Meet Our Conference Committees
PEOPLE 2026 is guided by the senior members of the PEOPLE Network and organized entirely by young professionals (YPs) and early-career researchers (ECRs). This collaborative model empowers the next generation of environmental leaders to take initiative, develop leadership skills, and bring fresh perspectives to the international research community, with support and guidance from experienced mentors.
Advisory Committee
The Advisory Committee brings together senior members of the PEOPLE Network who provide strategic guidance, share their experience, and support the conference’s overall vision and success.
Organizing Committee
PEOPLE 2026 is organized entirely by young professionals (YPs) and early-career researchers (ECRs), demonstrating the leadership, creativity, and collaborative spirit of the next generation.
Scientific Committee
The Scientific Program Committee supports the scientific quality and integrity of PEOPLE 2026 through the evaluation of submitted abstracts and the development of a diverse, engaging scientific program.
Advisory Committee (Updates Ongoing)
Bing Chen
UArctic Research Chair & Professor
Interim Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Memorial University, Canada
Chair
Baiyu Helen Zhang
Professor & Canada Research Chair
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Memorial University, Canada
Kenneth Lee
Director
Kenneth Lee Research Inc., Canada
Manuel J. Rodriguez
Professor & NSERC Industrial Research Chair
Faculty of Planning, Architecture, Art and Design
Université Laval, Canada
Feiyue Wang
Professor & Canada Research Chair (Tier 1)
Department of Environment and Geography and Centre for Earth Observation Science
University of Manitoba, Canada
Pascale Champagne
Director General
Energy, Mining and Environment Research Centre
National Research Council Canada, Canada
Pierre Bérubé
Professor & Associate Head
Faculty Affairs and Development
University of British Columbia, Canada
Stanislav Stoyanov
Research Scientist
CanmetENERGY-Devon
Natural Resources Canada, Canada
Paul Snelgrove
Professor
Ocean Sciences Centre
Memorial University, Canada
Roland Kallenborn
University of the Arctic Chair for Arctic Environmental Pollution Research
NMBU / Nord University, Norway
Viviane Yargeau
Professor & Chair
Department of Chemical Engineering
McGill University, Canada
James Brydie
Director
Upstream & Environment, CanmetENERGY Devon
Natural Resources Canada / Government of Canada
Ibrahim M. Banat
Professor of Microbial Biotechnology
School of Biomedical Sciences
Faculty of Life and Health Sciences
University of Ulster
Northern Ireland, UK
Jianbing Li
Professor
School of Engineering
University of Northern British Columbia, Canada
Carlos Bazan
Associate Professor
Faculty of Business Administration
Memorial University, Canada
Dale Booth
Owner & President
Innovation Seven, Canada
Catherine Mulligan
Distinguished Research Professor and Director of CIWESS
Concordia University, Canada
Lei Liu
Professor & Co-op Advisor-Civil & Environmental Program
Department of Civil and Resource Engineering
Dalhousie University, Canada
Atanu Sarkar
Associate Professor
Faculty of Medicine
Memorial University, Canada
Faisal Khan
Professor & Department Head
Chemical Engineering
Texas A&M University, USA
Peter S. Ross
Senior Scientist & Healthy Waters Program Director
Raincoast Conservation Foundation, Canada
Rehan Sadiq
Professor
Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering
Provost and Vice-President Academic
University of British Columbia (Okanagan), Canada
Organizing Committee (Updates Ongoing)
Xing Song
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Northern Region Persistent Organic Pollution Control (NRPOP) Laboratory
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Memorial University, Canada
Co-Chair
Chunjiang An
Concordia University Research Chair in Spill Response and Remediation
Associate Professor
Department of Building, Civil & Environmental Engineering
Concordia University, Canada
Qin Xin
Senior Research Scientist
Upstream and Environment, CanmetENERGY
Natural Resources Canada / Government of Canada
Lee A. S. Britton
Senior Emergencies Scientist
National Environmental Emergencies Centre
Environment and Climate Change Canada
Nayereh Saborimanesh
Research Scientist
Upstream and Environment, CanmetENERGY Devon
Natural Resources Canada
Xiuquan (Xander) Wang
School of Climate Change and Adaptation
Min Yang
Lecturer
School of Civil & Environmental Engineering
Faculty of Engineering
Queensland University of Technology, Australia
Christian Ortiz-Lopez
Research Associate
Drinking Water Research Chair, Planning and Develop. Research Cent. (CRAD-FAAAD)
Université Laval, Canada
Fang Fang
Postdoctoral Fellow
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Memorial University, Canada
Alice (Xia) Zhu
Banting Postdoctoral Fellow
Memorial University, Canada
Quan Dau
School of Climate Change and Adaptation
University of Prince Edward Island
Service Nova Scotia, Government of Nova Scotia, Canada
Hongbing Dan
Postdoctoral Research Fellow,
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Memorial University, Canada
Scientific Committee (Updates Ongoing)
Xudong Ye
Associate Professor
School of Ecology and Environment
Hainan Tropical Ocean University, China
Co-Chair
Fuzhan Nasiri
Professor
Department of Building, Civil, and Environmental Engineering (BCEE),
The Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science,
Concordia University, Canada
Linyan Zhu
Assistant Professor
Department of Environmental Science
Aarhus University, Denmark
Di Wang
Habilitation (MIUR, Italy)
CRC Tier 2 in Cold Region Roads
Assistant Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
University of Ottawa, Canada
Hadi Mokarizadeh
Parsons
Chair
IWA YWP Canada
Xiaying Xin
Assistant Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
Queen’s University, Canada
Zoe Li
Oliver Iorhemen
Associate Professor
Environmental Engineering
School of Engineering
University of Northern British Columbia, Canada
Founder & Director, Bio-innovative Water and Wastewater Biorefinery Laboratory
Bo Liu
Research Scientist
Center for Freshwater Research and Education
Lake Superior State University, U.S.