Angela McIsaac

About me

I was born/grew up in: Orillia, ON, Canada

I now live in: London, ON, Canada

I completed my training/education at: Bachelor of Applied Science and a Master’s of Applied Science from the University of Waterloo

What I do at work

I track the toxic substances that are used, released, sent out as waste, or recycled at our site. I also track the amount of water and energy we use. I keep track of the greenhouse gasses we produce as well as the waste we produce. I report on these measurements quarterly. A big part of my job is to increase sustainability at our site.

3M is making changes to reduce the negative effects on the environment. We are also doing things to make our facility more sustainable. I work with product engineers and chemists to try to improve these measurements anyway we can. While a change may be better for the environment, it must be practical from the financial side. In addition, these changes must still allow us to produce a high-quality product. These types of problems can be challenging and fun to solve.

My career path is

I received a Bachelor of Applied Science and a Master’s of Applied Science from the University of Waterloo. I did a co-op program which exposed me to a number of career paths in environmental engineering. I really enjoyed working in industry and knew that this was the path I wanted to take.

I am motivated by

By reducing waste, emissions, and the amount of chemicals we use I believe I am making a difference. Reducing the company’s environmental footprint is very rewarding. There are always ways a company can improve its environmental footprint. Helping figure out solutions to environmental problems is one of the best parts of my job. It is challenging and fulfilling.

How I affect peoples’ lives

My job role involves a lot of reporting. I model emissions at the site in order to ensure at our property line we are meeting government requirements and ensuring our site is not having negative effects on public health. I also sample water outfalls for the same requirements.

Outside of work I

I have always been very active. I love to play all sports and was a competitive swimmer and swam varsity in University.

My advice to others

A co-op program is great. If your program provides this option, I would highly recommend it. I graduated with 2 years of work experience, no student debt and a lot of contacts. Also I was able to test out jobs for 4 month periods to see what I liked and didn’t like and use that knowledge when looking for a career down the road.