Jo Pappo

MScPl Student (they/she)

Campus

Fields of Study

Areas of Interest

Climate adaptation and mitigation, anti-colonial planning, sustainable food systems, environmental planning & policy, community development

Biography

I am a second year MScPl student with an interest in community-engaged research and planning for urban climate justice. I am pursuing a concentration in Social Planning, and a collaborative specialization in Environmental Studies with the School of the Environment. Thus far, I have focused my studies on the possibilities of anti-colonial planning methods, community benefit agreements, and planning for climate-induced disasters.

In my previous work at the City of Vancouver and the UBC Centre for Community Engaged Learning, I led workshops and community events engaging residents in local climate action. In these roles, I facilitated dialogue and design exercises addressing the urban heat island effect, flooding, tree equity, green infrastructure, and municipal waste diversion to help residents develop their own neighbourhood climate action plans.

2025 Research Assistant projects:
- New Housing Alternatives: Rethinking Urban Land
- Green Stormwater Infrastructure Maintenance in North American cities

2025/2026 Teaching Assistant courses:
- ENV 421 - Community Research for Social & Environmental Change
- GGR 271 - Social Research Methods

Publications

Developing strategies to promote diversity in food garden production: Action for nature in a changing climate (UBC Social Ecological Economic Development Studies: 2021)

Food systems biodiversity engagement toolkit (UBC Social Ecological Economic Development Studies: 2021)

Supervisor

Dr. Nidhi Subramanyam

Cohort 

2024-2026

Education

HBSc - Global Resource Systems, UBC

Administrative Service

Archivist, Graduate Geography & Planning Student Society, 2024 - Present