apparel sector. Since the founding of my consulting company, SRO, however, I’ve had the great privilege in working on a number of broader environmental issues, many of which focus on climate change. Since the beginning of this year, I’ve worked with a number of international clients – universities, media, non-profits and foundations on environmental communications, media strategy and market research on sustainability, “green” consumers and global climate change. Because of the diversity in clientele and deep involvement in the environmental and fashion communities, it has also allowed me to connect groups that normally would have never worked with one another.

Continue reading ‘Untold Stories: Summer Rayne Oakes’

This story is part of an ongoing series: Vanity Fair: The Untold Stories

Apparently a picture says a thousand words; I beg to differ.

In the latest edition of Vanity Fair (the May “Green Issue”) staff members from the Campus Climate Challenge (CCC) were profiled in a 2-page colour spread. What is more exciting, however, is the mountain of stories that lies behind each of those 35 faces in the picture. Every CCC staff member works with almost a dozen campuses in their respective region. And, as one of the many staff members, I have the pleasure of working with my very own handful of campuses - and what fabulous campuses they are!

Major highlights of the year:


- Memorial hires full-time Sustainability Coordinator
- Mount Allison runs successful inter-residence energy challenge
- Moncton publishes first Energy, Waste, and Food audits
- Regional Paper Cut campaign to use more sustainable sources of paper is launched
- Campuses host “An Inconvenient Truth” screenings and panel discussions
- Dalhousie votes on $2 levy to implement Sustainability Office
- King’s hosts 2nd Annual Atlantic Sustainable Campuses Conference
- UPEI hosts 8th Annual National Sustainable Campuses Conference
Continue reading ‘Atlantic Leading in Canadian Campus Wins*’

Story written by Katie May, Assistant Editor, for the Dalhousie Gazette, March 22 2007

Zoë Caron had no idea a leisurely study session at the library would lead to an exclusive book deal and author partnership with Green Party leader Elizabeth May.

The fourth-year Dalhousie environmental science and international development student was casually researching books about climate change in January 2006 and wondered if there was one “For Dummies.”

Discovering no such book existed, Caron began calling and e-mailing the company that owns the “For Dummies” logo, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

And when the publisher’s plans to have David Suzuki pen the guide fell through, Caron, the Atlantic coordinator for the Sierra Youth Coalition of Canada, volunteered to write it.

Several months later, the company offered her a full contract. Continue reading ‘‘A FORCE OF NATURE’ - Student to co-author book with Elizabeth May’