Warren Dodd is an Associate Professor in the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo and research group leader.
He completed his PhD in Epidemiology and International Development Studies at the University of Guelph and a CIHR Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto.
Graduate Students
Staff
Graduate Students
Chantelle Ramsundar | PhD candidate | 2019-present
Chantelle Ramsundar is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. She holds an MA in Public Issues Anthropology and a BA in International Development from the University of Guelph. Chantelle's research focuses on the experiences of community health workers (CHWs) in Negros Oriental, Philippines, with a particular emphasis on mHealth and gendered experiences. Utilizing qualitative methods, her work highlights participant lived experiences and expertise. In addition to her PhD studies, she has contributed to research programs supporting community-based participatory action, including developing peer training and support initiatives for organizations such as The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and Community Food Centres Canada. Her research interests include community health, health system improvement and scaling, CBPAR, and critical qualitative methods.
Josalyn Radcliffe | PhD candidate | 2020-present
Josalyn is pursuing her PhD in Public Health and Health Systems at the University of Waterloo starting fall 2020 after fast tracking from the MSc program. She completed a BA in English and Psychology at Wilfrid Laurier University ('05) and is a Registered Nurse with a BSc in Nursing ('12) through Conestoga College and McMaster University. Josalyn is also a mother and an avid gardener who dedicates time to advocacy, connecting with nature, and building relationships within her community. In recent years, she has researched online food markets in the context of COVID-19 and supported evaluation and collaborative priority-setting with food system partners in the Northwest Territories navigating a changing landscape. Her current research interests relate to the ecological determinants of health and the interconnections between biodiversity, food systems, and well-being. Under the supervision of Drs. Kelly Skinner and Warren Dodd, she works to apply a critical lens informed by One Health and Planetary Health approaches, to learn about, challenge, and re-envision today's ecological threats to well-being at multiple scales.
*SSHRC Doctoral Scholarship recipient
Hannah Rayel | PhD candidate | 2023-present
Hannah is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. Hannah graduated with a BA in Psychology from the University of Ottawa and an MPH from North Dakota State University (NDSU). She worked on research projects pertaining to vaccine promotion amongst college students and the evaluation of the Health in All Policies approach at NDSU. Going forward, she wants to focus on global health with research interests in cardiovascular disease and access to health care services in the Philippines.
Minal Waqar | PhD candidate | 2024-present
Minal is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo and began her PhD studies in Fall 2024. She completed her Master's degree at the University of Toronto, where her research focused on diabetic South Asian immigrants in Canada and their experiences of utilizing diabetes-related resources and services within the Greater Toronto Area. Prior to that, she earned her Honours Bachelor's of Science degree from the University of Toronto Mississauga, with a double major in Geography and Environmental Management. In her doctoral studies, Minal aims to leverage her background in environment and geography to address public health challenges at the local level in the Waterloo region. Her research interests focus on examining the impacts of climate stressors (extreme heat and wildfires) on vulnerable populations. Through this work, Minal hopes to contribute to the understanding and mitigation of climate-related health risks for vulnerable communities in the Waterloo region, as well as on a broader scale in Canada.
*SSHRC Doctoral Scholarship recipient
Silver Nanema | PhD candidate | 2024-present
Silver has academic training in Nutrition, Food Sciences, and Bioethics from the University of Ghana and is currently pursuing a PhD in Public Health at the School of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. His research interests include food environments, food systems, and the commercial determinants of health. He developed these interests through collaboration with renowned experts in these fields, as well as in specialized areas such as corporate political activities. Since 2019, his professional activities have focused on generating evidence in food environment research, exploring its interlinkages with climate, equity, and ethics. He has presented some of his work at international conferences, including the International Congress of Nutrition (22nd IUNS-ICN), the African Food Environment Research Network (FERN) meeting, and the Ghana Research Ethics Network (GREN) Conference, most of which he helped plan, including the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Health (ANH) Academy Week.
