Two Trent University alumni have been selected for the Climate75 Fellowship, a national eight-month program recognizing young leaders who are championing climate solutions. Zwena Gray ’21 (Gzowski College) and Jacob Gerard ’20 (Gzowski College) bring forward a shared belief: that storytelling, land connection, and community can shape a better climate future.  

From Trent to the Tundra

Jacob’s path has been anything but linear - and that’s exactly how he likes it. During his time in Trent’s Conservation Biology Co-op program, he worked everywhere from the Carden Alvar to Ontario’s watersheds. But it was Churchill, Manitoba, a northern community deeply intertwined with its wildlife, that changed everything.  

“In Churchill, I saw a community that genuinely cared about its ecosystems,” he says. “It showed me that conservation and community are inseparable.”  

Across three summers, Jacob worked as a shorebird research assistant and later through internships with National Geographic and The Nature Conservancy, helping communicate conservation challenges in a place where climate impacts are visible every day.  

Alongside his research work, Jacob runs a nonprofit project with OceanWise, building Wetland EduKits - backpacks filled with wildlife ID guides that help kids discover Ontario’s wetlands. Through his work, the organization has provided nearly 400 EduKits to schools, nonprofits, and nature centres. 

As he steps into this next chapter, Jacob is motivated by one vision: a future where scientific knowledge is shared openly, where communities are empowered to protect their ecosystems, and where young people feel capable of shaping real climate solutions. 

“I just want to make a positive impact and protect ecosystems however I can,” Jacob comments. “I’m still figuring out my path - and that’s part of the adventure.”  

Transforming Climate Leadership Through Queer Ecologies  

A graduate of Trent’s Environmental and Resource Science & Studies, Zwena’s climate leadership is rooted in community, storytelling, and care. Zwena is currently developing a Queer Ecology Archive, a project that gathers stories and challenges colonial ways of understanding the environment.  

Through Queer Ecology Hikes, Zwena creates reflective, land‑based spaces grounded in movement and ancestral listening. In 2022, Zwena completed a 900‑kilometre trek along Ontario’s Bruce Trail, a project they named Black on the Bruce. The journey blended environmental learning, Black history, and the sheer physicality of moving across land shaped by glacial time and layered human stories.  

During the Climate75 Fellowship, they plan to self‑publish a collaborative art and research zine highlighting Queer Ecology perspectives across Turtle Island.  

“In the next few years, I hope to help create space for people to rest and to be in community with those they love,” Zwena says. “Conversations about the climate crisis can often feel overwhelming and anxiety-inducing. I believe hope lives in family, community, and connection, and I want my work to nurture that.” 

Their Trent experience - especially a formative Queer Theory course - continues to shape their approach to environmental justice. Their advice to current students: Start small. Build relationships. Stay curious. Community matters as much as credentials. 

Support future Trent leaders in developing climate solutions.