International student Zebang Wei switched programs from geography to global environmental systems when he discovered that SFU was introducing a bachelor of environment program (sfu.ca)  in January 2015.

Today, he is the first person in Canada to graduate with this new degree, which is only offered at SFU.

“The B.Env. is a combination of both art and science courses,” says Wei, who came to Canada in 2011 to study at SFU.

“It covers science fundamentals as well as methodologies and problem-solving that can be applied in the real-world in resource management.”

Wei didn’t give up his interest in geography, however. He completed a certificate program in Spatial Information Systems (sfu.ca)  (SIS) in addition to the B.Env.

For his capstone SIS certificate he developed a multi-phased fire-development model that predicts in which direction a wildfire will spread. He hopes it will prove beneficial for forest firefighters.

Wei next plans to pursue a master’s in physical geography and, after several years of work experience, establish a career in the environmental field.

Read more B.C. post-secondary student success stories.