Volunteers
Meet Team Merner
I am honoured to be surrounded by a diverse and extraordinary team of volunteers. From my co-Campaign Managers Eric Sizer and Amanda Rosenstock to the many members of my phone canvassing team, everyone has been generous with their time and efforts in supporting my campaign.
Featuring my team is extremely important to me, since our campaign would not run without the diligent work of these volunteers. Thank you all for your time and continued support!
We’re down to the last week of the campaign and we need David’s supporters to help us reach out to Greens across the country.
If you have some time to volunteer this week, please send out an email endorsement of David to your Green Party contacts, or sign up here to join our phone canvassing team.

Eric Desrochers
Eric (he/him/his) is a self-described “political nut” who has been involved in party politics since he was 16. He did a dual degree in Finance and Social Welfare at Nipissing University in North Bay, Ontario and grew up in and around Toronto. He has worked on countless political campaigns including two leadership campaigns prior to David’s leadership campaign. Eric served as an Ontario organizer for the Green Party of Canada before leaving his role there to take on the role of Campaign Manager in our campaign. Eric spent his entire university career volunteering with the Humane Society, and that is one of his biggest passions outside of politics.

Amanda Rosenstock
Amanda hails from Toronto. She was called to the Ontario Bar after graduating from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2019. She is currently employed as Legal Counsel & HR Manager at one of Canada’s leading educational technology companies. Prior to law school, she worked as Assistant to the Consul General of South Korea in Toronto and completed an internship in the Ethics department of the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. Amanda loves volunteering for her local federal riding association in Spadina-Fort York. When she’s not working or volunteering, Amanda finds new coffee shops, bike rides around Toronto, or gets lost in engrossing books.

Blair Robertson
Blair (he/him) graduated from McMaster University this year with an undergraduate degree in commerce, specializing in accounting and minoring in political science. He played varsity football in his first two years at Mac before leaving the team and becoming fully engaged with the Green Party. Last summer, he joined the campaign in Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke as part of a youth program that brought 30 Young Greens together from across Canada. Now, he is our National Tour Organizer and Financial Agent on our Leadership campaign.

Corrina Sedera
Corrina (she/her) is a young Mexican Communications professional who lives on-reserve in Neyaashiinigmiing with her Anishinaabe partner Darcy and son Creegan. She is working on David’s communications team for his campaign.
Corrina was raised to have great respect for the environment and concern for the continued impact humans are having on the world around them. In 2009, she was honoured to receive an Ontario Junior Citizen of the Year award for being an active volunteer on environmental issues. She was a campaign manager for the Green Party in her riding, both provincially and federally in the 2011 elections. As well, in 2014 she ran her own municipal campaign where she received over 20% of the vote and was only 300 votes shy of winning the second seat in her ward. In her downtime, Corrina enjoys hanging out with her rabbits and foraging in the forests near her house.

Evelyn Tanaka
Evelyn (she/her) is an environmental activist born and raised in Treaty 7 Moh’kinsstis (Calgary).
As a child she wanted to be just like Jane Goodall because she loved the biodiversity of the African savannah. Her love of nature translated into a BSc in Ecology (2003) and an MA in Anthropology/Primatology (2006) from the University of Calgary. She has also spent extended periods of time in five African countries – Madagascar, Kenya, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Mali.
Evelyn is an environmental leader who has helped transitioning auto workers and newcomers to Canada to find work in the green economy. She has worked on renewable energy with rural communities all over Alberta. She volunteered as a board member of a nonprofit organization called True Vision Ghana AIDS Foundation to help her friend Faustina meet the basic needs (food, medicine, education) of 40 AIDS orphans in northern Ghana. Over time they expanded their support into teaching sex ed in a number of rural schools and providing micro-loans to caregivers of AIDS orphans.
In the 2019 election, she ran in her home riding of Calgary Shepard. Along the way, Ev hosted a full moon signposting party, gave wildflower seed packages out at the doors, did her first debate, learned a lot, and made Green friends across the country. Less than a year after jumping into politics, she is now the Deputy Leader of the Green Party of Alberta. She is the Volunteer Coordinator and a Phone Canvasser on our campaign.

