Environmental science alumnus adventures across Canada’s remote regions to consult on environmental projects

Since graduating in 2020, environmental science alumnus Carolina Costa-Giomi has worked on projects across multiple environmental industries and become an experienced professional in her field.

The geoscientist most recently took a position at consulting firm SLR Consulting within its Surficial Geology group, where she brings professional expertise on soils and consults on drilling projects in Northern Canada and on geohazards like landslides and flooding.

For those curious about what an environmental consultant does, she describes it as being an impartial liaison between individuals, corporations and the government.

“It’s data collection, analysis, mapping and reporting,” she explains.

She adds that each project requires a unique lens or approach, a particularly satisfying aspect of the job.

“There are endless technical and logistical challenges that we face, and I enjoy finding creative solutions to the problems each project brings.”

Finding the right fit for her career did not happen by accident. Back when she was choosing what to study as an undergraduate student, she considered her passions, desired lifestyle and career prospects, browsing job boards to research what kind of education she may need.

“I ended up looking online, checking out what jobs I could have and reading the qualifications,” she says. “This was helpful because it gave me an idea of the type of work I would be doing. I particularly liked the idea of getting to work outside often and travelling to places I wouldn’t normally go on my own.”

Her first job after graduation was at an environmental consulting firm based in B.C., where her breadth of knowledge in environment and geoscience made her capable of working within multiple disciplines and industries and an asset to the smaller team.

“I worked in agriculture, development, construction, forestry and some mining,” she recalls.

Even after she was finished school, learning continued to play a role in finding success.

“The type of learning is different; you learn on the fly and then have to make time yourself outside of work to solidify topics,” she says. “It is that extra time spent outside of work that can really make a difference in your knowledge depth and retention.”

That first year, she developed a taste for working in remote areas and the mining industry, which caused her to take a gamble on a contract position as an environment technician for an exploration mining company in Northern B.C. Her gamble paid off and she was hired full time in their Sustainability Department after the contract ended, in a position that mostly tackled matters related to groundwater, surface water and hydrology.

Even while working in winter temperatures as low as -20c and in ten metres of snow, she enjoyed being in the mountains in the remote north.

“The field work there was endlessly fun,” she recalls. “Nothing beats the mountains in the north at a remote mining camp!”

She later joined another mid-sized consulting firm and worked as the lead on an energy project until she moved into her current position at SLR Consulting.

Like she hoped it would, Costa-Giomi’s career has allowed her to explore new places across Canada, including all throughout B.C. and the Yukon, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nunavut.

She says the diversity of work in her field has allowed her to tailor her career path to suit her interests and skills, and advises those who are considering their own careers that they can do the same:

“You don’t have to strive towards the physics or chemistry side of environmental science like I did,” she says. “Every career path is unique, and the unique experiences lead to places you may not anticipate…. the goal is to use your knowledge of the environment in work that fits you.”

You can connect with Costa-Giomi on Linkedin here.