BUILDING SCIENCE
Jasmine Safar—Alumni Environment Award
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Jasmine Safar—Alumni Environment Award
About the Award
For overall achievement, contribution, and commitment to the Building Science Graduate Program.
I am so honoured to receive the 2025 Alumni Environment Award in the field of Building Science. Given my recent entrance into the field as a whole, this acknowledgement feels even more special as recognition of the work I have put in to learn as much as I can, as quickly as I can, while weaving in my own passion for sustainability. This program opened up a whole new world of opportunities to me, and helped me realize that it's never too late to try something new.
When I started this degree, I had already completed a full masters degree in environmental science and was just starting my second year in that industry. However, I could not help feeling I was not where I wanted to be. It seemed like a crazy idea to go back to school when I already had a master’s degree and a stable job, and many people didn’t understand or support my decision to take a leave of absence and start something completely different. However, I have always had a passion and interest in the built environment, and strongly desired a career path that would allow me to work with both buildings and sustainability.
Although my time at TMU was quite short, I wanted to be involved as much as I could to enhance the experience for myself and others. I was a member of the TMU women's indoor volleyball team, participated in the Emerging Green Professionals (EGP) mentorship program, attended and presented at the Solar Decathlon Building Symposium, assisted in air tightness testing for my classmates MRP, completed my own MRP, and took a full course load with a final cumulative GPA of 4.29.
All of these things were rewarding in their own regard, but it was even more special to me that I was able to pursue anything that seemed interesting or beneficial - even if it seemed impossible at times. I believe that the most significant work I performed in building science was my MRP, which addressed the viability of mass timber construction in Canada through discussions with a number of industry professionals. This allowed me to form important relationships within the building industry, but also draw important conclusions on the reasoning for limited mass timber construction in the Canadian building landscape. I hope my findings may allow for further investigation into Canadian mass timber construction and provide a framework to increase the sustainability of the building industry.
I would not have been able to succeed to the same degree if not for the unwavering support of the TMU staff and professors and cannot thank them enough. Specifically Dr. Dorothy Johns and Dr. Russell Richman, and their help with my entire journey as well as my major research project. Additionally, I would like to acknowledge the generous support from the Yeates School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for the QEII-GSST without which I would not have the opportunity to partake in this program.
For overall achievement, contribution, and commitment to the Building Science Graduate Program.
I am so honoured to receive the 2025 Alumni Environment Award in the field of Building Science. Given my recent entrance into the field as a whole, this acknowledgement feels even more special as recognition of the work I have put in to learn as much as I can, as quickly as I can, while weaving in my own passion for sustainability. This program opened up a whole new world of opportunities to me, and helped me realize that it's never too late to try something new.
When I started this degree, I had already completed a full masters degree in environmental science and was just starting my second year in that industry. However, I could not help feeling I was not where I wanted to be. It seemed like a crazy idea to go back to school when I already had a master’s degree and a stable job, and many people didn’t understand or support my decision to take a leave of absence and start something completely different. However, I have always had a passion and interest in the built environment, and strongly desired a career path that would allow me to work with both buildings and sustainability.
Although my time at TMU was quite short, I wanted to be involved as much as I could to enhance the experience for myself and others. I was a member of the TMU women's indoor volleyball team, participated in the Emerging Green Professionals (EGP) mentorship program, attended and presented at the Solar Decathlon Building Symposium, assisted in air tightness testing for my classmates MRP, completed my own MRP, and took a full course load with a final cumulative GPA of 4.29.
All of these things were rewarding in their own regard, but it was even more special to me that I was able to pursue anything that seemed interesting or beneficial - even if it seemed impossible at times. I believe that the most significant work I performed in building science was my MRP, which addressed the viability of mass timber construction in Canada through discussions with a number of industry professionals. This allowed me to form important relationships within the building industry, but also draw important conclusions on the reasoning for limited mass timber construction in the Canadian building landscape. I hope my findings may allow for further investigation into Canadian mass timber construction and provide a framework to increase the sustainability of the building industry.
I would not have been able to succeed to the same degree if not for the unwavering support of the TMU staff and professors and cannot thank them enough. Specifically Dr. Dorothy Johns and Dr. Russell Richman, and their help with my entire journey as well as my major research project. Additionally, I would like to acknowledge the generous support from the Yeates School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for the QEII-GSST without which I would not have the opportunity to partake in this program.
