Ms. LeBlanc will use the funds to pursue her research in environmental selenium contamination, specifically looking for the presence of organic selenium in waters and sediments. “While concentrations of inorganic selenium in various environments have been well studied and documented,” noted Ms. LeBlanc in her scholarship application essay, “the distribution of organic selenium is not as thoroughly understood.” Ms. LeBlanc hopes her work will address what she feels is a critical information gap in the field.

Based on the strength of her application, Ms. LeBlanc, along with four other finalists, was invited to Toronto in February 2011, to be interviewed by the board of the A&WMA. “I feel that the whole application process was a great experience,” said Ms. LeBlanc. “Having met the other finalists I was able to see the wide array of research being conducted by other Ontario students in various environmental fields. All of the finalists were very deserving of the award, and I am honoured to have been chosen.”

According to Dr. Matthew Thompson, assistant professor with the Department of Chemistry, the scholarship is not only a testament to Ms. LeBlanc’s skills, but also to the strength of the Environmental Chemistry program at Trent. “Trent takes advantage of many of the resources, and interconnected aspects of the Chemistry Department and Environmental and Resource Sciences / Studies Program so that students studying Environmental Chemistry develop a wide range of skills. Many of the strongest students excel in this program due to their interest in the content and the relevance of the course material,” explained Professor Thompson.

Prof. Thompson also noted that the award is particularly timely in that it comes during the International Year of Chemistry (IYC 2011), a worldwide celebration of the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind. According to the ITC 2011 website, this year’s celebrations mark the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize awarded to Madame Marie Curie, and are an opportunity to recognize the contributions of women to science. IYC 2011 events aim to emphasize that chemistry is a creative science essential for sustainability and improvements to our way of life.

In addition to the scholarship, Ms. LeBlanc recently received honourable mention at the Southern Ontario Undergraduate Student Chemistry Conference (SOUSCC) in the category of Analytical & Environmental Chemistry for her talk, "Selenocyanate: Production by Green Algae and Analysis Using Molecular Mass Spectrometry". Ms. LeBlanc, who earned an Honours B.Sc. in Environmental Chemistry from Trent, will begin work on a M.Sc. in Trent’s Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Program (Trace Contaminant Toxicology and Chemistry specialization) under the guidance of Dr. Dirk Wallschläger this fall.

Ultimately she hopes to earn a doctorate in the field of trace contaminant toxicology and chemistry. Ms. LeBlanc says she hopes to contribute to the world’s understanding and view of the environment through the use of analytical chemistry. “Overall,” she explains, “I hope to help to bridge the gap between the scientific community and the population as a whole.”

The Air & Waste Management Association is a non-profit, non-partisan professional organization that enhances knowledge and expertise by providing a neutral forum for technology exchange, professional development, networking opportunities, public education, and outreach to more than 9000 environmental professionals in 65 countries. The scholarship is awarded to three full-time students at Ontario’s post-secondary institutions who are pursuing programs related to engineering or sciences.