Nick Dickinson-Wilde
Nick (he/him) was born and raised on the west coast – over the years calling everywhere from the Gulf Islands to Port Renfrew home. Currently in Sooke, he is a web developer by day, he has been a (sometimes lapsed) member of the GPC for over half his life, although has yet to have his vote count in a Federal or Provincial election. His earliest current affairs memory is the Clayoquot Sound protests and has been involved in environmental movements all his life. Was a speaker at the UNEP International Children’s Conference on the Environment, and later was a member in the last year of the YRTE (Environment Canada’s Youth Round Table on the Environment).
Jean Chandler
For 40 years, I’ve travelled by canoe throughout BC, the Yukon and other areas in Canada gaining awareness of green issues over time. I began voting Green many years ago because I wanted whomever was elected to know how important the climate issue is. For the 2019 election I attended some candidate open houses and helped David Merner’s campaign on election day.
Since his 2019 campaign, I’ve been following the provincial and federal greens with increasing interest. I find David Merner to be extremely intelligent, aware and caring. He hears well and guides using what he has heard and his intelligence.
Jean-Claude Bourque
Jean-Claude lives in Shediac, New Brunswick – the lobster capital of the world. In 1967, he graduated with a BA in Languages and Psychology from the University of Moncton. After graduating, he worked as a Communication Specialist for the Premier of New Brunswick before he became an Interpreter for the province. He also opened two international interpretation companies (JCB Interpretation Inc. in Canada and Pittsburgh). Jean-Claude was involved with the NDP both provincially and federally, as a riding President and Candidate. In the Green Party, he has been President of his EDA for Shediac-Beaubassin-Cap-Pelé provincially. Federally, he is a member of the Electoral District Association for Beausejour, where the two provincial ridings inside the federal riding are represented by Green Party MLAs.
Kevin Franceschini
My names Kevin I have been a member of the Green Party for over 2 years and am from Courtenay BC. I’m the founder and Co-President of the Green Party Campus Club at McGill University where I study Sustainability and Economics. Last summer I spent 6 weeks volunteering for Davids 2019 federal elections campaign with Young Greens from all over Canada as part of the Paint the Island Green program.

Martin Gendron
Martin (’81, he/him/Marty) lives in Tio’tia:ke / Montreal on Kanien’kéha:ke / Mohawk land. He has been vegan for about 3 years and has never owned a car, so he travels on his skateboard, Bixi bikes, on foot, or public transportation. He decided to join the GPC to engage with Canadians and to get them involved in our movement. We can accomplish so many great things together. Marty is sincerely compassionate for the well-being of all Canadians in all aspects. He is here to listen, learn and find the best way towards the future. His hobbies are running, reading, audio books, skateboarding, skiing, ping-pong, research. Martin studied Anthropology at the College of San Mateo in California, and Mathematics at Concordia University in Montreal. He is also bilingual in English and French and is currently learning mandarin.

Brock Grills
Brock Grills is a graduate of Trent University majoring in political studies. He has run both municipally and federally in the past. (Peterborough) He currently Works as a Account Executive for his local radio station (Oldies 96.7/Freq 90.5). Brock collects vinyl records, retro video games, writes music in his spare time and loves being involved in his community wherever he can!

Maia Knight
Maia (she/her) lives on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. She is our Online National Tour Coordinator. Maia is going into her second year of Journalism and Political Science at Carleton University in Ottawa. She is especially interested in climate action and served as the President of her high school’s Eco Council. In 2017, she became a Climate Reality Leader with the Climate Reality Project. A longtime supporter of the Green Party, Maia became our 2019 candidate in her home riding of Ajax, Ontario. During the election, she also worked at the Green Call Centre in Ottawa as a phone canvasser.

Geordie Nelson
Geordie Nelson grew up in Ottawa before moving to rural Alberta to Wainwright when he was a teenager. He now calls Camrose home, where he learned to love the Prairies. Geordie attended the University of Alberta, Augustana Campus where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science. He has worked in various roles at Augustana over the last few years and completed a conservation science internship with A Rocha Canada. He has been a core founder of the Green Party EDA for Battle River-Crowfoot over the last 6 years since the new riding was created. He found it was a fascinating learning experience to run his first federal election campaign in 2019 in the most Conservative riding in the entire country.

