Five generations
I'm a fifth-generation resident of Wainfleet. My family's history began when the McKnight family immigrated from Ireland in the mid-1800s. Being part of something that started well before me and will continue after — shapes how I think about this place and its future.
Here are some photos of the McKnight family ca. 1921 (left) and my grandfather, Bruce McKnight ca. 1930 (right). Both photos are taken at the McKnight homestead on Abby Road.
My grandfather, Bruce McKnight, was an active member of the Wainfleet community. He was the founding Chairman of the Wainfleet Public Library, and a founding member of the re-instated Wainfleet Agricultural Society (1967). He passed tragically in a car accident in 1969.
His portrait still hangs in the library.
Life and Times
Western University
I did my undergraduate and master's degrees at Western University, where I studied how genes control the development of embryos. Western was a formative place for me — it's where I first got hooked on asking precise questions about biology, and it gave me a solid grounding in scientific thinking that's stuck with me ever since.
University of Vienna & Howard Hughes Medical Institute
My PhD took me to the Institute of Molecular Pathology at the University of Vienna, and to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Janelia Research Campus, where I studied how neurons can control behaviour. The Alps of Austria — and, to a lesser extent, the Appalachians back in the U.S. — made for an amazing backdrop to those years of research.
Max Planck Institute for Animal Behaviour
I did my postdoctoral fellowship at the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behaviour, in the Department of Collective Behaviour, studying how groups of animals swarming together can process information and solve problems collectively. Konstanz is a beautiful small German town, and I loved the culture of small-town festivals and traditions there.
Agricultural Technology Research
Today I work at a non-profit horticultural research institute, where I help strengthen the technological capacity of Canada's horticulture sector. It's genuinely rewarding to link my career strengths with my growing passion for growing and agriculture.
All views, opinions, and candidacy are my own, and do not reflect those of any organization.
