Welcome to our 2023 Impact Highlight series! 

SVS has a long track record of volunteering for initiatives both close to home and in the communities we work with, and a yearly company-wide target of 400 hours of volunteer time.  The policy exists to enable and encourage SVS employees to contribute and support initiatives that have direct social and environmental impacts in both our local and client communities. 

We hope you will find inspiration in these stories!

Written by Alley Amos: 

In August 2023, I volunteered at the Michipicoten First Nation Youth and Elder’s Gathering. This year’s gathering marked the 25^th anniversary and had over 500 visitors come and take part. 

The weeklong gathering had over 10 different events each day such as ribbon skirt making, star gazing, sweat lodges, cedar baths, medicine walks, drum making, and so much more. I helped out with events such as working at the kids arts and crafts table, doll making and birch bark canoe making.

It was amazing to see so many people come out and immerse themselves in events connected to Michipicoten First Nation and its lands and waters. One of my favourite experiences was learning how to make salves with medicinal plants that can be harvested from the land around me.

Learning about the process of traditional canoe making with materials also from the land around me was truly inspiring!

Alley Amos is a Junior Environmental Scientist and Project Coordinator, and is located in Wawa, Ontario.   Alley is passionate about weaving Indigenous Knowledge systems and western science in environmental research, monitoring, and management programs where both are equally valued and community values are at the forefront of every project.   Growing up in Northern Ontario along the shores of Lake Superior, Alley has always felt connected to nature. From a young age, she could be found fishing, camping, hiking and exploring her local environment. Alley first learned about the threat of climate change in her early years in high school, which sparked a passion for protecting the environment at a young age. Her love for learning combined with nature, influenced her to pursue her studies in the environmental field.   Alley holds a Bachelor of Bio-Resource Management (B.BRM) degree in Environmental Management from the University of Guelph. She completed her Master of Environmental Science (MES) degree from the University of Guelph in 2022 where she specialized in weaving knowledge systems, as well as ecological risk assessment and toxicology.