Ecological restoration & geomatics · Banff

Nerd for hire.

Ecological restoration, vegetation monitoring, remote sensing and applied geomatics.

  • Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner
  • M.G.E.M., UBC Forestry
  • Transport Canada RPAS Advanced
  • 10+ years in the field
# yak.py
ecology   = {"restoration", "vegetation", "fieldwork"}
geomatics = {"maps", "data", "drones", "automation"}
niche     = ecology | geomatics

# questions first
project = scope(problem, using=niche)
deliver = {"plans", "reports", "tools", "answers"}
# one person, the whole picture

Services

Where I can help.

01 · Early guidance

Advisory

Advice, second opinions, and another experienced set of eyes when you don't need to hand over the whole project. I can help shape the approach, work through a problem with your team, or build capacity for next time.

More on Advisory →

02 · Design & approvals

Planning & Design

Restoration planning that starts with the site and what it will actually take to deliver the work. That can include revegetation plans, protocols, plant sourcing, and the technical pieces behind them.

More on Planning & Design →

03 · Field & evaluation

Assessment & Monitoring

Figure out what's there, what's changing, and whether it worked. I can take on the field assessment, the remote-sensing analysis, or build a monitoring approach that uses both.

More on Assessment & Monitoring →

04 · Geomatics & data

Geomatics, Data & Automation

Maps, analysis, remote sensing, data workflows, and small tools built around the problem you're actually trying to solve. Sometimes that's a one-off analysis; sometimes it's turning a repetitive process into something that runs itself.

Have data you want to use? →

Who I work with.

Environmental & construction firms

Fewer surprises between the bid and the sign-off.

Your team may already have the people and experience to deliver most of the project. I can step in when something falls outside the usual scope, whether that means bringing restoration experience to a challenging site or finding a better way to mobilize field data as it's collected.

Agencies & conservation organizations

Extra capacity without another project to manage.

High standards, limited staff time. Give me the problem or the idea and I can take on the work around it, whether that means getting out in the field, working through the data, or building the thing your team needs. I can carry it through without adding to your staff's workload.

Not one of these? Let's talk anyway.

Need some extra senior ecology or GIS capacity without another full-time position? I can plug into a single project or provide ongoing part-time support, whatever the season calls for.

How I work

On your team, not across the table.

One window.

One point of contact. Nothing gets lost in internal handoffs or translation. You're hiring me, and you work with me directly.

Questions first.

What's happening on the site, what information you already have, what useful data I can find elsewhere, which approvals matter, and what you need at the end. Then we scope the work.

The technical detail has to be usable.

I can handle the technical detail, but what comes back should make sense to the people who actually need to use it.

The answer isn't always yes.

If I don't think something is going to solve the problem, I'll say so. The goal is to make it better.

Services in detail

Fewer surprises later.

You need an expert in the room.

I can help work through the ecology, the approach, and what reviewers are likely to expect. I've spent years reviewing and delivering restoration plans from the land-manager side, so I know where questions tend to come up.

You want the capability in-house.

Advising, mentorship, and training for your staff, so the project team, agency, and contractor are working from the same page. The aim is that your people need me less next season, not more.

Examples

  • Design and approach review
  • Regulatory interpretation memo
  • Staff training and mentorship
  • Workshop facilitation

Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner (CERP).

Focus Areas

Focus Area · Vegetation Monitoring

See the whole site.
Check it on the ground.

Field ecology, satellite, drone and LiDAR all have a place. I use the mix that fits the question, then check what the data says against what's actually happening on the ground.

Aerial view of a recovering burned site, shifting from true colour into a vegetation index.

Scale

Right sensor, right scale

Field, satellite, drone or LiDAR, used where each actually adds something.

Measure

Metrics that mean something

Cover, composition, condition and change measured around the question you need answered.

Validate

Ground truth

Remote-sensing results checked against field observations, with unexpected patterns flagged for a closer look.

Applications

Restoration, wildfire and WRR, invasive vegetation, riparian and wetland recovery, and long-term landscape change.

Get in touch

Tell me about the project.

It doesn't need to be fully figured out. Send me the site, the issue, or the idea you're working through and I'll tell you if I think I can help.

Let's start with a call, or a walk if you're in the Bow Valley.

LinkedIn

Brian Yakiwchuk

Serving

Western Canada: field and restoration work
Remote: geomatics and data work