Sophia comes to us from Vancouver. She spent her childhood on the West Coast looking for crabs, hugging giant trees, and building homes for creatures. Being the child of recent British immigrants, she explored all the corners of BC from a tourist’s perspective. The awe of the natural world stayed with Sophia through her early years of wilderness camping, overnight hiking trips, and ski racing expeditions.

Sophia completed a bachelor of fine arts in Ontario though never felt at home there. Throughout the degree, she looked for opportunities to connect with the natural world around her and ended up pursuing environmental art as her thesis project. She was awarded the green award for her unique approach to sustainability in art making. After feeling constrained by school, she took off travelling through Europe, South East Asia, and Australia, including a year working in New Zealand. This time away only intensified her love for the West Coast of Canada.

Before starting with the RES, she spent years working outdoors as a gardener while her summers were spent as a bouldering instructor and a surf instructor in Tofino. Feeling ready to settle, Sophia completed another bachelor degree, this time in education. She weaved together art making and place-based learning as a secondary art teacher in Vancouver. In order to support more students, Sophia also completed a TESL certificate (Teachers of English as a Second Language).

Sophia is excited to take on the roll of Tofino Field School Coordinator where she can support outdoor education in the public school system. Sophia brings an ability to create cross-curricular connections between science, creativity, and place-based learning. As a teacher, Sophia is also a lifelong learner committed to a deeper understanding of local Indigenous knowledge.

When she’s not working, Sophia can be found surfing her little orange fish, walking her dog Lady, or knitting by the fire.

Contact Sophia at: sophia@raincoasteducation.org