BRAINSUITE SOCIAL CABINET
CHELSEA ATKINSON
Chelsea Atkinson is an incoming Master of Science student studying Biotech and Pharmaceutical Management at University College London. Chelsea developed a deep interest in preventative health and neurodegenerative disease while pursuing her bachelor's degree in Life Science at Queen’s University. In addition to her undergraduate courses, Chelsea was a member of the Women in Science and Engineering club, where she worked to mentor young women and encourage them to explore the field of STEM. Chelsea recently completed an internship in the Taylor Lab at the Hospital for Sick Children where she worked alongside a team of neuro oncologists researching the pathology of pediatric brain tumours. In 2020, Chelsea co-founded Second Line Masks, a company that created and sold reusable face masks from recycled materials. Proceeds from the mask sales were donated to Covenant House. While volunteering at WBHI events, Chelsea was inspired by the commitment to female-focused research and the drive to educate others on the preventative measures that contribute to cognitive health. She is honoured to continue her involvement with the Young Person’s Cabinet.
HOLLY ATKINSON
Holly Atkinson works as a Crisis & Resilience Consultant at Deloitte, utilizing her strong problem solving skills to help organizations of all sizes develop their Operational Resilience strategies and programs. In addition to client work, Holly focuses on Deloitte’s internal strategy, identifying opportunities for growth and reporting on organizational performance.
She recently graduated from Queen’s University with First Class Honours in Computer Engineering. While at Queen’s, she was an active member and an executive on the Queen’s Algorithmic Network Trading Team, where she focused on quantitative trading and portfolio management.
Her passion for healthy living combined with an intense curiosity about brain health led her to WBHI and the YPC. Here she hopes to use her dedication and unique problem solving capabilities to help educate other young adults on the importance of brain health and to inspire them to prioritize their mental wellbeing proactively.
DR. LAURA BEST • CHAIR
Dr. Laura Best is a medical student at the University of British Columbia and a neuroscientist working as a post-doctoral fellow in the Brain Health Imaging Centre at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). She recently completed her PhD in Medical Science at the University of Toronto with support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Frederick Banting and Charles Best Doctoral Award. A recipient of the 2022 Brain Canada Rising Stars Award, Laura has also been recognized for her leadership and mentorship by University of Toronto and Institute of Medical Science for her contributions to the Temerty Faculty of Medicine graduate community.
Laura has contributed to research with the St. Michael’s Hospital Family Health Team and in the Emergency Department at Sick Kids Hospital. As an aspiring physician and certified yoga instructor, Laura values a preventative, holistic approach to medicine and health care. After retiring as the Captain of the McGill Varsity Cheerleading Team, she began to use running, yoga and meditation to condition her mind and body, and hopes to incorporate these elements into her future practice. Laura has a deeply-rooted passion for mental health, and is excited to continue working with Women’s Brain Health Initiative to encourage younger generations to adopt a lifestyle that supports their brain health – now and in the future.
KATHERINE BOERE
Katherine Boere, a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Victoria in Cognitive Neuroscience. Her research focuses on the effects of extreme exhaustion and depletion on the brain. In her work, Katherine delves into understanding how brain function recovers from such circumstances, aiming to shed light on our cognitive systems' resilience and adaptive abilities. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics from the University of British Columbia and a Master's degree in Biomedical Engineering, where her focus was on the treatment and recovery of traumatic brain injuries. Her experience sustaining a concussion in her early twenties inspired this academic path. Furthermore, Katherine is a certified yoga instructor, adding a holistic and balanced perspective to her understanding of health and wellness. Fueled by her personal journey and academic pursuit, Katherine has become an advocate for mental health. She is currently involved with the Women's Brain Health Initiative (WBHI) and the Young Persons' Cabinet (YPC), leveraging her unique experiences and knowledge to educate younger adults on brain health. She also serves as a director of the Women in Science Peer Mentorship Program, extending her passion for neuroscience to inspiring and guiding younger researchers to explore their curiosities. Katherine's contributions and commitments underscore her dedication to understanding, promoting, and supporting brain health and mental wellness.
