Engagement is at the heart of creating change, educating the public and sparking conversations that influence policy and this year's Simon Fraser University Newsmaker award recipients all share a passion for using their voices as a vehicle for good.
SFU's 2024 Newsmaker award recipients are chosen for their dedication to informing discourse across media and online communities regarding various topics; from commentary on affordability in Canada, engaging with the public about urban wildlife interactions, to helping people understand more about natural hazards and the impacts of climate change.
Andrey Pavlov
Professor, Finance, Beedie School of Business - 2024 SFU Media Newsmaker of the Year
Andrey Pavlov, professor of finance, is the 2024 Newsmaker Award recipient. This award is given to a faculty member in recognition of their commitment to knowledge dissemination through the media. A leading B.C. voice on Canada's economy, affordability and the housing crisis, Andrey has been featured in numerous articles and interviews across major outlets in Canada and internationally. His timely commentary and expert analysis shape public understanding of housing markets and financial trends.
"Receiving this award certainly motivates me to do even more to disseminate my research and help people with their financial decisions," says Andrey. "I have been fortunate to meet a few key people in my life who have made my academic career possible. This is my way to pay this forward - I hope my media engagement helps people understand the financial trade-offs they face."
Not only has Andrey's commentary helped shape public discourse and policy discussions around some of the issues that affect the Canadians most, it has also helped him refine his academic work.
"My interaction with journalists has forced me to look past the academic jargon and complex mathematical models to focus on the results and implications that really matter to people," he says. "As a result, my academic papers have become simpler and shorter, but laser focused on the practical lessons and implications."
Kaylee Byers
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences - 2024 Emerging Thought Leader Newsmaker of the Year
Kaylee Byers, assistant professor of health sciences, is the 2024 Simon Fraser University Emerging Thought Leader (ETL) Newsmaker Award recipient. As one of SFU's most-published and quoted media spokespeople in Canada and abroad, Kaylee has had a meteoric rise as a science communicator. Her numerous insightful articles for The Conversation and her work as the host of Nice Genes! podcast exemplify the impact that thoughtful and engaging science communication can have on public understanding.
"I've been really dedicated to science communication for many years. It's something that is really important to me so this award is very meaningful," says Kaylee. "I love science, I love talking about it and sharing it with people. But beyond the fact that I'm just a giant science nerd, I do think science communication is important for a number of reasons.
"The public deserves to know what we're doing in the research space and I think public engagement overall increases science literacy, which builds trust and supports people in making evidence-informed decisions."
An expert on environmental health, Kaylee's public engagement around human and animal interaction in urban settings, and her work with the Vancouver Rat Project, led her to participating in the inaugural National Urban Rat Summit in New York City in 2024, which made international headlines.
"I think there's an innate interest in the wildlife that we share our cities with and that awareness is shaping how cities approach wildlife and our relationship to them. How do we solve this problem?" she says. "The summit is a tangible example of how this conversation in the public and the news culminated in change across multiple cities."
Already a strong proponent in science communication, Kaylee says the ETL Newsmaker of the Year award serves as motivation but won't change her approach.
"I am grateful to be recognized in this way, but I don't think my commitment to science communication could be any higher," she laughs.
Brent Ward
Professor, Earth Sciences, Co-director, Centre for Natural Hazards Research - 2024 SFU Newsmaker Lifetime Achievement
Brent Ward, professor of Earth Sciences and co-director of SFU's Centre for Natural Hazards Research, has been awarded the 2024 Newsmaker Award for Lifetime Achievement. This well-deserved recognition is a testament to his unwavering public engagement and his invaluable contributions to raising awareness about natural hazards. Brent's dedication to sharing knowledge whether with journalists, students, or the broader public exemplifies SFU's commitment to our communities.
"It's nice to be recognized for something that I've done since I got here - in terms of reaching out to the public and explaining events in a way that people can understand," says Brent. "Society is faced with a lot of major issues and the sciences, specifically geoscience, are an important part of us overcoming a lot of those issues."
Brent has been a go-to expert for media across Canada whenever there's a natural disaster like an earthquake or landslide and he's commented on events that have shaped public policy.
After a fatal landslide in North Vancouver devastated the community in 2005, he was quoted extensively.
"It had a big effect on the media and policy because a lot of municipalities started to take natural hazards much more seriously," he says, "especially the District of North Vancouver, which has become a world leader."
That landslide was caused by an atmospheric river, something Brent says we're seeing more and more of with climate change.
He's determined to keep sharing his expertise with the public to help stem the political tide shifting away from climate policy.
"If we don't do something significant, we're going to see more atmospheric rivers, more landslides, more floods. So making the public understand that makes them more amenable to make the changes we have to make in order to combat climate change," he says. "It's important and we need to try to get the word out even more."
