2025 Stuart Somerville Memorial Scholarship Winners
Reza Azarmanesh
Reza is working on a PhD in Environmental Engineering at UBC – Okanagan in Kelowna. He worked for several years as an environmental engineer at a large copper company in Asia and as a teaching assistant for several waste management courses while working on his master’s and PhD.
Reza’s current research is utilizing microbial communities to enhance the anaerobic co-digestion of sewage sludge and landfill leachate.
Reza wishes to continue research but also help to implement innovative solutions for landfill leachate management and solid waste stabilization.
Saanya Batra
Saanya is enrolled in Environmental Engineering at BCIT. She has worked as an environmental technician at Econotech Lab Services and at SGS Canada. Saanya’s capstone project is recycling the components of lithium batteries using Supercritical CO2. Saanya is looking forward to a career where she has a planning or consulting role in waste reduction and recycling.
Sonja Lee
Sonja is enrolled in Civil Engineering at UBC – Okanagan. She has worked doing data collection and analysis for waste audits with TetraTech. Sonja is working with her faculty’s Concrete Toboggan Design Team as they experiment with implementing waste fishing nets into the design.
In her spare time, Sonja participates in competitive Ultimate Frisbee. Going forward, Sonja wants to contribute to projects which are beneficial to communities while minimizing ecological impacts.
Renata Valenzuela
Renata is enrolled in Environmental Engineering at BCIT. Last summer she interned with ACTECO, a Spanish waste and environmental consulting company, helping companies to achieve Zero Waste Certification. Renata has volunteered with ‘Swim, Drink, Fish’ at Granville Island helping to characterize waste and develop underwater trash bins to capture floating litter. Renata would like to work as an environmental engineer specializing in sustainable solid waste management.