MAGGIE CALLAGHAN
Maggie Callaghan works in Sales Incubation at Shopify where she helps with new and experimental go-to-market strategies, commercial models, and playbooks. Maggie holds an honors double major degree from Western University where she specialized in Consumer Behaviour and Psychology. She has been a lifelong athlete, participating in competitive sports her whole life, most recently as a member of the Varsity Squash Team at Western. After graduating, Maggie spent 2 years abroad working, snowboarding and travelling before beginning her sales career at an educational technology company in Toronto. Nowadays, she enjoys living an active and healthy lifestyle, spending as much time as she can outdoors. Maggie's personal experience with long-lasting post-concussion syndrome, coupled with her passion for mental health, has created a strong interest in women's brain health and a desire to educate and bring awareness to the topic.
SAMIRA CHOUDHURY
Samira Choudhury is a Master of Science in the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Toronto. She is studying differences in clinical and physiological manifestations in males and females with dementia at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences. After completing her medical degree in 2018, Samira moved to Canada where she completed a two-year post-doctoral fellowship in Geriatric Psychiatry at the Centre of Addiction and Mental Health and the University of Toronto and is currently working towards obtaining medical residency alongside her graduate studies.
After attending her first Women’s Brain Health Initiative event with her master’s supervisor, she was amazed by the passion and dedication the organization had in educating people of all ages on dementia, brain health, and healthy brain practices. Samira is passionate about dementia after witnessing the horrible illness affect loved ones. She aspires to work toward dementia education and awareness by sharing her personal and professional experiences. As an aspiring psychiatrist, Samira wishes to help patients manage their symptoms and have a good quality of life. She also hopes to integrate into her practice caregiver education on what to expect, necessary steps to take before cognitive decline worsens, and resources to cope with grief.
Samira currently lives in Toronto with her family. She loves travelling, spending time with family, and more recently, making resin coasters. She loves sharing pictures of her travels and foodie experiences through her blog on Instagram - @samiraeats.
SRISHTI DATT
Srishti is a Project Manager at Telus Health, where she focuses on EMR implementations for small to enterprise clinics in British Columbia and Alberta. Prior to her work at Telus Health, she was responsible for running one of the first clinic based COVID-19 Vaccine Drives in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Region of Peel.
Srishti holds a certification in Health Economics and Policy from The London School of Economics and Political Sciences (LSE) and is currently pursuing courses in Data Science from LSE.
She has a strong passion for mental health and has spent five years volunteering at Trillium Health Partners, in Mississauga. Srishti is committed to leveraging her professional and volunteer experience to advocate and promote the importance of mental and brain health. She is excited to be working with Women’s Brain Health Initiative Young Person’s Cabinet.
MADELEINE GRAY
Madeleine Gray is the Senior Coordinator of Donor Engagement at Humber River Hospital Foundation. She works to connect donors with the causes they care about, and find meaningful ways to recognize them.
Madeleine has a BA in Political Science and Sociology from McGill University, and a Post Graduate Certificate in Fundraising Management from Humber College. Madeleine enjoys exploring the outdoors, long walks with friends, and bakes a mean brownie.
Her family’s experiences with brain injuries and age related illnesses have inspired Madeleine to join the YPC. She is excited to begin working with Women’s Brain Health Initiative to encourage education on brain injuries and improving general brain health.
LAUREN IRWIN
Lauren Irwin runs a wealth management practice at RBC Dominion Securities that focuses on simplifying the complexities of wealth and inspiring financial confidence for her clients. As an Investment & Wealth Advisor, Lauren enjoys learning her clients’ unique stories and recognizes that by truly understanding what motivates and inspires them, she can provide insightful strategies and solutions. As a firm believer and advocate for ongoing education, Lauren holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation and the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM) designation. As a passionate advocate for women in leadership and financial literacy, Lauren is actively involved with organizations in Toronto and Vancouver that provide a platform for women to be supported and succeed. Lauren is also a mentor for female entrepreneurs through The Forum. Throughout her career, she quickly noticed that the definition of wealth is so much more than just money in the bank; it’s about your physical health, relationships, and mental health too. The research being done at WBHI and their commitment to educate others is what drew Lauren to the organization. She is grateful for the opportunity to be involved with the YPC and hopes to educate others on the importance of holistic wealth and wellness.
