Heidy G. Rivasplata Maldonado, MSc candidate in Environmental Assessment (McGill), Bachelor in Microbiology and MSc in Biotechnology (Peru). Prior to joining the CISDL, Heidy served completed an internship at the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), where she worked on developing a tool for integrating climate change within Strategic Environmental Assessment. Previously, she has been involved in research related to anaerobic wastewater treatment at Biotechnology Research Institute (BRI) in Montreal. She has extensive experience in environmental management systems, environmental audits, food quality and health projects. Her interests include poverty eradication world, climate change, environmental assessment, gender issues and biosafety and their link to the environment as a cross-cutting issue. Heidy's native language is Spanish and she is fluent in English and basic French.