Yanik Rozon

Yanik Rozon

Program: Bachelor of Arts
Major: International Studies

Minor: Biology

I am a third-year student completing a major in International Development with a minor in Biology.

My humanitarian work began in 2015, when I volunteered in Costa Rica, in the coffee growing region of San Jeronimo de San Pedro. We promoted adaptation of crop production in response to changing climates. I lived with a local family and witnessed the detrimental effects of climate change on local livelihoods and practices.

In 2016, I volunteered in Nepal where I raised funds and promoted health education – it was one year after the devastating 2015 earthquake and I witnessed the lasting socio-economic impacts that resulted from natural disaster.

In 2019, I did an internship with the NGO Live & Learn Environmental Education, assisting with the Fiji Resilient Informal Settlements Project (FRIS) that works to increase community resilience to impacts of climate change. FRIS is being implemented by the United Nations Human Resettlements Program. We developed action plans to achieve better resiliency. During my time there, I also completed an independent study course with Professor Philip Loring, to further my critical thinking and research skills.

Humanitarian work should be practiced across all scales and I have partaken in locally based efforts as well. At the University of Guelph, I have been the Vice President of the International Development Society that pursues long-term development goals through community engagement and awareness raising initiatives. In 2018, I helped establish two fundraising campaigns in my hometown, in support of local NGO’s and families in need.

During the summer of 2019, I volunteered with the Ottawa Community Immigrant Services Organization on the Settlement and Integration program that supports refugees and immigrants to facilitate their integration and adaptation to Canada.

I plan to further my education with a graduate degree in International Development and write my research thesis on climate refugees. I hope that by advancing my knowledge and research skills, I will be able to advance my humanitarian efforts on a global scale. Thank you for enabling my passion for humanitarian work!