Karl Maier
Born and have mostly lived in BC but grew up in Alberta and spent stints abroad. Travelled all across Canada and to the North. Studied at McGill (BA History and Economics) and UVic (Law). Proud Canadian and British Columbian. Cyclist. Sailor. Musician and writer. DIY handyman. Admirer and supporter of Indigenous renaissance. Blended family father, sibling and son. Has learned 4 languages. Lifelong commitment to a sustainable human future.

Ralph Martin
Ralph grew up on a farm in Wallenstein, Ontario which he refers to as his Wellington County anchor. Throughout his life, he worked as a truck driver, bus driver, and server before earning a Ph.D. in Plant Science at McGill University. In 2001, he founded the Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada to coordinate university research and education pertaining to organic food systems across Canada. From 2011 – 16, he was the Loblaw Chair for Sustainable Food Production and Professor at the University of Guelph. He retired in 2019.
Ralph has been a Green Party of Canada member for over a decade. In 2008, he campaigned for Elizabeth May in Pictou County, Nova Scotia. He also campaigned by phone on her first BC campaign. He donates to the Green Party of Canada and to the Green Party of Ontario. In 2019, he ran for the GPC candidate in Wellington-Halton Hills, where Ralph’s excellent campaign team tripled our 2015 vote. For more information on Ralph’s inspiring campaign, go to www.ralphmartin.ca

Grant McIlhargey
I am a third year student at University of Ottawa and have been involved with the Green party since I got on campus. I have been the Communications Chair for the campus Greens club of the university and have previously worked for Davids bid in the previous federal election.

Devan Munn
I am a student studying religion at the University of Waterloo. I am a member of the Young Greens on campus. I am a Green because I believe in the urgency of the climate crisis, democratic reform, and a commitment to pharmacare and a guaranteed livable income. In my spare time I like to walk, read, listen to podcasts, and cook.
Aaron Padolsky
I joined the GPC in 2008 to support Elizabeth May in my then home riding of Central Nova. Subsequently I served on Federal council for six years as Nova Scotia rep including two years as ethics committee chair. Since then I have worked on three federal Green campaigns and two provincial ones in BC where I have lived since 2016.
Nathe Perrone
I am a non-binary person and a intersectional activist. I dedicated the last 6 years to camps and helping low income families discover nature and developing activities for them. Four years ago, I discovered that injustice not only between human being, but also towards the animals living on this planet. Sense then, I have been a animal right activist and fighting for them to have a better future. I believe in democracy and I believe that if we value the life of a animal as the life of a human, we could save the planet.

Michel Sigouin
Year after year, Michel has been recognised as the volunteer who stands out the most at the Green Party of Canada. Michel was nominated Volunteer of the year in 2018 at the BGM in Vancouver.
During the federal elections of 2019, Michel was the official agent of the party for three candidates, as well as financial officer in eight constituencies in Quebec. Also, Michel advised about ten other official agents in completing campaign financial reports. Presently, Michel is treasurer of the Quebec wing of the party. Michel is the Quebec lead coordinator for David Merner’s candidacy.

Greg Taylor
I’m am educator and nature photographer from Barrie, Ontario. I’ve been a member and monthly donor to the party since the the time of Jim Harris.
I have a keen interest in environmental, animal, and international development issues.
When not teaching, I enjoy being outside photographing wildlife in such places as central Ontario, East-Africa, and Central America.
I believe the party is at a critical point in its development and that it needs to a significant increase in seat count to consider being relevant on the ballot.

David Zhang
“My name is David Zhang and I live in Victoria, BC — a very beautiful place. I am a new Green Party member of several months, and I believe in and support the ideas of the Green Party. In the last federal election campaign, I began to do some volunteer work as a Data Analyst on David’s campaign in Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke. This gave me an opportunity to get to know the local community. After the federal election, I continued to do some data analysis supporting David. In this leadership campaign, I am volunteering as part of David’s data team.”
我是David Zhang,居住在美丽的加拿大哥伦比亚省维多利亚市。虽然我成为绿党党员仅短短几个月,但我理解和支持绿党的理念。从2019年联邦选取以来,我开始以数据分析师身份参与一些志愿者工作,同时我也有机会接触和了解本地社区和文化。之后,我也一直做一些数据方面的工作支持David Merner。本次绿党党魁选举,我继续作为数据分析志愿者支持David Merner.