The Multidisciplinary Advantage
Helping individuals unlock potential and create change.
An Ecology lens ensured our work was rooted in science. It shaped our understanding of native species, shoreline dynamics, and long-term ecosystem health. This perspective guided our plant selection, restoration strategy, and monitoring metrics—ensuring our designs would support biodiversity and improve water quality over time.
An Engineering Design lens grounded our ideas in feasibility and systems thinking. It helped us develop modular, scalable solutions—like the floating treatment wetlands—that could function within real-world constraints. This approach emphasized iteration, testing, and creating solutions that balance innovation with practicality.
A Fine Arts lens helped us think critically about space, aesthetics, and public experience. It brought visual clarity to complex ecological ideas and invited us to approach them with an open and innovative spirit. This perspective guided our spatial planning, visual storytelling, and dedication to ensuring this project would not only be functional, but also a cultural monument for the City of Ottawa.
Reema Adan
Design and Design Project Management, Verification and Validation
Led the coordination of team deliverables, timelines, and documentation throughout the project. Designed and built the project website, ensuring accessibility, clarity, and alignment with the team’s ecological goals. Helped translate complex ideas into a user-friendly platform while supporting cross-team collaboration and communication.
Sharon Chen
Ethics and Impact Lead and Project Planning
Led the Ethics and Impact Analysis by translating stakeholder values into project strategies. Built the Gantt chart to align tasks across teams and timelines. Ensured ethical framing, Indigenous inclusion, and community engagement were integrated from the planning phase onward.
Ella Gem DeFrancisco
Design, Visualization, and Spatial Planning Lead
Compiled research from the ecology team to develop a design for the Floating Treatment Wetlands. Created the 3D-modeled prototype, conceptual drawings, and virtual site renderings. Implemented Open Design strategies to ensure our work remains available for free noncommercial reuse.
Eva Domond
Environmental Research and Monitoring Coordinator
Researched materials for the floating treatment wetland. Identified water quality concerns in Dow’s Lake. Developed monitoring metrics for both the floating treatment wetlands and shoreline restoration zones
Calvin Elisen
Ecology Project Management and Riparian Zone Research Lead
Facilitated project management for the ecology side of the project, setting weekly objectives at Monday meetings. Researched and wrote on the shoreline restoration phases of the project including plans for the North and South Shores, created the GIS project map.
Madison Lucente
Plant Ecology Research and Content Coordinator
Led the plant-focused components of the project by conducting research on native and keystone species to Dow’s Lake. Edited written sections related to plant benefits and long-term ecological goals and outcomes.
Donya Nadoushan
Plant Ecology Research, Funding and Logistics
Focused on funding, potential partnerships and logistics. Created summaries on riparian zones, digestible functions and focused on the ecological significance towards it.
Marina Spitz
Floating Treatment Wetland Research and Communications Lead
Focused on researching the creation and implementation of floating treatment wetlands in North America as well as other ecological considerations to maximize the success of these systems. Wrote and organized the foundation of the floating treatment wetlands report as well as created several digestible summaries of important topics to be more accessible to readers.