Ashley Benjamin

Background

About Ashley Benjamin

I’ve always enjoyed a challenge and finding solutions to problems. When I was first learning the violin, I was in a class with people who had musical theory knowledge, but I came with zero. That same day, I went home and studied the notes. When I returned to class, I was able to keep up with the other students. When I entered talent shows with no experience, I pushed myself and practiced often to produce a high quality performance and win the shows. When I was the worst player on the soccer team, I kept practising and moved from the weakest member to becoming the captain. These attributes have helped me in my love for strategy development and built a strong resilience, so I do not get intimated by a problem. For instance, in my past work experiences, I have been tasked with transitioning the Faculty of Science from in person labs to online, transitioning first-year students from high school to university successfully and developing the first UW hackathon with a focus on plastic reduction. Sustainability is another passion of mine, especially in relation to the climate, energy, water and plastic owing to my upbringing on a small island where these issues are prevalent. Planning the hackathon with a strong sustainability focus accelerated my interest in this field. Since then, I’ve written a children’s book that teaches about marine plastic pollution and how children can help. I’ve also moderated a panel discussion for World Water Day with top North American environmental equity researchers and activists. Finally, I have a few more passions. I’m a huge animal lover probably because I grew up with 6 dogs! I also enjoy volunteering at events that encourage racialized communities to enter STEM fields and performing and teaching people how to play the violin.