Sarah - Geologist, Pilot, Muslim, Canadian
Hello everyone! For the first post ever, it is my distinct pleasure to introduce my friend Sarah H. Sarah is a geologist for the Ontario Geological Survey and is also working on a Ph.D. at Laurentian University, because she is awesome. Some of my favorite memories of Sarah have to do with absolutely delicious gourmet food and long talks about everything from eye shadow to religion on late night drives. Sarah is truly such a wonderful person to know, because every time I talk to her I learn something new about her I didn't know!
What kind of research do you do?
I am an applied Quaternary geologist, researching geomorphology, glaciations and landscape evolution of the past 2.6 million years. Some of the work I do includes mapping the surficial sediments and identifying infrastructure development potential, aggregate resources, natural hazards and risk assessment and identifying mineral exploration targets based on surficial sediment assessment.
Editor's note: "Surficial deposits" are simply rock, sand, and gravel that is on the earth's surface. During the Ice Age, glaciers scraped along the earth's surface, excavating rocks and then smearing them out at the same time. Because of that, it's possible to find mineral deposits by studying the smears, and tracking them back to their source.
What got you interested in this research?
I got interested in Quaternary geology while flying a Cessna 172 over Collingwood Ontario and looking at glacial landforms. I didn’t know anything about glaciers till then. I then researched the different applications until I found out what I enjoyed mostly in Quaternary geology and “surficial mapping and drift prospecting” was it!
What’s your favorite part about your job/research?
What’s not to love!At the moment I am working for the Ontario geological Survey based in Sudbury, Ontario, completing surficial geology of a couple of townships in the Sudbury basin. Aside from regular fieldwork which is great fun (being outdoors always is!), I get to interact with multiple stakeholders (mining companies, aggregate companies, artisan miners, homeowners etc.), conduct field trips for geology courses at the university in town (Laurentian University), give presentations at conferences and showcase my work and get to share the excitement of it all! I am also doing my PhD part-time at Laurentian on tools to better explore for Ni-Cu-PGE* mineralization in areas covered in glacial sediments so looking at the geochemical and mineral identifiers which can help detect potential exploration targets in Canada’s north. A dream come true really.
*Ni-Cu-PGE stands for nickel, copper and platinum group elements. Nickel and copper are essential to building materials, alloys etc. Platinum group elements (PGE) includes platinum, palladium, osmium, ruthenium, rhodium and iridium. All of these metals are crucial to everyday equipment that we use, for example, iridium in batteries, platinum in drilling equipment (it is also a precious metal used for jewelry), surgical equipment.
Where do you live now?
I live in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
Where else have you lived?
I have lived in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Toronto, Waterloo, Vancouver and now Sudbury.
What’s your favorite place that you’ve lived?
Vancouver, definitely. England feels like home too (My mum and her sister live there, whom I get to visit often).
What was your biggest culture shock moment?
I think since moving to Canada, pretty much every year has its fair share of surprises, especially the day to day conduct with members of the opposite sex. You have to know though that I grew up in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, where there is minimal interaction between men and women. However, moving to Sudbury was the biggest cultural shock as it is fairly new to south Asian immigrants and even though I met a lot of really welcoming people, I also encountered people in the field of geology quite opposed to my progress in my career.
What is your favorite thing to do for fun?
Cooking, baking, eating and reading about food and flying Cessna 172s and sailing and having a good conversation with a friend.
What do you wish you could tell people, that you wish people knew?
One bit that I encounter a LOT is the stigma associated with Muslim women and how restricted they are. People are shocked when I reveal that I am a Muslim (because I don’t wear a headscarf), given my careers choices and lifestyle. I am a practicing Muslim and the main reason why I am strongly established in my career and extra-curricular activities is due to my parents. Both my mother and my grandmother are strong independent women who earned their living themselves without any oppression whatsoever. My father supported my flying lessons, paid for my tuition and living expenses from my undergraduate years through to now that I am doing my PhD. Although, not everyone is as lucky as I have been.
Another one I think is that there is a lot of stigma surrounding geology in that we are “destroyers of the planet”. However, our day to day lives would not function smoothly if we don’t mine precious metals to make gadgets that make our lives easier and much safer. Growing populations and economies, new technology, developments in medicine, clean drinking water, global connectivity, space travel, cheaper air travel are all directly attributed to mining. We have strict environmental policies, stronger support for the local communities in the vicinity of mining camps and a strong emphasis on health and safety and community sustainability that allow us to mine more responsibly nowadays.
Where do you consider yourself “from”?
Quite frankly I don’t know myself. I cannot relate to anyone from any of the countries I grew up in. I am too “north American” now but I can’t really say that’s where I am from. I still am from Multan, Pakistan, where I was born and grew up. Having said that, for me my work is where home is as this has been the one constant in everything, which is another reason why I am so passionate about what I do!
Anything else you want to talk about?