TRICIA KOPEC
Tricia is a millennial on a mission with a strong background in sales, digital marketing, and marketing strategy. She currently works as an Account Manager at Pinterest, a company she admires for its work in creating a more positive internet. With a passion for women in business, she is the Co-President and Co-Founder of the Women@ Pinterest ERG in Canada. She has also been a mentor within the Monday Girl community. Outside of the office, Tricia advocates for health, personal development, and wellness which is why she was passionate about joining the YPC at WBHI. She brings her passions together and can be found teaching as a spin instructor at SPINCO and is a breath work facilitator at Othership.
ALEX SAMSON
Alex is a PhD student in the Psychology program at the University of Toronto, where she also obtained a Master's degree. Part-time Alex is a Science Writer for Research2Reality, a scientific journalism website dedicated to translating Canadian research for the broader community to understand.
Before attending the University of Toronto, Alex graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience at Dalhousie University. After her Bachelor’s degree, she was supported by a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada award to conduct research at the Alberta Children's Hospital looking at the relationship between cognition and videogame use in young children.
Alex has been passionate about the brain and mental health since a very young age but her current research focus was motivated by a family history of Alzheimer's disease/dementia. Alex's current PhD work focuses on sex and gender differences in Alzheimer's disease development in an effort to understand why females/women are more susceptible to this disease. The overarching goal of her research is to create a clinical brain tool, through computational modeling, that could help diagnose or even prevent Alzheimer's from developing at all.
After learning about the Women's Brain Health Initiative and the Young Person's Cabinet, Alex was keen to get involved. Alex is excited to share her knowledge about the brain and mental health as well as, learn from and inspire other young adults on how to best take care of their brains. A healthy brain is critically important to living a long and happy life!
MATTEO TINO
Matteo is an Investment Counsellor with RBC PH&N Investment Counsel, where he applies his diverse experience in portfolio management, investment counselling and financial planning to provide discretionary investment management services to help his high-net-worth clients achieve their long-term goals and aspirations.
He has been featured on the Business News Network (BNN) television channel as a commentator on markets, economics and investment products on several occasions. Matteo is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Charterholder and holds the Canadian Investment Manager (CIM) designation. He is a member of the Responsible Investment Association (RIA) and was recently named as a finalist for the 2020 Wealth Professional Advisor of the Year – Responsible Investments award.
Matteo is an advocate for health and wellness and enjoys educating millennials on the steps they can take today to protect their brain health in the future. He believes everyone should benefit from the available research and resources to battle age related brain diseases.
ALISON WALTERS
Alison Walters is a Fundraiser at Trillium Health Partners Foundation in Mississauga. Her background in health in conjunction with her passion for supporting health-focused nonprofits drives her in her role supporting fund development for the hospital.
Alison holds a Bachelor’s degree from Queen’s University in Health Studies as well as a Post-Graduate Certificate from Humber College in Fundraising Management. Previous to her fundraising career, Alison worked at both Lululemon and F45 Training. She is also a member of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. These experiences were very unique in helping build her passion for health and wellness.
Alison has first-hand experience of how age-related brain health issues affect women and their families. She is excited to promote awareness of the importance of brain health at a young age.
MICAELA WISEMAN
Micaela Wiseman is a PhD student in the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Toronto. She currently works in the Harquail Centre for Neuromodulation at Sunnybrook Research Institute studying outcomes in patients undergoing Neuromodulation interventions for treatment-resistant psychiatric disorders. Prior to beginning her PhD research, Micaela completed a Master’s in neuroscience at the University of Oxford and graduated McGill University with a First Class Honours B.A. in Psychology. She has also been involved in research at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the University Health Network. Micaela’s long standing passion for neuroscience and brain health, coupled with her deep interest in promoting equitable representation of women in health research, drew her the mission of WBHI. She is specifically interested in sharing health and science related topics with the broader community with the aim of making lasting change.