July 13, 2020
Sabine Jessen is the National Director of the Oceans Program for the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. She also serves as the Marine Conservation Director for the British Columbia Chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. Sabine has been involved with CPAWS since 1991 when she began four years of volunteer work, prior to becoming the first Executive Director of the BC chapter. Sabine is passionate about protecting ocean ecosystems.
Sabine holds a Masters Degree in Geography from the University of Waterloo, specializing in coastal zone management and environmental regulation. She has served as an Advisor to Fisheries and Oceans Canada, BC Parks, the British Columbia Commission on Resources and Environment, and the Economic Council of Canada. Sabine has served as an Adjunct Professor in the Resource and Environmental Management Program at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and in 2009, she began her PhD studies in the Department of Geography at SFU focused on an international comparative study on the establishment of MPAs and MPA networks in Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Her contribution to coastal zone management in Canada was recognized in 2008 with the H.B. Nicholls award from the Coastal Zone Canada Association. She was awarded the Stan Rowe Home Place Graduate Award by the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas (CCEA) 2010, a Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions PhD fellowship in 2011, and an Australian Endeavour Research Fellowship in 2012.
In addition to her love of the ocean, Sabine is an avid photographer and bird watcher, which she combines with her pursuit of outdoor activities in wild places around the world.