Winnie-May is a multidisciplinary scientist, circular economy strategist, and a lifelong student of nature. She is the Circularity Specialist at FTA, and leads their latest initiative, the Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium (CCTC). Winnie-May brings over 9 years of experience in academia, apparel, and nonprofit sectors across Europe and North America. She is driven by the intersection of innovation and sustainability, and has worked on global systems change initiatives that explore material flow and end of life pathways for post-consumer textiles, as well as projects in the next-gen material space in both the apparel and packaging industries. Prior to this, Winnie-May was an Earth Scientist, and studied groundwater conditions in response to climate cycles in the Yucatan Peninsula, as well as the impacts of coastal evolution on ancient Mediterranean ports, with the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). She graduated Summa Cum Laude from McMaster University, and holds an MSc in Earth and Environmental Sciences at McMaster’s School of Earth, Environment, and Society (SEES).

Some of her current interests include bio-inspired systems design, material innovation, and nature-based solutions. Winnie-May is an avid rock climber and novice mushroom forager. She enjoys being outdoors and teaching her niece and nephews about the local fossil record, and the importance of biodiversity and nutrient cycling (and has a habit of joyously identifying rocks during a hike or climb).