We only get to live once so do what you enjoy and cherish it. Money, respect, happiness all follow. I also think north Americans are quite lucky in that we have access to pretty much everything out there. Education, basic human right, clean drinking water etc., basically things we take for granted. I think we need to play a part in giving back to the community and be empathetic towards other nations and cultures.
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| Sarah, in a hat in the field. |
I am an applied Quaternary geologist, researching geomorphology, glaciations and landscape evolution of the past 2.6 million years. Some of the work I do includes mapping the surficial sediments and identifying infrastructure development potential, aggregate resources, natural hazards and risk assessment and identifying mineral exploration targets based on surficial sediment assessment.
Editor's note: "Surficial deposits" are simply rock, sand, and gravel that is on the earth's surface. During the Ice Age, glaciers scraped along the earth's surface, excavating rocks and then smearing them out at the same time. Because of that, it's possible to find mineral deposits by studying the smears, and tracking them back to their source.
What got you interested in this research?
I got interested in Quaternary geology while flying a Cessna 172 over Collingwood Ontario and looking at glacial landforms. I didn’t know anything about glaciers till then. I then researched the different applications until I found out what I enjoyed mostly in Quaternary geology and “surficial mapping and drift prospecting” was it!
What’s your favorite part about your job/research?
What’s not to love!At the moment I am working for the Ontario geological Survey based in Sudbury, Ontario, completing surficial geology of a couple of townships in the Sudbury basin. Aside from regular fieldwork which is great fun (being outdoors always is!), I get to interact with multiple stakeholders (mining companies, aggregate companies, artisan miners, homeowners etc.), conduct field trips for geology courses at the university in town (Laurentian University), give presentations at conferences and showcase my work and get to share the excitement of it all! I am also doing my PhD part-time at Laurentian on tools to better explore for Ni-Cu-PGE* mineralization in areas covered in glacial sediments so looking at the geochemical and mineral identifiers which can help detect potential exploration targets in Canada’s north. A dream come true really.
*Ni-Cu-PGE stands for nickel, copper and platinum group elements. Nickel and copper are essential to building materials, alloys etc. Platinum group elements (PGE) includes platinum, palladium, osmium, ruthenium, rhodium and iridium. All of these metals are crucial to everyday equipment that we use, for example, iridium in batteries, platinum in drilling equipment (it is also a precious metal used for jewelry), surgical equipment.
 |
| Sarah, in the field on a rock. |
Where do you live now?
I live in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
Where else have you lived?
I have lived in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Toronto, Waterloo, Vancouver and now Sudbury.
What’s your favorite place that you’ve lived?
Vancouver, definitely. England feels like home too (My mum and her sister live there, whom I get to visit often).
What was your biggest culture shock moment?
I think since moving to Canada, pretty much every year has its fair share of surprises, especially the day to day conduct with members of the opposite sex. You have to know though that I grew up in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, where there is minimal interaction between men and women. However, moving to Sudbury was the biggest cultural shock as it is fairly new to south Asian immigrants and even though I met a lot of really welcoming people, I also encountered people in the field of geology quite opposed to my progress in my career.
What is your favorite thing to do for fun?
Cooking, baking, eating and reading about food and flying Cessna 172s and sailing and having a good conversation with a friend.
 |
| Sarah in a plane! |
What do you wish you could tell people, that you wish people knew?
One bit that I encounter a LOT is the stigma associated with Muslim women and how restricted they are. People are shocked when I reveal that I am a Muslim (because I don’t wear a headscarf), given my careers choices and lifestyle. I am a practicing Muslim and the main reason why I am strongly established in my career and extra-curricular activities is due to my parents. Both my mother and my grandmother are strong independent women who earned their living themselves without any oppression whatsoever. My father supported my flying lessons, paid for my tuition and living expenses from my undergraduate years through to now that I am doing my PhD. Although, not everyone is as lucky as I have been.
Another one I think is that there is a lot of stigma surrounding geology in that we are “destroyers of the planet”. However, our day to day lives would not function smoothly if we don’t mine precious metals to make gadgets that make our lives easier and much safer. Growing populations and economies, new technology, developments in medicine, clean drinking water, global connectivity, space travel, cheaper air travel are all directly attributed to mining. We have strict environmental policies, stronger support for the local communities in the vicinity of mining camps and a strong emphasis on health and safety and community sustainability that allow us to mine more responsibly nowadays.
Where do you consider yourself “from”?
Quite frankly I don’t know myself. I cannot relate to anyone from any of the countries I grew up in. I am too “north American” now but I can’t really say that’s where I am from. I still am from Multan, Pakistan, where I was born and grew up. Having said that, for me my work is where home is as this has been the one constant in everything, which is another reason why I am so passionate about what I do!
Anything else you want to talk about?
We only get to live once so do what you enjoy and cherish it. Money, respect, happiness all follow. I also think north Americans are quite lucky in that we have access to pretty much everything out there. Education, basic human right, clean drinking water etc., basically things we take for granted. I think we need to play a part in giving back to the community and be empathetic towards other nations and cultures.
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