About
Elysia Glover. Photo by Lillie Louise Photography.
“Wendy’s enthusiasm meter.”
Elysia Glover
Elysia was born and raised in Victoria, BC, on the traditional and unceded territory of the Lekwungen peoples, today known as the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations, and on the traditional territories of the W̱SÁNEĆ First Nations: Tsartlip, Tseycum and Tsawout.
From Elysia:
For as early as I can remember, my mom modelled active empathy for the environment. We did not have much but were enriched by our time spent outdoors both on the island where we lived and in the Kootenays when we visited every summer.
When I was 12 or 13, my mom signed us up for Streamkeepers and we spent weekends in and around streams in the local watershed testing water quality, assessing riparian vegetation and doing benthic monitoring. While I was most excited about the cookies baked by the organizer (who turned out to be Mary Haig-Brown, daughter of renowned conservationist Roderick Haig-Brown), the connection between our health and the health of our environment was instilled through this experience, as too was the evidence that I could have a direct positive impact.
Later in high school I got involved in as many civic activities as my schedule could hold to fill. This led me to a life-changing opportunity to finish high school at the United World College of Southeast Asia which in turn led me to a year of service in Cambodia teaching English enrichment and contributing to the Cambodian Paralegal Manual as an intern. Driven to understand how people learn and what barriers interrupt a person’s potential, I went on to Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY to study education, political science and urban studies (with a focus on political economy and geography). I’d had every intention to stay in the states and teach but fate intervened and I returned to Canada to start a different path.
Connecting with Wendy and being invited to support the development of this website was a gift delivered with uncanny timing. I am a renter and I love following the restoration of old houses and how they are brought back to life in ways that reflect the owners personality, taste and values.
It is delightful to be privy to Wendy's relentless curiosity for the interacting challenges of design and function and her passion to share the story of this house to spark others to act however they can. I look forward to continuing to support this work as the project continues.