The Canadian Landmine Foundation (CLMF) would like to congratulate Karen Van Staveren on winning the 2018 Herb Epp Scholarship Award. Karen is a current MA student at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, a volunteer with a number of charitable organizations, and a former recipient of St. Jerome’s University’s prestigious Zach Ralston Award for academic excellence and community contributions.
Karen Van Staveren
A former chairman of the Canadian Landmine Foundation board, Herb Epp passed away in 2013. His professional career included terms as Mayor of Waterloo; a Liberal MPP; and a teacher and real estate agent. Working with family members and friends, the Foundation organized the Herb Epp Scholarship Award in memory of Herb, and continues to co-sponsor it in his honour.
The 2018 recipient, Karen, currently is writing a policy brief on the role of UN peacekeeping in the maintenance of human rights in refugee displacement camps. She will be travelling to Rome in July to present her paper at the 2018 annual meeting of the Academic Council on the UN System (ACUNS). Karen has an extensive history of volunteer involvement in the Waterloo-Kitchener region, and currently serves as a volunteer coach with SkateABLE, which provides one-on-one lessons and adaptive skating equipment for children with disabilities; an in-school mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters; and an English conversation facilitator with House of Friendship at the Chandler Mowat Community Centre in Kitchener.
Recently, Karen helped found the Waterloo chapter of Equal Voices, which seeks to achieve greater female participation at all levels of Canadian politics. Her goal after graduating from the Balsillie School Masters in International Public Policy is to pursue her career in policy development and analysis.
Congratulations, Karen; good luck in Rome!
