Staff & Board

Gord Vaadeland

Executive Director (on leave)

Gord Vaadeland

Gord (he/him) was born and raised on the family ranch near Big River, Saskatchewan along the southwest boundary of the Prince Albert National Park. The ranch happily shares this space with the wild, free ranging Plains bison in and around the Prince Albert National Park and Gord has woken up to them in his back yard on many occasions.

Stewart Coles

Acting Executive Director

Stewart Coles

Stewart (he/him) joined the CPAWS-SK team in April 2018. As a native of the UK, he grew up walking the rugged coastlines and mountains of South Wales. Stewart moved to the Canadian prairies in 2013, where he now calls Saskatoon home. Before moving to Canada, Stewart worked for the UK Government’s nature conservation agency, Natural England. There he was a lead adviser spending most of his time engaging in the planning process, assessing environmental policy and strategic plans, and providing regulatory advice related to major development proposals, with the aim of minimizing or eliminating likely impacts to numerous special protection areas and their key species. 


Kelsey Olson

Indigenous and Stakeholder Relations Manager (on maternity leave)

Kelsey Olson

Born and raised in Saskatchewan, Kelsey’s (she/her) fondness of nature began at a young age. She was fortunate that her parents chose to spend many of their family vacations camping in the great Canadian outdoors - which introduced her to many of Western Canada’s wonderful landscapes.    


Kelsey Olson

Conservation Coordinator

Samantha Morrice

Samantha (she/her) was born and raised in Saskatoon and is proud to call it home. Being outside enjoying and appreciating nature is her favourite pastime. Since she could walk, she has always had an inordinate fondness for some of nature's smallest creatures, insects. This fondness became a passion and has developed into a dedication to educating about and advocating for the conservation of all organisms, their habitats, ecosystems and landscapes.  

Board of Directors

A volunteer Advisory Board of Directors guides the direction of CPAWS Saskatchewan. 

Evan Sorestad

National Board Member in Memoriam

Evan Sorestad

It is with great fondness that we remember Evan, longtime CPAWS Saskatchewan board member and passionate advocate for Canadian wilderness. After a short but courageous battle with cancer, he left us peacefully on January 20th, 2020. Evan’s obituary can be found here, and stories of his time with us can be found here.


Merv Hey Profile Pic

Board Member

Merv Hey

Merv was born in Saskatchewan and grew up on a small mixed farm. From an early age he was poking around in the pasture and poplar bush, developing an appreciation for both the domestic and wild life and their adapting to seasonal changes, and came to an early understanding of the need for sufficient natural areas to sustain species and biodiversity. He has a B.Sc. in Land Use and Environmental Studies, and a M.Sc. in the area of hydro-meteorology, both from the U of S, obtained during the Late Bronze Age.


Andrea Olive

Board Member

Andrea Olive

Andrea was born and raised in Regina and is now an associate professor of political science and geography at the University of Toronto Mississauga. She has a summer home in the Aspen Parklands near the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border where she lives May to August. She is the author of two books: The Canadian Environment in Political Context and Land, Legitimacy, and Stewardship: Endangered Species Policy in Canada and the United States. Her main area of research interest is wildlife conservation, especially species at risk in Saskatchewan. She is also an avid long-distance runner and enjoys hiking, swimming, and listening to birds.
 

Candace Savage

Board Member

Candace Savage

Candace is the author of more than two dozen books, including Prairie: A Natural History of the Heart of North America, which won three Saskatchewan Book Awards, including Book of the Year back in 2008 and has just been re-released in an updated, third edition. Her other titles include A Geography of Blood: Unearthing Memory From a Prairie Landscape, which focuses on the grasslands of southwestern Saskatchewan and was chosen by the Saskatchewan Library Association for this year’s One Book, One Province tour. 


Branimir

Board Member

Branimir Gjetvaj

Branimir is a Saskatoon-based biologist, photography instructor and internationally published environmental photographer. His research interest is in the impact of agricultural intensification on the extent and health of natural ecosystems, and solutions to minimize that impact.


Warrick

Board Member

Warrick Baijius

Warrick was born in South Africa, and for many years moved between the US and different parts of western Canada. Currently, Warrick lives in Saskatoon with his partner and daughter, where he attends the University of Saskatchewan and is writing his dissertation on Indigenous engagement in water governance. Outside of research and part-time IT work, Warrick volunteers with a local community association, and is a pedestrian and environmental advocate.