We are excited to introduce some new faces to our growing team, please join us in welcoming:
Heather Armstrong
Heather is the Engage Postdoctoral Fellow in Vancouver. She is a sex researcher who has been studying issues relevant to GLBT health and wellness for over a decade. She completed her PhD in Experimental Psychology at the University of Ottawa and a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the US CDC in Atlanta, Georgia
Gbolahan (GB) Olarewaju
GB is the new Vancouver Engage Coordinator at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. He completed an M.Sc in Human Health and Nutritional Science at the University of Guelph. GB has supported HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ health through community outreach and knowledge translation to healthcare service providers regarding needs for MSM patients in Guelph, Ontario. As a Nigerian immigrant with 4 years of experience in international and refugee program coordination he is passionate about health access and equity and hopes to bring this global perspective to Engage.
Allan Lal
Allan is the Momentum research assistant. He is an anthropology graduate from UBC with a focus on same-sex behaviours cross-culturally. Allan has worked and volunteered in gay men’s health for several years and was heavily involved with the Health Initiative for Men, most notably as an outreach coordinator and with the Totally Outright leadership program. He recently also began to coordinate the various PrEP studies happening in Vancouver.
Ricky Rodrigues
Ricky is the Engage Toronto Coordinator, working on the Toronto arm of Engage. Ricky has been working in HIV and LGBTQ health since 2012. Between 2012 and 2015, Ricky held several different roles at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), contributing to a range of programs, services, and research projects, including: Totally outRIGHT; the Sex, Drugs, and Alcohol Survey; the Buddy Program; and ACT’s support groups and psychoeducational workshop series. Ricky has also been engaged in counselling and community development work with LGBTQ youth through various organizations, including Central Toronto Youth Services, Egale Youth OUTreach, and OurSpace Toronto.
Marc Messier-Peet
Marc is the Engage Coordinator in Montréal, QC. He holds a Bachelors in Honors Immuology and Infection from the University of Alberta, and has recently completed his Masters of Science in Public Health from McGill University. Marc has been working on the Engage project from its beginnings in 2015, where he studied the various barriers to accessing HIV prevention and treatment services. Marc is currently coordinating Engage-Montreal with members of the Direction régionale de santé publique du CIUSSS du Centre Sud de l’Ile de Montréal and our community partners.
Mark Gaspar
Mark is an Engage Postdoctoral Fellow in Toronto. He is a qualitative researcher and social theorist who completed his PhD through the Centre of Interdisciplinary Studies in Society and Culture at Concordia University, Montréal, where he studied the effects of HIV risk and serostatus uncertainty on the well-being of gay men. Mark is a two-time research fellow of the University Without Walls program, and has been active with the HIV/AIDS research and community work in Canada for a decade.
Gbolahan Olarewaju
May 17th, 2017