Nancy Xiao | PhD student | 2025-present
Nancy is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo, beginning Fall 2025. She holds a Master of Health Evaluation (2025) and has academic training in Political Science and Public Administration. For her doctoral studies, Nancy is interested in examining the impacts of extreme heat on vulnerable populations in Waterloo Region. She brings a multidisciplinary perspective shaped by over eight years of experience in evaluation, program design, and policy development across health and social services systems in the public sector. Through her research, Nancy aims to contribute to the understanding, prevention, and mitigation of climate-related health risks and to develop actionable strategies that support health protection and promote health equity for vulnerable communities in Waterloo region and across Canada.
Cecilia Tuzinde | PhD student | 2026-present
Cecilia is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. She holds a Master of Science in Global Health with a concentration in Management from McMaster University and a Bachelor of Public Health from the University of Waterloo. Her research interests explore how social and ecological determinants interact with policy and governance systems to shape population health outcomes, resource allocation, and equity in service delivery. She has experience facilitating collaborations among healthcare innovators and hospital, academic, and research and development partners, as well as contributing to strategic projects across government and healthcare settings. Through her research, Cecilia hopes to better understand how structural factors affect health systems and populations and contribute to work that informs more equitable, accountable, and resilient policies and systems.
Kaitlyn Squires | PhD student | 2026-present
Kaitlyn Squires is a PhD student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. Kaitlyn graduated with a BSc in General Sciences concentrating in Biology and Geography from Mount Royal University and fast-tracked into the PhD program. She has extensive experience working as a health systems researcher on topics ranging from access and equity to quality and safety. Kaitlyn is passionate about mixed-methods and systems thinking to understand how systems interact and effect health. Under the supervision of Dr. Jennifer Yessis and Dr. Warren Dodd, she aims to apply a systems lens to evaluate community-led prevention of youth substance use in southern Ontario.
Hateem Noor | MSc student | 2024-present
Hateem is pursuing her MSc in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo, where she also received her Bachelors of Public Health in 2023. Her research interests include global health, women’s health and climate health. She is also passionate about the implementation of digital public health interventions and how they may improve health outcomes. As part of Dr. Dodd’s research lab, Hateem is eager to develop her qualitative research skills and apply them to her future MSc research.
*SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Emily Dang | MSc student | 2026-present
Emily is an MSc student in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo and a research trainee at CAMH. She holds a Bachelor of Public Health with a minor in Geography and Environmental Management and a specialization in Health Research. Her research interests centre around climate change and health equity. Bringing over three years of experience in multidisciplinary research and knowledge mobilization, she hopes to better understand climate-related health risks associated with extreme weather events. Her work aims to support equitable approaches to climate change adaptation and mitigation through transdisciplinary approaches.
Staff
Laura Jane Brubacher | Postdoctoral Fellow | 2023-present
Laura Jane Brubacher is a SSHRC Post-Doctoral Research Fellow and Adjunct Assistant Professor in the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo, interested in the use of community-based qualitative methodologies for applied health research. LJ's PhD in Population Medicine and International Development (University of Guelph, 2021) focused on the maternal healthcare system in Nunavut. LJ has previously worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, investigating the health systems response to COVID-19 (UBC), for the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research (CAMH), and with the Climate Change & Global Health Research Group (University of Alberta). Her past work has been based in Iqaluit, Nunavut, southwestern Ontario, Kenya, and Uganda.
*SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship recipient
Irenius Konker | Postdoctoral Fellow | 2025-present
Irenius Konkor is the Provost Postdoc for Black and Indigenous Postdoctoral Scholars, in the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. Irenius is a Health Geographer by training with specialization in Global Health from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. His research interests cut across transportation and health, HIV/AIDS among marginalized groups, and environmental health. The overarching goal of his research interest is to understand how marginalization and social inequities (re)produce poor health outcomes for marginalized populations to inform a transformative paradigm in health services delivery through engagement with marginalized communities, health policymakers and the relevant stakeholders. His ongoing postdoctoral research advances this goal through the lens of the health impacts of extreme heat on populations.
