Mary Ellen Macdonald, PhD is an anthropologist and Professor in Palliative Medicine at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She holds the J & W Murphy Foundation Endowed Chair in Palliative Care, with the mandate of contributing to palliative and end-of-life care research and practice across Nova Scotia and beyond. She has been researching death, dying, and bereavement for two decades and uses a public health framework to advance death and grief literacy. See her TEDx talk on ‘Grief, memory, and caring for the dead.’ She is co-founder of Grief Matters. More information on her research can be found here.

Franco A. Carnevale is a nurse, psychologist and clinical ethicist. He completed his undergraduate nursing degree, and three master’s degrees in nursing, education, and bioethics, as well as a doctorate in counseling psychology at McGill University. He also completed a master’s degree in philosophy at Université de Sherbrooke and a second doctorate in moral philosophy at Université Laval. In addition, he completed graduate studies in health law, anthropology, and cultural psychiatry. Dr. Carnevale’s primary research interests include a wide range of concerns in pediatric ethics. Dr. Carnevale is the founder and principal investigator for VOICE (i.e., Views On Interdisciplinary Childhood Ethics); a McGill-based international initiative to advance knowledge and practices relating to ethical concerns in childhood. Dr. Carnevale’s current academic appointments include (all at McGill University): Full Professor, Ingram School of Nursing; Associate Member, Faculty of Medicine (Pediatrics); Adjunct Professor, Counselling Psychology; Affiliate Member, Biomedical Ethics Unit. His clinical appointments include: Co-Chair of the Pediatric Ethics Committee, Nursing Advisor, and Associate Member of Pediatric Critical Care, all at the Montreal Children’s Hospital-McGill University Health Centre; as well as Clinical Ethicist for Child, Adolescent and Family Services at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute and Clinical Ethics Consultant at Le Phare, Enfants et Familles (pediatric hospice and respite care).

Susan Cadell research concerns positive aspects of stress and coping in various health situations, particularly posttraumatic growth. She is a member of several multidisciplinary research teams in grief and bereavement. Current research includes memorial tattoos and grief after an assisted death (Medical Assistance in Dying or MAiD). Past projects include posttraumatic growth in parents caring for a child with a life-limiting illness, couples coping with caregiving together as well as undertaking an exploration of family bereavement over time when a child dies. Susan was also a member of a team working to increase social work education in palliative care through the development of social work competencies. Susan has always been passionate about strengths in social work and human service. One strength that she has always recognized is spirituality. For some, this is the same as religion and for others, those are very different. However they are defined, they can be a source of power and strength and meaning for individuals. Since discovering the notions of the strengths perspective in social work practice and posttraumatic growth, she has dedicated her career in academia to examining the positive aspects of stressful experiences alongside the negatives. She has advocated for more inclusion of both grief and spirituality in social work practice and education. She is co-founder of Grief Matters.

Amarens Matthiesen (MA, PhD, CCLS) (she/her) is a Senior Research Associate bringing expertise in children’s rights, psychosocial healthcare, and qualitative research. She holds a PhD in Child and Youth Care from the University of Victoria where she is currently an Adjunct Assistant Professor. She is also a Certified Child Life Specialist and her research interests focus on children’s participation rights in healthcare decision-making, relational autonomy, pediatric palliative and end-of-life care, and youth engagement in research and policy. 

Hannah Crouse (she/they) is a PhD candidate in Sociology at Carleton University and a Research Assistant with the Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine Palliative Care Research Team. As a doctoral student, researcher, and previous 2S/LGBTQ+ Health Hub Fellow, her academic work often focuses on experiences of 2S/LGBTQ+ aging, dementia, care, and grief. Hannah is an involved community organizer and is an executive member of the Board of Directors at the Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC).

Lauren Delaney is a PhD candidate in the Health Quality program at Queen’s University and a Research Coordinator with the Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine Palliative Care Research Team. She specializes in participatory, ethics-informed research with children and youth in sensitive health and policy contexts. Her work focuses on public and community health, improving quality of care, amplifying potentially vulnerable voices, and translating lived experience into actionable policy and practice insights.

Sydney Campbell (MA, PhD) is Postdoctoral Fellow with developed expertise in health policy, qualitative methodologies, Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID), and participatory research with young people. She completed her PhD in Health Services Research in the Institute of Health Policy, Management & Evaluation at the University of Toronto, where her doctoral research focused on generating evidence to inform policy deliberations pertaining to MAID for mature minors in Canada. As a whole, Sydney’s work aims to conceptually and empirically advance perspectives on the meaningful engagement of young people in all matters affecting them, rethink policy action and analysis with a child-inclusive lens, and improve children’s overall health and well-being in several facets of their lives.

Ella Beatrice Doucet is an undergraduate student with a strong interest in health research and youth engagement. She has firsthand experience related to the focus of our research and has previously served on the IWK Youth Advisory Council. Through this role, she has developed a strong understanding of youth engagement practices within healthcare and research settings, as well as familiarity with the priorities and perspectives of young people interacting with health systems. This institutional knowledge is particularly valuable in  helping to inform project activities, support youth-centered approaches, and contribute to the development of knowledge translation and dissemination output.

Nika Rovensky is an undergraduate student at McGill University, majoring in Political Science and Russian Studies. As the Equity Commissioner for the Arts Undergraduates Society, she leads the development of equitable policies and training programs at McGill University. Nika serves on the Youth Advisory Panel for VOICE McGill, contributing youth perspectives to ongoing research addressing ethical issues affecting young people. Beyond research, Nika has several years of experience in food security initiatives. Most recently, she founded and directed the McGill Student Food Pantry, securing sustainable funding and policy support to advance food security amongst vulnerable students. Her primary interest is supporting immigrant and refugee youth, for which she received the Fulbright Canada Maple Leaf Foundation Community Action Grant to organize community events that strengthen ties within the  youth immigrant and refugee community in Coquitlam, BC.

Ryan Kent is a recent graduate of McGill University with a Bachelor’s in Honours Political Science and the 2026 Allen Oliver fellow for Political Science. As the co-founder and former president of the Quebec branch of the Young Politicians of Canada, he advocated for more youth representation in provincial politics. He also was a manager of interns and researcher at the Albert Einstein Institution, working alongside youth pro-democracy activists in highly repressive and authoritarian environments. Through various research projects and student initiatives, Ryan now wishes to continue amplifying and uplifting youth voices within the VOICE YAC. As part of the Death and Grief Research Collaborative, he is currently working on a project focusing on youth perspectives on end-of-life care and medical assistance in dying (MAID).