Bridget Beggs | Research Coordinator | 2024-present
Bridget Beggs completed her MSc in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo, where she also received her BSc in Health Studies. Her MSc research explored the experiences of community health workers (CHWs) amid extreme weather events in the Philippines, and underscored the complexities in recognizing CHWs as both health leaders and community members in disaster risk management practices. She has supported research projects across different topics, but is particularly interested in the impacts of the climate crisis on healthcare accessibility, health equity, and health systems resilience.
Monica Bustos | Project Manager | 2025-present
Monica Bustos earned her MSc in Public Health and Health Systems at the University of Waterloo, where she also completed her BSc in Health Studies. Her MSc research focused on understanding the association between social protection programs and child malnutrition, specifically stunting and wasting outcomes. She has been involved in various global health research projects and has previous experience in research administration, where she supported a broad range of clinical, epidemiological, and program evaluation projects. She hopes to continue supporting research exploring the intersections across the social determinants of health, climate change, and health equity.
Team Alumni - Graduate Students
Zana Berisha | MSc | 2024-2026
MSc thesis: Exploring opportunities to enhance social service among LGBTQ+ refugee claimants in Waterloo Region, Ontario
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Dr. Emily Kocsis | PhD | 2020-2026
PhD thesis: Migration, gendered translocality, and rural wellbeing in the Western Highlands of Guatemala
SSHRC Doctoral Scholarship recipient
Sabeen Abbas | MSc | 2023-2025
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Bridget Beggs | MSc | 2022-2024
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Joshua Garcia-Barrios | MSc | 2022-2024
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Megan Delamere | MSc | 2021-2024
Monica Bustos | MSc | 2020-2022
CIHR Master’s Scholarship recipient
Shoshannah Speers | MSc | 2019-2022
Profile on Master’s research: Shoshannah Speers
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Dr. Steven Lam | PhD | 2017-2022
PhD thesis: Enhancing Evaluations of Complex Food Security Programs Operating Under Climate Change
CIHR PhD Scholarship recipient
Kathy Luu | MSc | 2018-2021
Profile on Master’s research: Kathy Luu
CIHR Master’s Scholarship recipient
Sara Wyngaarden | MSc | 2018-2020
MSc thesis: The Freedom to Choose: Sustainable livelihoods and (im)mobility decisions among youth in rural Honduras
Profile on Governor General’s Gold Medal: Impactful research is not always flashy
SSHRC Master’s Scholarship recipient
Governor General’s Gold Medal and Alumni Gold Medal recipient
Team Alumni - Undergraduate Students
Emily Dang | Bachelor of Public Health | 2025-2026
Undergraduate thesis project: Exploring health care worker experiences with disaster risk management plans in the Philippines
Kobisha Rajeswaran | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2023-2024
Undergraduate thesis project: Examining the role of lived experience in co-creating community-based mental health and substance use supports
Zana Berisha | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2023-2024
Undergraduate thesis project: Examining the process and outcomes associated with the co-design of community-based mental health services
Nilusha Rattansi | Bachelor of Public Health | 2022-2023
Undergraduate thesis project: Assessing the interactions between a fresh food prescription program and the broader social welfare system in Guelph, Ontario
Ally Suarez | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2022-2023
Undergraduate thesis project: The use of mHealth in community health worker programs
Satveer Dhillon | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2021-2022
Undergraduate thesis project: Mapping the internal migration-climate-health nexus in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review
Taylor Harris | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2021-2022
Undergraduate thesis project: Evaluating complex community-based interventions to address acute child malnutrition in low- and lower-middle income countries
Monica Bustos | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2019-2020
Undergraduate thesis project: Addressing tuberculosis through complex community-based socioeconomic interventions in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic realist review
Vinussa Rameshshanker | Bachelor of Public Health | 2019-2020
Undergraduate thesis project: Health system resilience to extreme weather events in Asia-Pacific: a scoping review
Kruti Patel | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2019-2020
Undergraduate thesis project: The role of community health workers in providing services in the context of extreme weather events in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review
Thevahi Nagaarudkumaran | Bachelor of Science (Health Studies) | 2018-2019
Undergraduate thesis project: The role of social support in tuberculosis treatment and care in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic scoping review